Patent application number | Description | Published |
20130108979 | SURGICAL LOCATION MONITORING SYSTEM AND METHOD | 05-02-2013 |
20130131504 | SOFT BODY AUTOMATIC REGISTRATION AND SURGICAL MONITORING SYSTEM - A surgical hardware and software monitoring system and method allows for surgical planning while the patient is available for surgery, for example while the patient is being prepared for surgery so that the system may model the surgical site. In one embodiment, the model may be used to track contemplated surgical procedures and warn the physician regarding possible boundary violations that would indicate an inappropriate location in a surgical procedure. In another embodiment, the monitoring system may track the movement of instruments during the procedure and in reference to the model to enhance observation of the procedure. In a further embodiment the monitoring system can be used to model and track the changes in the surgical site itself. | 05-23-2013 |
20130131505 | SURGICAL LOCATION MONITORING SYSTEM AND METHOD USING SKIN APPLIED FIDUCIAL REFERENCE - The present invention involves a surgical monitoring system and method for modeling surgical procedures. A multi-element fiducial reference pattern observable by a tracker may be transferred directly to the skin proximate the surgical site, either through a stencil as a radio-opaque ink pattern or via transfer tape, or may be applied in prepared form on a surgical incise film. Alternatively the surgical incise film may be applied over the surgical site and the inked reference pattern applied to the film before surgery. A controller determines the three-dimensional location and orientation of the surgical site by comparing the position and orientation of the reference pattern in a prior scan with the position and orientation of the reference pattern in image information about the surgical site obtained from the tracker. The system may track the movement of instruments relative to the surgical site, or may be used to track changes in the surgical site itself. | 05-23-2013 |
20130261783 | METHOD FOR CREATING OF DYNAMIC PATIENT-SPECIFIC SURGICAL MONITORING SYSTEM - A method, system and software are presented for making a trackable mount for assisting with surgery within a surgical site, the trackable mount being trackable by a tracker disposed to obtain image information of the surgical site. A software model of the trackable mount is created based on scan data of the surgical site, and the making of the trackable mount is based on model data derived from the software model. The exterior shape of the trackable mount may incorporate a tracking marker, or tracking pole, or both. A system for executing the method consists of scan data of the surgical site, a controller with memory and processor, and a manufacturing device. In one embodiment the manufacturing device is a rapid prototyping machine. Software is presented for executing the method of the invention. | 10-03-2013 |
20140276955 | MONOLITHIC INTEGRATED THREE-DIMENSIONAL LOCATION AND ORIENTATION TRACKING MARKER - A rigid positioning and orienting portion of a handheld apparatus has a three-dimensional tracking marker monolithically integrated within its structure, thereby making it possible to track the apparatus using a suitable a tracker. The tracker may track the position or orientation, or both, of the monolithically integrated tracking marker. The tracker may be a two-dimensional imaging tracker. The tracking marker may be monolithically integrated with a rigid positioning and orienting portion of the handheld apparatus during the manufacture of the rigid positioning and orienting portion of the handheld apparatus. In a surgical monitoring system the monolithically integrated tracking marker is trackable by a tracker and may have markings containing a plurality of contrasting portions arranged in a rotationally asymmetric pattern; wherein at least one of the contrasting portions has a perimeter that has a mathematically describable curved section recognizable to a controller in communication with the tracker. | 09-18-2014 |
20140309523 | THREE-DIMENSIONAL EXTRACTION TRACKING FOR IMPLANT MODELING - A method for making an insert for a bone structure located within a surgical site comprises operating on the bone structure with a materials removing tool to remove materials from the bone structure; tracking in three dimensions the location and orientation of the bone structure; tracking in three dimensions the location and orientation of the working tip of the materials removing tool; creating a software model of the materials volume removed from the bone structure; and making the insert based on model data within the software model. An associated system comprises a controller and a tracker for tracking a 3-D tracking marker rigidly attached to the bone structure and a 3-D tracking marker rigidly attached to the materials removing tool. A manufacturing device is used to manufacture the insert based on the model data from the controller. | 10-16-2014 |
20140320600 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TRACKING NON-VISIBLE STRUCTURE OF A BODY - A monitoring system tracks the non-visible structure of a body in three dimensions. A tracker obtains image information of the object and instruments in its vicinity, all bearing 3D tracking markers. A controller spatially relates the image information with previously obtained scan data of the object revealing non-visible structure of the object. For the scan a fiducial reference detectable in the scan is removably attached to a location on the object. The scan data and image information is used by the controller to provide the user with real time information on the relative 3D locations and orientations of the instruments and the non-visible structure of the body. In a further embodiment the monitoring system may be used to model and track the changes in the body itself. In other embodiments, a model of the body and instruments is used to track contemplated actions and warn about possibly inappropriate instrument procedures. | 10-30-2014 |
20140343405 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TRACKING NON-VISIBLE STRUCTURES OF BODIES RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER - A monitoring system tracks the non-visible structure of a body and relatable non-visible structures in real time in three dimensions. A tracker obtains image information of the body and its vicinity. A controller spatially relates the image information with previously obtained scan data of the object revealing non-visible structure of the object. For the scan, a fiducial reference detectable in the scan is removably attached to a location on the object. The scan data and image information are used by the controller to provide the user with real time information about the relative 3D locations and orientations of the relatable non-visible structures and the non-visible structure of the body. Using three-dimensional tracking markers attached to the fiducial reference on the body and to the relatable non-visible structures, the system and method may be employed to track in three dimensions in real time a plurality of bodies having non-visible structure. Three-dimensional tracking markers intergrated with surgical screws may be attached directly to the relatable non-visible structures. | 11-20-2014 |
20150049238 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR FOCUSING IMAGING DEVICES - A system and method for automatically focusing imaging devices on an imaging set employs at least one tracker and two or more tracking markers, each tracking marker having an identification means and a tracking pattern. The tracking markers are configured for attaching to the imaging devices and to corresponding subjects to be imaged. A tracker gathers image information of the imaging set and provides it to a controller, which compares the image information to predetermined stored information about the tracking patterns of the various tracking markers. The tracking markers are identified and their three-dimensional positions determined. The distances between the imaging devices and the subjects are determined and the distances between the imaging devices and the subjects are calculated. This provides the focus setting information for communication to the imaging devices. The tracking patterns may have no rotational symmetry, allowing the orientation of subjects to be determined. | 02-19-2015 |