From: Torgeir Hovden Subject: Virtual Invasive Patient Project Date: 18 Sep 1996 15:34:28 +0200 Message-ID: Organization: The Norwegian University of Science and Technology Hi there Trondheim, Norway, 18/09-96 We are three students currently working on our master thesis on a self-initiated project we have called VIP - Virtual Invasive Patient. A description of the project is given below. This article is meant as a spark to light up enthusiasm from all you extremely gifted people out there. The project is ambitious, and if we are to have any chance at all to get results we need input from you - in the form of ideas and possible solutions to key problems. So, I hope you will take the time to read the enclosed project description and help us in the right direction. Thanks in advance, Torgeir Hovden Rune Lillesveen Svenn K. Forfang Department of Computer Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology ======================================================================== VIRTUAL INVASIVE PATIENT ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The VIP project aims to create a framework enabling a Virtual Reality simulation approach to surgical training. Three students are basing their master thesis on this project. All three students have recent experience with graphics programming on Silicon Graphics (SGI) platforms. VIP is in its first phase, and the first step will be to create a model which may both be visualized and interacted with. To be able to do this within a reasonable amount of time, we need premade data on which we can build our representations, e.g. the Visible Human data (VHD) available from National Library of Medicine (NLM). These data needs to be preprocessed to create geometric representations suitable for for visualization and deformation through interaction. A powerful visualization tool will be crucial to both graphic performance and implementation time, and parts of this project will aim to find such a tool. One example is IRIS Performer from SGI. In the continuation of this, interaction models, physical constraints, distributed simulation will be built on this framework. We have designed and implemented a generic distribution environment (VRLand - Virtual Reality framework for LAN Distributed objects) which VIP will possibly be based on. Any prototype this projects leads to will be implemented on the following hardware platform: SGI Onyx 4 200 MHZ IP19 Processors CPU: MIPS R4400 Processor Chip Revision: 6.0 FPU: MIPS R4000 Floating Point Coprocessor Revision: 0.0 Main memory size: 1024 Mbytes, 2-way interleaved Reality Engine II ========================================================================