Page 407 - Flexible Robotics in Medicine

CHAPTER 18

EndoGoose: a flexible and steerable

endoscopic forceps with actively

pose-retaining bendable sections

Liting Pang, Ngu Tzce Chuing, Joyce Yeo Ling Li, Joe Tan Wei Wen,
Dinesh Manivannan, Manivannan Sivaperuman Kalairaj and Hongliang Ren
Department of Biomedical Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Biopsy samples are removed by inserting an endoscopic accessory. The current passive
biopsy forceps have limited controllable bending movement. There is a need for actively
bendable forceps for biopsy, with a more excellent range of motion to navigate small corners
with spatial constraints within the narrow anatomic region. EndoGoose, a flexible biopsy
forceps, is conceptualized in conjunction with existing endoscopes to perform actively
steerable biopsies. The flexible biopsy tool system for an endoscope comprises a bendable
gooseneck section, forceps, and control box. The gooseneck is used to maintain the position
of the forceps after the desired position is attained from active steering. It provides the
rigidity when it is being pushed out of the endoscopes. It can withstand forces of gravity
acting on the distal end, long enough for the biopsy sample to be grasped, without the need to
continue applying a force from the proximal end to retain the position of the forceps. The
standards and requirements are in regard to the operator’s needs. Metrics benchmarking and
functional specifications highlight the capabilities and how the operator can interact with it.
The acceptance criteria ensure the prototype is safe and effective for use.

18.1 Introduction

Forceps are used as a minimally invasive diagnostic tool that can be performed with either
a rigid or flexible endoscope [1 3]. A flexible forceps is inserted through the endoscope to
grasp and remove a sample from the tissue of interest. The process of conducting a biopsy
has been a challenging task [4 8] due to navigation and the removal of the tissue. Flexible
forceps without an active steering mechanism lead to inconvenience in obtaining a sample
from a tissue of interest that is not precisely at the distal end of the endoscope (Fig. 18.1)
[2]. Currently, only the endoscopes have dynamic bending capabilities whereby the distal

Flexible Robotics in Medicine.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-817595-8.00019-5 401
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