{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T14:45:26Z","timestamp":1785422726484,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":47,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,12]],"date-time":"2026-06-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1781222400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100017657","name":"Montreal General Hospital Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100017657","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/04gbhgc79","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada"},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/01h531d29","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This study presents an integrated framework for enhancing the safety and operational efficiency of robotic arms in laparoscopic surgery by addressing minimum distance estimation between multi-arm manipulators and the associated collision-aware warning. By combining analytical modeling, real time simulation, and machine learning, the framework offers a robust solution for ensuring safe robotic operations. An analytical model was developed to estimate the minimum distances between robotic arms based on their joint configurations, offering theoretical calculations that serve as both a validation tool and a benchmark. To complement this, a 3D simulation environment was created to model two 7 DOF Kinova robotic arms (Kinova Inc., Boisbriand, QC, Canada), generating a diverse dataset of configurations for distance estimation and collision warning. Using these insights, a deep residual neural network model was trained with joint configurations as inputs. On the held out validation set, the model achieves R2=0.940, RMSE =42.0 mm, MAE =28.7 mm, and a near zero mean bias, demonstrating strong predictive accuracy and consistent generalization across the workspace. The framework is intended as an early collision warning layer, where a warning is triggered when the predicted inter-arm distance falls below a 0.2 m threshold, which corresponds to a surface to surface clearance of approximately 50 mm given the Kinova Gen3 (Kinova Inc., Boisbriand, QC, Canada) cross sectional radius. This work demonstrates the effectiveness of combining analytical modeling with machine learning to enhance the precision and reliability of multi-arm robotic systems.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s26123744","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,12]],"date-time":"2026-06-12T06:53:10Z","timestamp":1781247190000},"page":"3744","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Neural Minimum-Distance Estimation for Collision-Aware Operation of Multi-Arm Laparoscopy Surgical Robots Through Learning-from-Simulation"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"26","author":[{"given":"Sarvin","family":"Ghiasi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Surgical Performance Enhancement and Robotics (SuPER) Centre, Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3738-7782","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Majid","family":"Roshanfar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Wilfred and Joyce Posluns Centre for Image Guided Innovation & Therapeutic Intervention (PCIGITI), The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3543-6042","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jake","family":"Barralet","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Surgical Performance Enhancement and Robotics (SuPER) Centre, Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0445-7767","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Liane S.","family":"Feldman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Surgical Performance Enhancement and Robotics (SuPER) Centre, Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9036-5331","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Amir","family":"Hooshiar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Surgical Performance Enhancement and Robotics (SuPER) Centre, Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,12]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"408","DOI":"10.1007\/s11701-025-02589-7","article-title":"Minimally invasive surgery: A historical and legal perspective on technological transformation","volume":"19","author":"Jeganathan","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Robot. Surg."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"283","DOI":"10.1007\/s00423-015-1278-y","article-title":"Robotic general surgery: Current practice, evidence, and perspective","volume":"400","author":"Jung","year":"2015","journal-title":"Langenbeck\u2019s Arch. Surg."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Cochetti, G., Cocca, D., Maddonni, S., Paladini, A., Sarti, E., Stivalini, D., and Mearini, E. (2020). Combined robotic surgery for double renal masses and prostate cancer: Myth or reality?. Medicina, 56.","DOI":"10.3390\/medicina56060318"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2347","DOI":"10.1002\/rcs.2347","article-title":"A comparison of robotic versus laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy: Propensity score matching analysis","volume":"18","author":"Kwon","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int. J. Med. Robot. Comput. Assist. Surg."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Roshanfar, M., Salimi, M., Kaboodrangi, A.H., Jang, S.-J., Sinusas, A.J., Wong, S.-C., and Mosadegh, B. (2025). Advanced Robotics for the Next-Generation of Cardiac Interventions. Micromachines, 16.","DOI":"10.3390\/mi16040363"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"444","DOI":"10.1016\/j.euf.2020.01.011","article-title":"Preclinical evaluation of the versius surgical system, a new robot-assisted surgical device for use in minimal access renal and prostate surgery","volume":"7","author":"Thomas","year":"2021","journal-title":"Eur. Urol. Focus"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"528","DOI":"10.1007\/s00464-022-09526-x","article-title":"Clinical implementation of the Versius robotic surgical system in visceral surgery\u2014A single centre experience and review of the first 175 patients","volume":"37","author":"Wehrmann","year":"2023","journal-title":"Surg. Endosc."