Snake Robot For Intraluminal Surgeries Gets Successfully 3D Printed

A group of researchers describe how they designed a novel multi-tool snake-like robot, called the i2 Snake (Intuitive Imaging Sensing Navigated and Kinematically Enhanced robot) for minimally invasive intraluminal surgery. They used a rolling-joint design, a bio-inspired mechanism that consists of two circular surfaces rolling against each other, however, standard rolling joints could slip, resulting in control inaccuracies or a dislocated joint. The researchers used an Mlab 3D printer from Concept Laser to manufacture a prototype of the optimized rolling joint which was then characterized in terms of precision and manipulation forces.

Source: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Pierre_Berthet-Rayne/publication/327367204_Rolling-Joint_Design_Optimization_for_Tendon_Driven_Snake-like_Surgical_Robots/links/5b8a82a292851c1e124026cf/Rolling-Joint-Design-Optimization-for-Tendon-Driven-Snake-like-Surgical-Robots.pdf