Interactive Visualization of Neuroanatomical Data for a Hands-On Multimedia Exhibit

Magnetic resonance imaging is a technique which is routinely used by neuroradiologists. Within the last decade, several techniques have been developed to visualize those MR images so that medical experts, and thus the patients, can benefit from it. However, very little work has been done to use neuroanatomical MR data for educational purposes and to bring the general public into closer contact with the scientific knowledge. In this paper, an interactive visualization of neuroanatomical data, which is controlled by a dedicated user input device, is presented for a novel neuroscience exhibit. State-of-the-art visualization methods are combined to facilitate easy perception of the complexity of the medical data. For that, fiber tubes and diffusion-weighted image overlays are integrated into a volume rendering of the brain. Ambient occlusion algorithms are utilized to calculate self-shadowing of the brain anatomy and the fiber tubes. Further, a physical model of the brain and a touch display are used as user input devices. The visibility of fiber bundles can be intuitively controlled by activating touch sensors, which have been inserted into the physical brain model at the corresponding functional areas.