Patent US6181348B1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
← Back to Patent Explorer
US6181348B1 Expired / Lapsed US ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Method for selective volume visualization via texture mapping

Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA Inc
•
Filing: 1997-09-22
•
Granted: 2001-01-30
•
Expires: 2017-09-22
📄 Original PDF 🌐 Google Patents 🔄 Sync Now

Abstract

Abstract A method for rendering volume data as texture maps on top of polyhedral surfaces is provided. Initially, a region of interest (roi) to be rendered must be selected. The selection of a region of interest is done using simple segmentation. The polyhedral surface of this segmentation is used to sample the volume data at a specified depth. The result of the sampling is converted into texture maps that are rendered on the segmented surface.

Inventors

  • 👤 Bernhard Geiger

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction US
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-09 22:30
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06T; G06T17/00; G06T17/10

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 28
Claim 1
Independent Claim 108 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model.
Claim 2
Independent Claim 108 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 29 words
The method according to claim 1 , wherein said step of rendering the texture maps further comprises the step of compositing of the calculated layers into the texture image.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 37 words
The method according to claim 1 , wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the triangles; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled triangles.
Claim 5
Independent Claim 124 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of generating a polyhedral model is based on a three-dimensional Delaunay triangulation process.
Claim 6
Independent Claim 124 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of generating a polyhedral model is based on a three-dimensional Delaunay triangulation process.
Claim 7
Independent Claim 152 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons; and wherein said step of composing can be performed using maximum intensity projection (MIP).
Claim 8
Independent Claim 152 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons; and wherein said step of composing can be performed using maximum intensity projection (MIP).
Claim 9
Independent Claim 152 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons; and wherein said step of composing can be performed using minimum intensity projection (MINIP).
Claim 10
Independent Claim 152 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons; and wherein said step of composing can be performed using minimum intensity projection (MINIP).
Claim 11
Independent Claim 158 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons; and wherein said step of composing can be performed by adding corresponding pixel intensity values of layers of sampled polygons.
Claim 12
Independent Claim 158 words
A method for volume rendering, comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model; wherein said step of converting further comprises the steps of: resampling the data volume along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons; and wherein said step of composing can be performed by adding corresponding pixel intensity values of layers of sampled polygons.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim 130 words
A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for volume rendering, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim 130 words
A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for volume rendering, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a region of interest (roi) to be rendered; generating a polyhedral model of a surface of the selected region of interest; calculating 2 dimensional texture maps for polygons comprising the polyhedral model, wherein the step of calculating comprises allocating a 2 dimensional texture image from an initial polygon generated by the polyhedral model; interpolating a normal at each vertex for the initial polygon; sampling a plurality of layers of parallel polygons at a predetermined depth along the interpolated normals; and converting the sampled data into a texture map; and rendering the calculated texture maps on the polyhedral model.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim 22 words
The program storage device of claim 8 , wherein the instructions for selecting a region of interest comprise instructions for performing segmentation.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim 25 words
The program storage device of claim 8 , wherein the instructions for generating a polyhedral model comprise instruction for performing a three-dimensional Delaunay triangulation process.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim 47 words
The program storage device of claim 8 , wherein the instructions for converting the sampled data into a texture map comprise instruction for performing the steps of: resampling the volume data along the polygons; and composing a texture map from the plurality of layers of sampled polygons.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim 26 words
The program storage device of claim 11 , wherein the instructions for performing the step of composing comprise instructions for performing a maximum intensity projection (MIP).
Claim 19
Dependent Claim 26 words
The program storage device of claim 11 , wherein the instructions for performing the step of composing comprise instructions for performing a minimum intensity projection (MINIP).
Claim 20
Dependent Claim 30 words
The program storage device of claim 11 , wherein the instructions for performing the step of composing comprise instruction for adding corresponding pixel intensity values of layers of sampled polygons.
Claim 21
Independent Claim 83 words
A method for volume rendering using texture mapping, comprising the steps of: generating a polyhedral model of a surface of a region of interest, wherein the polyhedral model comprises a plurality of polygons; interpolating a normal for each vertex of at least one polygon of the polyhedral model; sampling texture data of parallel layers corresponding to the polygon within a specified distance from the surface using the interpolated normals; and rendering a texture map on the polyhedral model using the sampled texture data.
Claim 22
Independent Claim 83 words
A method for volume rendering using texture mapping, comprising the steps of: generating a polyhedral model of a surface of a region of interest, wherein the polyhedral model comprises a plurality of polygons; interpolating a normal for each vertex of at least one polygon of the polyhedral model; sampling texture data of parallel layers corresponding to the polygon within a specified distance from the surface using the interpolated normals; and rendering a texture map on the polyhedral model using the sampled texture data.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim 39 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of rendering comprises the steps of: resampling texture data of selected one of the parallel layers; and composing the texture map from the texture data of each selected parallel layer.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim 19 words
The method of claim 16 , wherein the step of composing is performed using a maximum intensity projection (MIP).
Claim 25
Dependent Claim 19 words
The method of claim 16 , wherein the step of composing is performed using a minimum intensity projection (MINIP).
Claim 26
Dependent Claim 24 words
The method of claim 16 , wherein the step of composing is performed by adding corresponding pixel intensity values of each selected parallel layer.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim 105 words
A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for volume rendering using texture mapping, the method comprising the steps of: generating a polyhedral model of a surface of a region of interest, wherein the polyhedral model comprises a plurality of polygons; interpolating a normal for each vertex of at least one polygon of the polyhedral model; sampling texture data of parallel layers corresponding to the polygon within a specified distance from the surface using the interpolated normals; and rendering a texture map on the polyhedral model using the sampled texture data.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim 105 words
A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for volume rendering using texture mapping, the method comprising the steps of: generating a polyhedral model of a surface of a region of interest, wherein the polyhedral model comprises a plurality of polygons; interpolating a normal for each vertex of at least one polygon of the polyhedral model; sampling texture data of parallel layers corresponding to the polygon within a specified distance from the surface using the interpolated normals; and rendering a texture map on the polyhedral model using the sampled texture data.

References Cited (Backward Citations)

US4719585A Cited
US4879668A Cited
US5313567A Cited
US5734384A Cited
US5956041A Cited
US5742293A Cited
US5412563A Cited
US5782762A Cited
US5793375A Cited
US5877779A Cited
US5844567A Cited
US5859891A Cited

USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows

Annuity Stage Window Opens Payment Deadline Surcharge Period Until Estimated Fee Status
3.5 Years (Year 4) 2004-01-30 2004-07-31 2005-01-30 $2000.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8) 2008-01-30 2008-07-31 2009-01-30 $3760.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12) 2012-01-30 2012-07-31 2013-01-30 $7700.00 Window Closed / Lapsed

Assigned Categories & Tags

No categories assigned to this patent yet.

Assign Category Tag