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Chris Johnson predicts that future medical robots will probably be used extra to supply sufferers with emotional help than as instruments. | Supply: SMB Bearings
Robots are on the rise in medical environments and are being more and more relied upon to hold out extra advanced procedures. Though martensitic stainless steels have been favored for bearings in robotic functions, their efficiency is falling brief in opposition to rising requirements to stop contamination in medical environments.
GlobalData predicted that the medical robotics market will rise from $4.7 billion in 2020 to $14.5 billion in 2030. The analyst agency mentioned these robots will “be forged extra as companions offering emotional help, slightly than seen as instruments.” The quote refers to synthetic intelligence changing into extra superior, permitting robots to supply extra therapeutic help to sufferers in methods we will’t think about as we speak and to counter workers shortages.
From surgical help robots that assist carry out minimally invasive procedures to therapeutic robots to help rehabilitation for accidents and paralysis, the expertise has come a great distance since easy robotic arms had been first launched within the Eighties. Though surgical robots have gotten cheaper, fashionable medical functions are additionally demanding larger precision and velocity capabilities from these robots.
Historically, in medical devices, bearings — which optimize the rotation of axes in robotic arms by limiting or avoiding friction and jolts — have been created from high-purity metals resembling martensitic stainless-steel. Examples embrace medical robots that assist undertake keyhole surgical procedure the place the utmost precision is required. Surgical robotic bearings should ship the very best attainable rotational accuracy whereas additionally being sufficiently small to suit into these usually compact and moveable hospital gadgets.
Nonetheless, metal bearings have limitations together with contamination. Whereas metal bearings are robust and able to withstanding extremely corrosive environments, they’re inclined to particulate contamination as a result of very excessive contact pressures in opposition to the metal inside the bearing whereas it strikes. If left unchecked, this contamination may cause denting and put on.
In fact, contamination on the whole is unacceptable in well being and security environments. As robots change into extra prevalent in medical functions, rules are getting stricter to stop contamination.
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Ceramic can change metal, says SMB Bearings
All of those elements affect the selection of fabric for bearings in medical environments — however what materials can change metal? The medical gear sector is more and more selecting bearings made completely of zirconia (ZrO2), or different unique ceramic compounds. In accordance with the Institute of Materials, Minerals, and Mining, “ceramic bearings created from ZrO₂ are robust, with comparable growth properties to stainless-steel and 440 stainless-steel, though they’re 30% lighter.”
Certainly, full ceramic precision bearings are more durable than metal, with superior corrosion and warmth resistance, larger dimensional stability, and decrease density. Nonetheless, ceramic bearings are costly. This can be a large problem for well being institutes that function inside tight budgets, so the choice to put money into them should be well-considered. Happily, ceramic bearings maintain an a variety of benefits for medical environments.
One is that the bearings don’t react to chemical compounds. Which means they don’t corrode or weaken when subjected to harsh chemical compounds used for sterilization in hospitals. Ceramics don’t require lubrication that will in any other case draw contaminants like mud, water, or humidity. This additionally eliminates the necessity for upkeep processes like relubrication. Ceramic bearings are additionally waterproof, so might be washed down commonly.
The necessity to keep away from contamination accompanies different design necessities resembling excessive speeds, low noise, and non-magnetic properties. As an illustration, as a result of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners use a robust magnetic discipline to generate two- or three-dimensional photos of any residing topic, metal bearings can’t be used resulting from their magnetic properties.
SMB Bearings says ceramic bearings maintain an a variety of benefits for medical environments. | Supply: SMB Bearings
Put money into the fitting supplies for high-value functions
So, is investing in ceramic bearings for medical environments price it? There are nonetheless sure functions the place the velocity and precision of metal are essential, like in surgical robots. Nonetheless, there are different situations the place utilizing the flawed parts in such medical or laboratory gear can contaminate research situations or trigger the research to stop altogether.
As a substitute, the additional funding in ceramic bearings might help make sure that medical robots run with effectiveness and longevity — particularly as they’re “forged extra as companions offering emotional help, slightly than seen as instruments.”
Concerning the writer
Chris Johnson is the managing director at SMB Bearings, a specialist ceramic bearings supplier. Johnson has over 14 years of expertise at SMB Bearings.
