Application of Observers in Medical Robotics

This paper presents the applications of observersin robot-assisted medical procedures, in whichrobotic manipulators act in collaboration with surgeonsor therapists to improve the efficiency and accuracy ofthe interventions. Observers can be considered as replacementsfor sensors to provide the surgeon and/or therobots with information about the tissue, surgical tools,and their interaction. This paper provides an overviewof the observation methods for estimating the tool pose,tissue motion, and the interaction forces. Having a goodmodel for the system and guaranteeing the safety andefficiency of the methods are the challenges involved inusing the observers in medical procedures. However, theapplication-driven nature of the medical robotics providesa thriving field of study for using the observers