connected to the arms and their instruments. Its OR-to-OR mobili-
ty suggests that it's geared toward smaller facilities. Its pistol-grip
controls might take some getting used to. Now that we've become
accustomed to the ergonomically natural 3-fingers-and-wrist artic-
ulation of da Vinci's controls, using pistol-grips is like going back
to the limitations of conventional laparoscopic tools.
ALF-X is a multi-port system, for which you sit down at a remote
console and wear 3D sunglasses, through which infrared tracking
lets you direct the scope with your eye movements. You just look
where you want to go, which is neat. The problem here, though, is
space. The system includes 3 boom-mounted arms. With the da
Vinci, you've got only 1 boom and you have to carefully orchestrate
your table and equipment for a case, even in a large OR.
