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This article reports on the first robotic system for vitrification of mammalian embryos. Vitrification is a technique used for preserving oocytes and embryos in clinical in vitro fertilization (IVF). The procedure involves multiple steps of stringently timed pick-and-place operation for processing an oocyte/embryo in vitrification media. In IVF clinics, the vitrification is conducted manually by highly skilled embryologists. Processing one oocyte/embryo takes the embryologist 15-20 min, depending on the protocols chosen to implement. Due to poor reproducibility and inconsistency across operators, the success and survival rates also vary significantly. Through collaboration with IVF clinics, we are in the process of realizing robotic vitrification (RoboVitri) and ultimately aim to standardize clinical vitrification from manual operation to fully automated robotic operation. Our robotic system is embedded with two contact detection methods to determine the relative z positions of the vitrification micropipette, embryo, and vitrification straw. A three-dimensional (3-D) tracking algorithm is developed for visually served embryo transfer and real-time monitoring of embryo volume changes during vitrification. The excess medium is automatically removed from around the vitrified embryo on the vitrification straw to achieve a high cooling rate. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Soft wearable robots are good alternatives to rigid-frame exoskeletons because they are compact and lightweight. This article describes a soft wearable hand robot called the Exo-Glove that uses a soft tendon routing system and an underactuation adaptive mechanism. The proposed system can be used to develop other types of soft wearable robots. The glove part of the system is compact and weighs 194 g. The results conducted using a healthy subject showed sufficient performance for the execution of daily life activities, namely a pinch force of 20 N, a wrap grasp force of 40 N, and a maximum grasped object size of 76 mm. The use of an underactuation mechanism enabled the grasping of objects of various shapes without active control. A subject suffering from paralysis of the hands due to a spinal cord injury was able to use the glove to grasp objects of various shapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The articles in this special section discusses advancements made in the area of wearable robots and reports on the many applications for their use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By 2050, an estimated 1.5 million people in the United States will be living with a major lower-limb amputation [1], a condition that causes severe disability, particularly for persons with transfemoral (above-knee) amputations. These individuals expend up to twice the metabolic effort to walk at half the speed [2] of able-bodied persons, and they experience a higher risk of falls and secondary pathological conditions, such as osteoarthritis, back pain, and depression [3]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Restoring the mobility of transfemoral dysvascular amputees is essential to their rehabilitation process. Impeding the restoration of mobility, exhaustion is often the cause of noneffective deambulation of elderly lowerlimb amputees using a prosthesis as they use more energy for locomotion than younger amputees do. This article presents finite-state control of a novel powered prosthesis prototype for transfemoral amputees based on whole-body awareness. Intention detection was implemented through a noninvasive, distributed wireless wearable sensory system. The cybernetic lower-limb cognitive orthoprosthesis (CYBERLEGs) system was evaluated in a study involving three amputees. The subjects were able to walk with the prosthesis without training, showing accurate performance of the intention detection. The functionality of the CYBERLEGs approach was confirmed by gait pattern analysis and intention detection statistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the design and control of a powered knee and ankle prosthesis for transfemoral amputees. Following a description of the design hardware, a hybrid control approach that provides coordination for level walking is described. The hybrid control approach combines a piecewise-passive impedance-based component during the stance phase of gait with a highimpedance trajectory-tracking component during the terminal stance and swing. To validate the design, the controller was implemented on the powered prosthesis prototype, and its ability to provide level walking functionality was evaluated on three transfemoral amputee subjects. The data presented from these experimental trials indicate that the prosthesis and control approach reproduce knee and ankle joint kinematic and kinetic features that are highly representative of corresponding healthy joint biomechanics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the first of a three-part tutorial on surgical and interventional robotics. It states that its core concept is that a surgical robot couples information to action in the operating room or interventional suite. It discusses that there are many challenges in surgical manipulation, sensing, registration, user interfaces and system design. It mentions that the design of a surgical robot should incorporate a risk analysis. It suggests that established methodologies such as FMEA/FMECA can be utilized to identify potential dangers.

The article discusses the evolution of robotics research from industrial robotics to field and service robotics. The research includes medical robotics, rehabilitation robotics, and underwater robotics. It aims to provide an overview of the evolution of robotics from classical motion control to modern intelligent control techniques and social learning paradigms.

Discusses research initiatives in the area of bioinspired robotics. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In the past decade, robotic technology has slowly made its push into the medical field. Advanced surgical robots, in particular, have become technological icons in today?s hospitals. However, the use of robotics for everyday medicine remains a major challenge due to the cost and size of current systems?the da Vinci Surgical System, for example, can cost several million dollars and requires a dedicated operating room. Discusses the work done by VascuLogic to commercialize imaging and robotic technologies designed specifically for compact, portable, and lowcost medical devices. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The radiology and surgery worlds need to merge for operations guided by imagery, such as mini-invasive procedures (stenting, valve implants, and so on). Consequently, the current trend is the hybridization of radiology and surgery rooms. These rooms are said to be hybrid when the operating room combines the features of a conventional cardiac surgery operating room with those of a radiology room, thereby linking medical imaging and surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]