In order to achieve safe, precise, and efficient orthopedic surgery, much attention has been paid to the critical technologies of bone drills for orthopedic surgery robot terminals. The essential technologies of bone drills for orthopedic surgery robot terminals have been divided into three aspects: orthopedic surgery robot, bone drilling process, and breakthrough detection and control technology of bone drill. In this paper, a comprehensive literature review is conducted to gain insight into the research progress about the bone drilling process and breakthrough detection and control technology of bone drills. Based on the summary, the research direction of the vital technologies of bone drills for orthopedic surgery robot terminals is proposed.