A tumour perception system based on a multi-layer mass-spring model

Abstract

The virtual reality (VR) has been utilised in the preoperative planning of tumour surgery because it enables surgeons to touch and operate on tumour in a virtual environment. This paper proposes a virtual tumour perception system for preoperative tumour surgery planning. The system is based on a novel multi-layer mass-spring model, which consists of connected springs in series. The basic parameters of springs are equal ratio sequence. The core parameter shear modulus of springs can be dynamically adjusted according to the biological properties of soft tissue in clinical applications to simulate tissue heterogeneity. A palpation simulation algorithm is designed to help users to perceive the tumours. Two validation experiments are carried out: model accuracy experiment and practical perception experiment. Experiments indicate that the proposed model faithfully mimics actual clinical tumour, which is more accurate compared with models simulated by other systems.