# How a Surgical Display Shows Important Information During an Operation > This patent describes a system that helps surgeons by showing important information directly on a live video of the surgery, prioritizing what's most critical. - **Patent:** US 12737991 - **Original title:** Utilization of surgical data values and situational awareness to control the overlay in surgical field view - **Granted:** 2026 - **Status:** Active - **Times cited:** 0 - **Field:** medical, software, consumer_electronics, robotics ## What it does This patent describes a surgical visualization system designed to improve a surgeon's awareness during an operation. The system includes an imaging device that captures a live video feed, or "livestream," of the surgical area. A display shows this livestream. A control module within the system detects various pieces of "surgical data," such as a patient's vital signs or instrument positions. It then assigns a "display priority value" to each piece of data, deciding how important it is. Based on these priorities, the module figures out the best way to arrange this data and presents it as an overlay directly on the livestream shown on the display. For example, during a complex abdominal surgery, the system could overlay the patient's real-time heart rate and blood oxygen levels directly onto the video feed of the surgical site, making critical alerts appear larger or in a more prominent position. ## What it does NOT cover - Does not cover systems that display surgical data without dynamically assigning specific priority values to each piece of information. - Does not cover systems where surgical data is displayed on a separate monitor, rather than as an overlay on the live video stream of the surgical field. - Does not cover systems that only provide audio alerts or haptic feedback without a visual overlay of surgical data on the display. - Does not cover systems that display surgical data in a fixed, pre-set arrangement without dynamically determining it based on priority values. - Does not cover systems that only record surgical data for later review, without real-time display on the surgical field view. ## The clever bit The clever part is the system's ability to dynamically assign priority values to different surgical data points and then intelligently arrange that information as an overlay on a live video feed, ensuring the most critical details are always prominent. ## Real-world examples 1. Surgical navigation systems 2. Augmented reality surgical platforms 3. Robotic surgery displays 4. Minimally invasive surgery visualization systems ## Why it matters This technology aims to enhance a surgeon's "situational awareness" by integrating critical information directly into their field of view. By dynamically prioritizing and displaying data, it could help reduce errors and improve patient outcomes, especially in complex or minimally invasive procedures. It is relevant to the ongoing advancements in surgical robotics and augmented reality applications in medicine. ## Frequently asked questions ### What does How a Surgical Display Shows Important Information During an Operation cover? This patent describes a system that helps surgeons by showing important information directly on a live video of the surgery, prioritizing what's most critical. ### When does this patent expire? This patent is expected to expire on September 15, 2046, when the invention enters the public domain. ### What problem does this patent solve? This technology aims to enhance a surgeon's "situational awareness" by integrating critical information directly into their field of view. By dynamically prioritizing and displaying data, it could help reduce errors and improve patient outcomes, especially in complex or minimally invasive procedures. It is relevant to the ongoing advancements in surgical robotics and augmented reality applications in medicine. ### What does this patent NOT cover? Does not cover systems that display surgical data without dynamically assigning specific priority values to each piece of information. **Full plain-English explainer:** https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12737991/utilization-of-surgical-data-values-and-situational-awareness-to-control-the **Original patent:** https://patents.google.com/patent/US12737991 --- _Source: PatentBrief — https://patentbrief.org. Patent facts are from public records; the plain-English explanation is PatentBrief's._ ## Related patents Semantically similar inventions in the PatentBrief corpus: - [AI-Guided Surgery Using Touch Sensors and Machine Learning](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12734000/computer-assisted-surgery-navigation-using-intra-operative-tactile-sensing) — This patent describes a system that uses touch sensors on surgical tools and artificial intelligence to give real-time guidance to surgeons or robots during an operation. - [Augmented Reality Glasses for Guiding Surgeons](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12069233/head-mounted-augmented-reality-near-eye-display-device) — This patent describes a head-mounted augmented reality display, like smart glasses, specifically designed to help surgeons by overlaying digital patient data and markers directly onto their view of the patient during medical procedures. - [How Medical Scanners Track Surgical Tools in Real-Time](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12357189/method-and-device-for-operating-a-medical-imaging-device-for-the-positionally-co) — This patent describes a method for medical imaging devices to accurately show the real-time 3D position of surgical tools and implants inside a patient during an operation, using a combination of initial 3D scans and live 2D X-ray images. - [Uniform Scaling of Haptic Forces in Surgical Systems](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12114954/uniform-scaling-of-haptic-actuators) — This patent describes a surgical system that uses a single scaling factor to adjust the strength of touch feedback from multiple motors, ensuring the feedback feels consistent even when one motor reaches its maximum power. - [How to Adjust Specific Parts of an Ultrasound Image](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12733899/non-uniform-ultrasound-image-modification-of-targeted-sub-regions) — This patent describes a system that lets doctors brighten or change specific small areas within an ultrasound scan independently, without affecting the rest of the image.