China Shows Off 5mm Heart Surgery Tool and AI Polishing Machine

The minimally invasive heart surgery tool by Huihe Medical Technology was exhibited ahead of the 12th CSITF in Shanghai. This technology allows heart surgery to be performed with an incision of only 5 millimeters. (Photo: Yicai Global)

China will showcase advanced domestically produced applied technologies at the 12th China Shanghai International Technology Fair (CSITF). Two of the most prominent: a heart surgery tool with a cut of only 5 millimeters and an AI-based polishing machine.

Citing Yicai Global, Saturday, June 13, the technology exhibition was held on June 11-13. The focus is not just on new gadgets, but industrial and medical technologies that directly touch market needs.

Huihe Medical Technology will introduce the transcatheter tricuspid valve annuloplasty system for the first time at CSITF. Simply put, this is a tool to repair the tricuspid valve of the heart through a minimally invasive procedure, not an open-chest surgery.

With the tool, the incision size is only about 5 mm. Patients can even go home as early as the day after surgery.

Chief Technology Officer of Huihe Medical Tech, Xu Jun, said China has more than 100,000 new patients every year who need surgery for tricuspid valve disorders. The number of existing patients reaches more than 500,000 people.

According to Xu, open-chest surgery is very high-risk for this group of patients. Therefore, medical intervention products like this are considered urgent.

Huihe Medical Tech was established in 2019. Its interventional surgical device received a distribution permit last year. The product has entered more than 100 hospitals and has been used on hundreds of patients. The target this year is 1,000 procedures.

Xu said such medical devices usually take about 10 years from research to market. Huihe completed it in six years. He called the Shanghai Government's support for innovative devices as one of the driving forces. The company is also expected to start making profits this year and prepare for a listing on the Star Market, a Shanghai stock exchange board similar to Nasdaq.

Another technology comes from Surface Intelligent Technology. The company will showcase AI-based surface care solutions for grinding and polishing work. This work has relied heavily on human labor and is at risk of exposure to dust, hearing loss, and other work hazards.

With multidimensional sensors and AI software, the tool can control and analyze the polishing process. Its precision is claimed to reach 0.8 micrometers. A micrometer is a very small measurement; 1 micrometer is equivalent to one-thousandth of a meter. Its efficiency is up about 50 percent compared to the old method.

According to Lin Shicong of Surface Intelligent Tech to Yicai Global, the company's equipment has been used in the production lines of a number of automotive and industrial manufacturers, including Seres Group, BMW Group, and Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group.

Surface Intelligent Tech posted sales of around 100 million yuan or USD14.8 million last year. The company expects this year's sales to double.

This year's CSITF occupies an area of 38,000 square meters. For the first time, the number of participants has exceeded 1,000 companies. Deputy Director of the Shanghai Municipal Commerce Commission Zhou Lan said the exhibition will highlight digital and green transformation, including 15 debut products.

The exhibition also opened an international area for the first time. There are 74 companies from various countries and regions, including Germany and France, which are coordinated by 26 foreign trade promotion institutions. The focus includes robotics, precision manufacturing, digital solutions, and other industrial technologies.