Design, simulation and first test of an automatic suturing device coupled to a robot

Résumé

Objective: Robotic assistants are becoming a very helpful tool for surgeons. As for the suturing procedure, several commercial devices assist the physician in suturing. However, such devices have not yet been coupled to a robot assistant in order to perform sutures fully automatically. This could contribute to a procedure that is often routinely performed but requires time and dexterity. Materials and methods: This article presents the adaptation of a commercial manual suture gripper, the Medtronic Endo Stitch, to a Universal Robots UR3 robot. The gripper was modeled in SolidWorks, as well as a motorized coupling device, which were simulated in CoppeliaSim. Once its proper functioning was verified, the device was fabricated in a 3D printer and coupled to a UR3 robot, then its operation was tested in the tracking of a suture trajectory with displacement. Results: The trajectories planned in Matlab are sent to the UR3 robot via ROS. It was possible to verify the good performance of the suture movement with displacement, carried out by the printed device and by the Endo Stitich gripper. The opening and closing of the gripper was also obtained under the action of the motors included in the device. Conclusions: The motorized device together with the Endo Stitch gripper, coupled to the UR3 robot, is capable of following the trajectories required for automatic suturing. Future work will test suturing with thread on a test phantom in order to measure its true potential for automatic suturing.