Technical feasibility of patient-friendly screening and treatment of digestive disease by remote control robotic capsule endoscopes via the Internet

A few types of steerable capsule endoscopes have been proposed but disappointingly their systems were not applicable to common endoscopic treatment or pathological diagnosis. This study validates the possibility of treatment and biopsy by using an internet-linked (wireless control via the internet) robotic capsule endoscope (iRoboCap). iRoboCap consisted of three parts: an imaging unit, a movement control unit and a therapeutic tool unit. Two types of iRoboCaps were designed, one was a submarine type (iRoboCap-S) and the other was an amphibious type (iRoboCap-A). They were remotely and wirelessly steered by a portable tablet device using Bluetooth and via the internet. The success rates of biopsy or clipping were evaluated in a phantom. Although the two prototypes have various problems that need improving, we hope that our robotic and wireless innovations have opened the door to new endoscopic procedures and will pioneer various new applications in medicine.