NeuroArm was designed to take full advantage of the imaging environment provided by intraoperative MRI. The ability to couple near real-time, high resolution images to robotic technologies provides the surgeon with image guidance, precision, accuracy, and dexterity. MDA's engineers were immersed in the operating room to study typical tool and surgeon motions in order to use biomimicry for effective design of the computer-assisted surgical device. The OR environment, personnel, surgical rhythm and instrumentation remain unchanged. The surgeon, sitting at the workstation, is provided a virtual environment that recreates the sight, sound, and touch of surgery. Functions like tremor filtering and motion scaling were applied to increase precision and accuracy while functions like no-go zones and linear lock were applied to enhance safety. Surgical tools near the patient's head are incapable of fully independent movement and are slaved to the surgeon’s movement at all times. Pre-planned automatic motions are used to move the robot arms away from the patient's head for manual tool exchange, and then return them to the original position and orientation.