Page 335 - Flexible Robotics in Medicine

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Design evolution of a flexible robotic bending end-effector for transluminal explorations 325

BEE is also designed to be disposable, as it is a primarily home-based device. This is the
reason for the easy-to-assemble modular design of the flexible tip. Being disposable after a
single use will definitively prevent issues of hygiene and possible cross-contamination
between users. This BEE is intended for in vivo thorough surveillance of the
nasopharyngeal cavity. It is for short-term insertion into the nasopharynx just for
surveillance. BEE allows translational and two-plane bending motion, hence resulting in a
wide-angle view of the whole nasopharynx. The insertion of BEE into the nasopharyngeal
cavity is effortless, as the device is completely motorized.

Thefuture-workingmodeofBEE couldbefully automated. The fully automated system
will be able to decrease the amount of control required by the user. We have left this
for the futuristic idea because there are still various dilemmas for fully automated
technology. One of the main concerns of fully automating the endoscope is a situation
when a patient is injured by the endoscope. One possible solution to such an issue is to
design an intelligent system, which can detect imminent danger and stop the system
immediately.

References

[1] WebMD Cancer Health Centre, Nasopharyngeal cancer, 2014.
[2] A. Baharudin, A. Azila, H. Shahid, Challenges in management of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a review,
Malays. J. Med. Sci. 16 (2009) 50 54.
[3] American Cancer Society, Survival rates for nasopharyngeal cancer by stage, 2013.
[4] T. Balasubramanian, Nasopharyngeal carcinoma, 2008.
[5] Olympus, Small diameter borescopes. ,http://www.olympus-ims.com/en/small-diameter-borescopes-x-
series/., n.d.
[6] Ecleris, Rigid and flexible laryngoscopes, 2011.