Robotic assistance for spine interventions

In this work, we present the integration of an off-the-shelf light-weight robot into the workflow of image-guided spine interventions, which have high precision requirements due to nearby risk structures. Furthermore, the surgeon stays under considerable physical stress during these interventions and is directly exposed to radiation emitted from the imaging system. Therefore, the potential of an assistant robot to reduce the given stress factors is examined. We present work in progress methods and technologies to ensure safe human-robot interaction and describe the implemented control strategies. In addition, we evaluate the developed system through first experiments integrating the system into an angiography lab. These experiments indicate improvements in precision, ergonomics and radiation hygiene with minimal overhead compared to conventional image-guided spine interventions.