Source: Duke UniversityResearchers from Duke University’s Brain Tool Laboratory have developed a way to remove tattoos using robot-guided lasers.

According to its developers, the robot-guided laser removal system, guided by pre-operative MRIs, will either precisely scalpel or laser away unwanted tattoos in significantly less time and with less pain than current laser removal systems.

This is reportedly due to the precision of the robot-guided system, which uses stereo vision and other imaging techniques to directly hit the ink of the tattoo with light that vaporizes the ink molecules. Those ink molecules then pass through the blood stream and are eventually eliminated as waste from the body.

Although similar to current laser technology in use today for removing tattoos, the robot-guided system achieves faster speeds and is virtually painless due to its precision. The system reportedly targets only the areas with ink and not surrounding tissue, thereby reducing associated pain. Current systems also take between six and 10 treatment sessions whereas the robot-guided laser system takes only a couple of sessions, according to its developers.

Likewise, the robot-guided process does not require repetition such as current laser removal treatments where moving the laser repeatedly over already treated skin results in significant pain. Operators of the system can also select lasers according to the type of ink it needs to disintegrate as there is no standardization among the inks used by tattoo artists, licensed or otherwise.

Eventually, the team hopes that in a few years’ time, the robot-guided machines will appear alongside blood pressure machines in drug stores. Additionally, the team envisions that the robot-guided machine could be applied to skin cancer removal applications.