Force Sensing and Force Control for Surgical Robots

Surgical robotics is one of the most dynamically developing areas of biomedical engineering. In the past few decades, Computer Integrated Interventional Medicine has gained significance internationally in the field of surgical procedures. More recently, mechatronic devices have been used for prostatectomy, neurosurgery, nephrectomy, cholecystectomy, orthopedics and radiosurgery. The paper both introduces surgical robotics and the basics of force control. It also provides a review on the different algorithms and control paradigms developed for interventional systems. The application of force sensors and force based control algorithms gives a natural extension to these systems allowing for higher quality human-machine interaction, more realistic sensory feedback and telepresence. Precise and effective control of robotic devices in a changing environment can be realized with force control. Beyond, it can apply important safety features. Different methods are presented to overcome the physical limitations of instrument sensorization, and force control algorithms tailored to medical robotic applications.