Collaborative and immersive medical education in a virtual workbench environment

Abstract

In this paper we introduce a framework for an advanced medical education in a table-type VR environment, which is based on an efficient deformable modeling for the interactive manipulation of soft tissues and a realistic motion simulation for dynamic human organs. The proposed framework includes two data storages with 3D/4D models and the 2D anatomic information, and various functional modules that are used to effectively explain human organs by visualizing and synchronizing with the components in the data storages. In our VR environment, a table-type virtual workbench is effectively used for the collaborative and realistic presentation to a group of learners and the video-based tracking environment provides the convenience for a user to select and to manipulate a subject of learning. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2005.