2024-10-16
With funding from the program of Ultrahigh Resolution Micro-Display Technologies and Smart Medical Applications, granted by the National Science and Technology Council, a research team jointly led by Prof. Homer Chen from the Graduate Institute of Communication Engineering at National Taiwan University (NTU) and Prof. Ming-Shiang Wu, Superintendent of NTU Hospital, in collaboration with PetaRay, a startup spun off from NTU, has successfully developed pioneering light field augmented reality (AR) display technology for smart medicine. This cutting-edge technology incorporates advanced designs for optics, user interface, artificial intelligence, and spatial computing. By effectively addressing the vergence accommodation conflict (VAC), this technology eliminates dizziness and improves depth perception for physicians, making it particularly well-suited for high-precision medical applications. The joint research team further develops core techniques such as 3D stomach reconstruction and virtual-real registration to address the limitations of traditional 2D medical imaging and bring the forefront of smart medicine to unprecedented 3D visualization of anatomical structures, significantly enhancing medical training, diagnosis, and treatment.
Competitive Advantages of Light-Field Display
Light field AR displays represent a significant leap forward in user comfort and visual fidelity, paving the way for immersive and practical AR applications across various industries. Unlike conventional AR devices, light field AR displays resolve dizziness and eye strain caused by the VAC by directly projecting light from the virtual scene into the eyes, enabling users to naturally adjust focus and perceive 3D objects as if they were real. This advantage allows for accurate perception of subtle depth variations, particularly critical in medical applications. For instance, in AR-guided minimally invasive intervention, the light field display can accurately display organs, vital blood vessels, and nerves, assisting physicians to accurate diagnoses and surgical operations.
Opportunities for Taiwan Industry
The light field display technology developed by the joint research team is well poised to significantly boost Taiwan's competitiveness in advanced display technologies and drive the growth of related industry sectors, including semiconductor manufacturing, electronics processing, and optics design. As a global leader in high-tech manufacturing, Taiwan boasts unparalleled expertise in supporting the production of light field displays. Specifically, Taiwan's leading position in semiconductor manufacturing and electronic processing enables the production of ultrahigh-resolution micro-LED panels critical to the development of high-resolution and high-brightness light field displays. Furthermore, Taiwan's superb capabilities in optical design and manufacturing effectively reduce production costs and enhance market competitiveness. This synergy between academic research and high-tech industry in Taiwan is propelling the next wave of AR/VR development and solidifying Taiwan's pivotal role in the global market.
Impact on the Medical Field
The innovative technique for reconstructing 3D stomach models from gastroscopic videos allows surgeons to precisely localize lesions and avoid damaging surrounding tissues. The gaze pattern visualization method built on top of the 3D stomach reconstruction technique further allows the display of the visual attention sequence of a physician in a surgical procedure. The revealing of the cognitive strategies of an experienced physician greatly facilitates a traceable learning process for trainees.
In addition, the innovative AR-guided technique for minimally invasive intervention procedure enables automatic alignment of a digital twin with the real organ, allowing for precise organ localization without intraoperative radiation-based medical imaging. This technique is applicable to the gallbladder drainage intervention procedure and allows for a significant reduction of both operation time and radiation exposure.
Media Contact：
Yen Hui Liang
Program Manager
Department of Engineering and Technologies
National Science and Technology Council
Tel: +886 (2) 27377525
E-mail: yhliang@nstc.gov.tw
Source： National Science and Technology Council
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