Next-Generation Surgical Robots

The adoption of robotic surgery continues to increase, with over 1 million robotic-assisted surgical procedures performed worldwide (2018 estimate). Over 70 companies are developing/introducing platforms for robotic-assisted surgery in nearly every procedural speciality. In this chapter, we review concepts that are important to consider when discussing the future of robotic surgical platforms, including design of the surgeon, surgical team, and patient interfaces, integrated versus modular designs, reality augmentation, cost, and data analytics.