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e000144","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjsit-2022-000144","article-title":"Safe implementation of surgical innovation: A prospective registry of the Versius Robotic Surgical System","volume":"5","author":"Soumpasis","year":"2023","journal-title":"BMJ Surg. Interv. Health Technol."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e522s","DOI":"10.6061\/clinics\/2017\/e522s","article-title":"Introduction of robotic surgery for endometrial cancer into a Brazilian cancer service: A randomized trial evaluating perioperative clinical outcomes and costs","volume":"73","author":"Anton","year":"2018","journal-title":"Clinics"},{"key":"ref_10","first-page":"91","article-title":"Robotic liver surgery: Literature review and current evidence","volume":"4","author":"Ruzzenente","year":"2020","journal-title":"Mini-Invasive Surg."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6015","DOI":"10.1007\/s00464-023-10045-6","article-title":"Crossover-effects in technical skills between laparoscopy and robot-assisted surgery","volume":"37","author":"Hardon","year":"2023","journal-title":"Surg. Endosc."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"14","DOI":"10.1002\/wjs.12008","article-title":"Laparoscopic but not open surgical skills can be transferred to robot-assisted surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis","volume":"48","author":"Schmidt","year":"2024","journal-title":"World J. Surg."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"485","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-020-57413-z","article-title":"Comparison of surgical outcomes between integrated robotic and conventional laparoscopic surgery for distal gastrectomy: A propensity score matching analysis","volume":"10","author":"Roh","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci. Rep."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2563","DOI":"10.1007\/s00423-022-02552-2","article-title":"Results of robotic TAPP and conventional laparoscopic TAPP in an outpatient setting: A cohort study in Switzerland","volume":"407","author":"Gerdes","year":"2022","journal-title":"Langenbeck\u2019s Arch. Surg."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Chen, S., Lin, Y., Xu, D., Lin, J., Zeng, Y., and Li, L. (2022). Da vinci robotic-assisted treatment of pediatric choledochal cyst. Front. Pediatr., 10.","DOI":"10.3389\/fped.2022.1044309"},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"134","DOI":"10.18203\/2320-1770.ijrcog20234092","article-title":"A comprehensive review of 53 gynae surgeries on the versius robotic system in a tertiary care hospital","volume":"13","author":"Manchanda","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Reprod. Contracept. Obstet. Gynecol."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"74","DOI":"10.1186\/s12957-018-1374-x","article-title":"Robotic sleeve resection for pulmonary disease","volume":"16","author":"Li","year":"2018","journal-title":"World J. Surg. Oncol."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"323","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mechmachtheory.2018.12.035","article-title":"Distal-end force prediction of tendon-sheath mechanisms for flexible endoscopic surgical robots using deep learning","volume":"134","author":"Li","year":"2019","journal-title":"Mech. Mach. Theory"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"20","DOI":"10.21037\/jovs-20-128","article-title":"Robotic radical thymothymectomy for thymomatous myasthenia gravis in the elderly: Case report and mini-review","volume":"7","author":"Montagne","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Vis. Surg."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2079","DOI":"10.1002\/rcs.2079","article-title":"Visual-based autonomous field of view control of laparoscope with safety-RCM constraints for semi-autonomous surgery","volume":"16","author":"Sun","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Med. Robot. Comput. Assist. Surg."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3271","DOI":"10.1007\/s00464-016-5358-z","article-title":"Visual\u2013perceptual mismatch in robotic surgery","volume":"31","author":"Abiri","year":"2017","journal-title":"Surg. Endosc."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"58","DOI":"10.1186\/s12938-016-0189-7","article-title":"A development of assistant surgical robot system based on surgical-operation-by-wire and hands-on-throttle-and-stick","volume":"15","author":"Kim","year":"2016","journal-title":"Biomed. Eng. Online"},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110","DOI":"10.1016\/j.procir.2017.04.027","article-title":"Toward autonomous collision avoidance for robotic neurosurgery in deep and narrow spaces in the brain","volume":"65","author":"Ueda","year":"2017","journal-title":"Procedia CIRP"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"rjaa258","DOI":"10.1093\/jscr\/rjaa258","article-title":"Single-session, dual-site robotic surgery for synchronous primary malignancies of the oropharynx and thorax","volume":"2020","author":"Kelly","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Surg. Case Rep."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Nigicser, I., Oldfield, M., and Haidegger, T. (2022). Magnetic Anchoring Considerations for Retractors Supporting Manual and Robot-Assisted Minimally Invasive Surgery. Machines, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/machines10090745"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S1","DOI":"10.1002\/lary.29034","article-title":"Transoral Robotic Surgical Proficiency Via Real-Time Tactile Collision Awareness System","volume":"130","author":"Mendelsohn","year":"2020","journal-title":"Laryngoscope"},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1166","DOI":"10.1109\/TRO.2019.2920078","article-title":"Dynamic active constraints for surgical robots using vector-field inequalities","volume":"35","author":"Marinho","year":"2019","journal-title":"IEEE Trans. Robot."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Yoshimura, M., Marinho, M.M., Harada, K., and Mitsuishi, M. (August, January 31). Single-shot pose estimation of surgical robot instruments\u2019 shafts from monocular endoscopic images. Proceedings of the 2020 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), Paris, France.