In this section

Human-Centred Automation, Robotics and Monitoring

We use perceptual methods, AI, and frugal robotics innovation to deliver transformative diagnostic and treatment solutions.

Head of Group

Dr George Mylonas

B415B Bessemer Building
South Kensington Campus

+44 (0)20 3312 5145

YouTube ⇒ HARMS Lab

What we do

The HARMS lab leverages perceptually enabled methodologies, artificial intelligence, and frugal innovation in robotics (such as soft surgical robots) to deliver transformative solutions for diagnosis and treatment. Our research is driven by both problem-solving and curiosity, aiming to build a comprehensive understanding of the actions, interactions, and reactions occurring in the operating room. We focus on using robotic technologies to facilitate procedures that are not yet widely adopted, particularly in endoluminal surgery, such as advanced treatments for gastrointestinal cancer.

Meet the team

Mr Amirhosein Alian
Research Postgraduate

Dr James P Avery
Honorary Lecturer

Mr Junhong Chen
Research Postgraduate

Mr Kaizhong Deng
Research Postgraduate

Mr Hanqi LOU
Research Postgraduate

Dr George Mylonas BEng, MSc, DIC, PhD
Senior Lecturer in Robotics and Technology in Cancer

Dr Adrian Rubio Solis
Research Associate in Sensing and Machine Learning

Dr Jianlin Yang
Research Associate

Mr Zhangxi Zhou
Research Postgraduate

Citation

BibTex format

@article{Avery:2020:10.1109/tmrb.2020.3031636,
author = {Avery, J and Shulakova, D and Runciman, M and Mylonas, GP and Darzi, A},
doi = {10.1109/tmrb.2020.3031636},
journal = {IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics},
pages = {561--564},
title = {Tactile sensor for minimally invasive surgery using Electrical Impedance Tomography},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/tmrb.2020.3031636},
volume = {2},
year = {2020}
}

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RIS format (EndNote, RefMan)

TY  - JOUR
AB  - Whilst offering numerous benefits to patients, minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has a disadvantage in the loss of tactile feedback to the surgeon, traditionally offering valuable qualitative tissue assessment, such as tumour identification and localisation. Tactile sensors aim to overcome this loss of sensation by detecting tissue characteristics such as stiffness, composition and temperature. Tactile sensors have previously been incorporated into MIS robotic end effectors, which require lengthy scanning procedures due to localised sensitivity. Distributed tactile sensors, or “artificial skin” offer a map of tissue properties in a single instance but are often not suitable for MIS applications due to limited biocompatibility or large collapsed volumes. We propose a deployable, soft, tactile sensor with a deformable saline chamber and integrated Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) electrodes. During contact with tissue, the saline is displaced from the chamber and the lesion size and stiffness can be inferred from the resultant impedance changes. Through optimisation of the EIT measurement protocol and hardware the sensor was capable of localising the centre of mass of palpation targets within 1.5 mm in simulation and 2.3–4.6mm in phantom experiments. Reconstructed image metrics differentiated target objects from 8–30 mm.
AU  - Avery,J
AU  - Shulakova,D
AU  - Runciman,M
AU  - Mylonas,GP
AU  - Darzi,A
DO  - 10.1109/tmrb.2020.3031636
EP  - 564
PY  - 2020///
SN  - 2576-3202
SP  - 561
TI  - Tactile sensor for minimally invasive surgery using Electrical Impedance Tomography
T2  - IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/tmrb.2020.3031636
UR  - http://hdl.handle.net/10044/1/84767
VL  - 2
ER  -