Sleep Apnea Ron, Laura, and Ryan

Problem Sleep apnea affects 1 in 4 men and 1 in 9 women, obstructs breathing during sleep Can be fatal Noninvasive treatments do not work for everyone Robots need to be used for surgery to help get to the base of the throat without further obstructing the airway

Sleep Apnea Interruption of breathing during sleep “People with untreated sleep apnea stop breathing repeatedly during their sleep, sometimes hundreds of times. This means the brain -- and the rest of the body -- may not get enough oxygen.” – (Source: Could increase a person's risk for heart disease, high cholesterol and diabetes Obstructive Sleep Apnea – Most common form – Blockage caused by soft tissue in the throat collapsing in sleep

Treatment Commonly treated with a C-Pap to keep airways open, but this doesn’t always work and surgery may be needed Uvulophalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP) – Removes excess tissue to get rid of the obstruction – Cuts away tissue from the back of the throat or the base of the tongue, then removes it for a wider airway – Robots used: "We're at the base of the tongue, the airways is going to be down here and we're resecting all this tissue that's falling back, blocking the airway," Dr. D'Agnostino said. Hard to access by hand without hurting the patient Source:

Real Procedure Robotic lance approaches the base of the throat where the obstruction is located Cut excess tissue from the base of the throat to widen the airway Remove the excess tissue from the throat by lifting it out without allowing any to fall into the trachea and obstruct the airway Dispose of excess tissue

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Normal Airway Obstructed Airway Blocked airway, difficulty breathing

Development Part 1 – Construction of Cutting Arm Worm Gear Constructed to change rotary to linear motion Support added to keep rod in line Final Construction of Worm Gear Apparatus

Development Part 2 - Connections Worm Gear Apparatus attached to second motor to lift excess tissue out Connection of second motor to back of basic robot Added to try to balance weight

Model Procedure “Lance” rod on worm gear apparatus approaches paper towel tube “trachea” covered with excess “tissue” cloth Rod separates cloth from tube by “cutting” it away from underneath Second motor lifts rod up and away so that the cloth does not fall into the tube and obstruct the airway Cloth deposited outside the throat

Realization Worm gear apparatus Second Motor Second brick Trachea Tissue Disposal Tray Rubber band to keep everything working

Program (Worm Gear Apparatus) (Second Motor) (Motor to move lance forward)

Trials One – Result: death – Tissue fell into trachea – Suspected user error in setup Two – Result: inconclusive – lance failed to completely eradicate tissue, patient lived but their problem was not solved Three – Result: success! – Tissue eradicated and disposed of Four – Result: success! – Tissue eradicated and disposed of Five – Result: success! – Tissue eradicated and disposed of

Evaluation Worm gear construction worked perfectly in advancing the lance towards the “throat” Robot successfully lanced under the cloth, but sometimes had difficulty lifting it up – Result of weight of the apparatus on a single motor with limited space to move up – More efficient design with fewer parts would allow for easier movement of the lance up and down Robot successfully deposited the material, but had a hard time moving due to the construction with the additional brick – Would have been more effective to connect the brick directly to the other brick for added weight than to connect though the wheel Would have increased mobility

Problems and Inconsistencies Worm gear apparatus wouldn’t always stay put in the beginning of construction – rod bowed out around the gear The weight of the apparatus on the back left of the robot was immense – we had to connect another brick just to keep the robot from tipping In pre-trials, the testing apparatus, especially the fabric tissue, seemed flimsy. A sturdier construction from heavier materials would likely have made trials more effective and eliminated common problems – More of a foam-type material, perhaps attached to a stronger/weightier base with Velcro or the like Due to the construction of the robot, it was impossible to move the entire apparatus forward or backward, although pivot turns worked

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