Adaptive finite element technique for cutting in surgical simulation (Cum Laude Poster Award)

Abstract

Pre-computed finite element methods are valuable because of their extreme speed and high accuracy for soft tissue modeling, but they are not suitable for surgical incision simulation. In this paper we present an adaptive algorithm for finite element computation based on a preprocessing approach. It inverts the global stiffness matrix in a pre-computing stage and then simulates each cutting step by updating two lists of basic components iteratively with some localization techniques. This method allows a fast and physically accurate simulation of incision procedures.