Movable surgical mounting platform controlled by manual motion of robotic arms

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9259281-B2
Application number	US-201313967573-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 15, 2013
Priority date	Aug 15, 2012
Publication date	Feb 16, 2016
Grant date	Feb 16, 2016

Abstract

Robotic and/or surgical devices, systems, and methods include kinematic linkage structures and associated control systems configured to facilitate preparation of the system for use. One or more kinematic linkage sub-systems may include joints that are actively driven, passive, or a mix of both, and may employ a set-up mode in which one or more of the joints are actively driven in response to manual articulation of one or more other joints of the kinematic chain. In an exemplary embodiment, the actively driven joints will move a platform structure that supports multiple manipulators in response to movement of one of the manipulators, facilitating and expediting the arrangement of the overall system by moving those multiple manipulators as a unit into alignment with the workspace. Manual independent positioning of the manipulator can be provided through passive set-up joint systems supporting the manipulators relative to the platform.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for preparing for robotic surgery, the method comprising:
sensing a movement of a set-up joint linkage supporting a first manipulator to within a threshold of a range of motion limit of the set-up joint linkage, the threshold of the range of motion limit of the set-up joint linkage being less than a total range of motion of the set-up joint linkage;
entering a platform movement mode after sensing movement of the set-up joint linkage to within the threshold of the range of motion limit of the set-up joint linkage;
after entering the platform movement mode, sensing an input displacement of a first link of the first manipulator from an initial positional relationship relative to an orienting platform to a displaced positional relationship relative to the orienting platform, the input displacement resulting from a manual articulation of the set-up joint linkage supporting the first manipulator so that the first link moves toward a desired position with a surgical site;
calculating a movement of a set-up structure linkage in response to the input displacement so that the first link of the first manipulator returns toward the initial positional relationship relative to orienting platform, the set-up structure linkage supporting the orienting platform and the orienting platform supporting the first manipulator via the set-up joint linkage;
driving the set-up structure linkage per the calculated movement.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising maintaining a fixed pose of the first manipulator during the input displacement so that the first manipulator moves as a substantially solid body.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the set-up structure is driven while a user manually moves the first link toward the desired position with the surgical site.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first link has a preferred positional relationship relative to the orienting platform prior to the manual movement, the calculated movement of the set-up structure linkage moving the orienting platform so as to return toward the preferred positional relationship during the manual movement.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the preferred positional relationship helps maintain a desired range of motion of the first manipulator relative to the orienting platform.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the movement of the set-up structure linkage is calculated using a velocity of the first link relative to the orienting platform during the input displacement, and wherein the driving of the set-up structure linkage diminishes the velocity.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the velocity of the first link relative to the orienting platform exceeds a saturation threshold, and wherein the driving of the set-up structure reduces the velocity of the first link relative to the orienting platform by the saturation threshold.

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein the velocity of the first link relative to the orienting platform moves the set-up structure toward an undesirable motion-limiting configuration of a set-up joint linkage between the manipulator and the orienting platform, and wherein the movement of the set up structure is calculated so as to resiliently urge the set-up structure away from the undesirable configuration.

9. A method for preparing for robotic surgery, the method comprising:
sensing an input displacement of a first link of a first robotic manipulator from an initial positional relationship relative to an orienting platform to a displaced positional relationship relative to the orienting platform, the input displacement resulting from a manual articulation of a set-up joint linkage supporting the first manipulator so that the first link moves toward a desired position with a surgical site;
calculating a movement of a set-up structure linkage in response to the input displacement so that the first link of the first manipulator returns toward the initial positional relationship relative to orienting platform, the set-up structure linkage supporting the orienting platform and the orienting platform supporting the first manipulator via the set-up joint linkage and a second manipulator;
driving the set-up structure linkage per the calculated movement;
wherein each of the manipulators includes an instrument holder and is configured to support an associated surgical instrument mounted to the instrument holder relative to a manipulator base, insert the associated surgical instrument along an insertion axis into a patient through an associated remote center of manipulation (RC), rotate the instrument holder around a first manipulator axis that intersects the associated RC, and rotate the instrument holder around a second manipulator axis that intersects the associated RC, each of the first and second manipulator axes being transverse to the insertion axis, the second manipulator axis being transverse to the first manipulator axis;
wherein the set-up structure linkage comprises:
a mounting base;
a column selectively positionable relative to the mounting base along a first support axis that is vertically oriented;
a member rotationally coupled to the column to selectively orient the member relative to the column around a second support axis that is vertically oriented;
an extendable boom slideably coupled with the member to selectively position the extendable boom relative to the member along a third support axis that is horizontally oriented, the orienting platform being rotationally coupled to the extendable boom member; and
wherein the first link comprises or is adjacent the holder, wherein the calculated movement comprises a movement of a plurality of joints of the set-up structure linkage, and wherein the plurality of joints are driven per the calculated movement.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the manual movement comprises positioning the associated first RC of the first manipulator with a desired first RC of the surgical site, and wherein the driven movement of the set-up structure linkage moves the associated RC of the second manipulator toward an a second desired RC of the surgical site.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the manipulator has an orienting platform movement input mounted adjacent the first link, the movement input normally in a first state and manually actuatable to a second state, and wherein the orienting platform does not move in response to movement of the first link when the movement input is in the first state.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising mounting a cannula to the first manipulator after the manual movement and inhibiting movement of the orienting platform in response to the mounting of the cannula, wherein the cannula is configured to provide access therethrough to an internal surgical site for a surgical instrument supported by the first manipulator.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising inhibiting movement along joints of the set-up structure linkage with associated joint brakes in response to the movement input being in the first state or in response to the cannula being mounted to the first manipulator.

14. A method for preparing for robotic surgery, the method comprising:
sensing a movement of a set-up joint linkage supporting a first manipulator to within a threshold of a range of motion limit of the set-up joint linkage, the threshold of the range of motion limit of the set-up joint linkage being less than a total range of motion of the set-up joint linkage;
entering a platform movement mode after sensing movement of the set-up joint linkage to within the threshold of the range of motion limit of the set-up joint linkage;
after entering the platform moveme

Assignees

• Intuitive Surgical Operations

Inventors

• Griffiths Paul
• Mohr Paul
• Swarup Nitish
• Costa Michael
• Larkin David
• Cooper Thomas
• Hanuschik Michael

Classifications

• A61B34/32

  operating autonomously · CPC title

• A61B90/50

  Supports for surgical instruments, e.g. articulated arms · CPC title

• A61B34/70 Primary

  Manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery · CPC title

• A61B2090/508

  with releasable brake mechanisms · CPC title

• Y10S901/02

  Arm motion controller · CPC title