Medical training robots for airway management

Medical training is the best countermeasure for accidents concerning airway management, but the best training methods require human volunteers, which presents far too many risks and ethical problems. This is why medical doctors and students employ several types of medical training simulators.

Most existing models only have a few sensors attached to their systems, providing little quantitative information to the trainee and forcing instructors to provide subjective assessments. In addition, they do not simulate the real-world conditions of the tasks very well.

As an alternative, we proposed an innovative training system using Robot Technology (RT), with a high number of embedded sensors, actuators, and evaluation units within the training system.

This innovative, RT-based training system was introduced as a way to provide more effective training.

At the minimum, an innovative training system must fulfil four specific conditions: it must 1) provide useful feedback to trainees and objective assessments of the training progress, 2) reproduce relevant patient patterns, 3) reproduce patient scenarios for real-world conditions of the task and adjust the degree of difficulty to achieve an effective training, and 4) simulate high-fidelity simulated human anatomy.

Based on the concept of the innovative training system, an airway management training system is created. Finally, a set of experiments were carried out by doctor subjects and student subjects to verify the usefulness of our proposed training system.

Publications

Wang, Y. Noh, M. Tokumoto, T. Chihara, Y. Matsuoka, H. Ishii, S. Salvatore, M. Zecca, A.Takanishi, K. Hatake, S. Shoji, Development of a human-like, neurologic model to simulate the influences of diseases for neurologic examination training, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA 2013), pp.4826-4831, 2013; DOI: 10.1109/ICRA.2013.6631265.

Y. Matsuoka, L. Bartolomeo, T. Chihara, U. Imtiaz, K. Saito, W. Kong, Y. Noh, Y. Kasuya, M. Nagai, M. Ozaki, C. Wang, S. Salvatore, H. Ishii, M. Zecca, A. Takanishi, A novel approach to evaluate skills in Endotracheal Intubation using biomechanical measurement System, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO 2013), pp.1456-1461, 2013; DOI: 10.1109/ROBIO.2013.6739671.

M. Nagai, Y. Kasuya, Y. Noh, L. Bartolomeo, M. Zecca, H. Ishii, A. Takanishi, M. Ozaki, Biomechanical Analysis of the Conventional Macintosh Type Laryngoscope and Two Different Video Laryngoscopes, Anesthesiology, 2013.

C. Wang, Y. Noh, T. Chihara, M. Tokumoto, .I. Okuyama, M. Yusuke, H. Ishii, A. Takanishi, K. Hatake, S. Shoji, Development of a face robot for cranial nerves examination training, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO 2012), pp.14-19, 2012; DOI: 10.1109/ROBIO.2012.6490936.

Y. Noh, C. Wang, M. Tokumoto, Y. Matsuoka, T. Chihara, H. Ishii, A. Takanishi, T. Takayama, S. Shoji, Development of the Airway Management Training System WKA-5: Improvement of Mechanical Designs for High-Fidelity Patient Simulation, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO 2012), pp.1224 – 1229, 2012; DOI: 10.1109/ROBIO.2012.6491137.

Y. Noh, C. Wang, M. Tokumoto, H. Ishii, and A. Takanishi, K. Hatake, S. Shoji, Development of Airway Management Training System WKA-4: Provide Useful Feedback of Trainee Performance to Trainee during Airway Management, IEEE ICME International Conference on Complex Medical Engineering (CME 2012), pp. 423 – 428, 2012; DOI: 10.1109/ICCME.2012.6275605.

C. Wang, K. Ebihara, Y. Noh, T. Chihara, M. Tokumoto, I. Okuyama, Y. Matsuoka, H. Ishii, and A. Takanishi, K. Hatake, S. Shoji, Development of an Arm Robot for Neurologic Examination Training, IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2012), pp. 1090-1095, 2012; DOI: 10.1109/IROS.2012.6385801.

C. Wang, Y. Noh, H.Ishii, G. Kikuta, K.Ebihara, M. Tokumoto, I. Okuyama, M. Yusuke, C. Terunaga, A. Takanishi, K. Hatake, Development of a 3D Simulation which can provide better understanding of trainee’s performance of the task using Airway Management Training System WKA-1RII, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO 2011), pp.2635-2640, 2011; DOI: 10.1109/ROBIO.2011.6181702.

