Holographic Interface for three-dimensional Visualization of MRI on HoloLens: A Prototype Platform for MRI Guided Neurosurgeries

Abstract

This work presents a prototype holographic interface (HI) for the 3D visualization of MRI data for the purpose of planning neurosurgical procedures. The presented HI (i) immerses the operator to a mixed reality (MiR) scene, which includes MRI data and virtual renderings, (ii) facilitates interactive manipulation of the objects of the MiR scene for planning and (iii) is the front-end of a pipeline that links the operator to the MRI scanner for on-the-fly control of the scanner. Preliminary qualitative evaluation revealed that holographic visualization of high-resolution 3D MRI data offers an intuitive and interactive perspective of the complex brain vasculature and anatomical structures. These early work further suggests that immersive experience may be an unparalleled tool in better planning neurosurgical procedures. Further development is required to speed up the pipeline from the MRI scanner to the HI and incorporating means of manipulations other than gestures.