This paper reports evaluation of compact forceps manipulator designed for assisting laparoscopic surgery. The manipulator consists of two miniaturized parts; friction wheel mechanism which rotates and translates forceps (62×52×150[mm3], 0.6[kg]), and gimbals mechanism which provides pivoting motion of forceps around incision hole on the abdomen (135×165×300[mm3], 1.1[kg]). The four-DOF motion of forceps around the incision hole on the abdomen in laparoscopic surgery is realized. By integration with robotized forceps or a needle insertion robot, it will work as a compact robotic arm in a master-slave system. It can also work under numerical control based on the computerized surgical planning. This table-mounted miniaturized manipulator contributes to the coexistence of clinical staffs and manipulators in the today’s crowded operating room. As the results of mechanical performance evaluation with load of 4 [N], positioning accuracy was less than 1.2 [deg] in pivoting motion, less than 4 [deg] in rotation of forceps, less than 1.2 [mm] in longitudinal translation of forceps. As future works, we will modify mechanism for sterilization and safety improvement, and also integrate this manipulator with robotized forceps to build a surgery assisting robotic system.
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