Patent ID: 8554368

Claim:
A method for controlling movement of a robotic arm of a medical robot system, the robotic arm operatively associated with a tool, the medical robot system comprising: a medical robot under operator control having at least one robotic arm, a camera configured to provide an image of the tool, and a reference structure having a fixed orientation relative to the camera, the method comprising: a. receiving an input value from a controller device representative of a desired motion of the tool, wherein the input value is expressed in a controller device coordinate system; b. determining a calculated motion of the tool based on the input value, wherein the calculated motion is expressed in an observer coordinate system that comprises a first axis oriented in fixed relation with an axis of the tool and a second axis oriented orthogonal to the first axis and such that its projection into a plane defined by X and Y axes of an orthogonal coordinate system defined relative to the reference structure is parallel to and pointing in the same direction as the X axis; c. determining a commanded motion of the robotic arm based on the calculated motion and the position of the robotic arm; and d. outputting an actuation signal to move the robotic arm in accordance with the commanded motion.