The Toumai^® Robotic Laparoscopic Surgical System, developed by Shanghai MicroPort MedBot (Group) Co., Ltd. (02252.HK), is a four-arm robotic surgical system used to assist in minimally invasive surgeries in urology, general surgery, thoracic surgery, and gynecology. Toumai^® is the first laparoscopic surgical robot in China to be approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and received its urology indication in January 2022. In September 2023, it obtained NMPA approval for expanded indications, making it suitable for multiple departments including urology, general surgery, thoracic surgery, and gynecology.

Components of the Toumai^® Robot

The Toumai^® system consists of three parts: the patient-side surgical platform, the image platform, and the surgeon's console.

Surgeon's Console: Equipped with an immersive 3D endoscope system, the console features a 1080P full HD electronic scope with a wide field of view of 90 degrees. It provides a real-time surgical view through dual-image acquisition, assisting surgeons in maintaining a comprehensive view of the surgical field. Additionally, it offers various auxiliary views such as smoke evacuation and vascular enhancement. The console also incorporates an intuitive master-slave teleoperation system, allowing surgeons to control the robotic instruments and the immersive 3D high-definition endoscope using two master controllers and foot pedals.

Image Platform: Equipped with the Toumai^® robot's core processor and image processing devices, the image platform provides image information to the surgical team beside the patient's operating table. The platform also features a picture-in-picture function, allowing integration of ultrasound, MRI, and other diagnostic information to facilitate on-site decision-making for complex cases.

Patient Platform: This platform supports the robotic arms and camera arm. The Toumai^® robot has four robotic arms with seven degrees of freedom each, as well as 18 dedicated instruments. Surgeons manipulate the surgical instruments on the patient-side platform using the main operating hand controls on the surgeon's console. The instruments have a diameter of ≤8.5mm, offering high flexibility and enabling minimally invasive surgical procedures such as cutting, dissecting, hemostasis, and suturing commonly performed in urology, general surgery, thoracic surgery, gynecology, and other specialties. The system is characterized by its minimally invasive, precise, and dexterous capabilities.

Leading Technologies of Toumai^®

Master-Slave Mapping Frequency

Toumai^® adopts an "intuitive operation" mode, achieving international leading performance in parameters such as master-slave mapping frequency and image latency. The master-slave operation delay is less than 70 milliseconds, accurately mapping the position and posture of the human hand, and ensuring that the movement direction of the hand remains consistent with the image of the instrument end.

Force Sensing Technology

Toumai^® possesses the globally "unique" force sensing and feedback components for robotic surgery, enabling real-time control at 4000 Hz with high-speed response. With a resolution of 0.1N, it provides real-time force sensing, indicating safe operation for the surgeon.

5G Tele-surgery Technology

Based on the architecture of a 5G tele-surgery system, Toumai^® can achieve multi-point collaborative tele-surgery control of a patient platform with dual control consoles. The control transfer mechanism ensures the precise implementation of multi-point collaborative tele-surgery, offering advantages of low latency and high security. Technologies such as "dual-machine hot backup," "multi-network fusion," and "intelligent encoding" enable the primary surgeon to have a clearer view and perform more precise surgery, ensuring patient safety.

MedBot^® continues to explore and strives for more technological breakthroughs in tele-surgery. In addition to 5G networks and fiber optics, MedBot^® has also collaborated with telecommunications operators to combine drone networking technology with 5G technology for remote communication. They successfully completed the first demonstration of a 5G remote robot animal surgery outside a hospital environment.

Unique Full Simulation Training Module

Through the combination of a surgeon's console and a simulation host, Toumai^® accurately replicates the instruments, functions, and operational habits of the surgical robot, enabling simulation of surgical operations and training for surgical robot operators. The simulation training device provides a three-dimensional virtual reality, simulating tissue types, textures, blood vessels, nerves, and even blood flow, offering operators a completely immersive surgical experience. The course includes a training module for the "gold standard" robotic surgery for radical prostatectomy, achieving a more realistic surgical training effect.

Clinical Applications and Commercialization Progress

Local Clinical Surgery

Toumai^® robots are suitable for nearly 200 clinical procedures and have successfully completed challenging surgeries in various departments, including radical cystectomy with in-situ neobladder reconstruction, radical prostatectomy, partial nephrectomy, radical nephrectomy for kidney cancer, pancreaticoduodenectomy, liver resection, radical lung cancer surgery, lobectomy, radical gastric cancer surgery, sleeve gastrectomy, Kamikawa anastomosis, hysterectomy, comprehensive staging surgery for endometrial cancer, extensive type C2 radical hysterectomy for cervical cancer, and comprehensive staging surgery for early ovarian cancer.

As of October 2023, Toumai^® robots have assisted in over 1,500 clinical surgeries in nearly 60 top hospitals in 21 provinces in China, including urology, general surgery, thoracic surgery, gynecology, pediatric surgery, and other departments. Over 80 explorations of 5G tele-surgery have been conducted. Among them, there have been over 1,100 cases of level 4 difficult surgeries, with nearly 60 surgeries performed in a single day, and the highest record of "six consecutive surgeries." Toumai^® robots have achieved over 10 world-first records in super remote surgery, with a success rate of 100%.

5G Tele-Surgery

Toumai^® robots have assisted Chinese doctors in nearly 100 explorations of 5G tele-surgery, covering nearly 30 types of procedures in 5 departments, with a 100% success rate. Among them, there have been nearly 10 level 4 surgeries completed across a distance of 5,000 kilometers, creating several world-first records, including liver resection, spleen-preserving distal pancreatectomy, radical cystectomy for bladder cancer, radical nephrectomy for renal tumors, and radical prostatectomy. These surgeries represent the farthest distance achieved in 5G remote robot surgery to date, and all have been successful.

Currently, Toumai^® robots have been installed and sold in over 15 hospitals in China, and the first Chinese-developed robotic surgical system has been sold in the international market, ranking first in sales among Chinese robotic surgical systems. Among the 15 hospitals, 6 are among the top 100 hospitals in China, accounting for approximately 40%.

As the only international leading surgical robot company with a presence in "six major golden specialties," MedBot^® has been committed to developing and manufacturing medical devices with more advanced performance, higher reliability, and greater safety and effectiveness.. Providing intelligent robotic surgery solutions that can extend and reshape lives, adhering to the belief of "Make surgery easier, safer and less invasive." So far, Toumai^® has obtained regulatory approvals for its core robotic products in the fields of laparoscopy, orthopedics, percutaneous puncture, and general vascular surgery in multiple countries.We sincerely welcome experts and professors from all countries to visit and explore possibilities for collaboration.