Robotics Optics Design

Stereo or 3D endoscope design is critical to the feasibility of advances in robotic surgery. While traditional 2D endoscopy is the standard of care for handheld applications, many robotic systems utilize 3D endoscopes to help enhance the surgeon’s perception of the remote surgical field.

Precision Optics Corporation is an early partner to pioneers in the field, and is proud of its continuous innovation.

3D Endoscopes

Designing for Product Success

While there are a number of techniques that have been tried for stereo endoscopes, the robotic surgery market is standardizing around best practices that center on side-by-side endoscopes. These rely on the parallax between the left and right endoscope to give the perception of 3D. In this approach, the viewer experiences 3D by viewing absolute objects with the right and left eye.

Designing for 3D endoscopes with 2 channels requires that images are perfectly matched in:

Distortion
Magnification
Color
Line of sight

While the brain is adept at interpreting these images, disparity can cause fatigue and headaches, making the system practically unusable. Tolerances for stereo endoscopes must be much tighter, requiring an experienced approach to design forms, optics, mechanics, and features to allow for manufacturability of required tolerances.

Precision Optics Corporation can design the scope, tooling, and fixturing required to build and test 3D endoscope systems, as proven in some of the most prominent robotic systems available today.