Capsule endoscopy of the future: What's on the horizon?

Capsule endoscopes have evolved from passively moving diagnostic devices to actively moving systems with potential therapeutic capability. In this review, we will discuss the state of the art, define the current shortcomings of capsule endoscopy, and address research areas that aim to overcome said shortcomings. Developments in capsule mobility schemes are emphasized in this text, with magnetic actuation being the most promising endeavor. Research groups are working to integrate sensor data and fuse it with robotic control to outperform today's standard invasive procedures, but in a less intrusive manner. With recent advances in areas such as mobility, drug delivery, and therapeutics, we foresee a translation of interventional capsule technology from the bench-top to the clinical setting within the next 10 years

A Soft Pneumatic Inchworm Double balloon (SPID) for colonoscopy

The design of a smart robot for colonoscopy is challenging because of the limited available space, slippery internal surfaces, and tortuous 3D shape of the human colon. Locomotion forces applied by an endoscopic robot may damage the colonic wall and/or cause pain and discomfort to patients. This study reports a Soft Pneumatic Inchworm Double balloon (SPID) mini-robot for colonoscopy consisting of two balloons connected by a 3 degrees of freedom soft pneumatic actuator. SPID has an external diameter of 18 mm, a total length of 60 mm, and weighs 10 g. The balloons provide anchorage into the colonic wall for a bio-inspired inchworm locomotion. The proposed design reduces the pressure applied to the colonic wall and consequently pain and discomfort during the procedure. The mini-robot has been tested in a deformable plastic colon phantom of similar shape and dimensions to the human anatomy, exhibiting efficient locomotion by its ability to deform and negotiate flexures and bends. The mini-robot is made of elastomer and constructed from 3D printed components, hence with low production costs essential for a disposable device

Needle and Biopsy Robots: a Review

Purpose of the review Robotics is a rapidly advancing field, and its introduction in healthcare can have a multitude of benefits for clinical practice. Especially, applications depending on the radiologist\u2019s accuracy and precision, such as percutaneous interventions, may profit. This paper provides an overview of recent robot-assisted percutaneous solutions. Recent findings Percutaneous interventions are relatively simple and the quality of the procedure increases a lot by introducing robotics due to the improved accuracy and precision. The success of the procedure is heavily dependent on the ability to merge pre- and intraoperative images, as an accurate estimation of the current target location allows to exploit the robot\u2019s capabilities. Summary Despite much research, the application of robotics in some branches of healthcare is not commonplace yet. Recent advances in percutaneous robotic solutions and imaging are highlighted, as they will pave the way to more widespread implementation of robotics in clinical practic

Design, Fabrication and Control of a Magnetic Capsule Robot for the Human Esophagus

Biomedical engineering is the application of engineering principles and techniques to the medical field. It combines the design and problem solving skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve healthcare diagnosis and treatment. As the result of improvements in robotics and micro technology science in the 20th century, micro electromechanical system technology has joined with medical applications which results in micro robotic medical applications. Drug delivery is one of the most important and controversial topics which scientists and engineers have tried to improve in medical applications. For diseases like cancer, localized drug delivery is a highlight target involving bombarding a small area of a human’s body and this technology has not been completely achieved yet. The ultimate objective of this thesis is the development of wireless capsule robot controlled by a magnetic drive unit. A magnetic drive unit is a system that consists of electromagnets, which produce the magnetic field from outside of the patient’s body. The capsule robot, which is the slave robot in the system, moves inside a human’s gastrointestinal tract. This project is focused mainly on a human esophagus and all the experiments are done in a prototype of the human’s esophagus. Drug delivery for diseases like cancer is the objective of the capsule robot. The proposed design consists of a slave permanent magnet for the motion of capsule robot in a tube, a reservoir of drug, and a micro mechanical mechanism for drug release. The capsule robot is fabricated and developed in a 12mm length and 5mm diameter with the weight of 1.78 grams without the built-in permanent magnet. The drug delivery system is a semi-magnetized system, which can be controlled by an external magnetic field. It consists of a mechanical plunger and spring, which can be open and close through an external magnetic field manipulation. The amount of drug for a desired location can be controlled by manipulating the external magnetic field. To achieve this target, analytical modeling is conducted. A numerical simulation and an experimental setup demonstrate that a capsule robot in a human esophagus in a simple and multi channel system. Horizontal control is set for the capsule robot, using a custom-designed controller and a colored liquid is released with the external magnetic field. The present study with its fabricated prototype is a research is this area to prove the concept of wireless control of a robot inside a human body and the potential for a drug delivery system. It is expected that the results achieved in this project will help realize and promote capsule robot for medical treatments