Abstract
The minimally invasive surgery or endoscopic surgery is the performance of surgery through a small incision with the aid of special medical equipment called a flexible endoscope. The advantage of this technique over open surgery is that there is significantly less operative trauma, resulting in less pain and shorter recovery time. Side effects of the surgery, such as the risk of infection, also reduce. Despite the tremendous benefits, surgeons require considerable practice and time to become competent in endoscopy. Traditionally, the procedure has been taught at the expense of patient comfort and safety as residents have performed the surgery under the supervision of physicians. Patients who undergo the endoscopies performed by students, particularly early in the training period, have been more likely to suffer more discomfort and prolonged procedures. Therefore, using the simulator becomes a promising alternative for endoscopic training process. Our approach is to integrate the computer system with a realistic mechanical model to create a computer-based simulator for upper endoscopy training. The simulator will cover the basics of flexible endoscopy and teach the student the skills required to perform the upper endoscopy. The mechanical training model that simulates a human upper gastrointestinal tract, including pathologies such as ulcers and polyps, will be built and integrated with computer software that will both help and evaluate the student. Due to the optical system of an endoscope, a barrel-type spatial distortion of the image is obtained which results in an inconsistent measurement of object size and distance. The distortion correction system, which includes automatic calibration and expansion coefficients calculation, offers a better perception of size and distance from the endoscopic images to the trainee. With the completion of the distortion correction system, an evaluation system including object recognition can be implemented with high accuracy. Finally, the results of visual observation and numerical analysis are discussed. A recommendation for further study is enclosed.