Soft and Stiffness-controllable Robotics Solutions for Minimally Invasive Surgery presents the results of a research project, funded by European Commission, STIFF-FLOP: STIFFness controllable Flexible and Learn-able manipulator for surgical Operations. In Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS), tools go through narrow openings and manipulate soft organs that can move, deform, or change stiffness. There are limitations on modern laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgical systems due to restricted access through Trocar ports, lack of haptic feedback, and difficulties with rigid robot tools operating inside a confined space filled with organs. Also, many control algorithms suffer from stability problems in the presence of unexpected conditions. Yet biological "manipulators", like the octopus arm can manipulate objects while controlling the stiffness of selected body parts and being inherently compliant when interacting with objects. STIFF-FLOP robot is an innovative soft robotic arm that can squeeze through a standard MIS, reconfigure itself and stiffen by hydrostatic actuation to perform compliant force control tasks while facing unexpected situations. Technical topics discussed in the book include:Soft actuatorsContinuum soft manipulatorsControl, kinematics and navigation of continuum manipulatorsOptical sensors for force, torque, and curvatureHaptic feedback and human interface for surgical systemsValidation of soft stiffness controllable robots

Soft and Stiffness-controllable Robotics Solutions for Minimally Invasive Surgery presents the results of a research project, funded by European Commission, STIFF-FLOP: STIFFness controllable Flexible and Learn-able manipulator for surgical Operations. In Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS), tools go through narrow openings and manipulate soft organs that can move, deform, or change stiffness. There are limitations on modern laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgical systems due to restricted access through Trocar ports, lack of haptic feedback, and difficulties with rigid robot tools operating inside a confined space filled with organs. Also, many control algorithms suffer from stability problems in the presence of unexpected conditions. Yet biological “manipulators”, like the octopus arm can manipulate objects while controlling the stiffness of selected body parts and being inherently compliant when interacting with objects. STIFF-FLOP robot is an innovative soft robotic arm that can squeeze through a standard MIS, reconfigure itself and stiffen by hydrostatic actuation to perform compliant force control tasks while facing unexpected situations. Technical topics discussed in the book include: Soft actuatorsContinuum soft manipulatorsControl, kinematics and navigation of continuum manipulatorsOptical sensors for force, torque, and curvatureHaptic feedback and human interface for surgical systemsValidation of soft stiffness controllable robots

Control Systems Design of Bio-Robotics and Bio-Mechatronics with Advanced Applications delivers essential and advanced bioengineering information on the application of control and robotics technologies in the life sciences. Judging by what we have witnessed so far, this exciting field of control systems and robotics in bioengineering is likely to produce revolutionary breakthroughs over the next decade. While this book is intended for senior undergraduate or graduate students in both control engineering and biomedical engineering programs, it will also appeal to medical researchers and practitioners who want to enhance their quantitative understanding of physiological processes. - Focuses on the engineering and scientific principles underlying the extraordinary performance of biomedical robotics and bio-mechatronics - Demonstrates the application of principles for designing corresponding algorithms - Presents the latest innovative approaches to medical diagnostics and procedures, as well as clinical rehabilitation from the point-of-view of dynamic modeling, system analysis and control

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING IN BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS The book explores the latest research and developments related to the interdisciplinary field of biomedical and mechanical engineering offering insights and perspectives on the research, key technologies, and mechanical engineering techniques used in biomedical applications. The book is divided into several sections that cover different aspects of mechanical engineering in biomedical research. The first section focuses on the role of additive manufacturing technologies, rehabilitation in healthcare applications, and artificial recreation of human organs. The section also covers the advances, risks, and challenges of bio 3D printing. The second section presents insight into biomaterials, including their properties, applications, and fabrication techniques. The section also covers the use of powder metallurgy methodology and techniques of biopolymer and bio-ceramic coatings on prosthetic implants. The third section covers biofluid mechanics, including the mechanics of fluid flow within our body, the mechanical aspects of human synovial fluids, and the design of medical devices for fluid flow applications. The section also covers the use of computational modeling to study the blockage of carotid arteries. The final section elaborates on soft robotic manipulation for use in medical sciences. Audience The book provides practical insights and applications for mechanical engineers, biomedical engineers, medical professionals, and researchers working on the design and development of biomedical devices and implants.

