Project Description
In Intelligent Robotic Endoscopes (IRE) for Improved Healthcare Services we envision creating intelligent robotics solutions, extending current endoscope technology with robotics control that is based on learning from currently collected human operator data, coupled with novel bio-mechanical modeling techniques, and sensory feedback as well as soft robotics phantom for training.
The challenge with colonoscopy is that the success rate of detecting cancer depends on the skills of the clinician that operates the endoscope. From a health and societal perspective, the number of colonoscopies is bound to increase as they are the only way to screen patients for early cancer detection. Many European countries have national screening programs. This is a very big market in need of improved technology.
IRE enables a new generation of intelligent robots that through data, simulation and learning can interact with the interior of a living human while communicating with a human operator. The huge variation of human anatomy and the dynamic effect of human physiology make it a complicated navigational task to use endoscopes. Entanglement, haemorrhage, and perforation risks create a critical and difficult environment to navigate autonomously in where even trained human operators meet challenges. We exploit one of the largest datasets on real-life colonoscopies with more than 2,000 operations to learn safe navigation, combined with simulated training on a population of biomechanical models of the abdominal region.
IRE boosts the design and configuration of the robotic endoscope using digital twins and simulation, and careful inclusion of clinicians will speed up the process of integration. IRE will raise the level of autonomy by building upon simulation, imaging, and learning to yield an increased interpretation and understanding of the complex real- world environments, capable of anticipating the effect of human motions, adapting and replanning to avoid entanglement.
Join the project
We are always very happy to extend our network connections and possibilities for finding partners for future proposals. If you believe you can contribute meaningfully to our project, you are welcome to submit a Hop-On proposal.
For IRE to consider Hop-On it is very important to us that:
- A new partner is complementary to the existing consortium.
- A new partner brings added novelty to the research outcomes of IRE.
- A new partner adds novelty or value to the fundamental methodologies in IRE.
How to Apply as a Hop-On Partner
We need approximately a half-page pitch about how you as a new partner will add new value to IRE to assess if it is meaningful for IRE to move forward with a Hop-On proposal. A positive match for IRE heavily depends on the methodological approaches and the fundamental approach to research taken by a new potential Hop-On partner.
Once, we receive a research pitch from a new potential partner then we will discuss this internally in the IRE consortium and if we assess it to have sufficient positive added value to IRE then we will notify you about whether we wish to move on with looking into the Hop-On facility.
Please send your project pitch to IRE@ku.dk
Observe, the pitch must be written in Times New Roman, 12pt Font, on A4, Margin 1.5cm, maximum of 20 lines of text. No pictures, no links, and send by email as a PDF file.
Contact
University of Copenhagen, Department of Computer Science
Address: Universitetsparken 1, 2100 København Ø, Denmark
Email: IRE@ku.dk