As the article mentions we are all pretty much aware of the daVinci robot for many 
sur
As the article mentions we are all pretty much aware of the daVinci robot for many surgical procedures and now the university has some open source action taking place with research and will be providing a few other universities including Harvard and Johns Hopkins. After distribution has been made to to all, the robots will be connected via the internet for data sharing and collaboration.
The daVinci is not going away any time soon but through collaboration we might see some new innovation and research and the ability to share and perhaps create additional options for surgical robots. BD
The cost and complexity of commercial robot surgeons has meant slow penetration in the market and to only one player–Intuitive Surgical’s da Vinci.
But that could all change if researchers at the University of Washington (UW) carry out their plans to accelerate innovation in surgical robotics.
UW researchers will do final testing and then ship their latest version of robots named Ravens to five universities, including Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The software running the robots is interoperable with the Robot Operating System, a popular open source robotics code. Once installed at each campus, the Robots will be connected to each other via the Internet to allow for data sharing and collaboration.
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/robotic-surgeons-get-open-source-boost/3101
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