A virtual surgical simulator for mandibular angle reduction based on patient specific data

In our work, a virtual reality-based surgical simulator for the mandibular angle reduction was designed and implemented on CUDA-based platform. High-fidelity visual and haptic feedbacks between the surgical instruments and the bone material are provided to enhance the perception in a realistic virtual surgical environment. Impulse-based dynamics haptic model was employed to simulate the contact forces generated on the high-speed instruments, including the reciprocating saw and the round burr. The validity of the simulated contact forces was verified by comparing against the actual force data measured through the constructed mechanical platform. An empirical study based on the patient specified data was conducted to evaluate the ability of the proposed system in training surgeons with various experiences. The results confirm the validity of our simulator.