©Paul Diaconu
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Professor Dr. Sathak Misra of the University of Twente (the Netherlands) has received his fourth European Research Council (ERC) Proof of Concept scholarship. He received the grant for his project RAMSES (Robus Actuation through Magnetism for Safe Endovascular Surgery). Researchers within the project are working on a system for magnetically driven robotic surgery.

Several operations in the Netherlands are already being supported – or even fully performed – by robotic technologies. These technologies are often used in the case of minimally invasive surgery (MIS). They are used to ensure that surgery runs smoothly and with few complications.

Surgical Robotics Laboratory

Surgical Robotics Laboratory(SRL) at the University of Twente has already developed several robotic surgery techniques. The SRL tends to focus on the ways in which surgical devices and robots can be operated using magnetic forces. SRL has developed several flexible instruments with magnetic components that can be used during MIS.

Magnetic instruments

The flexible instruments (tubes, endoscopes, and catheters) can be inserted into the body by means of a small incision. When these instruments have been fitted with magnetic parts, they can be moved by magnets outside of the patient’s body. Equipment positioned next to the patient creates the magnetic fields for this purpose. According to the researchers, the instruments are more reliable than standard instruments because they are more manageable.

The aim of the RAMSES project is to develop a system that serves as a kind of support infrastructure for various operations. The researchers use magnetic-flexible instruments for this purpose.

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