GPS Like Systems for Flexible Medical Robots.

Today’s world is known as the world of technology. In this modern age, all areas have changed a lot in terms of technology and advancement, technology has given a new perspective on life to human beings, and technology has made human life much easier. Engineers are constantly contributing to different fields to make human life easier and happier.

There is a growing need for state-of-the-art equipment for operations in the medical field. Engineers have developed a new technology to solve such a problem. This technology works like GPS. Tania Morimoto, a mechanical engineering professor, and Connor Watson a Ph.D. student at the Jacob School of Engineering at UC San Diego developed this technology.

Morimoto believes that continuum medical robots can work very well in a constrained environment, They are very safe and easy to use than rigid tools. But after entering the body, it is challenging to track their location and know their shape. And if we can track their location, it will be an added advantage for the doctor and the patient. A magnet embedded in the tip of the robot can be used in delicate places in the body, such as the Sinoatrial node and Atrioventricular Node in the heart. We are working with optimizing the robots, which are made of very thin nylon that we invert, almost like a sock, and pressurize with a fluid which causes the robot to grow,” Watson said.

As GPS RECEIVER traces the location of the smartphone and determines where the smartphone is located. Similarly, researchers used existing magnet localization methods that work like GPS, with a computer system that detects the location of the robot.

In this system, four sensors are spaced around the area where the magnetic field strength is to be measured. Researchers know the amount of magnetic field required around the robot embedded with the magnet. Based on the intensity and strength of the magnetic field, researchers get to know the exact location of the robot. The system consists of a robot, magnets, and a magnet localization system that costs around $100 in total.

With further Neural Network Analysis, Morimoto and Watson get to know how sensors respond and what should be the response of the sensor to the location of the robot. This analysis helps increase the accuracy of the locations of the robot’s tip.