A needle-tip embedded fibre optical force sensor for tissue identification
type: CreativeWork
description: The identification of biological tissue types during needle insertion is subject to a lack of precise monitoring techniques, especially in an intensive magnetic resonance environment. One approach to improve this situation is to attach optical sensors to the surgical needle. In this research, a temperature-compensated fibre optical tip force sensor based on the Fabry-Perot Interference (FPI) principle is developed and embedded into the tip of surgical needles. This was designed for tissue identification which it fulfilled via analysing the tip force of the needle during insertion. A novel structure for FPI signal temperature-compensation is proposed, based on the provision of another FPI sensor which is only sensitive to temperature change. After sensor fabrication, two FPI sensors are embedded into the needle’s tip according to the designed structure. The experiments with varying temperature and force demonstrate the designed sensing needle could detect temperature and force signals. The system signal processing is based on interference intensity modulation where the FPI light intensity has a cosine relationship with applied force. An algorithm is proposed to turn light intensity into its intensity phase signal which is linear with applied force variation. The sensing needle is then calibrated via a temperature chamber and commercial force sensors. The results show that the sensing needle successfully overcomes the influence of temperature and captures the applied force at its tip. In addition, as the reference FPI sensor could provide temperature information, the sensing needle is also calibrated in regard to temperature sensing. An optical circuit for the FPI sensors is built and its size is optimised to fit a control box, with connection terminals to the FPI sensor, a portable laser source, and a computer. The entire system is portable, economical and practical for Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS). A Graphical user interface (GUI) is developed to display tip for…
abstract: The identification of biological tissue types during needle insertion is subject to a lack of precise monitoring techniques, especially in an intensive magnetic resonance environment. One approach to improve this situation is to attach optical sensors to the surgical needle. In this research, a temperature-compensated fibre optical tip force sensor based on the Fabry-Perot Interference (FPI) principle is developed and embedded into the tip of surgical needles. This was designed for tissue identification which it fulfilled via analysing the tip force of the needle during insertion. A novel structure for FPI signal temperature-compensation is proposed, based on the provision of another FPI sensor which is only sensitive to temperature change. After sensor fabrication, two FPI sensors are embedded into the needle’s tip according to the designed structure. The experiments with varying temperature and force demonstrate the designed sensing needle could detect temperature and force signals. The system signal processing is based on interference intensity modulation where the FPI light intensity has a cosine relationship with applied force. An algorithm is proposed to turn light intensity into its intensity phase signal which is linear with applied force variation. The sensing needle is then calibrated via a temperature chamber and commercial force sensors. The results show that the sensing needle successfully overcomes the influence of temperature and captures the applied force at its tip. In addition, as the reference FPI sensor could provide temperature information, the sensing needle is also calibrated in regard to temperature sensing. An optical circuit for the FPI sensors is built and its size is optimised to fit a control box, with connection terminals to the FPI sensor, a portable laser source, and a computer. The entire system is portable, economical and practical for Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS). A Graphical user interface (GUI) is developed to display tip for…
author: Mo, Zonglai
license: https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htm
date published: 2018
date modified: 2026-07-24T01:05:49Z
provider: University of Auckland
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: ResearchSpace@Auckland

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/2292/37340