2022 has been a year of stunning innovation as medicine and technology continue to converge. It's no surprise that a slew of patents published this year reflect the growing number of breakthrough inventions in the field of surgery as augmented and virtual reality technologies are applied in increasingly novel ways. Below is a list of the 5 most exciting U.S. Patents issued this year that feature applications of augmented and virtual reality to surgery.   

1.) Xenco Medical's Glasses-Free Holographic Surgical Navigation Patent

Patent Name: Surgical Display

Inventor: Jason Haider

Company: Xenco Medical

Publication Date: March 15, 2022

Patent Number: US11273003B1

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Description:

A surgical visualization system comprising: a processor configured to receive patient image data, a file set comprising surgical object data, at least one conventional monitor capable of presenting a 2 D patient data image and capable of presenting a 3 D patient data image, a selection option that allows a user to introduce the surgical object data into the patient image data, thereby generating data so as to depict a 2 D image of the surgical object data introduced into the patient image data on one of the at least one conventional monitor and a 3 D image of the surgical object data introduced into the patient image data on one of the at least one conventional monitor; and a holographic display that generates a 3 D holographic image of the surgical object data introduced into the patient image data, wherein the holographic display allows concurrent viewing of the 3 D holographic image by a plurality of users, wherein at least one image selected from the 2D image, the 3D image and the 3D holographic image is malleable, such that an impact of a surgical procedure on patient actual state is reflected in the at least one image.

2.) Intuitive Surgical's Patent for use of Augmented Reality in a Display of a Teleoperational System  

Patent Name: Systems and methods for presenting augmented reality in a display of a teleoperational system

Inventors: Brandon D. Itkowitz, Simon P. DiMaio, Paul W. Mohr, Theodore W. Rogers

Company: Intuitive Surgical

Publication Date: June 7, 2022

Patent Number: US11351005B2

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Description:

A method comprises displaying a surgical environment image. The surgical environment image includes a virtual control element for controlling a component of a surgical system, and the virtual control element includes a real-time image of the component of the surgical system in the surgical environment image. The method further comprises displaying an image of a body part of a user. The body part is used to interact with the virtual control element. The method further comprises receiving a gesture of the body part of the user in a predetermined motion, via a gesture based input device registering movement of the body part of the user, while the body part interacts with the virtual control element. The method further comprises adjusting a setting of the component of the surgical system based on the received gesture.

3.) Globus Medical's Augmented Reality Surgeon head-mounted display apparatuses

Patent Name: Surgeon head-mounted display apparatuses

Inventors: Kenneth Milton Jones, John Popoolapade, Thomas Calloway, Thierry Lemione, Christian Jutteau, Christophe Bruzy, Yannick James, Joachim Laguarda, Dong-Mei Pei Xing, Sebastien Gorges, Paul Michael Yarin

Company: Globus Medical

Publication Date: January 13, 2022

Patent Number: US11357594B2

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Description:

An augmented reality surgical system includes a head mounted display (HMD) with a see-through display screen, a motion sensor, a camera, and computer equipment. The motion sensor outputs a head motion signal indicating measured movement of the HMD. The computer equipment computes the relative location and orientation of reference markers connected to the HMD and to the patient based on processing a video signal from the camera. The computer equipment generates a three dimensional anatomical model using patient data created by medical imaging equipment, and rotates and scales at least a portion of the three dimensional anatomical model based on the relative location and orientation of the reference markers, and further rotate at least a portion of the three dimensional anatomical model based on the head motion signal to track measured movement of the HMD. The rotated and scaled three dimensional anatomical model is displayed on the display screen.

4.) Smith and Nephew's Augmented Reality in Arthroplasty Surgery Patent

Patent Name: Augmented reality in arthroplasty surgery

Inventors: Constantinos Nikou, Branislav Jaramaz, Cedric Corpa de la Fuente, Daniel Farley

Company: Smith and Nephew

Publication Date: April 21, 2022

Patent Number: US20220117669A1

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Description:

An augmented reality system and method for assisting surgical staff during an arthroplasty procedure includes a camera system configured to capture images of a surgical scene and a processor configured to determine from the images location and orientation information about one or more patient anatomical features and to maintain a three-dimensional model of these anatomical features within the surgical scene. The system models the field-of-view of augmented reality headsets worn by surgical staff, and maps this to the anatomical model, allowing the system to overlay relevant information to the user about particular anatomical features in the surgical plan.

5.) Johnson and Johnson Surgical Vision's Augmented Reality Techniques on a Surgical Microscope

Patent Name: Jig assembled on stereoscopic surgical microscope for applying augmented reality techniques to surgical procedures

Inventors: Assaf Govari, Vadim Gliner

Company: Johnson and Johnson Surgical Vision

Publication Date: June 14, 2022

Patent Number: US11357594B2

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Description:

 A system includes a first optical assembly (OA), a second OA and a processor. The first OA and second OA each coupled with a first and second microscope eyepiece, respectively. Each first and second OAs including a light source, configured to direct an emitted light beam (ELB) through the microscope toward an organ, and an image sensor, configured to sense a reflected light beam (RLB), which is reflected from the organ through the microscope, and to produce a signal indicative of the RLB. The processor is configured to control the first and second OAs to alternately direct the ELB and sense the RLB at first and second time intervals, and alternately display on a first display, during the first time intervals, images based on the signal from the first OA, and display on a second display, during the second time intervals, images based on the signal from the second OA.