Development and Evaluation of MRI-Compatible Actuators

Traditional sensors and actuators are often contraindicated by the strong magnetic and electric fields present in the MRI scanner bore. Further, it is critical that the devices not introduce noise or distortion into the acquired images. We are evaluating different actuator schemes including pneumatics, hydraulics, dielectric elastomers (DEA), shape memory alloy (SMA) and ceramic piezoelectric actuators.

We are currently investigating ways of optimizing piezoelectric motors for MR-compatibility and developing custom piezoelectric actuation systems.

Related Publications

  1. Fischer GS, Cole GA, Su H, Approaches to Creating and Controlling Motion in MRI, In Proceedings of the 33rd Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC), Boston, USA, Aug. 2011. (Invited Paper) IEEE, PubMed, PDF
  2. Wang Y, Su H, Harrington K, Fischer GS, Sliding mode Control of Piezoelectric Valve Regulated Pneumatic Actuator for MRI-Compatible Robotic Intervention, ASME Dynamic Systems and Control Conference - DSCC 2010, Cambridge, Massachusetts, September 2010. PDF, BibTex, EndNote
  3. Wang Y, Cole GA, Su H, Pilitis JG, Fischer GS, MRI Compatibility Evaluation of a Piezoelectric Actuator System for a Neural Interventional Robot, 31st Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society - EMBC 2009, Minneapolis, Minnesota, September 2009. PDF, EMBS, PubMed, BibTex, EndNote
  4. Wang Y, Shazeeb MS, Sotak CH, Fischer GS, Optimization of Piezoelectric Motors to Enhance MR Compatiblity for Interventional Devices, 17th Scientific Meeting and Exhibition of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine - ISMRM 2009, April 2009.
  5. Fischer GS, Krieger A, Iordachita I, Csoma C, Whitcomb L, Fichtinger G, MRI Compatibility of Robot Actuation Techniques - A Comparative Study, 11th International Conference on Medical Image Computing and Computer-Assisted Intervention - MICCAI 2008, New York, NY, Lecture Notes on Computer Science, Vol 5242, pp 509-517, Springer, September 2008. Springer, PubMed, PDF