C. Wang, Y. Noh, K. Ebihara, M. Tokumoto, I. Okuyama, C. Terunaga, M. Yusuke, H. Ishii, A. Takanishi, K. Hatake, S. Shoji, Development of a Novel Flow Sensor to Acquire Quantitative Information on BVM Operation During Airway Management Training, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO 2011), pp.1029-1034, 2011; DOI: 10.1109/ROBIO.2011.6181297

K. Ebihara, Y. Noh, K. Sato, C. Wang, H. Ishii, Takanishi, K. Hatake, S. Shoji, Development of Airway Management Training System WKA-4: Control System for Simulation of Real World Condition of Patient’s Motion, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO 2011), pp.1029-1034, 2011; DOI: 10.1109/ROBIO.2011.6181423.

Y. Noh, M. Segawa, K. Sato, C. Wang, H. Ishii, J. Solis, A. Takanishi, A. Katsumata, Y.Iida, Development of a Robot which can Simulate Swallowing of Food Boluses With Various Properties for the Study of Rehabilitation of Swallowing Disorders, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA 2011), pp.4676-4681, 2011; DOI: 10.1109/ICRA.2011.5980134.

Y. Noh, K. Ebihara, S. Shoji, M. Segawa H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Development of the Airway Management Training System WKA-4: for Improving Reproduction of High Fidelity of Real Patient and Improving Tongue Mechanism and Mandible Mechanism, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA 2011), pp. 2028-2033, 2011; DOI: 10.1109/ICRA.2011.5980442.

Y. Noh, A. Shimomura, K. Sato, M. Segawa, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Development of the Airway Management Training System WKA-3: Integration of Evaluation Module to Provide Assessment of Clinical Competence and Feedback Module to Reproduce Different Cases of Airway Difficulties, IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2010), pp.337-342, 2010; DOI: 10.1109/IROS.2010.5653169.

Y. Noh, A. Shimomura, K. Sato, M. Segawa H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Development of Patient Scenario Generation which can Reproduce Characteristics of the Patient for Simulating Real-World Conditions of Task for Airway Management Training System WKA-3, IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2010), pp.331-336, 2010; DOI: 10.1109/IROS.2010.5648794.

Y. Noh, M. Segawa, A. Shimomura, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Development of the Airway Management Training System WKA-2 which can reproduce the Cases of Difficult Airway, IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA 2009), pp.3833–3838, 2009; DOI: 10.1109/ROBOT.2009.5152315.

Y. Noh, M. Segawa, A. Shimomura, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Development of the Evaluation System for the Airway Management Training System WKA-1R, IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Biomedical and Biomechatronics (BIOROB 2008), pp. 574-579, 2008; DOI: 10.1109/BIOROB.2008.4762799.

Y. Noh, M. Segawa, A. Shimomura, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, WKA-1R Robot Assisted Quantitative Assessment of Airway Management, International Journal of Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery, 3(6), pp. 543-550, 2008; DOI: 10.1007/s11548-008-0238-1

Y. Noh, M. Segawa, A. Shimomura, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Determination of effective evaluation parameters on the airway training, Gerontechnology, 7(2) pp.174, 2008; DOI: 10.4017/gt.2008.07.02.111.00

Y. Noh, K. Nagahiro, Y. Ogura, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Reproducing Difficulties of Airway Management on Patients with Restricted Opening Mouth using the WKA-1, IEEE International Special Topic Conference on Information Technology Applications in Biomedicine (ITAB 2007), pp.115-118, 2007; DOI: 10.1109/ITAB.2007.4407358.

Y. Noh, K. Nagahiro, Y. Ogura, H. Ishii, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Development of Airway Management Training System which embeds array of sensors on a conventional mannequin, IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2007), pp.1296–1301, 2007; DOI: 10.1109/IROS.2007.4399580.

Y. Noh, K. Nagahiro, Y. Ogura, J. Solis, K. Hatake, A. Takanishi, Design of Airway Management Training System, IEEE International Special Topic Conference on Information Technology Applications in Biomedicine (ITAB 2006), IO119, 2006.

Awards

Patents

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Diﬃcult Airway Management Simulator - Assessment System

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Project last modified 10/09/2021