Method for monitoring object flow within a surgical space during a surgery

Inventors

Amanatullah, Derek F. • Nazerali, Rahim • Zhao, David Y. • Haque, Albert

Assignees

Leland Stanford Junior University

Abstract

One variation of a method for monitoring needle consumption in a surgical space during a surgery includes: accessing a sequence of images captured by a camera facing an inventory field within the surgical space; scanning the sequence of images for needle packages and needles; in response to detecting entry of a needle package into the surgical space in a first image, logging entry of the needle package, labeled as sterile, into the inventory field at a first time and incrementing a sterile packaged needle counter for the needle package according to a first quantity of sterile needles associated with a type of the needle package; and, in response to detecting removal of a first needle from the inventory field in a second image, incrementing a deployed needle counter at a second time succeeding the first time and decrementing the sterile packaged needle counter.

Core Innovation

A sequence of images captured by a set of optical sensors arranged in a surgical space is accessed during a surgery. The sequence is scanned to detect a needle package at a first location in a first image, and in response a first needle is recorded in a sterile packaged condition at the first location at the first time.

Needle-driver detection is used to update needle conditions over time and across locations. In response to detecting a first needle driver at a second location in a second image, the second image is scanned for a first set of features representative of a patient, and in response the first needle is recorded in a used retained condition at the second location at the second time.

Further detection of needle disposal-container features supports transition to a disposed condition. In response to detecting the first needle driver at a third location in a third image, the third image is scanned for a second set of features representative of a needle disposal container, and in response the first needle is recorded in a disposed condition at the third location at the third time. Locations and conditions of the first needle are aggregated into a first path of the first needle during the surgery.

The approach is extended to needle consumption and additional tracking logic. The method accesses images captured by optical sensors facing an inventory field, records entry of a labeled sterile needle package while incrementing a sterile packaged needle counter according to a quantity associated with a type of the needle package, and updates a deployed needle counter and counters when needles are removed from the inventory field. The method further tracks return of a needle into the inventory field by labeling the needle as uncontained, tracking the needle in a subsequence of images, associating the needle with a needle package when inserted, relabeling the needle package as unsterile, and updating a contained used needle counter by a value of the sterile packaged needle counter while clearing the sterile packaged needle counter.

Claims Coverage

The partial content includes three independent claims covering needle tracking across surgical-space regions, needle consumption monitoring using inventory/operating/disposal features and state/counter updates, and needle package and needle re-containerization with counter and label management.

Across the independent claims, the inventive coverage centers on optical-sensor image sequence access to detect needle packages, needle drivers, patient features, and needle disposal-container features; recording needle conditions including sterile packaged, sterile retained, used retained, disposed, and unsterile or uncontained labels; incrementing and decrementing counters tied to inventory and deployment or return; and aggregating locations and conditions into a needle path during the surgery.

Stated Advantages

Documented Applications