Now catheterablation is being used for the most common rhythm problem atrial fibrillation, which plagues about 3 million Americans and 15 million people worldwide.
It was the first time the technique has been used in catheterablation, where the organ's inner lining is ablated or "burned" to treat irregular heartbeats.
In milder cases you can have a small electric shock to get the heartbeat to return to normal, or like British Prime Minister Tony Blair had last year, a procedure called catheterablation.
More than 200 catheterablation operations have taken place at Glenfield Hospital, and six months ago Dr Ng used the Amigo robotic arm to carry out the procedure for the first time, but without the assistance of the 3D mapping system.