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Current surgical robotic systems dominate the space in the sterile field above the patient. Ideally, next generation systems will couple the simplicity of traditional laparoscopic instruments with the dexterity of robotic assisted surgery. This paper presents the design of a novel 6 DOF robotic instrument that eliminates the dependence on pivoting about the incision point. The motion envelope of the proximal end of the tool is therefore constrained to a line rather than the typical cone. This reduction in size enables better access to the patient and allows standard minimally invasive hand tools to be used alongside the robot.
Dachs et al. (Tue,) studied this question.