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Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine >

2025 , Vol. 45 >Issue 1: 201 - 212

DOI: https://doi.org/10.19852/j.cnki.jtcm.2025.01.020

Research on acupuncture robots based on the OptiTrack motion capture system and a robotic arm

  • Ling HE ,
  • Hui YANG ,
  • Kang LI ,
  • Junwen WANG ,
  • Zhibo SUN ,
  • Jinsheng YANG ,
  • Jing ZHANG
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  • 1 College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
    2 West China Biomedical Big Data Center, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
    3 Institute of Basic Theory for Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100700, China
    4 Institute of Basic Theory for Chinese Medicine, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China

Received date: 2024-03-12

  Accepted date: 2024-10-11

  Online published: 2025-01-10

Supported by

Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine Project of National Key R & D Program of China: The construction of the theoretical system of Traditional Chinese Medicine non-pharmacological therapy based on body surface stimulation(2023YFC3502704);Sichuan Provincial Science and Technology Program Project: Research and Development of Chinese Medicine Intelligent Tongue Diagnosis Equipment for Digestive System Chinese Medicine Advantageous Diseases(2023YFS0327);Research and Development of Chinese Medicine Intelligent Detection System for Intestinal Functions(2024YFFK0044);Research and Application of Chinese Medicine Diagnosis and Treatment Program for Herpes Zoster Treated by Shu Pai Fire Acupuncture(2024YFFK0089);Major Research and Development Project of The China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Innovation: Construction and application of the theoretical research mode of Traditional Chinese Medicine diagnosis and treatment of modern diseases(CI2021A00104)

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To propose an automatic acupuncture robot system for performing acupuncture operations.

METHODS: The acupuncture robot system consists of three components: automatic acupoint localization, acupuncture manipulations, and De Qi sensation detection. The OptiTrack motion capture system is used to locate acupoints, which are then translated into coordinates in the robot control system. A flexible collaborative robot with an intelligent gripper is then used to perform acupuncture manipulations with high precision. In addition, a De Qi sensation detection system is proposed to evaluate the effect of acupuncture. To verify the stability of the designed acupuncture robot, acupoints’ coordinates localized by the acupuncture robot are compared with the Gold Standard labeled by a professional acupuncturist using significant level tests.

RESULTS: Through repeated experiments for eight acupoints, the acupuncture robot achieved a positioning error within 3.3 mm, which is within the allowable range of needle extraction and acupoint insertion. During needle insertion, the robot arm followed the prescribed trajectory with a mean deviation distance of 0.02 mm and a deviation angle of less than 0.15°. The results of the lifting thrusting operation in the Xingzhen process show that the mean acupuncture depth error of the designed acupuncture robot is approximately 2 mm, which is within the recommended depth range for the Xingzhen operation. In addition, the average detection accuracy of the De Qi keywords is 94.52%, which meets the requirements of acupuncture effect testing for different dialects.

CONCLUSION: The proposed acupuncture robot system streamlines the acupuncture process, increases efficiency, and reduces practitioner fatigue, while also allowing for the quantification of acupuncture manipulations and evaluation of therapeutic effects. The development of an acupuncture robot system has the potential to revolutionize low back pain treatment and improve patient outcomes.

Key words： acupuncture robot; acupuncture quantification; acupoint location; De Qi detection

Cite this article

Ling HE , Hui YANG , Kang LI , Junwen WANG , Zhibo SUN , Jinsheng YANG , Jing ZHANG . Research on acupuncture robots based on the OptiTrack motion capture system and a robotic arm[J]. Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 2025 , 45(1) : 201 -212 . DOI: 10.19852/j.cnki.jtcm.2025.01.020

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