This project is a collaboration between the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the National University of Singapore, the Hand and Reconstructive Microsurgery Department (LIM Beng Hai) of the National University Hospital, Singapore.
Before even
addressing specific surgical techniques, the microsurgeon in training is faced
with two new demands. One is to make very small, very delicate motions: the
other is to coordinate these, and control them, with a much expanded view. There
is a greatly changed correspondence between what the eye sees, and what the hand
does, thus the trainee must repeat
learning done in childhood. With a Virtual Reality trainer, dexterity can be
measured: the motions of the tool in the user's hand are recorded, and errors
quantified. The results go instantly to the trainee, through either vision or
force feedback. This project
is creating a microsurgery
training system. Our focus is not on providing photographic
reality, but on using appropriate haptic, visual and audio cues to
facilitate and fasten learning.
In future, current microsurgery training on rats (left) could be completed by training on a VR workstation (right)
Collaborators (alphabetical order): Etienne BURDET, Ankur DHANIK, Roger GASSERT, LIM Beng Hai, LIM Kian Meng, James RAPHEL, Tim POSTON, TEE Keng Peng, TEO Chee Leong, TEO Cheng Yong William, Fei WANG.
Reference
KM Lim, T Poston, L Zhang, BF Liu, CL Teo and E Burdet (2002),
"Multi-scale simulation for a robotic surgical trainer." International
Conference on Biomedical Engineering (ICBME).
F. Wang, T. Poston, KM. Lim, CL Teo, E.
Burdet, "Multisensory learning cues using analytical collision detection between
a needle and a tube", IEEE Virtual Reality 2004 Conference, in press.
KM Lim, F. Wang, T. Poston, L. Zhang, CL
Teo, E. Burdet, "Multi-Scale Simulation For Microsurgery Trainer", 2004 IEEE
International Conference on Robotics and Automation, in press.
E. Burdet, R Gassert, F. Mani, F. Wang, CL Teo, H. Bleuler, "Design of a haptic forceps for microsurgery training", Eurohaptics, 2004, submitted.
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April 2003, by E. Burdet