Medical training simulation for palpation of subsurface tumor using HIRO

Multi-fingers haptic device that enables multiple point of contact is essential for medical education. There is a strong need for palpation training in the detection of subsurface tumors. A virtual reality system utilizing the new developed haptic interface HIRO was created to address this need. The simulation considers multiple fingers contact and the interaction between the forces exerted by each finger. A physical-based model using FEM with elementary displacement technique was used to simulate the real breast with the existence of subsurface tumors to calculate the real reaction forces. The trainees were asked to locate the tumor position, and performance is evaluated in terms of positional and search time.