There are generally two ways of meshing from 3D imaging data: The majority of approaches used to date still follow the traditional CAD route by using an intermediary step of surface reconstruction which is then followed by a traditional CAD-based meshing algorithm.
Although reasonably robust algorithms are now available, these techniques are often time consuming, and virtually intractable for the complex topologies typical of image data.
They also do not easily allow for more than one domain to be meshed, as multiple surfaces are often non-conforming with gaps or overlaps at interfaces where one or more structures meet.
[2] This approach is the more direct way as it combines the geometric detection and mesh creation stages in one process which offers a more robust and accurate result than meshing from surface data.
[5] The steps involved in the generation of models based on 3D imaging data are: An extensive range of image processing tools can be used to generate highly accurate models based on data from 3D imaging modalities, e.g. MRI, CT, MicroCT (XMT), and Ultrasound.