A steerable System for positioning a C-Arm machine in an operating room

Abstract

The C-arm X-ray machines used in a variety of common surgical procedures are heavy and have a small visual field, so it is difficult for the technician to place them precisely, as desired by the surgeon, on the first attempt. The radiology technician must repeatedly release and reposition the large machine, taking a fresh x-ray each time, until the surgeon's desired view is obtained. This iteration wastes valuable operating room time, increases the level of frustration of the surgeon, and increases the radiation exposure of both the surgical team and patient. A solution - a prototype 'smart steering' system for C-arms which guides the machine directly to the desired position quickly and accurately, was conceived at University of British Columbia and developed into a prototype at BCIT. Before going to commercial development, it must be verified that the anticipated improvements in operating room workflow efficiency can be achieved in an actual surgical setting.
The main objective of this project was to design and build an improved functional prototype of the C-Arm positioning system that would be suitable for evaluation in an operating room setting.
The presentation will describe the development of the prototype system with a focus on the key design requirements and the results of verification testing.