Application of tactile sensing in human-computer interaction in robot-assisted surgery and medical fields

Abstract

Robot-assisted Minimally Invasive Surgery (RMIS) is a revolutionary breakthrough in the field of surgery in 21st-century clinical medicine, and in recent years it has become the standard of care in Western medicine. It makes highly accurate medical operations possible based on the advantages of traditional minimally invasive surgery, such as reducing patient trauma and accelerating post-operative healing. However, the most advanced robotic-assisted surgical systems available on the market, as exemplified by the da Vinci system, are still not equipped with tactile receptors. In recent years, scientists and engineers have come up with different techniques and ideas, including various forms of tactile sensors, to improve the quality of the process. In this paper, the sensor devices that can be used for RMIS are classified into six different types based on their structural characteristics, and typical examples of them are listed. For some of the sensing structures that are only in the theoretical stage, inferences and explanations are given based on references. And the application directions are summarized as tactile diagnosis and operator sensing. Research in the last decade in both areas of sensing technology is summarized and outlined respectively.