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Updated: Jan 25, 2026
10:25
Technical Approach for Infrared Tracking for Soft Tissue Navigation with a Holographic Head-Mounted Display and Preclinical Validation
Published on: September 2, 2025
500
Accuracy assessment for the co-registration between optical and VIVE head-mounted display tracking
Leah A Groves1,2, Patrick Carnahan3,4, Daniel R Allen3,4
1Robarts Research Institute, London, Canada. lgroves6@uwo.ca.
Summary
A new hybrid tracking system integrates optical spatial tracking with a video pass-through head-mounted display (HMD) for surgical navigation. This system achieves submillimeter accuracy for optically tracked surgical instruments within the HMD visualization.
Area of Science:
- Medical technology
- Surgical navigation systems
- Virtual and augmented reality in medicine
Background:
- Accurate spatial tracking is crucial for surgical navigation systems.
- Head-mounted displays (HMDs) offer immersive visualization but require precise tracking integration.
- Existing systems may lack the accuracy or cost-effectiveness for widespread clinical adoption.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and assess the accuracy of a hybrid tracking system combining optical spatial tracking with a video pass-through HMD.
- To enable the visualization of optically tracked surgical instruments within a first-person HMD view.
- To validate the system's accuracy for potential use in surgical training and practice.
Main Methods:
- A dual-tracked co-calibration apparatus was used for co-registration between optical dynamic reference frames and a VIVE Pro controller.
- Point-based registration determined the location of optically tracked tools relative to the VIVE controller's origin.
- Positional accuracy was evaluated using a CNC machine, and rotational accuracy was assessed with a stylus in a hemispherical phantom.
Main Results:
- The hybrid tracking system demonstrated submillimeter positional and rotational accuracy.
- Positional trueness and precision were [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], respectively.
- Rotational trueness and precision were [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], respectively, with minimal differences compared to optical tracking alone.
Conclusions:
- A hybrid tracking system was successfully developed, integrating optical tracking with a video pass-through HMD for surgical instrument pose determination.
- The system achieves surgically acceptable submillimeter accuracy, validating both optical and VIVE tracking components.
- This technology lays the groundwork for advanced virtual or augmented reality surgical navigation systems for training and practice.
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