Training system for endoscopic surgery with haptic guide function and augmented reality

Presently, the number of cases of endoscopic surgery which can reduce both physical and mental burdens of a patient has been increasing. Although a variety of training environments has been prepared, more effective training methods have been expected from the doctors who are engaging in medical education. This study is focused on an approach for teaching calligraphy, where a teacher grasps both an ink brush and the student's hand and moves them to an appropriate direction with befitting force. In order to streamline the training efficiency of endoscopic surgery, we propose a function of haptic guidance for the operation of endoscopic forceps. We develop the experimental devices which dynamically control the movement of endoscopic forceps in order to realise the haptic guide function. This paper introduces the system structure and its software, and we discuss about the training effects through the experimental results.