Diagnostic procedures are fundamental tools that doctors and surgeons use to treat patients. In the case of a biopsy, the results can determine the difference between benign and malignant cells, and for cancer treatment, early detection is critical. However, these diagnostic procedures are often times routine and repetitive and can tie up the precious time of highly skilled doctors and surgeons. By using automated robotic diagnostic medical application solutions, doctors can spend their time and focus on critical areas whereas a technician can handle an automatic biopsy.

Let’s examine the difference between a manual biopsy and how robotic medical application solutions utilizing DC micromotors can streamline that process.

Advantages Over Manual Biopsies

Robotic biopsies are able to operate on a highly precise scale due to advanced DC gearmotors that can provide high torque at a low speed and operate with a higher resolution than a doctor can achieve by hand. Biopsies are typically performed with guidance from CT scans to determine positioning of the needle and the cells that are to be sampled; the resolution on a CT scan is much higher than a person’s hands and eyes, but not higher than specialty DC gearmotors. Imedical Healthcare Solutions

When using CT scans as the eyes for a doctor to perform a biopsy, the patient is necessarily exposed to radiation. Multiple scans are performed during the course of the procedure to guide the doctor’s hands. With automated medical application solutions, fewer scans are needed to guide the system’s efficient DC micromotors. Manual biopsies typically require about 10 CT scans, automated robotic medical application solutions only require 4. This fact ultimately benefits the patient by reducing their exposure to radiation, expediting the procedure, and lowering operational costs.

Biopsy Systems Based On Gearmotors

The overall sampling device has to conform to a strict set of specifications. The entire system has to be lightweight and small in size since it lies on the patient’s body, have enough power to insert a needle into the body’s tissues and organs, and perform with a high degree of accuracy while being able to run automatically with minimal supervision. The core design to meet these specifications relies on DC micromotors and gearmotors. A set of four DC micromotors is used for needle positioning and sampling, powering the pinion drive, and rotating the passive roller. These compact DC micromotors are able to apply the required 10 Newton force from an extremely compact 10 millimeter motor and gearbox housing that utilizes a 256:1 reduction ratio. With guidance from CT scans and software control, the system is able to target a 1 centimeter lesion with plans to be able to reduce that to 0.5 centimeters, enabling multiple samples from different locations in a single mass.