ENvue Medical Unveils Robotic System to Automate Feeding Tube Placement
The ENvue Drive prototype combines AI guidance with robotic propulsion to reduce dangerous bedside procedure errors.
ENvue Medical has unveiled ENvue Drive, a robotic-assisted prototype that automates enteral feeding tube placement at the bedside, bringing precision robotics into everyday clinical care.
The system integrates three core modules: AI-powered intelligent recognition via the company's 'Ask Oscar' software, real-time electromagnetic navigation, and robotic automatic propulsion. An in-house sensor at the tube tip refreshes approximately 40 times per second, providing clinicians with immediate visual feedback as the tube advances toward the small intestine.
Building on Cleared Technology
The robotic Drive component is a new addition to ENvue's existing navigation platform, which has received FDA 510(k) clearance for adult patients and is deployed in multiple U.S. hospitals. The base system provides GPS-like visibility for a procedure traditionally performed blindly, with clinicians relying on tactile resistance to gauge tube position.
That blind approach carries measurable risk. According to The Robot Report, 3% to 5% of traditional feeding tube placements are misplaced, potentially entering the lungs and causing complications such as lung collapse. ENvue Drive aims to reduce those errors by physically assisting clinicians during insertion while maintaining human oversight.
To maintain accuracy when patients move during the procedure, the system employs additional ECG sensors placed on the patient's body, allowing electromagnetic navigation to track the tube's position in real time.
Clinician Control Remains Central
ENvue Medical CEO Dr. Doron Besser emphasized that the system assists rather than replaces clinical judgment. "We don't want robots to take over from the clinicians," Besser said. "We want the robotic arm to assist, to provide more confidence, to facilitate the procedures, while having the clinician... still keep control of the system."
The company views ENvue Drive as a stepping stone toward broader automation of bedside vascular access procedures. ENvue Medical plans to expand the technology to automate placement of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs), another common procedure that relies heavily on manual skill and carries similar misplacement risks.
Addressing Staffing Pressures
Beyond safety improvements, automating bedside procedures could alleviate pressure on understaffed nursing and dietetic teams. By reducing the expertise threshold required for safe tube placement and cutting repeat attempts due to mispositioning, the system could free up clinical time for other critical care tasks.
ENvue Medical developed the electromagnetic navigation technology to make precision medical procedures more accessible, including for critical care patients who may not be stable enough for transport to radiology for X-ray guided placement.