This portable mixed-reality simulator provides simulated fluoroscopy so that trainees and novices can practice a new procedure without exposure to ionizing radiation.
Procedural tools, like a needle, are directly manipulated by the trainee, tracked electromagnetically in 6 degrees of freedom (DOF) to 0.2 mm resolution, and appear in the fluoroscopic image along with the simulated anatomy. The fluoroscopic image changes as a function of the manipulation of the virtual C-arm that runs on a slave monitor. The C-arm can be controlled by a radiation technologist from the slave monitor while the main monitor displays the fluoroscopic image and is used by the proceduralist trainee and thus can be used for training of a two-person team. A foot pedal turns fluoroscopy on and off. A counter of radiation exposure time is included. More procedures can be added on demand to the existing fluoroscopy-guided procedures (i.e., normal lumbar, challenging lumbar).
