A Blood Vessel Deformation Model Based Virtual-reality Simulator for the Robotic Catheter Operating System

In endovascular interventional surgery, the virtual-reality (VR) simulator is critical for robotic catheter operating system since it offers physicians visual information between catheter and vessel. In spite of most VR systems using mass-spring to formulate vascular physical model, the uniform deformation doesn’t satisfy the vascular characteristics. In order to simulate the vascular deformation more vividly, we introduce standard linear solid model to formulate its physical model and determine this model’s parameters based on vascular wall elasticity analysis. In this way, the vascular physical model deforms according to vascular radius and material properties. In addition, so as to provide the vascular radius information for parameter identification process, we adopt discrete curvature estimation based on meshed triangle method in VR system. Finally, the VR simulator equipped with the parameters determined stand linear solid model is used to describe vascular deformation which is related to its radius and material characteristics.