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Actuators
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Smart Actuators for Endoscopic Robots
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Smart Actuators for Endoscopic Robots

A special issue of Actuators (ISSN 2076-0825). This special issue belongs to the section "Actuators for Medical Instruments".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2021) | Viewed by 6544

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Luigi Manfredi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre of Medical Engineering and Technology (CMET), Division of Imaging Science and Technology, School of Medicine, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK
Interests: endoscopic robots; shape memory alloy actuators; soft robots; control hardware; bio-inspired robots
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Endoscopic robots extend surgeons’ ability to see and operate inside the human body through small incisions or natural orifices. They provide an interface to filter tremor, scale the motion, and reduce the physical and psychological stress by solving complex kinematic problems. This includes the implementation of advanced control algorithms to coordinate sensors and actuators connected by means of a flexible and articulated mechanical frame. Actuators are an important part of this loop since many applications require rapid response, miniaturised design, high force-to-weight ratio, biocompatibility, and—for some disposable devices—low cost. Smart materials play an important role in addressing these challenges.

This Special Issue aims to collect articles on novel research studies as well as reviews on actuators designed for endoscopic robots. This includes but is not limited to novel actuator design, control architecture, and endoscopic robot design.

Dr. Luigi Manfredi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Actuators is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • endoscopic robots
  • smart materials
  • shape memory alloys
  • soft actuators
  • control
  • piezo actuators
  • shape memory polymers

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 4926 KiB  
Article
Modular Capsules with Assembly and Separation Mechanism: Proof of Concept
by Zhenyu Li, Manh Cuong Hoang, Chang-Sei Kim, Eunpyo Choi, Doyeon Bang, Jong-Oh Park and Byungjeon Kang
Actuators 2021, 10(7), 159; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/act10070159 - 12 Jul 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2072
Abstract
As wireless capsule endoscope (WCE) technology has advanced, various studies were published on WCEs with functional modules for the diagnosis and treatment of problems in the digestive system. However, when additional functional modules are added the physical size of the WCEs will increase, [...] Read more.
As wireless capsule endoscope (WCE) technology has advanced, various studies were published on WCEs with functional modules for the diagnosis and treatment of problems in the digestive system. However, when additional functional modules are added the physical size of the WCEs will increase, making them more difficult for patients to comfortably swallow. Moreover, there are limitations when it comes to adding multi-functional modules to the WCEs due to the size of the digestive tract itself. This article introduces a controllable modular capsule endoscope driven by an electromagnetic actuation (EMA) system. The modular capsules are divided into a driving capsule and a functional capsule. Capsules with different functions are swallowed in sequence and then recombination, transportation and separation functions are carried out under the control of the EMA system while in the stomach, this approach solves the size limitation issues faced by multi-functional capsule endoscopes. The recombination and separation functions make use of a characteristic of soft magnetic materials so that their magnetization direction can be changed easily. These functions are made possible by the addition of a soft magnet to the capsule together with the precise control of magnetic fields provided by the EMA system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Smart Actuators for Endoscopic Robots)
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12 pages, 3730 KiB  
Communication
A Hybrid Electromagnetic and Tendon-Driven Actuator for Minimally Invasive Surgery
by HaoChen Wang, SaiHui Cui, Yao Wang and ChengLi Song
Actuators 2020, 9(3), 92; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/act9030092 - 21 Sep 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3850
Abstract
Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is a surgical technique that facilitates access to the internal tissues and organs of a patient’s body via a limited number of small incisions or natural orifice of the patients. Such a technique requires specialized slender surgical instruments with [...] Read more.
Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is a surgical technique that facilitates access to the internal tissues and organs of a patient’s body via a limited number of small incisions or natural orifice of the patients. Such a technique requires specialized slender surgical instruments with a high levels of dexterity and functionality. However, the currently available MIS instruments are rigid and could offer only limited degrees of freedom (DOFs) that hampers the surgeon’s effort to perform the required operation accurately. In this study, we have developed a hybrid electromagnetic and tendon-driven actuator as an integral part of MIS surgical instruments to provide them with optimum angulation. The design uses a novel electromagnetic structure to lock the position of individual joints, and a tendon-driven structure for the articulation of the surgical instrument. The finite element method (FEM) was utilized to predict the performance of the actuator, which was experimentally validated. Subsequently, a prototype was assembled, and corresponding kinematics analysis was presented to visualize the improvement of the developed mechanism on the functional workspace of the MIS instruments. It was concluded that the developed mechanism could offer three additional DOFs for the surgical instrument and angulation of 180° for each articulated joint. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Smart Actuators for Endoscopic Robots)
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