IRES: Track 1: International Research Experiences in Design of Next Generation VR Simulation based Training Approaches for Orthopedic Surgery

这个国际项目的总体目标是在虚拟现实(VR)和触觉(Touch)环境的设计方面为新一代美国工程师和科学家提供有意义的研究经验，以培训住院医师进行整形外科手术。为我们的本科生和研究生提供的有用的研究经验将使他们为这一涉及医学/医疗保健的重要新兴领域做出贡献，并为他们提供成为这一不断增长的领域的领导者的机会。要探索的研究方法的独特性涉及创造基于3D计算机的方法和工具，这将使住院医师能够得到更好的培训，同时减少他们使用小动物或在身体上接受培训的需要。该项目的技术成果将是3D网络工具，它将为我们的住院医生和初出茅庐的外科医生做好更好的外科培训；这反过来将使他们能够服务于我们公众的医疗需求。这一国际项目涉及具有许多工程挑战的尖端研究问题，并具有影响健康和医疗应用的巨大潜力。随着信息技术的突破继续给以信息为中心的实践带来革命性的变化，工程和计算机科学专业的学生越来越需要从事跨学科的研究活动，以创建网络密集型“智能健康”方法和工具，以支持医疗培训和相关的医疗保健环境。研究活动将包括设计先进的3D虚拟现实环境(结合基于算法的手术规划方法)，使住院医生能够沉浸在复杂的整形外科程序中进行培训，例如用于治疗股骨骨折的髁状突钢板。另一个推动力是设计一种基于触觉的方法，允许住院医生在钻骨和相关任务时获得一种自然的感觉，这实际上是矫形外科手术中基于模拟的培训过程的一部分。这种培训方法将使这些住院医生能够在不使用身体和小动物的情况下得到更好的培训。采用这种智能健康方法有可能降低医学教育成本，并提高手术技能水平。随着这些网络密集型的方法变得越来越普遍，将更有必要鼓励更多的学生追求这种交叉学科的职业，这些职业与医学、工程和计算机重叠。通过这个项目，我们的学生将接触到领先的研究环境(在德国这样的技术先进国家)。这样的经历将使我们的本科生和研究生成为智能健康及相关领域的全球领导者。这反过来将帮助我们的国家继续保持其在网络和智能健康行业的领导地位，这反过来将对我们的国家经济产生积极影响。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The overall goal of this international project is to provide meaningful research experiences to a new generation of U.S. engineers and scientists in the design of Virtual Reality (VR) and haptic (touch) based environments to train medical residents in orthopedic surgery. Useful research experiences provided to our undergraduate and graduate students will prepare them to contribute to this important emerging area involving medicine/healthcare as well as provide them opportunities to become leaders in this growing field. The uniqueness of the research methods to be explored involves creating 3D computer based approaches and tools, which will enable medical residents to be better trained while reducing the need for them to be trained using small animals or on cadavers. The technology outcomes of this project will be 3D cyber tools which will prepare our residents and budding surgeons to be better trained in surgery; this in turn will enable them to serve the healthcare needs of our public. This international project deals with cutting edge research issues with many engineering challenges and hold significant potential to impact health and medical applications. As breakthroughs in IT continue to revolutionize information centric practices, there is an ever increasing need for engineering and computer science students to be engaged in interdisciplinary research activities to create cyber intensive ‘smart health’ methods and tools to support medical training and related health care contexts. The research activities will include designing advanced 3D Virtual Reality environments (incorporating algorithm based surgical planning methods) which will allow residents to train immersively in complex orthopedic surgical procedures such as condylar plating, which is used to treat fractures of the femur. Another thrust is designing a haptic based approach to allow the residents to obtain a natural feel for drilling bones and related tasks virtually as part of a simulation based training process within this orthopedic surgical procedure. Such training approaches will enable these residents to be better trained without using cadavers and small animals. The adoption of such smart health approaches has the potential to bring down medical education costs as well as improve the level of surgical skills. As these cyber-intensive approaches become more commonplace, there will be a greater need to encourage more students to pursue such interdisciplinary careers that overlap medicine, engineering and computing. Through this project, our students will be exposed to leading research environments (in a technological advanced country such as Germany). Such experiences will enable our undergraduate and graduate students to become global leaders in smart health and related areas. This in turn will help our nation continue its leadership in cyber and smart health industries, which in turn will have a positive impact on our nation’s economy.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.