A Steerable Needle Technology Using Curved Concentric Tubes

A new approach to steerable needle design is proposed for use in minimally invasive surgery. The technology is based on sets of curved concentric tubes. By rotating and extending the tubes with respect to each other, the position and orientation of the needle tip, as well as the shape of the inserted length, can be controlled. A mechanics model is presented for computing the shape of the needle. Forward and inverse kinematic equations are also derived. In addition, experimental results are presented as validation of the approach