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Executive Summary
Surgical robots have gained popularity
recently due to the introduction of robots that can perform minimal
invasive procedures as well as surgeries from remote locations. The
primary goal of this project is to develop a low cost tele-surgical
robot and simulator for training of physicians. The basic requirement
for such a project in Pakistan is to develop an environment where robots
can be utilized in the field of medicine to perform minimally invasive
surgeries. Such robots are usually not easy to use in the beginning as
they require extensive hands-on training before being used on actual
human patients. Therefore training systems and simulators are required
that can provide the surgeons with enough expertise before any real life
surgical operation.
This project aims to develop a
training system consisting of a Surgical Training Robot and a Simulator.
This training system will initially serve the means to develop an
environment where surgeons will become experienced with the use of
robots for surgeries. As a first step skills will be acquired in this
field by surgeons through training in MIS and by ICT experts through
designing and developing robots and software in this field. Accordingly
human resource and support systems to perform minimal invasive surgery
procedures from remote locations in Pakistan will be created.
The proposed robot will be a
combination of hardware and software systems, utilizing skills and
techniques in areas of robotics, image processing, computer game
development and control systems. The simulator will be developed using
open source technology used in game development, while the hardware of
the training robot will be developed using parts that are easily
available off the shelf. This will be an integration of different
technologies in the area of robotics and software development. One of
its advantages will be its user friendly application software and it’s
easy to use hardware controls. Both these features shall help in
trainees getting used to the system more easily and in quick time rather
than handling difficult and hard to remember controls.
The simulator will run in two modes;
Offline mode and online mode. In offline mode it will only act as a
simulator by displaying a virtual environment with 3-d images of organs
and operational procedures. Online mode will allow the user to control
an actual robot while the real imagery will be displayed from the
robotic image acquisition device. Online mode could be used with the
robot in close proximity or at a remote location.
The main value proposition of this
project is that by creating synergy between knowledge of expert
surgeons, expert computer engineers and low cost hardware components
created for video gaming industry extremely valuable training systems
for minimal invasive surgery can be created in the short term. This
expertise can be further nurtured to develop high quality minimal
invasive surgery systems in Pakistan at low cost and deploy these
systems throughout Pakistan thus creating an ecosystem that improves
health care while generating significant R&D activities, foster
innovation, create job opportunities and lead to wealth generation.
The key benefits of this project are
given below:
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A low
cost simulator and training robot will allow the development of
quality human resource and set the precedent for development of
robotics in the health sector in Pakistan.
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The
robotic system being developed focuses on intelligent software
technology for control of the robotic system rather than developing
expensive hardware, making it cheap to develop at the same time not
compromising on precision and accuracy.
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Once
these training robots are deployed at rural and urban training
centers, surgeons can acquire robotic and laparoscopic surgical
skills in their hometowns instead of moving to urban areas.
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These
surgeons are trained they can work in their own rural areas, solving
the problem of unavailability skilled doctors in rural areas.
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