Input devices for virtual surgical simulations: A comparative study

Surgical simulations are becoming the defacto standard for training surgeons for Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS). Input devices determine how a user will experience the functionality of a simulator. Therefore it is very important to determine which input devices are suitable for the kind of operation that is being performed in a simulator. It is important to perform a user study of these input devices in order to determine their effects on the performance of the software and its usability. In this research we perform a usability study on the different input devices available and study the effect of these input devices on the learning curve of a commercial simulator. We perform our experiments using a mouse, a joystick without force feedback, joystick with force feedback, the PHANTOM Omni device and a custom device designed by our research lab. Using these devices we perform several exercises and study the effect of using these input controls on the learnability of a popular commercial simulator used for training surgeons.