The Medical Image Segmentation Tool Set (iSEG) is a fully integrated segmentation toolbox including pre- and postprocessing for the efficient, fast, and flexible generation of anatomical models from medical imaging data. These models can be used for personalized treatment planning, or to establish in silico trial populations. A wide selection of segmentation methods including competitive region growing, fuzzy connectedness analysis, level-set methods, topologically flexible interpolation, and dedicated vasculature segmentation, ensure the efficient and robust generation of surface models. iSEG may be live-linked with the desktop version of Sim4Life, or instantiated as a module in a cloud-based Sim4Life.web pipeline.

Sim4Life includes AI and computer vision functionality to generate detailed personalized anatomical head models (30 tissue classes) with high accuracy from MRI data. This feature has broad applicability in precision medicine, including personalized brain stimulation planning, and the generation of virtual populations for variability assessments and in silico trials.

The Poser tool allows users to manipulate the posture of the Virtual Population models (ViP, IT’IS Foundation, Switzerland; version 3.0 or higher) to simulate specific use cases using physics-based solvers. Posing is realized by rotating the rigid skeleton at its joints, which triggers passive deformation of soft tissues. Optimized computational techniques allow deformations to be smoothly visualized in real time. Moreover, users can switch between previously saved, user-defined postures.

Sim4Life supports the use of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data to assign anisotropic conductivity distributions to low-frequency EM simulations. These are particularly important for neuro-related simulations, as the conductivity along directions locally aligned with the orientation of the spinal cord, spinal roots, or peripheral nerves can be 10x higher than the orthogonal conductivity. The platform also supports the assignment of heterogeneous acoustic property maps to the skull and bones, and the use of MR perfusion maps in thermal simulations. 

Sim4Life offers a rich set of functionalities to facilitate personalized modeling:

• Control point morphing for easy adaptation of anatomical morphologies
• Image registration-based modeling of label fields and surfaces
• Surface-based morphing
• Image-based tissue property assignment
• Brain atlas co-registration
• AI-based head model generation
• Implant insertion tools (e.g., vessel centerline extraction for stents, projection tool for orthopedic implants, remeshing tool)
• Hybrid rendering of image data, simulation results, and geometries
• Personalized 10-10 EEG electrode placement

The Sim4Life Phased-array Antenna Toolkit provides the most efficient solution on the market for the design, analysis, and optimization of 5G mmWave antenna arrays. It empowers engineers to rapidly develop and study phased-array antennas to meet demanding performance requirements, including regulatory compliance. The power density algorithm is fully compliant with IEC/IEEE 63195 standards on both flat and curved surfaces.

Sim4Life’s Multi-Parameter Multi-Goal Optimizer is an effective and easy-to-use toolbox for the optimization and/or tuning of virtual prototypes. The toolbox provides global optimization techniques (e.g. stochastic response surface method) for real-world engineering and medical applications. Sim4Life combines the superior speed of HPC-enabled solvers with dedicated algorithms for the efficient optimization of entire (CAD-derived) devices embedded in complex environments. The optimization framework spans the complete Sim4Life workflow, including modeling, simulation, and postprocessing.

Sim4Life now offers a novel simulation engine capable of performing all computational tasks in one or more independent environments. The Sweeper – accessible via a user-friendly GUI – allows users to parameterize entire projects (modeling, simulation, and analysis) robustly and flexibly using variables and mathematical expressions while preserving memory efficiency. Fully configurable parameter sweeps are performed top down, allowing the user to focus on the analysis of results, while delegating the number crunching and data management to the simulation engine.

The 3D Arbitrary Object Array Generation Tool simplifies the creation of CAD models of complex phased arrays with just a few mouse clicks. Thanks to its innovative background logic, setting up FDTD simulations of phased arrays is now as simple as a drag-and-drop operation. Users can apply predefined phase/amplitude excitation patterns (e.g., Chebycheff weights), making it easy to simulate a phased array operating under various conditions.

MATCH is a versatile matching circuit application designed for single and multiport devices, such as antennas, antenna arays and RX/TX MR coils. It allows users to add loading or matching circuits to the S-matrix of a simulation, enabling the calculation of new scattering values after attaching circuits (for tuning and/or matching purposes) to the ports, without the need to re-simulate. MATCH offers the following functionalities:

• Input data from MultiPort Simulations or Touchstone files
• Create new settings or load existing ones
• Specify ports and loads
• Select matching circuit type (T, pi, none) and order
• Plot or export resulting S-matrix
   

The Antenna Diversity tool (MIMO) enables users to comprehensively analyze the diversity performance of a multi-antenna system. The tool offers the following functionalities:

• Automatic simulation setup and data extraction
• Mean Effective Gain (MEG): Evaluates the total power received by an antenna element in a given scattering environment.
• Correlation Coefficient: Quantifies the relevance between two antenna elements in terms of radiation pattern. The tool computes the envelope correlation to reflect this parameter.
• Diversity Gain (DG): Shows how much an antenna array outperforms a single element. DG is defined bases on outage probability, specifically at 1% of the ergodic cumulative distribution function (CDF) under a Rayleigh fading environment.

