Flexible Biopsy Robot with Force Sensing for Deep Lung Examination

Lung disease has become a leading cause of disease-related death, making it one of the most serious health problems in the world. Due to the advantages of fast postoperative recovery and small trauma, transbronchoscopic biopsy has become the main method for the diagnosis of lung diseases. However, limited by the large outer diameter of the bronchoscope, insufficient flexibility of the biopsy needle, and lack of force sensing, traditional biopsy operation is simple and rough, and it is difficult to enter the deep narrow areas of the lung for examination. In this article, a flexible biopsy robot with force-sensing ability is proposed. The robot is composed of a tendon-actuated catheter and an inner sliding flexible needle as well as their driving systems. The experimental results demonstrate that the robot has good positioning accuracy of 0.72 mm and high flexibility and repeatability. With the cooperation of the commercial bronchoscope, the robot can reach various narrow areas of the lung to perform biopsy operations. The proposed robot has the potential to improve the diagnosis rate of lung diseases and reduce related deaths.