Development and application of volume illustration techniques for medical illustration and flow visualization

Nikolai Alexeevich Svakhin, Purdue University

Abstract

We have developed an interactive volume illustration system (IVIS) that builds upon illustration experience and extends recent work in volume visualization to produce images that simulate pictorial representations for scientific and biomedical visualizations, using various medical and flow datasets as the data source. Our system is designed in collaboration with trained biomedical illustrators and fluid dynamics specialists. An underlying knowledge of illustration principles allows us to generate a set of settings called motifs, that allow a quick selection of familiar styles for the user, highlighting important volume or flow features. The system combines knowledge in volume rendering, hardware rendering acceleration, non-photorealistic rendering, volume illustration techniques, and advanced graphics hardware programming in order to create a powerful system for generating medical illustrations and flow visualizations. An interactive interface enables the user to specify the type of illustration and the visualization goals to produce effective, illustrative rendering on commodity graphics hardware at nearly interactive rates. The resulting images can be used for education, training, and simulation. The intuitive interface has several levels of complexity, allowing users to select an appropriate level based on their background. An evaluation of the system's applicability to the medical field has been performed, and the feedback from medical doctors indicates the usefullness of the generated illustrations for medical education.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Ebert, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Computer science

COinS