SBIR Phase I: Integration Of Anatomical Hydrogel Phantoms With Augmented Reality And Deep Learning To Enable Automated Independent Surgical Training

This SBIR Phase 1 project will develop novel technology to more efficiently train surgeons and reduce the risk to patients in the operating room. Current surgical education is inadequate, and as a result inexperienced surgeons inevitably end up operating on live patients during their training. The proposed work will be performed outside of the operating room and allow them to train in a simulated, educational environment on non-patient specific models. This work carries enormous potential for public benefit as it seeks to reduce surgical error and increase the health and safety of all patients undergoing surgery. The proposed work will integrate technology with surgical simulation in an unprecedented manner, combining educational hardware/software packages with physical anatomical models to create an immersive, highly effective training experience. The project carries high potential to broadly improve training for all medical fields, as the educational hardware/software packages developed can be used to teach any complex task or procedure. The commercialization of the prototype developed in the project will generate substantial income for those involved in its production, sale, and usage; additionally, the project will improve both the well-being of the public as well as the educational and training of the healthcare industry. The project will develop a prototype hardware and software training system that delivers educational content in real time, guiding a training surgeon through a simulated surgical procedure. The developed prototype will visually recognize state changes and objects in three-dimensional space, using these cues to trigger prompts and deliver instructions, guidance, and medical curricula in a timely manner as the surgeon interacts with a non-patient specific physical models; this product will require the integration of physical models with software and augmented reality technology on a level unparalleled on the market today. The project will directly test and validate the assembled hardware and programmed software and apply statistical testing to develop an initial product that performs within acceptable parameters. The proposed work will yield an assembled prototype, a combination of hardware and software that can guide a surgeon through a complete training procedure performed on a synthetic anatomical model. This prototype will have undergone technical validation and an initial round of educational validation, in preparation for the broader clinical and educational validation planned in Phase 2. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.