Two-dimension guidance control and simulation of a colonoscopic robot

Continuum robots feature continuously deformable backbone as opposed to traditional robots featuring rigid links and identifiable rotational joints. Due to their compliance and high dexterity, continuum robots have good potential application in minimally invasive surgery(MIS). In order to develop a colonoscopic robot which can perform inspection of human colon and do MIS but much less discomfort for the patient, a novel continuum robot for colonoscopy is designed. The robot consists of 5 sections, and each section has 2 degrees of freedom(DOF) and is 12mm in diameter and 120mm in length. This paper briefly introduces the mechanical structure and kinematics of colonoscopic robot first. For simplicity but without loss of generality, a 2-D model of human colon is built according to the anatomy of human colon. In order to achieve a semiautomatic guidance, the guidance control algorithm and implemention method for single section and multiple section colonoscopic robot is developed based on the 2-D colon model. Finally, the simulation is carried out to verify the kinematics and guidance control algorithm. This study lays a foundation for the clinic application of robotic colonoscopy.