Simple Fluid Visualization for Blood Vessel Model with Event-Based Vision Sensor and Low-Power Laser

Abstract

Medical device development, including intravascular treatment devices and equipment for drug delivery, often involves fluid phenomena. Visualization and measurement of fluid behavior are essential for design and development. However, conventional fluid visualization methods are often impractical for daily use because of their high cost, time-consuming nature, and complexity. A fluid visualization method using an event-based camera is proposed. It can be used to capture the brightness change with high temporal resolution using a low-power laser. The approach can be safely used at any experimental site by utilizing a low-power laser as a light source, and it is easier to implement than conventional methods. Experiments were conducted to visualize and analyze the flow in a blood vessel model using water mixed with tracer particles. The results demonstrate that obtaining commonly known flow properties and confirming appropriate flow visualization using a circular tube model are possible. The usefulness of the method for typical lesion models, such as vascular stenosis and cerebral aneurysm, was also demonstrated. The flow could be understood qualitatively by accumulating the changes in illumination caused by particle movement over a specific time period. Furthermore, the velocity vectors and distributions were analyzed quantitatively using particle image velocimetry and particle tracking velocimetry by exporting event-based camera results as video images at arbitrary frame rates.