Autonomous Airway Management

Development of a portable robotic system is proposed that will perform endotracheal intubation of the trauma patient. A specialized robot will work in concert with field medics or other robots to perform endotracheal intubation at the point of injury, allowing establishment of a secure airway within the critical first few minutes after an injury is sustained. Both semi-autonomous and autonomous operation will be considered. Phase I will be a design tradeoff study, addressing the key technical challenges of the robotic system: initial placement and oral insertion, guidance and navigation, control and steering, passage through the vocal cords to the trachea, verification of tracheal placement, and deployment in extreme environmental conditions. In addition, methods for robotic approach and placement on the patient (from a designated start position) will also be considered, a requirement for autonomous operation. The project team consisting of engineers and physicians will (1) define and document user requirements of the robotic intubation system, (2) identify candidate designs for addressing each of the key technical challenges, (3) perform a design tradeoff study to determine the relative pros and cons of the candidate designs, and (4) document a recommended design for prototype fabrication, test and demonstration in Phase II.