| CPC A61B 34/20 (2016.02) [A61B 2034/2051 (2016.02); A61B 2034/2061 (2016.02); A61B 2034/2065 (2016.02); A61B 2034/301 (2016.02); A61B 2090/0809 (2016.02); A61B 2090/0818 (2016.02); A61B 2090/3782 (2016.02)] | 20 Claims |

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1. A method of controlling an instrument, the method comprising:
measuring strain of one or more optical fibers associated with an elongate shaft of an instrument;
determining a first shape estimation of the elongate shaft based on the measured strain and a first weight associated therewith;
determining, based on the measured strain, a strain-indicated characteristic of the elongate shaft with respect to a mechanical condition of the elongate shaft;
determining an expected range of the mechanical condition of the elongate shaft;
determining that the strain-indicated characteristic is outside of the expected range of the mechanical condition;
in response to the determination that the strain-indicated characteristic is outside of the expected range, determining a second shape estimation of the elongate shaft based on the measured strain and a second weight associated therewith, the second weight lower than the first weight; and
outputting the second shape estimation of the elongate shaft.
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