Simulation model of an eyeball based on finite element analysis on a supercomputer

Background/aims-A simulation model of the human eye was developed. It was a pplied to the determination of the physical and mechanical conditions of im pacting foreign bodies causing intraocular foreign body (IOFB) injuries. Methods-Modules of the Hypermesh (Altair Engineering, Tokyo, Japan) were us ed for solid modelling, geometric construction, and finite element mesh cre ation based on information obtained from cadaver eyes. The simulations were solved by a supercomputer using the finite element analysis (FEA) program PAM-CRASH (Nihon ESI, Tokyo, Japan). It was assumed that rupture occurs at a strain of 18.0% in the cornea and 6.8% in the sclera and at a stress of 9 .4 MPa for both cornea and sclera. Blunt-shaped missiles were shot and set to impact on the surface of the cornea or sclera at velocities of 30 and 60 m/s, respectively. Results-According to the simulation, the sizes of missile above which corne al rupture occurred at velocities of 30 and 60 m/s were 1.95 and 0.82 mm. T he missile sizes causing scleral rupture were 0.95 and 0.75 mm at velocitie s of 30 and 60 m/s. Conclusions-These results suggest that this FEA model has potential usefuln ess as a simulation tool for ocular injury and it may provide useful inform ation for developing protective measures against industrial and traffic ocu lar injuries.