Robotic Artificial Intelligence Performs Successful Surgery After Training by Watching Videos.
Advanced Learning in Artificial Intelligence.
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University and Stanford University have developed an innovative robotic surgery system capable of performing medical procedures with the same effectiveness as a human, using videos as a training method. This advancement focuses on the renowned da Vinci surgical system, widely used in minimally invasive procedures.
The usual approach to programming robots involves manually entering each desired movement. However, the research team chose a method called imitation learning, which allows robots to acquire human-level surgical skills by observing the work of physicians. For this study, a dataset of hundreds of videos was gathered from cameras mounted on the wrists of surgeons performing three specific tasks: needle manipulation, tissue elevation, and suturing.
The system uses kinematic data, transforming the observed movements into a mathematical format that the model can apply in practice. After viewing the material, the AI model was able to use the da Vinci platform to replicate the techniques learned from the surgeons. This learning method is similar to that used by other artificial intelligences, such as ChatGPT, but instead of text, it focuses on the observation of hand and tool movements.
Professor Axel Krieger, one of the lead authors of the study, commented on the model's remarkable efficiency, highlighting that it can learn tasks not explicitly taught, such as picking up a fallen needle and continuing with the procedure. Although the idea of an AI-controlled robot holding surgical instruments may seem intimidating, the machines possess a precision that, in some cases, exceeds that of human doctors. This could reduce medical errors and allow surgeons to focus on unforeseen complications and the more complex aspects of an operation.
The research team plans to apply this technique to train an AI to perform complete surgeries. This research aligns with a growing interest in the development of AI-assisted healthcare. Recently, a dental technology company, Perceptive, demonstrated the success of an AI-guided robot that performed a dental procedure on a human without the need for supervision.
