A New Approach to Surgical Robotics
In the first procedure, a humanoid robot paired with a human surgeon acting as assistant completed a gallbladder removal. In the second, two humanoid robots operated together without direct human hands at the table. Both surgeries were teleoperated, meaning surgeons controlled the robots remotely rather than the machines acting autonomously. eurekalert.org
The robots, nicknamed “Surgie,” stand 5 feet tall and weigh just 60 pounds — a stark contrast to specialized robotic surgery systems that can weigh about 1,800 pounds and require retrofitted operating rooms. The research team, a collaboration between engineers and surgeons at UC San Diego, argues this portability could make surgical care more accessible in remote and under-resourced areas. eurekalert.org
“Remotely operated and autonomous humanoid robots have real potential for amplifying access to critical surgeries to which patients would otherwise not have access,” said Michael Yip, a faculty member in the UC San Diego Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and one of the paper’s senior authors. eurekalert.org
Challenges Remain
The study is a proof of concept, and the researchers acknowledged several limitations. The robots required recalibration multiple times during each procedure, resulting in surgeries that took much longer than those performed with existing specialized systems. Latency — a delay between the surgeon’s movements and the robot’s response — also remains a challenge as the team explores longer-distance operations. eurekalert.org
Shanglei Liu, an assistant professor of surgery at UC San Diego School of Medicine who teleoperated the robot during the study, noted that early specialized robotic systems faced similar issues. “The first robotic laparoscopic surgery took six hours; it now takes 30 minutes,” Liu said. eurekalert.org
Looking Ahead
Beyond surgery itself, the researchers envision humanoid robots taking on broader roles in operating rooms, from fetching tools to cleaning up after procedures. The team’s longer-term goal is an operating theater where humanoid robots and humans work as an integrated team, particularly in settings where surgical staffing shortages limit patient access to care. eurekalert.org
“It’s a fraction of the cost and it takes a fraction of the space in an operating room. So it’s easy to deploy, anywhere from rural areas, to the battlefield, and even to space,” Liu said. eurekalert.org
