Method for monitoring object flow within a surgical space during a surgery

Abstract

One variation of a method for tracking objects within a surgical space during a surgery includes: based on a first image depicting the surgical space at a first time, detecting a first object and a constellation of objects in the surgical space, estimating distances from each object—in the constellation of objects—to the first object, and calculating a contamination risk of the first object based on contamination scores and distances to the first object for each object in the constellation of objects; calculating a contamination score of the first object based on a combination of the contamination risks of the first object during the surgery; and, in response to the contamination score of the first object exceeding a threshold contamination score prior to contact between the first object and a patient, serving a prompt within the surgical space to address sterility of the first object.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A method for tracking objects within a surgical space during a surgery comprising:
 based on a first image depicting the surgical space at a first time:
 detecting a first constellation of objects in the surgical space at the first time; 
 estimating distances from each object, in a first subset of objects in the first constellation of objects, to a first object in the first constellation of objects at the first time; and 
 calculating a first contamination risk of the first object based on contamination scores and distances to the first object for each object in the first subset of objects at the first time; 
   based on a second image depicting the surgical space at a second time succeeding the first time:
 detecting a second constellation of objects in the surgical space at the second time; 
 estimating distances from each object, in a second subset of objects in the second constellation of objects, to the first object at the second time; and 
 calculating a second contamination risk of the first object based on contamination scores and distances to the first object for each object in the second subset of objects at the second time; 
   calculating a first contamination score of the first object based on a combination of the first contamination risk and the second contamination risk; and   in response to the first contamination score of the first object exceeding a threshold contamination score prior to contact between the first object and a patient occupying the surgical space rendering a visual prompt, on a display arranged within the surgical space, to address sterility of the first object.   
     
     
         2 . A method for tracking objects within a surgical space comprising:
 based on a first image depicting the surgical space at a first time:
 detecting a first object and a set of surgical staff in the surgical space at the first time; 
 detecting a first packaging condition of the first object at the first time; 
 estimating distances from each surgical staff member, in the set of surgical staff, to the first object at the first time; and 
 calculating a first injury risk of the first object based on the first packaging condition of the first object and inversely proportional to distances to the first object for each surgical staff member in the set of surgical staff at the first time; 
   based on a second image depicting the surgical space at a second time succeeding the first time:
 detecting the first object and the set of surgical staff in the surgical space at the second time; 
 detecting a second packaging condition of the first object at the second time; 
 estimating distances from each surgical staff member, in the set of surgical staff, to the first object at the second time; 
 identifying a first surgical staff member, in the set of surgical staff, nearest the first object based on distances from each surgical staff member, in the set of surgical staff, to the first object at the second time; and 
 calculating a second injury risk of the first object based on the second packaging condition of the first object and distances to the first object for each surgical staff member in the set of surgical staff at the second time; and 
   in response to the second injury risk exceeding the first injury risk and exceeding a threshold injury warning risk, rendering, on a display, a visual prompt to the first surgical staff member to address the second injury risk of the first object.