A force-sensing surgical drill for real-time force feedback in robotic mastoidectomy.

Purpose: Robotic assistance in otologic surgery can reduce the task load of operating surgeons during the removal of bone around the critical structures in the lateral skull base. However, safe deployment into the anatomical passageways necessitates the development of advanced sensing capabilities to actively limit the interaction forces between the surgical tools and critical anatomy.

Methods: We introduce a surgical drill equipped with a force sensor that is capable of measuring accurate tool-tissue interaction forces to enable force control and feedback to surgeons.