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICRA40945.2020.9196779"},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"562","DOI":"10.1097\/IGC.0000000000000925","article-title":"Minimally invasive surgery to treat gynecological cancer: Conventional laparoscopy and\/or robot-assisted surgery","volume":"27","author":"Minig","year":"2017","journal-title":"Int. J. Gynecol. Cancer"},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"He, Y., Hu, Y., Zhang, P., Zhao, B., Qi, X., and Zhang, J. (2019). Human\u2013robot cooperative control based on virtual fixture in robot-assisted endoscopic sinus surgery. Appl. Sci., 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/app9081659"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Roshanfar, M., Sayadi, A., Dargahi, J., and Hooshiar, A. (2022, January 11\u201315). Stiffness adaptation of a hybrid soft surgical robot for improved safety in interventional surgery. Proceedings of the 2022 44th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society (EMBC), Glasgow, UK.","DOI":"10.1109\/EMBC48229.2022.9871310"},{"key":"ref_32","unstructured":"Jim\u00e9nez, P., Thomas, F., and Torras, C. (2005). Collision detection algorithms for motion planning. Robot Motion Planning and Control, Springer."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"41","DOI":"10.1109\/LRA.2015.2505061","article-title":"A conformable force\/tactile skin for physical human\u2013robot interaction","volume":"1","author":"Cirillo","year":"2015","journal-title":"IEEE Robot. Autom. Lett."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"114","DOI":"10.1109\/TRO.2016.2623332","article-title":"Applying virtual fixtures to the distal end of a minimally invasive surgery instrument","volume":"33","author":"Vitrani","year":"2016","journal-title":"IEEE Trans. Robot."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2053","DOI":"10.1002\/rcs.2053","article-title":"SmartArm: Integration and validation of a versatile surgical robotic system for constrained workspaces","volume":"16","author":"Marinho","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Med. Robot. Comput. Assist. Surg."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Marinho, M.M., Adorno, B.V., Harada, K., Deie, K., Deguet, A., Kazanzides, P., Taylor, R.H., and Mitsuishi, M. (2019, January 20\u201324). A unified framework for the teleoperation of surgical robots in constrained workspaces. Proceedings of the 2019 International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), Montreal, QC, Canada.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICRA.2019.8794363"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"524","DOI":"10.1109\/LRA.2019.2963642","article-title":"Virtual fixture assistance for suturing in robot-aided pediatric endoscopic surgery","volume":"5","author":"Marinho","year":"2020","journal-title":"IEEE Robot. Autom. Lett."},{"key":"ref_38","first-page":"38","article-title":"Research on safety strategy of surgical robot based on virtual fixtures","volume":"6","author":"Xin","year":"2023","journal-title":"Acad. J. Eng. Technol. Sci."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"135656","DOI":"10.1109\/ACCESS.2019.2942319","article-title":"A virtual fixtures control method of surgical robot based on human arm kinematics model","volume":"7","author":"Lin","year":"2019","journal-title":"IEEE Access"},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wang, X., Wu, Q., Wang, T., and Cui, Y. (2023). A path-planning method to significantly reduce local oscillation of manipulators based on velocity potential field. Sensors, 23.","DOI":"10.3390\/s23239617"},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Herbster, S., Behrens, R., and Elkmann, N. (2023). Modeling the contact force in constrained human\u2013robot collisions. Machines, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/machines11100955"},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Zhu, X.-Y., Duan, X.-G., Chen, C., Liu, T.-B., and Guo, Q.-B. (2012, January 15\u201317). A model of collision-detection for maxillofacial multi-arm surgery robot. Proceedings of the 2012 IEEE International Conference on Automation and Logistics, Zhengzhou, China.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICAL.2012.6308136"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5536574","DOI":"10.1155\/2021\/5536574","article-title":"The application of an adaptive genetic algorithm based on collision detection in path planning of mobile robots","volume":"2021","author":"Hao","year":"2021","journal-title":"Comput. Intell. Neurosci."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lee, S.-D., Kim, M.-C., and Song, J.-B. (October, January 28). Sensorless collision detection for safe human-robot collaboration. Proceedings of the 2015 IEEE\/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Hamburg, Germany.","DOI":"10.1109\/IROS.2015.7353701"},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Li, Z., Ye, J., and Wu, H. (2019). A virtual sensor for collision detection and distinction with conventional industrial robots. Sensors, 19.","DOI":"10.3390\/s19102368"},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Roshanfar, M., Dargahi, J., and Hooshiar, A. (2024). Design optimization of a hybrid-driven soft surgical robot with biomimetic constraints. Biomimetics, 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/biomimetics9010059"},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wen, S., Ma, Z., Wen, S., Zhao, Y., and Yao, J. (2014, January 9\u201311). The study of NAO robot arm based on direct kinematics by using DH method. Proceedings of the 2014 UKACC International Conference on Control (CONTROL), Loughborough, UK.","DOI":"10.1109\/CONTROL.2014.6915193"}],"container-title":["Sensors"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1424-8220\/26\/12\/3744\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,14]],"date-time":"2026-06-14T04:14:36Z","timestamp":1781410476000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1424-8220\/26\/12\/3744"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,12]]},"references-count":47,"journal-issue":{"issue":"12","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6]]}},"alternative-id":["s26123744"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/s26123744","relation":{},"ISSN":["1424-8220"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1424-8220","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,12]]}}}