title: Towards image guided robotic surgery: multi-arm tracking through hybrid localization.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Use of the robotic assisted surgery has been increasing in recent years, due both the continuous increase in the number of applications and the clinical benefits that surgical robots can provide. Currently robotic assisted surgery relies on endoscopic video for navigation, providing only surface visualization, thus limiting subsurface vision. To be able to visualize and identify subsurface information, techniques in image-guidance can be used. As part of designing an image guidance system, all arms of the robot need to be co-localized in a common coordinate system.
  
  
  METHODS
  In order to track multiple arms in a common coordinate space, intrinsic and extrinsic tracking methods can be used. First, the intrinsic tracking of the daVinci, specifically of the setup joints is analyzed. Because of the inadequacy of the setup joints for co-localization a hybrid tracking method is designed and implemented to mitigate the inaccuracy of the setup joints. Different both optical and magnetic tracking methods are examined for setup joint localization.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The hybrid localization method improved the localization accuracy of the setup joints. The inter-arm accuracy in hybrid localization was improved to 3.02 mm. This inter-arm error value was shown to be further reduced when the arms are co-registered, thus reducing common error.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA. kwartowitz.david@mayo.edu
authors.forename: David Morgan
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Kwartowitz
authors.forename: Michael I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Miga
authors.forename: S Duke
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Herrell
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Galloway
mesh_terms: D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D008280:Magnetics; D009873:Operating Rooms; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012371:Robotics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative / Q000379:methods*