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Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Sterile Workflow for Robot-Assisted Laser Ablation of Cartilage Tissue
Cartilage damage in the knee joint can be caused by aging or repetitive actions. It can be treated by surgically removing the damaged cartilage tissue and filling the generated defect with a precisely shaped, healthy cartilage graft. Nowadays, defect preparation is commonly performed using surgical curettes, which has several drawbacks. We are investigating the use of laser ablation for more precise, controlled, and contactless tissue preparation. A workflow and container for sterile laser ablation of tissue has been designed and validated. However, several limitations have been identified. Your task will be to design and manufacture a new sterile ablation container addressing these issues, to adapt the overall sterile ablation workflow, and to validate your design in a sterile laser ablation experiment.
Cartilage damage in the knee joint can be caused by aging or repetitive actions. It can be treated by surgically removing the damaged cartilage tissue and filling the generated defect with a precisely shaped, healthy cartilage graft. Nowadays, removing the defected cartilage is done manually using surgical curettes or scalpels. This approach is simple and quick, but only provides limited cutting accuracy. Moreover, removing defected cartilage exactly down to subchondral bone is not possible by hand. However, regenerative grafts will only reintegrate and survive if placed in the correct layer without leaving defective cartilage behind. Thus, we are developing a system leveraging robotic positioning and laser light for precise, controlled, and contactless tissue ablation.
Cartilage damage in the knee joint can be caused by aging or repetitive actions. It can be treated by surgically removing the damaged cartilage tissue and filling the generated defect with a precisely shaped, healthy cartilage graft. Nowadays, removing the defected cartilage is done manually using surgical curettes or scalpels. This approach is simple and quick, but only provides limited cutting accuracy. Moreover, removing defected cartilage exactly down to subchondral bone is not possible by hand. However, regenerative grafts will only reintegrate and survive if placed in the correct layer without leaving defective cartilage behind. Thus, we are developing a system leveraging robotic positioning and laser light for precise, controlled, and contactless tissue ablation.
A workflow and container for sterile laser ablation of tissue has been designed and validated. However, several limitations related to sample handling and fixation, ease of use, and robustness have been identified in the current design. Your task will be to design and manufacture a new sterile ablation container addressing these issues, to adapt the overall sterile ablation workflow towards higher intuitiveness and usability especially for novice users, and to validate your design in a sterile laser ablation experiment.
A workflow and container for sterile laser ablation of tissue has been designed and validated. However, several limitations related to sample handling and fixation, ease of use, and robustness have been identified in the current design. Your task will be to design and manufacture a new sterile ablation container addressing these issues, to adapt the overall sterile ablation workflow towards higher intuitiveness and usability especially for novice users, and to validate your design in a sterile laser ablation experiment.