Multi-robot system captures detailed full-body skin images automatically
Multi-Robot Scanner for Automated Full-Body Dermoscopic Imaging
Robotics
Summary
It can be hard to get detailed pictures of all skin spots on a person’s body without touching them and doing long manual exams. The authors built a system using four robot arms with cameras that automatically take close-up images of skin marks from the best angles. Their system safely avoids bumps and takes pictures with detail close to handheld tools doctors use. This could help doctors screen the whole body more efficiently without extra effort.
What this means in practice
- •For dermatology clinics: Automate capturing high-detail full-body skin images to improve efficiency of skin lesion screening and documentation.
- •For medical imaging companies: Develop robotic imaging devices that provide dermatoscopic-quality pictures without manual contact for integration into skin screening products.$Commercial implications: Enables creation of automated full-body dermoscopic scanners for hospitals and clinics, improving imaging workflows and device offerings.
Authors
Valerio Franchi, Rafael Garcia, Nuno Gracias, Ricard Campos, Josep Quintana, Sandra González-Villà, Mark Ventura, Nuria Ferrera, Clément Lenoir, Josep Malvehy
Abstract
This paper outlines the specifications and design approach used to construct a full body imaging scanner capable of capturing skin lesions at a dermatoscopic level using cameras mounted on the end-effectors of four UR10 manipulators. The system possesses a view-planning algorithm capable of appropriately selecting the best camera position to acquire images of moles, a high-level controller to allow the manipulators to work simultaneously and a collision-detector that halts the manipulators when they make contact with an object or a person. We evaluate the system through real-patient full-body scans, comparing acquired images against contact dermoscopy and an existing total-body photography system (Vectra) across clinically relevant lesion features, and quantify true optical resolving power using a USAF 1951 resolution target, yielding a smallest resolvable feature size of 22.1 microns for our scanner compared to 8.8 microns for contact dermoscopy. Results show the scanner consistently outperforms Vectra across most clinically relevant features and achieves comparable performance to contact dermoscopy for the majority of features assessed. By acquiring dermatoscopic-quality images automatically and without contact, and without requiring a separate manual dermoscopic examination, the scanner closes part of the gap between total-body photography and handheld dermoscopy, suggesting potential for future integration into screening workflows.