Importance

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Abstract

A manipulable hand for use in laparoscopic surgery is disclosed, having a master or control hand with clamps for attaching the master hand to that of an operator, the master hand having at least one finger, the finger having at least one hinge corresponding to an interphalangeal joint in a human hand. The manipulable hand further includes a slave or controlled hand, distally disposed from the operator, the slave hand having at least one finger, the finger having at least one hinge corresponding to an interphalangeal joint of a human finger. Both the master and slave hinges are capable of movement corresponding to flexion and extension of a human finger. The master hand and the slave hand are connected by motion transmission rods or cables, and the movements of the slave hand corresponds one-for-one to the movements of the master hand. The preferred embodiment of the manipulable hand has two fingers and a thumb, the thumb of both the master and slave hands is capable of movements corresponding to palmar adduction and abduction, and the fingers of both the master and slave hands are capable of coplanar spreading away from each other and moving back toward each other, moving from a substantially aligned position to a V-shaped configuration. The rods are enclosed within a hollow shaft, and the master and slave hands are mounted with parallel connections therebetween forming wrists at the ends of the shaft.

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First Claim