A Comparative Evaluation of Control Interfaces for a Robotic-Aided Endoscopic Capsule Platform

Abstract

Abstract-Wireless capsule endoscopy offers significant advantages compared with traditional endoscopic procedures, since it limits the invasiveness of gastrointestinal tract screening and diagnosis. Moreover, active locomotion devices would allow endoscopy to be performed in a totally controlled manner, avoiding failures in the correct visualization of pathologies. Previous works demonstrated that magnetic locomotion through a robotic-aided platform would allow us to reach this goal reliably. In this paper, the authors present a comparative evaluation of control methodologies and user interfaces for a robotic-aided magnetic platform for capsule endoscopy, controlled through human-robot cooperative and teleoperated control algorithms. A detailed statistical analysis of significant control parameters was performed: teleoperated control is the more reliable control approach, and a serial kinematic haptic device results as the most suitable control interface to perform effective robotic-aided endoscopic procedures.

A Framework for the Evaluation of Human Machine Interfaces of Robot-Assisted Colonoscopy

“…The preliminary survey confirms the results of the study conducted in [13]: haptic device outperforming the 3D mouse and hand-held control. However, our study introduces a controller not considered in [13], i.e.…”

“…The preliminary survey confirms the results of the study conducted in [13]: haptic device outperforming the 3D mouse and hand-held control. However, our study introduces a controller not considered in [13], i.e. the videogame joypad, which results to be the preferred one from the survey and the optimal one from the experiments.…”

“…Accordingly, a good HMI can decrease the difficulty of the tasks and reduce the users' physical and mental stress, influencing the clinicians' final performances [12]. In the last decades, several physical interfaces, control strategies, visual and haptic cues, have been developed for robot-assisted intraluminal procedures, but little space has been left for the comparison between each solution [13]. Indeed, there is a lack of common knowledge about which are the fundamental features of an optimal HMI for a specific clinical task, i.e.…”

Robotic, self-propelled, self-steerable, and disposable colonoscopes: Reality or pipe dream? A state of the art review

“…The VECTOR project team were also able to explore several other aspects of robotic colonoscope design. Experiments exploring the human robot interface were conducted and teleoperated (remote control) was found to be more reliable than a human/robot cooperative haptic control using a torque/force sensor[ 83 ].…”

Frontiers of Robotic Colonoscopy: A Comprehensive Review of Robotic Colonoscopes and Technologies

“…A proof-of-concept of the robotic colonoscope, presented by Valdastri et al in 2012, represents a trade-off between capsule and traditional colonoscopy combining the benefits of low-invasive propulsion (through "front-wheel" locomotion) with the multi-functional tether for treatment [109]. The system has been improved in the subsequent years in terms of modelling [110,111], localization [112,113] and control [114][115][116], towards autonomous locomotion [117] and other applications [118]. A novel derivative soft-tethered magnetically-driven colonoscope was designed within a European H2020 project, called "Endoscopic versatile robotic guidance, diagnosis and therapy of magnetic-driven soft-tethered endoluminal robots (Endoo project-2015-2019)", coordinated by the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna (Pisa, Italy) [119].…”