Simulation-based Virtual Prototyping of Customized Catheterization Devices

Human vascular systems have considerable anatomic variations. In diseased situation, significant pathological changes will be developed with the systems. However, vascular catheterization devices commercially available are essentially designed on normal or average anatomy. Their inadequacies in representing major deviations in human vascular anatomy may present problems during diagnostic or therapeutic interventions. A virtual reality (VR) based simulation method is described in this paper for prototyping of customized patient-specific catheterization devices. Techniques are developed to model patient-specific vascular network, to design catheterization devices, and to simulate physical-based interactions between blood vessels and the devices. Emphasis is made on the integration of normal and variant vascular models, the integration of modeling, visualization and interaction, and the integration of real-time simulation and virtual prototyping.