Image of the Week - 20 September 2005

3D Computer Reconstruction of the Velopharyngeal Mechanism

The goal of this project was to create a 3D model of velopharyngeal mechanism based on MRI data to demonstrate the velum at rest and during elevation. Using quantitative data, length, width, origin and insertion of the major muscles of the velopharynx were modeled using the Maya Unlimited 6.5 software system. The model was animated to demonstrate velar movement during repeated sustained vowel production. Improvements in visualization of the velopharynx through 3D computer graphics offer a promising future for the field of speech and hearing science.
This week's image of the week is a preview of next week's ITG Forum, in which Jamie Perry and Dr. David Kuehn will discuss the direction of their research in greater detail. The full animation, of which this still is but a single frame, will be presented at that time.

Image Courtesy: Jamie Perry, Dr. David Kuehn - Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences; Alex Jerez - Imaging Technology Group.

Contact: leverich@uiuc.edu, dkuehn@uiuc.edu, ajerez@itg.uiuc.edu