Traditional ventricular assist devices (VADs)

What task does this robot perform?

Traditional ventricular assist devices (VADs)

• Used to prevent a failing heart, remove blood from the heart, then pump it back into the aorta or pulmonary artery to distribute it around the body

What do you think about "giving up" control to a machine?

I think that it would be risky because robots could malfunction and cause many problems.

If some type of medical robot were to malfunction, the patient could be harmed or even killed.

Type of jobs this robot creates

By: Sahra Soliman & Skylar Penfold

VADs can help future surgeons get jobs because patients need surgery to connect the VAD to their heart.

Advantages/Disadvantages

How could this robot be altered in the future?

Disadvantages:

• Some risks in getting a VAD are blood clots, infection, and device malfunction

Advantages:

• VADs improve life for patients as it takes away heart failure symptoms. These devices also keep the patient alive longer than aggressive medical therapy.
• People with end-stage heart failure may benefit from a VAD as medical management isn't effective anymore.

VADs may be changed to help other parts of the body that could be injured or infected.

Where is the robot used? What is its work envelope?

Impact on patients

• This robot is used in hospitals and other health care centers, but mainly hospitals.
• The VAD doesn't have a work envelope

Patients who are out of breath or are so fatigued that they can’t leave the house now are relieved of those symptoms of heart failure, and live longer than if they had aggressive medical therapy when the heart is at its last stages.

Thank You!

Sources:

http://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/soft-robot-hugs-your-heart-to-keep-it-pumping

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/heart_vascular_institute/clinical_services/specialty_areas/ventricular_assist_devices.html

https://books.google.com/books?id=bxJORmtCRCQC&pg=PA58&lpg=PA58&dq=how+were+VADs+taught+to+do+their+task&source=bl&ots=2kDx8Am3zw&sig=J2Y3pEmojJjgzvqpb3MjylFmKlY&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj6hZfN85TSAhVJNSYKHXewAmIQ6AEIHDAB#v=onepage&q=how%20were%20VADs%20taught%20to%20do%20their%20task&f=false

How is the robot taught to perform its task?

Concerns of future use of robots in our society

Is the robotic end effector multi-functional?If so, what other tasks can they perform?

• No, these devices can only be placed on the heart

What sensors does this robot have and how does the robot use them?

• This robot does not have any sensors

• VAD's are controlled by a doctor, or a patient, which causes the robots to perform its task
• patients who are capable can be taught to manage and care for their own VAD's
• With regular follow-up, the efficacy, efficiency, and integrity of VAD's can be maintained.

Robots don't have common sense which means that they may make some mistakes that humans would know better not to do.

Pictures of a VAD