Extended Position-Based Dynamics Virtual Reality Simulator for Thoracoscopic Surgery Training

Abstract Conducting thoracoscopic surgery necessitates a high level of skill and specialized training. In addition to practicing on actual patients, surgeons utilize various safer training methods. A widely used training apparatus is the laparoscopic box, which contains multiple compartments fitted with training modules to replicate diverse surgical scenarios accurately. Unfortunately, the cost of these devices can be prohibitively high, making it challenging for individual students to acquire their own. Virtual Reality has emerged as a promising solution, especially due to the decreasing costs of VR equipment, which makes it more accessible. This study details our progress in enhancing training for lung surgeries by leveraging cost-effective VR technologies with head-mounted displays. In particular, simulations of thoracoscopic surgery scenarios within a VR environment have been developed, aiming to create training exercises that serve as an initial step before advancing to laparoscopic simulation boxes and, ultimately, actual surgical procedures on patients. For reproducing the behaviour of the soft lung tissues, we used a recent version of the Extended Position-Based Dynamics (XPBD) model, which solves some of the known problems encountered in the traditional PBD system, thereby enhancing the realism of the simulation.