Abstract: The invention relates to a method for the prediction of the course of a catheter between a starting and a target location in a vessel system. According to a preferred embodiment, a micro-catheter will be modeled by a micro-catheter tube (MT) following a micro-catheter center line (MC) through the vessel system, wherein said center line is composed of an alternating sequence of straight-lined sections and curved sections. The curved sections are introduced at locations where the micro-catheter tube contacts the vessel wall and/or turns into a side branch of the vessel system.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of analyzing an object data set in which a tubular structure having a plurality of branches and bifurcations occurs, wherein the object data set assigns data values to positions in a multi-dimensional space, which data values relate to an object to be examined. The invention relates further to a corresponding apparatus and computer program.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and computer readable medium for analyzing an object data set that includes points in a multi-dimensional space and in which a tubular structure occurs. The method includes determining a number of points forming part of the surface of the tubular structure in the vicinity of a selected position, and calculating a gradient to the surface for each of the points. The method further includes using the selection of points to calculate an orientation for a cutting plane such that the direction thereof is as parallel as possible to the longitudinal axis of the tubular structure at the selected position.

Abstract: Method of analyzing a data set of an object to be examined, which data set includes voxels of at least a first type and a second type, and a computer program for carrying out the method. The method includes the steps of classifying the voxels as voxels of the first, the second or further types, thereafter determining which of the voxels of the first type are boundary voxels that adjoin voxels of the second or further types, thereafter assigning a data value to each voxel of the first type, the data value representing a measure of the distance between the voxel and the neatest boundary voxel., and thereafter classifying the voxels of the first type that have a distance data valve exceeding a predetermined threshold as aberration voxels indicative of an aberration in the object.

Abstract: The method relates to analysis of a tubular structure 1 such as a rendition of the vascular system of a patient. Gradients g1j to the surface of the tubular structure 1 are computed in a starting point (BP). Subsequently, a normal {circumflex over (n)} which extends essentially perpendicularly to the gradients is derived and a cross-section is taken along a cutting plane having {circumflex over (n)} as its normal. A subsequent position (VP) is taken by performing a small shift in the direction of {circumflex over (n)}. The axis of the vessel is tracked by repeating the procedure.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of analyzing an object data set comprising points in a multi-dimensional space, in which dataset a tubular structure, such as blood vessels, occurs. The method comprises the following steps: a) choosing a screen position related to the tubular structure; b) determining the multi-dimensional co-ordinates of a starting position associated with said screen position; c) deriving a plane through said starting position having its normal directed to the tubular structure; d) determining a surface point of the tubular structure as a target position associated with the starting position; e) selecting a number of points forming part of the surface of the tubular structure in the vicinity of the target position; f) determining the surface point in the selection which is closest to the plane; and g) using the surface point determined in the step f) as a new starting position. This method allows accurate and reproducible selection of the starting position.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for rendering of a volume data set on a two dimensional display. According to the method of the invention gradient vectors of voxel values are computed and are replaced by an index into a gradient look up table, thereby reducing the amount of required memory as well as the number of memory accesses during rendering. For each point on a two-dimensional view plane a ray is cast into the volume. Then the volume data is sampled at discrete sample points along each individual ray. During rendering eight gradient vectors of the neighboring voxels at each sample location are retrieved from the look up table. The invention proposes to apply dithering to the gradients before selecting the appropriate index. Recovery of the true gradient value is achieved because of the interpolation. Thus image artifacts, such as intensity bands caused by the discretization of the gradients, are avoided.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of analyzing an object data set which comprises points in a multi-dimensional space and in which a tubular structure occurs, said method comprising the following steps: a) choosing a starting position in or near the tubular structure; b) deriving a cutting plane through the tubular structure at the starting position, c) determining a number of points forming part of the surface of the tubular structure in the vicinity of the starting position, and d) calculating a gradient to the surface for each of said points.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of analysing an object data set in which a tubular structure having a plurality of branches and bifurcations occurs, wherein said object data set assigns data values to positions in a multi-dimensional space, which data values relate to an object to be examined, and wherein the positions along the branches and of the bifurcations of said tubular structure are labelled, each branch and bifurcation having a unique label.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of analysing an object data set in which a tubular structure having a plurality of branches and bifurcations occurs, wherein said object data set assigns data values to positions in a multi-dimensional space, which data values relate to an object to be examined.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for providing an image to be displayed on a screen 10 such that a viewer in any current spatial position O in front of the screen 10 can watch the image with only a minimal perspective deformation. According to the invention this is achieved by estimating the current spatial position O of a viewer in relation to a fixed predetermined position Q representing a viewing point in front of the screen 10 from which the image could be watched without any perspective deformation and by providing the image by applying a variable perspective transformation to an originally generated image in response to said estimated current position O of the viewer, such that the viewer in said position O is enabled to watch the image without a perspective deformation.

Abstract: Displacement of a first block of pixels from a first to a second image of a scene is determined for applications of automated distance computation. The selection of corresponding blocks in the two images is performed and verified as follows. A first block is taken from the first image. A first region is selected from a set of first regions in the second image, so that a difference between an image content of the first region and of the first block is minimal among the set of first regions. A second block is taken from the second image, the second block containing at least part of the selected first region. A second region is selected from a set of second regions in the first image, so that a difference between an image content of the second region and of the second block is minimal among the set of second regions. A first displacement between the first block and the selected first region is compared with a second displacement between the second block and the selecting second region.

Abstract: An implicit surface is defined by a time dependent implicit surface model. From the implicit surface model a first and second mesh of control points of a first and second non-linear coordinate valued functions such as second degree Bezier functions are computed respectively. The first and second non-linear coordinate valued function represent approximations of the implicit surface at a first and second point in time respectively. The points of the first mesh are used as a starting point for computing an approximation of the second mesh of points. The surfaces defined by the first and second non-linear coordinate valued function respectively are rendered for example by approximating each by a respective mesh of flat triangles.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of analyzing an object data set comprising points in a multi-dimensional space, in which dataset a tubular structure, such as blood vessels, occurs.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of analyzing a data set of an object to be examined, which data set comprises voxels of at least a first type and a second type, said method comprising the following steps:

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for rendering of a volume data set on a two dimensional display. According to the method of the invention gradient vectors of voxel values are computed and are replaced by an index into a gradient look up table, thereby reducing the amount of required memory as well as the number of memory accesses during rendering. For each point on a two-dimensional view plane a ray is cast into the volume. Then the volume data is sampled at discrete sample points along each individual ray. During rendering eight gradient vectors of the neighboring voxels at each sample location are retrieved from the look up table. The invention proposes to apply dithering to the gradients before selecting the appropriate index. Recovery of the true gradient value is achieved because of the interpolation. Thus image artifacts, such as intensity bands caused by the discretization of the gradients, are avoided.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for providing an image to be displayed on a screen 10 such that a viewer in any current spatial position O in front of the screen 10 can watch the image with only a minimal perspective deformation. According to the invention this is achieved by estimating the current spatial position O of a viewer in relation to a fixed predetermined position Q representing a viewing point in front of the screen 10 from which the image could be watched without any perspective deformation and by providing the image by applying a variable perspective transformation to an originally generated image in response to said estimated current position O of the viewer, such that the viewer in said position O is enabled to watch the image without a perspective deformation.