Touch My Heart, by the Polish-Ukrainian scientific team of SoftServe, allows users to interact with a 3D model of a virtual heart. All you need for this is a computer, a haptic tile, AR glasses, and a stable Internet connection. The model was developed under the supervision of medical experts in cooperation with the Silesian Medical University. Soon, it could revolutionize doctors’ communication with patients, making it more intuitive and understandable.
What makes Touch My Heart different from traditional anatomical models? The ability to observe the heart in action. Users can see it, feel its beating, and hear the sounds of its workings. The tool allows for exploring a healthy heart and one affected by various ailments, such as arrhythmia or valve disease. Thanks to advanced technology, it is possible to delve into the heart’s structure by looking at the ventricles, valves, blood vessels, and arteries. It allows for a detailed analysis of every anomaly, even the smallest. Touch My Heart also offers a unique feature of virtual “cutting through” the heart, allowing users to identify potential abnormalities. All the data it contains, such as audio recordings of heartbeats and ECGs, come from real male and female patients.
How it works?
Experiencing the human heart in the palms of your hands becomes possible when you put on the AR glasses. A hologram of the heart materializes above the haptic plate, making it possible to observe it visually and feel its rhythmic beating. This interactive method allows you to examine the heart from all sides closely. It can be rotated, looked at closely to see the finest anatomical details, or moved away to understand the functioning of the entire organ.
The system uses Magic Leap. These are AR goggles that bring digital objects into the real world. Digital twin technology provides a virtual environment. The hand tracking system identifies critical points on the user’s hands, allowing them to interact in mixed reality without needing a controller. It makes it feel like you are holding a real, beating heart, and you can change its position at will.
Touch My Heart also provides an immersive audio experience. A user can recognize the directions of static and moving sound objects and feel their connection to visual objects. The person using Touch My Heart can hear the beating of the heart held in his hands.
The current version of Touch My Heart introduces some improvements. They start from cross-sectional visualization of 3D spatial sound to advanced tactile feedback, representations of various diseases, and a gamification module. These functionalities are designed to make using the model in an educational context compelling, fascinating, and engaging for users.
For whom?
The realistic 3D heart model breaks new ground in cardiology. It offers comprehensive and detailed visualization of heart structures, making it an invaluable tool in modern patient care. It allows doctors to take a more precise and personalized approach to treatment while engaging and educating patients. Presenting a model of the heart, explaining its functions, illustrating examples of normal and abnormal heart rhythms, and providing detailed descriptions of planned treatments and surgeries can significantly improve patient understanding and involvement in the treatment process.
The model in question presents the heart, but its technology is not limited to just one organ. This project can be developed by presenting other organs in a healthy state and showing various diseases and abnormalities.
SoftServe
The solution developer is one of the largest software companies in Central and Eastern Europe. It employs 12,000 people in 50 offices, with 2 main ones in Lviv (Ukraine) and Austin (USA). It has been operating in the Polish market since 2014 through 7 offices. At the same time, it has carried out up to 900+ projects. IBM, Cisco, Panasonic and Cloudera, Henry Schein, and Spillman Technologies are among its clients.
More information about the project is here.
Also, read about the Polish startup eGabinet, which raised €0.5 million to manage patient visits.
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