MUSAIK RF Array Designer provides a comprehensive framework for the design, optimization, and performance verification of MRI receive coil arrays, based on simulation results or experimental data. It enables the user to import simulation results of array coils and assess their parallel imaging capabilities. Equivalent analysis is also available for experimentally obtained data, allowing accurate verification for a range of different design processes or to evaluate the simulation model fidelity. Users can evaluate signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and generate 2D parallel MRI g-factor maps from simulated and/or experimental datasets.

The MRI System Simulator (SYSSIM) predicts realistic EM field effects on MR images for arbitrary pulse sequences. 
The tool solves the Bloch equations to predict the MRI k-space signals based on the provided model geometry, material properties, RF and gradient fields and the pulse sequence. The solver can handle inhomogeneous material distributions such as those found in realistic anatomical structures. The RF field distributions can be supplied from previous EM simulation or assumed to be ideal. The simulator supports multiple channels for the transmission and reception of the signal. Two parametrized example configurations of Gradient Echo and Spin Echo Sequences are included, and users can implement customized MRI pulse sequences via a Python interface. 

SYSSIM was developed in collaboration with Prof. Christopher Collins from NYU School of Medicine. For more details, please refer to the publication: "Cao, Z., Oh, S., Sica, C.T., McGarrity, J.M., Horan, T., Luo, W. and Collins, C.M. (2014), Bloch‐based MRI system simulator considering realistic electromagnetic fields for calculation of signal, noise, and specific absorption rate. Magn. Reson. Med., 72: 237-247. doi:10.1002/mrm.24907"

The Parallel Transmit toolbox is a highly requested set of design and safety tools for high-field MRI applications. These tools enable the computation, compression and export of Q-Matrix, VOPs, and SAR values from simulations of multi-port parallel transmit MRI coil, thus empowering online safety monitoring and helping coil manufacturers/users to meet regulatory requirements:

• A set of tools to compress simulation results of multi-channel parallel transmit coil arrays into a small set of VOPs
• Rapid SAR predictions with guaranteed conservativeness and tuneable, a priori known over-estimation for all possible shimming configurations
• Worst-case SAR identification
• Computation of Q-matrices and mass-averaged Q-matrices
• Export of Q-matrix and VOP data to MATLAB

The Gradient Coil Designer (GRAD) generates realistic wire patterns for a given coil geometry defined using surfaces or model objects. It also calculates the magnitude of the current needed to drive the coil to generate a gradient field of a specified strength, measured in mT/m. The solver uses the Boundary Element Method to design wire patterns for actively shielded resistive electromagnets of arbitrary geometry. GRAD was  developed in collaboration with Prof. Blaine Chronik from UWO. 

Key Features 

• Takes into account uniform or realistic B0 distribution
• Optimizes current density and field homogeneity, while minimizing power and inductance

Applications 

• Design gradient coils with arbitrary shapes
• Calculate interactions between gradient fields and other elements, such as gradient shielding, RF coil and shield, implanted devices inside the patient
• Gradient coil safety evaluation with and without implant (e.g., nerve stimulation, vibration)

The Parameterized MRI Volume Coil Designer (BCAGE) is an interactive tool to create and simulate parameterized birdcage-style volume coils. It builds the coil model based on user specifications and calculates the tuning capacitor values using the Birdcage Builder developed at Pennsylvania State University – Hershey. BCAGE offers the following functionalities:

• Build generic High-Pass, Low-Pass and Band-Pass coils operating at arbitrary frequencies
• Flexible geometry options (legs, end rings, shielding, feed type, capacitors) for cylindrical systems
• Calculation of tuning capacitor values and resonant frequencies
• Generation of parametric geometry
• Creation of template simulation with automated settings for Frequency and Bandwidth, Capacitor values and Sensors and Grid.

IMAnalytics is a novel software platform solution for the comprehensive safety evaluation of implantable devices. The module uses the Tier 3 approach as defined in ISO 10974 to characterize RF-induced power deposition and heating at the distal electrodes of implantable devices, and the voltage at the lead terminals of the pulse generator. Furthermore, it extracts the RF-induced electric field in a region of interest for use in ISO 10974’s Tier 2 approach, or for calibrating ASTM F2182 phantom measurements. IMAnalytics and the IT'IS MRIxViP1.5T/3.0T field libraries are the first computational modeling-based Medical Device Development Tools (MDDT) approved by the FDA.

The Implant Safety Tool (IMSAFE) is developed to assist implant manufacturers or researchers who intend to assess the RF Safety of an implant during MRI exposure. The tool helps fulfill Tier 3 of the four-tier approach outlined in ISO/IEC Technical Specification 10974. Variations in the clinical implant routings can be introduced and controlled through the IMSAFE interactive routing generators. Users can define a volume (using a base spline and perpendicular discs) to specify where the implant would be located. The user can then choose the number of splines to be created and set constraints, such as organs that the splines must avoid. Tangential electric field statistics along the generated clinical routings can be obtained using the tool, along with basic field extractions such as slice and vector view of electric- and magnetic-fields.

Dedicated routing tools, accessible through both the GUI and Python API, are available to aid in creating implant lead trajectories or working with wires (e.g., nerve trajectories). These include a tool to smoothly join splines, a UI tool to create spline loops with a given radius and orientation at a user-defined location, and vessel center-line extraction. This toolkit empowers MRIxViP users to generate implant routings for MRI safety evaluations. In addition, it is in active use at IT’IS for creating and editing neuro-functionalized nerve trajectories.