Abstract
Simulators have been traditionally used for centuries during medical gestures training. Nowadays, mechatronic technologies have opened the way to more evolved solutions enabling objective assessment and dedicated pedagogic scenarios. Trainees can now practice in virtual environments representing various kind of patient and body parts including physio-pathologies issues. Gestures, to be mastered, vary according to each medical specialty (e.g., ultrasound probe orientations, or forceps installation during assisted delivery). Hence, medical students need kinesthetic feedback in order to significantly improve their learning capabilities. Gesture simulators require haptic devices with variable stiffness actuators. Existing solutions do not always fit the requirements because of their significant size. Contrary to electric actuators, pneumatic technology is low-cost, available off-the-shelf and offers a better mass–power ratio. However, it presents two main drawbacks: nonlinear dynamics and need for a compressed air supply. During the last decade, we have developed several haptic solutions based on pneumatic actuation (e.g., birth simulator, epidural needle insertion simulator) and, recently, in a joint venture with Prisme laboratory, a pneumatic probe master device for remote ultrasonography. This paper recalls literature scientific approaches on pneumatic actuation developed in the medical context and illustrated with the aforementioned applications to highlight the benefits.
Highlights
Simulators have been traditionally used for centuries during medical training as trainees have to improve their skills before practicing on a real patient
These medical gestures require a haptic device based on a variable rendered stiffness device, commonly called Variable Stiffness Actuator—Variable Stiffness Actuators (VSA)) that has been suggested in the literature [10,11,12]
We recalled the properties of such actuators versus classical electric ones, and highlighted their interest for rendering haptic feedback, when controlled with advanced nonlinear control laws such as the one depicted in Section 2, in order to make them act as Variable Stiffness Actuators
Summary
Simulators have been traditionally used for centuries during medical training as trainees have to improve their skills before practicing on a real patient. Trainees can practice in virtual environments on numerous body parts, including current and rare pathologies, for various kinds of patient (slim, elderly...) With these simulators, trainees can repeat a procedure several times without getting short of supplies (as it is the case of surgery on corpses), get prompt and objective feedback from the simulator, and determine which skills need to be improved [5]. Gestures to acquire vary according to medical specialty: ultrasound probe orientations, needle insertion in rheumatology or anesthesia, and forceps installation during assisted delivery These medical gestures require a haptic device based on a variable rendered stiffness device, commonly called Variable Stiffness Actuator—VSA) that has been suggested in the literature [10,11,12].
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