Staubli has delivered a steady hand to the operating room. The TX-2-60L MedX Ready robot is designed to assist medical personnel by performing surgeries, capturing medical imaging, providing rehabilitation services, and performing other essential tasks.
Robots in Medicine?
Robotic surgeons have been trusted for numerous precision surgeries. When mounted, programmed, and controlled properly, they provide a much steadier hand for incisions. Also, when properly cleaned, they are more hygienic than a human surgeon, who can accidentally spread infections or cross-contaminate patients.
Besides surgery, robots can act as assistants in an ever-growing list of roles. A robot can provide a stable platform for medical imaging, assist with diagnostics, and even provide support for rehabilitation.
Medical robots, however, face their own set of challenges. First, programming is often cumbersome, complicated, and highly individualized. Sometimes setting up the robot takes longer than the actual surgery. Second, while robots have the potential to be more hygienic than human surgeons, it is not guaranteed.
With Staubli’s MedXguiding system, medical professionals can manually teach the TX-2-60L. Image used courtesy of Staubli
Meet the TX-2-60L MedX Ready Robot
The Staubli TX-2-60L MedX Ready robot features six-axis movement and a 920 mm reach (985 mm with MedXguiding). Staubli has designed its robot to access all areas of a patient while remaining mounted in one place. The robot can move a payload of up to 4.1 kg (2.9 kg with MedXguiding), which permits it to handle a variety of medical tools.
The components of each robot are made as stiff as possible, and the joints are tight. This design, plus precision control, makes the robot suitable for performing surgery. Staubli has designed the TX-2-60L for cancer surgery, neurosurgery, and other challenging applications that require small, precise motions.
Instead of complex programming for repeatable tasks, the TX-2-60L MedX Ready can be configured using Staubli’s optional MedXguiding system. In this system, a medical professional can manually guide the robot through the motions it will need to perform during operation. In essence, the doctor teaches the robot how to move. This manual guidance is particularly useful for medical imaging and diagnostics, which will be similar from patient to patient.
The TX2-60L MedX Ready robot is built for use in a wide range of medical applications, including surgery, imaging, and rehabilitation. Image used courtesy of Staubli
Safe Robotic Systems for Healthcare
Staubli designed the TX2-60L MedX Ready robot to be flexible, making it suitable for a wide range of medical applications. The high-precision motion control enables the robot to perform critical surgeries, including neurosurgery. The stiffness in the components and lack of play in the joints mean the robot can also assist patients with rehabilitation and orthopedic work, where a human providing the same services may be less physically stable.
In terms of hygiene and safety, Staubli has designed the TX2-60L to withstand disinfectants. The paint is guaranteed not to react, flake, or degrade with repeated exposure to disinfectants, extending its lifespan. Furthermore, the TX-2-60L meets SIL-3PIe standards, meaning very high reliability for hazardous functions. It also meets ISO 13485:2016, a quality control standard for the medical devices industry.