Simulation of Coupling Process of Flexible Needle Insertion into Soft Tissue Based on ABAQUS

In order to get to the desired target inside the body, it is essential to investigate the needle-tissue coupling process and calculate the tissue deformation. A cantilever beam model is presented to predicting the deflection and bending angle of flexible needle by analyzing the distribution of the force on needle shaft during the procedure of needle insertion into soft tissue. Furthermore, a finite element (FE) coupling model is proposed to simulate the needle-tissue interactive process. The plane and spatial models are created to relate the needle and tissue nodes. Combined with the cantilever beam model and the finite element needle-tissue coupling model, the simulation of needle-tissue interaction was carried out by the ABAQUS software. The comparing experiments are designed to understand the needle-tissue interactions, by which the same points in the experiments and simulation are compared and analyzed. The results show that the displacements in x and z directions in the simulation can accord with the experiments, and the deformation inside the tissue mainly occurs in the axial direction. The study is beneficial to the robotassisted and virtual needle insertion procedure, and to help the physicians to predict the inside tissue deformation during the treatments.