BEC uses KUKA robots in particle-based radiotherapy

Particle therapy is of particular relevance in brain or spinal cord tumor cases, as surgical procedures are complicated and entail a high degree of risk.

BEC has integrated robotic components to create their robot bed. The robot in question is a ceiling-mounted kinematic system from KUKA. Using this solution, an x-ray imaging system from the company medPhoton can be installed directly on the patient’s bed and move along the bed in a linear fashion. In this way, the imaging system moves with the patient, thereby increasing the geometric precision still further.

At the same time, a camera follows special patterns on the underside of the patient’s bed, enabling the position of the bed to be adjusted with submillimeter precision, despite elasticities. As a result, the geometric chain of errors between the tumor, imaging system and radiation beam can be reduced significantly, thus increasing the precision of the therapy.

The demands placed on modern positioning systems go way beyond the mere macro-movement of the patient in front of the radiation source. Ease of use, treatment volume, system speed and compatibility with other systems are becoming increasingly important.

Ceiling-mounted installation of the patient positioning system has enabled BEC to make optimal use of the space in the treatment room and significantly increase treatment volume. A newly developed treatment table has also enabled the positioning of patients weighing up to 300 kilograms – all thanks to KUKA robot technology with its positioning repeatability of ±0.06 millimeters.