The addition of a robotic assistant for cranial procedures helps surgeons improve accuracy, reduce recovery time for pediatric patients.

AVRA Medical Robotics has stabilized its finances as it continues developing a fully autonomous surgical system and submitting it for regulatory approval.

Company also applies to FDA to evaluate safety and efficacy of system for colon resection surgeries.

The high-tech surgical training facility is the first in the U.S. to partner with the British robotics company to train surgeons with the Versius next-generation robotic system.

In the near future, surgeries will include enhanced imaging, greater autonomy, and optimized learning, said experts at the Hamlyn Symposium on Medical Robotics.

A recent report by Allied Market Research looks at robotic surgery, and here are examples of different technological advances and use cases.

With more than 20 companies offering surgical robots for different medical procedures, consolidation and dropping prices could spur adoption by hospitals.

UnitDoseOne, which won the Pitchfire startup competition at RoboBusiness 2017, is working to reduce medical errors, improve security, and save lives with its prescription delivery system.

Surgical automation is a growing and profitable area of robotics, but it has limits based on anatomy and space. Innovations such as surgical depth imaging and machine vision improvements could allow for more complex operations.

Orthopedics provider Zimmer Biomet is buying Medtech to expand into robotic surgery. Rosa has FDA approval for brain and spine surgery, as other companies also make deals to catch a growing market.

While a robot surgeon can reach into areas where a human surgeon can’t, most doctors still view such devices as an extension of human capabilities rather than a replacement.

Surgical robotics pioneer Jacob Rosen talks about his telesurgery and exoskeleton research and how the FDA approval process affects the medical device market.

Medtronic is investing Mazor Robotics and plans to become the exclusive distributor of its Mazor X robotic guidance system. The deal is part of Medtronic’s moves to enter the competitive surgical robotics market.

Reuters reports that “within five years, one in three U.S. surgeries – more than double current levels – is expected to be performed with robotic systems, with surgeons sitting at computer consoles guiding mechanical arms.

Hyundai Group, whose Hyundai Heavy Industries division already uses robotics, is looking to get into the competitive global market for medical robots.

Cambridge Medical Robotics (CMR) claims that its surgical system will expand the current $2.3 billion market for robotic minimal access surgery by a factor of 10

We may see some blips of life beginning late in 2017.

The SurgiBot surgical robot from TransEnterix was dealt a setback by the FDA last week. However, TransEnterix plans to continue its efforts to enter the growing market for surgical robots.

Maastricht University Medical Center buys robotic-guided cardiac catheter system, but recent acquisitions demonstrate industry’s growing pains.

University of Washington researchers hack an open-source robot, demonstrating vulnerability in all tele-operated robots.

Virtual Incision is developing a first-of-its-kind miniaturized robot for General Surgery abdominal procedures. The company is planning a first-in-human feasibility study in the coming months for colon resection, a procedure performed to treat patients with lower gastrointestinal diseases such as diverticulitis, Crohn?s disease, inflammatory bowel disease and colon cancer.

Intuitive Surgical Shortcomings Prompt Better Training

The scope and complexity of robotic surgery procedures continues to increase as new entrants look to niches within the field, while others test ambitious open-source platforms.