One challenge in the digitization of hospitals is the growing number of medical devices, controls and wired interfaces. Wireless, intelligent medical devices could meet this clinical need with 5G campus networks, as they enable secure, real-time and reliable data transmission and have sufficient bandwidth for live video streaming. The project will investigate the potential of 5G technology for modular, intraoperative real-time communication in the operating room and subsequently implement it in the form of demonstrators in France and Germany. The project uses the ISO IEEE 11073 SDC family of standards to enable manufacturer-independent medical device communication and will add wireless real-time functionalities, realized with private 5G and time-sensitive networking (TSN). The technical backbone is the newly-developed commercial “sdcX” library by SurgiTAIX AG. The results and knowledge gained from these extensions will be processed and standardized as extensions to the SDC standards family. In addition, augmented reality methods and video streaming will be used to get expert knowledge in real-time to the surgery team. To reduce the regulatory hurdles for medical device manufacturers, a regulatory and conformance guideline will be created that contains a risk-analysis of the 5G-specific risks as well as standards that have to be adhered to.
Mission
- Creating two unique robotic surgery demonstrators with a specific focus on the (OR) environment in a research and industry setting
- Creating a smart OR using interconnected medical devices connected by the open standard SDC
- Utilize augmented reality and high-quality video streaming, showcasing private 5G as an enabling technology
Expected Impact
- Benefits for patients and the healthcare system
- Real-time communication enabling new use cases in robotics and navigated surgery
- Easy adaptation of 5G in medical devices due to the regulatory guideline
- Strategic partnership between industry, research and clinical users in Germany and France
Use Cases
- Robotic and navigated surgery in the field of neurosurgery
- Telemedicine and telesurgery
Partners
