ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT Computational modeling uses a numerical approach to simulate material behavior under dened spatial constraints and load conditions. For this purpose, a system is decomposed into a large number of interacting volume elements (called nite elements), which can be described by a set of partial differential equations. Numerical methods are then employed to solve the equation system for the unknown quantities, such as deformation and stress. Finite-element models have been employed to observe the mechanical response behavior of biological tissue as well as implant materials. Unlike in mechanical systems, where a relatively simple geometrical description is available, patient-specic models of organs or implants are often obtained from volumetric images. Image-based nite-element models have a highly complex geometry, and the assignment of material properties to individual elements from image information is difcult. In this chapter, the four steps to obtain an image-based nite element-based material simulation (segmentation, meshing, simulation, and postprocessing) are described in detail, and strategies to overcome the specic challenges of image-based computational modeling are discussed. A focus of this chapter lies on available software to perform the four steps with aspects of the practical realization of a nite-element modeling chain.
