Magnetic Navigation and tracking of flexible needles

Le laboratoire rassemble à parts égales deux communautés scientifiques à l’interface entre le monde numérique et le monde physique, lui donnant ainsi une configuration unique.

Avec près de 650 membres, il est une force de recherche majeure du site de Strasbourg. Fédéré par l'imagerie, ICube a comme champs d'application privilégiés l'ingénierie pour la santé, l'environnement et le développement durable.

The main objective of the MAGNAV project is to adapt the ManaDBS system to determine the position and curvature of ARC needles, in order to guide needle insertion during percutaneous thermo-ablation procedures.

Project description: The master’s project will be divided into two parts: one based on an existing setup, aimed at developing a demonstrator, and the other more exploratory, intended to achieve a proof of concept.

Development of a probe for measuring the position and curvature of ARC needles, directly inspired by ManaDBS technology and compatible with the inner part of the needle – This first part of the project aims at developing a magnetic tracking system for a flexible probe that could be inserted into the ARC needle, similarly to surgical instruments. Initially, an existing field generator will be used to localize magnetic sensors within a 40×40×40 cm volume. A flexible probe, comparable to a surgical tool, will be designed and equipped with around ten miniaturized AMR magnetic sensors at its distal end. The existing tracking algorithm will first be used to determine the position and orientation of each sensor. It will then be adapted to account for the known geometry of the probe shaft, where the sensors are placed at precisely defined distances. The collected measurements will then be combined to reconstruct the probe’s shape and estimate key parameters: overall position and orientation of the needle, curvature, and curvature orientation. Finally, once the proof of concept has been demonstrated, further work will focus on optimizing the magnetic field source, particularly considering the future question of the registration.

Exploration of an alternative technology using coils integrated within the ARC needles and external magnetic sensors – This second part of the project consists in exploring an alternative approach to magnetic tracking by integrating the tracking system directly into the needle itself, eliminating the need for an external probe and allowing the system to be used at any time, including during insertion. Although AMR sensors are very small (0.8×0.8×0.4 mm³, excluding the supporting electronics), their integration inside the needle appears challenging. We therefore propose to explore the possibility of reversing the roles of the field generators and the sensors: micro copper coils will be integrated into the needle, at the level of each segment, while the magnetic sensors will be positioned outside the patient, for example on the accessible portion of the needle. The main challenge of this approach will first be to generate, using the integrated microcoils, magnetic fields strong enough to be detected outside the patient (over several centimeters) by the magnetic sensors. Although AMR sensors offer excellent performance, they are likely to be insufficiently sensitive, and alternative sensor technologies such as magnetoimpedance (MI) sensors, which are commercially available, will be investigated.

We are looking for student with a master in electrical engineering, microelectronics or instrumentation.

The official kick-off of the project is in January 2026 so the Master Thesis can start early in January and for a period that can goes up to 6 month.