Humanoids in the OR - now in Korea
A humanoid surgical assistance robot demonstration was performed at Samsung Medical Center on September 16. The robots used in the demonstration were RB-Y1, managed by the team of Yong GI, Namakee OH, Jung Kyuhwan Jung HAHEHO Rainbow Robotics AIDIN ROBOTICS Jonghyun Choi and colleagues
"In a setting modeled on a cholecystectomy, the team showed two configurations in turn: one in which a humanoid teleoperated by the surgeon performed the procedure, and one in which the surgeon operated directly. In both, the only assistants were the two humanoids. The research team describes this solo surgery configuration as a world first.
The robots shown that day come out of ORchestra (Operating Room Collaborative Humanoid), a project developing humanoid surgical assistance robots that work alongside clinical staff in the operating room. Supported by the Ministry of Health and Welfare under Korea's ARPA-H initiative and led by Samsung Medical Center, the project counts Rainbow Robotics among its participants.
RB-Y1 is a dual-arm mobile manipulator designed to treat mobility and manipulation as one integrated task rather than two separate functions. Its whole-body control accounts for the position and posture of the upper body together, adjusting torso placement and center of mass as the arms reach. Built on that mobility, manipulation and stability, the demonstration showed the range of applications RB-Y1 can reach. The program is targeting its first clinical trials in 2029."
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