Dynamic soft materials that have the ability to expand and contract, change stiffness, self-heal or dissolve in response to environmental changes, are of great interest in applications ranging from biosensing and drug delivery to soft robotics and tissue engineering. This book covers the state-of-the-art and current trends in the very active and exciting field of bioinspired soft matter, its fundamentals and comprehension from the structural-property point of view, as well as materials and cutting-edge technologies that enable their design, fabrication, advanced characterization and underpin their biomedical applications. The book contents are supported by illustrated examples, schemes, and figures, offering a comprehensive and thorough overview of key aspects of soft matter. The book will provide a trusted resource for undergraduate and graduate students and will extensively benefit researchers and professionals working across the fields of chemistry, biochemistry, polymer chemistry, materials science and engineering, nanosciences, nanotechnologies, nanomedicine, biomedical engineering and medical sciences.

The two volumes LNAI 11649 and LNAI 11650 constitute the refereed proceedings of the 20th Annual Conference "Towards Autonomous Robotics", TAROS 2019, held in London, UK, in July 2019. The 74 full papers and 12 short papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 101 submissions. The papers present and discuss significant findings and advances in autonomous robotics research and applications. They are organized in the following topical sections: robotic grippers and manipulation; soft robotics, sensing and mobile robots; robotic learning, mapping and planning; human-robot interaction; and robotic systems and applications.

This book presents Proceedings of the 2021 Intelligent Systems Conference which is a remarkable collection of chapters covering a wider range of topics in areas of intelligent systems and artificial intelligence and their applications to the real world. The conference attracted a total of 496 submissions from many academic pioneering researchers, scientists, industrial engineers, and students from all around the world. These submissions underwent a double-blind peer-review process. Of the total submissions, 180 submissions have been selected to be included in these proceedings. As we witness exponential growth of computational intelligence in several directions and use of intelligent systems in everyday applications, this book is an ideal resource for reporting latest innovations and future of AI. The chapters include theory and application on all aspects of artificial intelligence, from classical to intelligent scope. We hope that readers find the book interesting and valuable; it provides the state-of-the-art intelligent methods and techniques for solving real-world problems along with a vision of the future research.

Flexible Robotics in Medicine: A Design Journey of Motion Generation Mechanisms and Biorobotic System Development provides a resource of knowledge and successful prototypes regarding flexible robots in medicine. With specialists in the medical field increasingly utilizing robotics in medical procedures, it is vital to improve current knowledge regarding technologies available. This book covers the background, medical requirements, biomedical engineering principles, and new research on soft robots, including general flexible robotic systems, design specifications, design rationale, fabrication, verification experiments, actuators and sensors in flexible medical robotic systems. Presenting several projects as examples, the authors also discuss the pipeline to develop a medical robotic system, including important milestones such as involved regulations, device classifications and medical standards.

Modern practical medicine requires high tech in diagnostics and therapy and in consequence in education. All disciplines use computers to handle large data bases allowing individual therapy, to interpret large data bases in form of neuronal signals, help visualization of organs during surgery. This book contains chapters on personalised therapy, advanced diagnostics in neurology, modern techniques like robotic surgery (da Vinci robots), 3D-printing and 3D-bioprinting, augmented reality applied in medical diagnostics and therapy. It is impossible without fast large scale data mining in both: clinical data interpretation as well as in hospital organization including hybrid surgery rooms and personal data flow. The book is based on a course for medical students organized in the editor's department. Every year, around 300 international undergraduate medical students take the course.

The research areas as well as the knowledge gained for the practical use of robots are growing and expanding beyond manufacturing and industrial automation, making inroads in sectors such as health care and terrain sensing, as well as general assistive systems working in close interaction with humans. In a situation like this, it is necessary for future robot systems to become less stiff and more specialized by taking inspiration from the mechanical compliance and versatility found in natural materials and organisms. At present, a new discipline is emerging in this area, called »Soft Robotics«. It particularly challenges the traditional thinking of engineers, as the confluence of technologies, ranging from new materials, sensors, actuators and production techniques to new design tools, will make it possible to create new systems whose structures are almost completely made of soft materials, which bring about entirely new functions and behaviors, similar in many ways to natural systems. These Proceedings focus on four main topics: • Soft Actuators and Control • Soft Interactions • Soft Robot Assistants: Potential and Challenges • Human-centered »Soft Robotics«.