Movement characteristics of pneumatic actuators for the semi-autonomous colonoscopic system

자율이동 대장 내시경을 위한 공압구동기의 이동 특성

In recent years, as changing the habit of eating, the pathology in the colon grows up annually. For that reason, the colonoscopy is generalized. But it requires much time to acquire a dexterous skill to perform an operation. And the procedure is painful to the patient. Therefore, biomedical and robotic researchers are developing a locomotive colonoscope that can travel safely in colon. In this paper, we propose a novel design and concept of semi-autonomous colonoscope and two actuators for the micro robot. The micro robot comprises camera and LED for diagnosis, steering system to pass through the loop, pneumatic actuator and bow-shaped flexible supporters to control a contact force and to keep the space between colon wall and the actuator. For actuating mechanism, we suggest two models. One is based on the reaction force, and the other is impact force. In order to validate the concept and the performance of the actuators, we carried out the preliminary experiments in rigid pipes.