Patent ID: 7609910

Claim:
A method for performing a virtual fly-through inside of an anatomical lumen, represented by medical image data, using a medical image processing system, comprising: placing a virtual camera within the lumen; obtaining five images of the interior of the lumen from the point of view of the virtual camera, at 90° viewing angles, the five images comprising a forward image, a left image, a right image, a top image and a bottom image; displaying a first virtual fly-through frame by mapping the forward image to a rectangular window at the center of the frame while the remaining four images are projected to windows to the left, right, top, and bottom of the rectangular window, respectively; and repeating steps of advancing the position of the virtual camera down the lumen and displaying a subsequent virtual fly-through frame in the manner in which the first virtual fly-through frame was displayed until the virtual fly-through is completed.