This paper presents design and implementation of a robot end-effector to perform sequentially automatic needle intervention and functional test for the robot prototype. In order to combine robot technology with needle interventions represented by biop...
This paper presents design and implementation of a robot end-effector to perform sequentially automatic needle intervention and functional test for the robot prototype. In order to combine robot technology with needle interventions represented by biopsy and high radiofrequency ablation, design requirements required to automate all the procedure in intervention are proposed and each component that satisfies the requirements is designed. Therefore, the end-effector consists of three components: needle cartridge, needle driving unit, and pivot mechanism. The needle cartridge loads an introducer and several biopsy needles for multiple sampling and can rotate needles. The needle driving unit is connected to the cartridge and controls insertion and retreat of the needles. The pivot mechanism rotates two other components and controls the pose of the needle for insertion. Using this concept, the components were modeled and a prototype was made. To verify the functionality of the end-effector prototype, a test bed which consists of a master device and motor controller was implemented and each function of the end-effector was tested.