Tooth surface fitting and three-dimensional display using hidden surface removal technique

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Computer Graphics
• Dental Anatomy

Background:

• Accurate 3D modeling of dental structures is crucial for diagnosis and treatment planning.
• Existing surface-fitting methods may lack precision or computational efficiency for complex tooth geometries.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a bi-cubic parametric spline surface-fitting technique for dental external and canal surfaces.
• To implement an efficient hidden surface removal algorithm for improved 3D visualization of fitted tooth surfaces.

Main Methods:

• Utilized crown-to-root and cross-sectional data obtained from X-ray scanning.
• Applied bi-cubic parametric spline interpolation for surface fitting.
• Developed a novel hidden surface removal technique based on discriminating removal grades for computational efficiency.

Main Results:

• The bi-cubic parametric spline method successfully fitted complex tooth external and canal surfaces.
• The selection of accumulated chord length or coordinate component as parameters allowed for smooth surface fitting.
• The developed hidden surface removal technique significantly reduced computing time for 3D display.

Conclusions:

• Bi-cubic parametric spline surfaces provide a robust method for accurate dental surface modeling.
• The efficient hidden surface removal algorithm enhances the practical application of 3D dental visualization.
• This approach offers a valuable tool for digital dentistry and research.