Data processing: generic control systems or specific application – Specific application – apparatus or process – Robot control
Reexamination Certificate
2001-12-18
2002-10-22
Cuchlinski, Jr., William A. (Department: 3661)
Data processing: generic control systems or specific application
Specific application, apparatus or process
Robot control
C700S245000, C700S251000, C700S257000, C700S259000, C700S258000, C700S264000, C600S101000, C600S102000, C600S117000, C600S118000, C600S429000, C600S595000, C600S126000, C606S001000, C606S116000, C606S019000, C606S130000, C606S139000, C606S046000, C606S205000, C414S001000, C414S002000, C701S023000, C345S157000, C901S008000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06470236
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a manipulator system, a method for controlling a manipulator, a master manipulator, a method for controlling a master manipulator, a slave manipulator, a method for controlling a slave manipulator, and a storage medium. More particularly, the present invention relates to a manipulator system, a method for controlling a manipulator, a master manipulator, a method for controlling a master manipulator, a slave manipulator, a method for controlling a slave manipulator, and a storage medium, which allow the slave manipulator to be remotely controlled in an easy and accurate fashion.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1
illustrates the outer appearance of a conventional medical operation manipulator system.
A slave manipulator
3
L and a slave manipulator
3
R are disposed on an operating table
1
. The slave manipulator
3
L and the slave manipulator
3
R (hereinafter, they are generically denotes as slave manipulators
3
when it is not needed to distinguish them from each other) are remotely controlled by a master manipulator
8
L and a master manipulator
8
R, respectively, so that a percutaneous operation is performed on a patient
2
laid (on his/her back in the example shown in
FIG. 1
) on the operating table.
The slave manipulator
3
L is disposed on the left side (when the operating table
1
is seen from above) of the operating table
1
. The slave manipulator
3
L has a tip part
4
L disposed on an end thereof, wherein the tip part
4
L includes a treating tool such as a forceps, a knife, a suturing tool, or an injection.
The slave manipulator
3
R is disposed on the right side (when the operating table
1
is seen from above) of the operating table
1
. The slave manipulator
3
L has a tip part
4
R disposed on an end thereof, wherein the tip part
4
R includes a treating tool such as a forceps, a knife, a suturing tool, or an injection.
Furthermore, a camera unit
5
including a CCD camera
6
disposed on an end thereof for taking an image of the inside of the abdominal cavity of the patient
2
is disposed on the operating table
1
.
A manipulator stage
7
, on which the master manipulators
8
L and
8
R manipulated by the operator A are disposed, is placed at a location properly apart from the operating table
1
.
The master manipulator
8
L is disposed on the left side (when seen by the operator at the back of whom the manipulator stage is disposed) of the manipulator stage
7
. On the end of the master manipulator
8
L, there is disposed a handling part
9
L that is held and manipulated by the left hand of the operator A.
The master manipulator
8
R is disposed on the right side of the manipulator stage
7
. On the end of the master manipulator
8
R, there is disposed a handling part
9
R that is held and manipulated by the right hand of the operator A.
A monitor
10
is disposed near the manipulator stage
7
so that the operator A can see an image displayed on the monitor
10
when the operator A manipulates the master manipulators
8
(handling part
9
). An image taken by the CCD camera
6
of the camera unit
5
is displayed on the monitor
10
.
The operator A stands between the manipulator stage
7
and the monitor
10
such that the manipulator stage
7
is located at the back of the operator A and performs a percutaneous operation on the patient
2
in such a manner that, while watching the tip part
4
of the slave manipulator
3
displayed on the monitor
10
, the operator A three-dimensionally manipulates the handling part
9
L of the master manipulator
8
L by his/her left hand thereby moving the tip part
4
L of the slave manipulator
3
L in synchronization with the motion of the handling part
9
L and three-dimensionally manipulates the handling part
9
R of the master manipulator
8
R by his/her right hand thereby moving the tip part
4
R of the slave manipulator
3
R in synchronization with the motion of the handling part
9
R.
Thus, in this system, one set of slave manipulators
3
(slave manipulators
3
L and
3
R) is remotely controlled by one set of master manipulators
8
(master manipulators
8
L and
8
R) so as to perform the percutaneous operation on the patient
2
.
For example, when it is desirable to move the tip part
4
of the slave manipulator
3
along a curved path from a position A to a position B as shown in
FIG. 2A
(hereinafter, such a desirable path will be referred to as a target path), the operator A tries to move the handling part
9
of the master manipulator
8
along a target path corresponding the target path of the tip part
4
of the salve manipulator
3
.
However, in practice, depending upon the degree of the skill of the operator A who manipulates the handling part
9
, the actual path of the handling part
9
can deviate, as represented by a solid line in
FIG. 2B
, from the target path represented by a dotted line. The deviation of the actual path of the handling part
9
from the target path causes the path of the tip part
4
of the slave manipulator
3
to deviate from its target path.
As described above, in the system in which one slave manipulator
3
is remotely controlled by one master manipulator
8
, the accuracy of the remote control greatly depends on the skill of the operator A.
That is, in the conventional system, in order to achieve high accuracy in the remote control of the slave manipulator
3
, the operator A has to have great skill to operate the master manipulator
8
(handling part
9
). In other words, it is not easy to achieve high accuracy in the remote control of the slave manipulator
3
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a technique of remotely controlling a slave manipulator using a plurality of master manipulators
8
thereby achieving high accuracy and ease in the remote control of the slave manipulator.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a manipulator system including a first master manipulator, a second master manipulator, and a slave manipulator, wherein the first master manipulator includes first detection means for detecting an absolute attitude, in a space within which the first handling part is allowed to move, of a first handling part of the first master manipulator, and first transmission means for transmitting the absolute attitude of the first handling part, the second master manipulator includes second detection means for detecting an absolute attitude, in a space within which the second handling part is allowed to move, of a second handling part of the second master manipulator, and second transmission means for transmitting the absolute attitude of the second handling part, and the slave manipulator includes first acquisition means for acquiring the absolute attitude of the first handling part transmitted from the first transmission means of the first master manipulator, and the absolute attitude of the second handling part transmitted from the second transmission means of the first master manipulator, first consolidation means for consolidating the absolute attitude of the first handling part and the absolute attitude of the second handling part, and first control means for controlling the attitude of the treating part in accordance with the result of the consolidation performed by the first consolidation means.
Preferably, the absolute attitude of the first handling part is the position and the state, of the first handling part, in a space within which the first handling part is allowed to move, and the absolute attitude of the second handling part is the position and the state, of the second handling part, in a space within which the second handling part is allowed to move.
Preferably, the first consolidation means of the slave manipulator calculates the weighted sum of the absolute attitude of the first handling part and the absolute attitude of the second handling part, using predetermined weighting factors for respective terms.
Preferably, the slave manipulator further includes th
Cuchlinski Jr. William A.
Frommer William S.
Frommer & Lawrence & Haug LLP
Marc McDieunel
Sony Corporation
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