IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - September 2023 - 105

These advantages have been demonstrated in two real-case
scenarios for nuclear and aerospace, in which a prototype of
the proposed robot (5 m in length and fewer than 9 mm in
diameter, with 6 DoF at the active segment and 2 DoF at the
passive segment) outperformed both borescopes and continuum
robots. The modularity of the novel design also allows for
different configurations (e.g., multiple passive or active segments)
to adapt COBRA for a large variety of other applications,
such as surgical robotics, as highlighted in the reported
medical application.
In the reported example, a human operator guides the
robot throughout the operation, compensating for the limited
onboard sensing (an EE camera) and errors due to the
unknown shape of the passive section (e.g., variation of the
tendon length and, thus, active section shape due to passive
section bending). However, future development will focus on
enabling automated operation with simultaneous localization
and mapping techniques or shape sensing (e.g., with fiber
Bragg grating).
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We would like to thank Dr. Oladejo Olaleye for assisting
us in the development and demonstration of the medical
COBRA prototype, providing us with his knowledge,
experience, and feedback on ear, nose, and throat; head
and neck; and transoral surgery as a robotic surgeon at
the University Hospitals of Leicester National Health Service
Trust.
This work was supported by Innovate UK Grants 104066
(COBRA) and 51689 (REINSTATE), University of Nottingham
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research
Council Impact Acceleration Accounts Grant RA45DV (Medical-COBRA),
and Rolls-Royce plc.
AUTHORS
David Alatorre Troncoso, Faculty of Engineering, University
of Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K. E-mail: david.
alatorre@nottingham.ac.uk.
Jose A. Robles-Linares, Faculty of Engineering,
University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K.
E-mail: jose.robles@nottingham.ac.uk.
Matteo Russo, Faculty of Engineering, University of
Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K. E-mail: matteo.
russo@uniroma2.it.
Mohamed A. Elbanna, Faculty of Engineering,
University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K.
E-mail: mohamed.elbanna@nottingham.ac.uk.
Samuel Wild, Faculty of Engineering, University of
Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K. E-mail: samuel.
wild@nottingham.ac.uk.
Xin Dong, Faculty of Engineering, University of
Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K. E-mail: xin.dong@
nottingham.ac.uk.
Abdelkhalick Mohammad, Faculty of Engineering,
University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K.
E-mail: abd.mohammad1@nottingham.ac.uk.
SEPTEMBER 2023 IEEE ROBOTICS & AUTOMATION MAGAZINE
105
James Kell, Rolls-Royce plc, Derby DE24 8BJ, U.K.
E-mail: james.kell@rolls-royce.com.
Andy D. Norton, Rolls-Royce plc, Derby DE24 8BJ, U.K.
E-mail: andy.norton@rolls-royce.com.
Dragos Axinte, Faculty of Engineering, University of
Nottingham, Nottingham NG8 1BB, U.K. E-mail: dragos.
axinte@nottingham.ac.uk.
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IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - September 2023

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