Changing How the Medical Device Industry Looks at Robotics

When it comes to the term “robot,” those in the medical device industry might typically think of robotic-assisted surgical systems such as Intuitive’s daVinci robotic system. But Barry Cohen, chairman and CEO of AVRA Medical Robotics, disagrees. Instead he thinks of these devices as primarily mechanical manipulators. “AVRA’s robot has seven degrees of freedom, so that's like your arm having seven different wrists,” Cohen said, in an interview with MD+DI. He likened it to a snake seeing something and rearranging its entire body to grab its prey, but never moving its head. But that is still just the mechanical manipulator part of the system. What would make it a ‘true’ robot in Cohen’s opinion, is the ‘intelligence’ and automation software that AVRA is developing. Therefore, a true surgical robot, he continued, “will not only have the reach of an arm that can effectively reach any area of interest but can do so accurately and repeatedly, without ever getting fatigued, adjusting for real-time movements, and knowing exactly what to do when the target is reached, thus beginning the utilization of artificial intelligence and the process of true automation.” AVRA’s system is being built to offer seven degrees of freedom, ma...
Source: MDDI - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Assembly and Automation Source Type: news