IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - March 2016 - 11
to visually identify a suitable venipuncture site, particularly in patients with
dark skin or high body mass index.
Even after the phlebotomist has
identified a vein, accurately inserting
the needle can also prove to be difficult
because there is no way to sense the
depth of the needle. In many cases, the
needle will be pushed too far and pierce
through the back of the vein wall, which
causes sharp pain, bruising, internal
bleeding, nerve injury, and a number of
other possible complications. Our goal
was to develop the VenousPro to overcome all of these problems and, thereby,
enable blood draws and IV procedures
to be completed at the first stick and
without complication.
One of the early challenges to the
design of the VenousPro was to meet the
precision requirements of venipuncture.
Blood vessels in the human arm can be
as small as 1 mm in diameter, especially
in children. We iterated through five
prototypes to minimize errors due to
backlash in the motors, manufacturing
imprecision, and latency.
Another challenge was developing
the vein imaging technology and coupling it seamlessly with the robot.
VenousPro relies on detailed images of
the vein and its surrounding area, and
in recent designs, the imaging has been
further improved with ultrasound and
real-time three-dimensional vessel
reconstruction software.
Our third focus has been to develop
comprehensive safety features for the device. Such features include electronic, mechanical, and software-based monitoring
systems; real-time tracking of the vein
and needle; and sterile disposables to prevent contamination between patients.
In both phantom and animal validation studies completed using the latest
generation of the device, VenousPro has
demonstrated greater than 95% firststick accuracy and additionally has outperformed human phlebotomist
controls. We will be conducting our first
human clinical studies in the coming
months to demonstrate the safety and
accuracy of the device.
We have also begun working with
an industrial design firm to make sure
that the VenousPro meets the needs of
the patient and the practitioner and fits
in the current hospital and lab workflow. This past year, VascuLogic was
awarded a number of large grants,
including a Small Business Innovation
Research grant from the U.S. National
Science Foundation. We will also be
working with Rutgers University to
integrate the VenousPro with miniaturized diagnostic blood tests that can be
performed rapidly, on the device, and
with small samples of blood. Finally, we
are continuing to pitch at events such as
the IEEE/International Conference on
Intelligent Robots and Systems Entrepreneurship Forum and Start-up Competition as we seek continued funding.
Our ultimate goal is to see VenousPro
in hospitals and labs by 2019 (Figure 1).
march 2016
*
IEEE ROBOTICS & AUTOMATION MAGAZINE
*
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - March 2016
IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - March 2016 - Cover1
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