METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND DEVICES FOR CONTROLLING ELECTROSURGICAL TOOLS
Various exemplary methods, systems, and devices for controlling electrosurgical tools are provided.
1 . A surgical system, comprising:
an electrosurgical tool including an elongate shaft, an end effector at a distal end of the elongate shaft, a cutting element configured to translate along the end effector to cut tissue grasped by the end effector, and a housing at a proximal end of the elongate shaft;
a sensor configured to sense an impedance of the tissue grasped by the end effector; and
a motor configured to drive the translation of the cutting element along the end effector at a speed based on the sensed impedance and based on a current of the motor during the translation of the cutting element along the end effector.
2 . The surgical system of claim 1 , wherein the speed of the translation is reduced in response to the sensed impedance being below a predetermined threshold impedance and the current of the motor being below a predetermined threshold current.
3 . The surgical system of claim 2 , wherein the speed of the translation is increased in response to the sensed impedance being above the predetermined threshold impedance and the current of the motor being above a second predetermined threshold current that is lower than the first predetermined threshold current.
4 . The surgical system of claim 3 , wherein the speed of the translation is reduced in response to the current of the motor reaching the predetermined threshold current, and the speed of the translation is increased in response to the current of the motor reaching the second predetermined threshold current.
5 . The surgical system of claim 1 , wherein the speed is also based on a distance of the cutting element from a start position of the cutting element before the cutting element begins to translate.
6 . The surgical system of claim 1 , wherein the speed of the translation is reduced in response to the current of the motor reaching a first predetermined threshold current, and the speed of the translation is increased in response to the current of the motor reaching a second predetermined threshold current that is lower than the first predetermined threshold current.
7 . The surgical system of claim 1 , further comprising a tool driver configured to be operatively connected to the housing, the tool driver including the motor.
8 . The surgical system of claim 1 , further comprising a control system configured to configured to actuate the motor to drive the translation of the cutting element.
9 . The surgical system of claim 8 , wherein the control system is configured to control the motor to constrain the current of the motor between a first predetermined non-zero threshold current and a second predetermined non-zero threshold current that is lower than the first predetermined non-zero threshold current.
10 . The surgical system of claim 8 , wherein a surgical robotic system includes the control system, and the surgical robotic system includes a tool driver that includes the motor and that is configured to operatively connect to the housing.
11 . The surgical system of claim 1 , wherein the electrosurgical tool includes at least two electrodes configured to apply energy to the tissue grasped by the end effector.
12 . The surgical system of claim 1 , wherein the cutting element is a blade on an I-beam configured to translate along the end effector.
13 . A surgical system, comprising:
an electrosurgical tool including an elongate shaft, an end effector at a distal end of the elongate shaft, a cutting element configured to translate along the end effector to cut tissue grasped by the end effector, and a housing at a proximal end of the elongate shaft;
a motor configured to drive the translation of the cutting element along the end effector at a speed; and
a control system configured to control the motor to drive the translation based on a distance of the cutting element from a start position of the cutting element before the cutting element begins to translate and based on a current of the motor during the translation of the cutting element along the end effector.
14 . The surgical system of claim 13 , wherein the control system is configured to control the motor to prevent the translation until the distance of the cutting element from the start position increases to a predetermined threshold distance; and
the control system is configured to control the motor to constrain the current of the motor between a first non-zero threshold current and a second non-zero threshold current that is lower than the first predetermined threshold current.
15 . The surgical system of claim 13 , further comprising a sensor configured to sense an impedance of the tissue grasped by the end effector;
wherein the control system is configured to control the motor to drive the translation also based on the sensed impedance.
16 . The surgical system of claim 13 , further comprising a tool driver configured to be operatively connected to the housing, the tool driver including the motor, and the tool driver and the control system being components of a robotic surgical system.
17 . The surgical system of claim 13 , wherein the electrosurgical tool includes at least two electrodes configured to apply energy to the tissue grasped by the end effector.
18 . A surgical system, comprising:
a treatment tool shaft assembly having a pair of jaws at a distal end thereof and having a clamping assembly configured to move the pair of jaws from an open position to a closed position, the clamping assembly including an I-beam that includes a tissue-cutting blade;
a drive assembly operably coupled to the clamping assembly and configured to drive the clamping assembly to move the pair of jaws from an open position to a closed position and to drive the blade through tissue;
a motor operably coupled to the drive assembly; and
a control system configured to monitor a load on the motor as the blade passes through tissue and to decrease a speed of the blade when the motor load reaches a predetermined upper motor load threshold and to increase the speed of the blade when the motor load reaches a predetermined lower motor load threshold.
19 . The surgical system of claim 18 , wherein the predetermined upper motor load threshold corresponds to a first current of the motor and the predetermined lower motor load threshold corresponds to a second current of the motor that is less than that first current of the motor such that the control system is configured to decrease the speed of the blade when the current of the motor reaches the first current and to increase the speed of the blade when the current of the motor reaches the second current.
20 . The surgical system of claim 18 , wherein the control system is also configured to control the blade based on at least one of an impedance of the tissue and a longitudinal distance that the blade has moved from an initial position thereof.