Real-time volume deformations

Real-time free-form deformation tools are primarily based an surface or par ticle representations to allow for interactive modification and fast render ing of complex models. The efficient handling of volumetric representations , however is still a challenge and has not yet been addressed sufficiently. Volumetric models, on the other hand, form an important class of represent ation in many applications. In this paper we present a novel approach to th e real-time deformation of scalar volume data sets taking advantage of hard ware supported 3D texture mapping. In a prototype implementation a modeling environment has been designed that allows for interactive manipulation of arbitrary parts of volumetric objects. In this way, any desired shape can b e modeled and used subsequently in various applications. The underlying alg orithms have wide applicability and can be exploited effectively for volume morphing and medical data processing.