Registration of 3D Ultrasound Through an Air–Tissue Boundary

In this study, we evaluated a new method for registering three-dimensional ultrasound (3DUS) data to external coordinate systems. First, 3DUS was registered to the stereo endoscope of a da Vinci Surgical System by placing a registration tool against an air–tissue boundary so that the 3DUS could image ultrasound fiducials while the stereo endoscope could image camera markers on the same tool. The common points were used to solve the registration between the 3DUS and camera coordinate systems. The target registration error (TRE) when imaging through a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) tissue phantom ranged from $3.85\pm 1.76~{\hbox {mm}}$ to $1.82\pm 1.03~{\hbox {mm}}$ using one to four registration tool positions. TRE when imaging through an ex vivo liver tissue sample ranged from $2.36\pm 1.01~{\hbox {mm}}$ to $1.51\pm 0.70~{\hbox {mm}}$ using one to four registration tool positions. Second, using a similar method, 3DUS was registered to the kinematic coordinate system of a da Vinci Surgical System by using the da Vinci surgical manipulators to identify common points on an air–tissue boundary. TRE when imaging through a PVC tissue phantom was $0.95\pm 0.38~{\hbox {mm}}$ . This registration method is simpler and potentially more accurate than methods using commercial motion tracking systems. This method may be useful in the future in augmented reality systems for laparoscopic and robotic-assisted surgery.