Vibrotactile guidance for trajectory following in computer aided surgery

Most conventional computer-aided navigation systems assist the surgeon visually by tracking the position of an ancillary and by superposing this position into the 3D preoperative imaging exam. This paper aims at adding to such navigation systems a device that will guide the surgeon towards the target, following a complex preplanned ancillary trajectory. We propose to use tactile stimuli for such guidance, with the design of a vibrating belt. An experiment using a virtual surgery simulator in the case of skull base surgery is conducted with 9 naïve subjects, assessing the vibrotactile guidance effectiveness for complex trajectories. Comparisons between a visual guidance and a visual+tactile guidance are encouraging, supporting the relevance of such tactile guidance paradigm.