A Study Of Developing A System For Measuring And Analyzing Breast Shape Based On Digital Photos

BackgroundFor a long term, the study on breast shape measuring and analyzing has been attended in a few fields such as plastic surgery. Accompanying socioeconomic development, breast cosmetic surgery is increasing. In surgery, the study mainly aims at providing objective comparable data and serving as visual intercommunication platform for planning and assessing breast plastic surgery. It contributes to enhance the accuracy and scientificalness of cosmetic operation and motivate doctor-patient participation, to reduce blindness and post-operational dissention rate and achieve ideal operation effectiveness as a result.Since early 20^th century, multifarious technologies for measuring and analyzing breast shape appeared one after the other. So far, the study has achieved tremendous progress. Manual measuring and description was replcaced by computer assisted measuring and analogue; slow-footed and high-inaccurate contact measuring gave way to fast and accurate indirect measuring; two-dimentional(2D) measuring with heavy loss of messages was subtituted by three-dimentional(3D) measuring with message-rich and vision-intuitionistic. Nevertheless, there still exists certain limitation in practice due to the exculsive morphosis and physiological property of breast itself and other external fators.A new technology from easily obtained materials, in low-cost and be user-friendly while with proper accuracy and also be well adapt to breast idiosyncracy is therefore desperately needed, namely, being characterized in optimum cost performance and apt to be generalized. This is just the objective of this research.In past several years, accompanying the rapid development of computer science, photology and iconography , a new measuring technology based on pictures in digital form has been developed. It only requires general hardware as an ordinary digital camera and a computer with optimum performance. This new technology is able to handily achieve accuracy and practicality in measuring and analyzing by dedicated software and several two-dimentional digital photos. In addition, it could perform certain function such as three-dimentional modeling and analogue designing beyond external environment factors while in much lower cost than other existing technologies. It has been widely applied in industry and partly in plastic surgery ( facial measuring and analyzing). But systematic research on breast shape is seldom reported in our country or overseas, no mention to pertinant measuring theory or developed dedicated software.ObjectiveFor the purpose of developing such a new technique, we projected a breast shape measuring and analyzing system which is based on digital photos. trying to revise and demarcate image-information to perform some related indispensable measuring ( nipple-interval, breast height, breast projection and width of breast fundus), to measure and calculate breast volume and curve-distance of breast more correctly after three-dimentional modeling, to display primary three-dimentional vision and analyze the exclusive morphosis of breast, and finaly to provide the foundation for projecting breast cosmetic surgery, altering artificial breast, pre-oprational modeling, post-operational assessing, even cosmically investigating ordinary breast shape, exploring the growth rule of breast and establishing aesthetic criterion of breastevaluation. This system is also applied to other anthropometric usage such aslength,angle and proportion, particularly the facial measuring.Methods(1) Systematic designing and inaccuracy correctingDepending on MICROSOFT WINDOWS, Visual C# Computer Language was chiefly adopted. With the assistance of precursors' research on the error analyzing, we introduced pertinently revising measures to make the measuring error of the system acceptable.(2) Comparison between software measuring and manual measuring on two-dimentional breast shapeProgramming was adopted to fulfil two-dimensional measuring function of the software. As required, we chose 12 samples(digital photos of 12 breast models), and conducted four indispensable measuring parameters by both software measuring and manual measuring on each of them. Then we performed matched pair t-examine on the results. Through this, we rudimentarily succeeded in vadicating the practicability and reliability of measuring breast assisted by computer.(3) Upgrading the system, improving measuring and assessing ability of three-dimensional modelingBy means of inspecting the rim of the digital pictures in anterior and lateral positions, we got the skeleton picture of breast. And then we got the three-dimensional expression of skeleton curve after drawing up the skeleton picture on xoy, xoz and yoz planes. With the expression, we formed a quadratic function z=z(x,y) to describe three-dimensional breast model and then calculate breast volume. We programmed the calculation into computor processing by computer language in order to develop three-dimensional measuring and analyzing software.(4) Detecting the accuracy and reliability of the system As the criterion required, we chose twelve series of digital pictures in anterior and bi-lateral positions from six mannequins in different sizes to study the three-dimensional modeling , measuring and analyzing ability of the system. Take breast volume calculation as an example, we could assess how the accuracy and reliability of the system when it conducted matched pair t-examine on software measuring and manual measuring results. Rudimentarily, the system was applied in the living person's breast shape.Result1. To develop a breast shape measuring and analyzing system based on digital photos. Its functions as following: Storaging the vision information,Displaying, writing and reading ,Transforming format,Revising primary pictures,Performing two-dimensional measuring on breast,Three-dimensional modeling, measuring and analyzing , Achieving general measuring of breast such as angle, radian and interval.Formulate a series of effective adjusting measure. 2. In comparison between software measuring and manual measuring on two-dimentional breast shape,the matched pair t-examine indicates that no obvious difference exists between software measuring and manual measuring results (0.297