Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Robotic Microsurgery Instrument Goes Anywhere
A robotic microsurgery instrument that combines tiny robotic hands as well as a connected fiber optic camera was recently demonstrated in a TED talk by surgeon Catherine Mohr. It's the next generation of the well-known da Vinci robotic surgical system.
(Microsurgery instrument)
The device enters the body through an extremely compact tube. Once inside the body, the instruments are extruded and then they fully articulate to allow the surgeon to perform necessary tasks.
As far as I know, the earliest reference to the idea of a true microsurgical instrument occurs in the 1939 short story Massons's Secret by Raymond Z. Gallun.
In his slender hands he held a surgical instrument he had invented. It was a marvel! There was a long steel arm or standard that could be clamped on the end of an operating table. At the end of the arm was a binocular microscope. Beneath the latter were hundreds of screw buttons. And gathered right where the microscope was focused - where a needle-point beam of intense light could be projected for illumination - there was a ring of tiny metal prongs. You turned the screws below and the prongs moved - any or all of them - in any plane or direction you could mention, and with caliper slowness, minuteness and precision. At the end of each prong was a surgical tool - blades, tweezers, probes - so fine you could just see them with the naked eye.Micro-surgery!..
(Read more about Gallun's micro-surgery instrument)
As far as I can tell by looking at the medical literature in PubMed, the word "micro-surgery" was first published in 1938 in reference to using a microscope while performing a glaucoma procedure. No special instrumentation was mentioned; the prefix "micro" referred to the use of microscopy while performing surgery.
I also wanted to mention that Robert Heinlein thought of the idea of a tiny miniature hand with a microscopic eye that was created by genetic manipulation in his 1941 novel Methuselah's Children".
"...Take that extra appendage at the wrist. That's another hand, a miniature one... backed up by a microscopic eye. You can see how useful that would be, once you get used to the idea..."
Heinlein also wrote about the idea of Ultramicrominiature Waldoes for use in surgery in Time Enough For Love (1973).
Philip K. Dick was also fascinated by the idea of robotic hands for surgeons. See the references for Robot Surgeon-Hand in his 1955 short story War Veteran as well as the Interchangeable Hands in his 1965 novel The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch.
Take a look at the entire TED talk by Dr. Mohr on micro-surgical robots as well; the microsurgery material begins at about 7 minutes into the presentation.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 6/29/2009)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 3 )
Related News Stories - (" Medical ")
Brain Implant Is Able To Capture Your Inner Dialogue
'So you see, you can hide nothing from me.'
'Pregnancy Humanoids' From China Replace Moms
'A great many of these synthetic babies were made...' - David H. Keller, 1928.
Bacteria Turns Plastic Into Pain Relief? That Gives Me An Idea.
'I guess there's nobody round this table who doesn't have a Crosswell [tapeworm] working for him in the small intestine.'
Heart Patches Grown In The Lab Repair Hearts
I'm hoping that this procedure becomes a normal part of medical practice!
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Will AIs Give Better Results If You're Rude To Them?
'I said, "Listen up, motherf*cker.'
Cybertruck Robotic Arm F10 Drone Launch!
Drone away!
Black Fungus Blocks Radiation
'You were surrounded by Astrophage most of the time'
Liuzhi Process Now In Use In China
'He was in a high-ceilinged windowless cell with walls of glittering white porcelain.'
Reflect Orbital Offers 'Sunlight on Demand' And Light Pollution
'I don't have to tell you about the seven two-mile-diameter orbital mirrors...'
Will Robots Become Family Caregivers?
'The robant and the tiny old woman entered the control room slowly...'
Chinese Tokamak Uses AI To Keep Fusion Plasma Stable
'Guy named Otto Octavius winds up with eight limbs... What are the odds?'
Time Crystals Can Now Be Seen Directly
'It is as you thought when you constructed the time crystal, my master Vaylan.'
RoboBallet The Dance Of Cooperative Robots
'...an integrated seven-unit robot team.'
Chrysalis Generation Ship to Alpha Centauri
'This was their world, their planet —
this swift-traveling, yet seemingly moveless vessel.'
Alexa+ And Its AI Brain Improvements
'What's it do?' he asked. 'It amuses.'
Does CloneRobotics Offer A True Android?
Is this What Little Girls Are Made Of?
Brain Implant Is Able To Capture Your Inner Dialogue
'So you see, you can hide nothing from me.'
Are AIs Going Rogue Like Hal 9000
'I know that you and Frank were planning to disconnect me...'
Animated Tumblebugs On Astounding Cover!
'Gaines and Harvey mounted tumblebugs, and kept abreast of the Cadet Captain...'
LingYuan Vehicle Roof Drones Now Available, ala Blade Runner 2049
Accompanied by a small selection of similar ideas from science fiction.
