Patent ID: 8951256
Filing Date: 2015-02-10
Classification: A61B,A61F

Abstract:
1. A surgical guidance system for use in properly orienting a surgical instrument relative to at least one anatomical reference point on a patient, the system comprising: (a) a reference sensor configured to be fixedly coupled to a support device configured to contact and retain a patient at a particular location relative to at least one anatomical reference point, the reference sensor configured to measure both gravitational and magnetic field vectors that define a first set of spatial orientation data relative to a reference coordinate system; (b) a tool sensor configured to be coupled to a surgical instrument, the tool sensor configured to measure both gravitational and magnetic field vectors that define a second set of spatial orientation data relative to said reference coordinate system; and (c) a processor in electronic communication with the reference sensor and the tool sensor, the processor configured to collect the first and second sets of spatial orientation data, the processor configured to calculate an actual orientation of the surgical instrument relative to the at least one anatomical reference point using the first and second sets of spatial orientation data.