FengSuan Medical Unveils China's First Kirschner Wire Orthopedic Surgery Robot with Integrated Navigation and Automated Pinning

In the orthopedic medical field, where surgery is the core focus and experts are the key assets, orthopedic surgical robots—tasked with assisting physicians in addressing issues such as “poor precision, prolonged operative times, and surgeon fatigue” inherent in traditional surgeries—have remained one of the hottest topics in recent years.

Currently, most orthopedic surgical robots on the market primarily offer preoperative planning and intraoperative navigation functions, while specific surgical procedures still require manual operation by surgeons.

Shanghai Fengsuan Computer Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “BOHOLO”) was established in 2015 as a medical device company specializing in the development and manufacturing of intelligent orthopedic surgical robots. Its independently developed flagship product, ORTHBOT—the first fully intelligent orthopedic robot—integrates a Kirschner wire module to pioneer a combined surgical workflow encompassing navigation, positioning, and robotic pin placement, thereby establishing an intelligent technological platform for orthopedic surgical procedures.

Kirschner Wire FixationKirschner wire (K-wire) fixation is a common procedure in orthopedic surgery, offering advantages such as minimal trauma, limited periosteal stripping, and operational simplicity. Currently, within existing orthopedic therapeutic practices, this procedure still requires manual execution by surgeons. However, any manually performed surgical intervention inevitably faces challenges such as the difficulty in quantifying precision and the susceptibility of surgical quality to various interfering factors.

BOHOLO’s first independently developed Kirschner wire screw robot primarily consists of an orthopedic surgical robot, a physician workstation, and corresponding surgical planning and management software and accessories.

Image provided by the interviewee

This robotic system, leveraging a “robotics + artificial intelligence” framework, achieves fully automated intelligent operation for Kirschner wire (K-wire) placement in orthopedic surgeries. Specifically, once the surgeon formulates the corresponding surgical plan on the computer terminal, the robot automatically executes the procedure, enabling precise and rapid insertion of guide pins during the operation.

In an 11-month clinical trial led by Peking University Third Hospital, in collaboration with the Second People’s Hospital of Shenzhen, Nanfang Hospital, and the Second Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, ORTHBOT demonstrated a needle placement error of <1 mm. Compared with traditional surgery, it reduced the average operative time by nearly half and decreased radiation exposure by 80%.

Jiang Liwei, Chairman and CEO of BOHOLO, stated in an exclusive interview with VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) that safety and precision are the primary considerations for surgical robots in their journey toward intelligentization.

In response, BOHOLO proposes a dual-layer intelligent haptic safety protection solution: the first layer involves installing force-sensing devices at each joint of the robotic arm; the second layer incorporates pressure feedback mechanisms into the intelligent bone drill. Leveraging sensor feedback data and mathematical modeling, ORTHBOT achieves precise positioning during needle insertion, autonomous placement of positioning pins, as well as real-time intraoperative monitoring and wall-breakage protection.

Regarding tracking systems, Jiang Liwei stated that most similar products currently on the market largely rely on tracking systems from Canada’s NDI company as their navigation foundation. In contrast, BOHOLO is one of the few orthopedic robotics R&D companies in China that possesses an independently developed tracking system with proprietary intellectual property rights.

It is worth mentioning that Professor Liu Zhongjun, a renowned expert in spinal surgery in China, Director of the Department of Orthopedics and Director of the Institute of Spinal Surgery at Peking University Third Hospital, also participated in the research and development process of this surgical robot.

Earlier this year, BOHOLO completed a tens-of-millions-of-yuan Pre-A financing round, with participation from multiple well-known investment institutions including Honghui Capital, Maorong Investment Institution, and Zhongguancun Collaborative Fund.

Dai Chen, a medical project partner at Maorong Capital, stated in an interview with VCBeat that the key rationale behind Maorong Capital’s early-stage investment in BOHOLO includes the following points:

1. We are optimistic about the orthopedic surgical robotics sector. The development of intelligent orthopedic robots benefits hospitals, physicians, and patients alike; its business model is genuinely sustainable and possesses inherent growth potential, thereby facilitating easier product adoption and implementation.

2. BOHOLO’s fully intelligent orthopedic robot has pioneered the intelligent application of orthopedic surgical robots, adding dual functionality for surgical manipulation to existing navigation capabilities, thereby enhancing procedural safety. The system holds multiple independent intellectual property rights and possesses core competitive advantages.

3. The product is scalable. In addition to the existing Kirschner wire module, its application modules can be expanded in the future to include screw modules, osteotomy modules, and other areas, indicating significant growth potential.

VCBeat has learned that the company is likely to close a new round of financing in the near future.