ORTHO BYTES

The use of computers, computer programs, and other computerized equipment to assist in the orthodontic practice will
be reported under this section of the American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics. Manuscripts and
comments may be submitted to Dr Martin Abelson, 14720 N Shotgun Pl, Tucson, AZ 85737.

Morphing and Warping: Part II

Demetrios J. Halazonetis, DMD, MSa
Athens, Greece

In the first part of this article,1 the basic principles of mor- 3. Make sure the two images are exactly the same size. If
phing and warping were discussed. The main emphasis was they are taken with a digital camera, this should not be
on how to warp a static image, and a practical example of a problem. If they are scanned, make sure that you
warping in treatment planning and case presentation of a sur- scan the original photographs or slides at the same res-
gical case was described. In this second part, we are going to olution and at the same size. Otherwise, use your
focus on the main application of morphing, which is the cre- image-processing software to crop them.
ation of computer movies. Small movie sequences that show 4. Place the two images side by side on your screen and
the changes achieved by orthodontic treatment or the work- judge the color, contrast and brightness. Use your
ings of orthodontic appliances can constitute the backbone of image-processing software to adjust these, so that the
a patient education program. Software of this kind is already images appear as similar as possible.
available on the market (see below). The information in this 5. Decide on the final size of your image. Large images
article can help you produce your own movies from your own occupy more of the screen and look better, but the final
treated cases. movie will also be large and claim a significant part of
The program “Morpher for Windows” was used to pro- your hard disk space. It will also run slower, unless
duce the morphing sequences. Morpher for Windows was you have a very fast machine. Arriving at the optimum
written by Masakazu Fujimiya (e-mail, m-fujimiya@nri.co.jp) balance of size and speed is a matter of trial and error.
and is a shareware program. You can find it at Experiment with different image sizes until you find
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~FX6M-FJMY/. Some of the the best for you. Playback speed will also depend on
images and other files described in this article can be found at the amount of RAM installed, the speed of your graph-
my web site (http://www.dhal.com). ics card, and the number of other programs running at
the same time.
PREPARATION The images shown in Fig 1 were scanned from orig-
First we have to select the two images that will inal slides, using a flatbed scanner with a transparency
become the initial and final images of the morphing adapter. The second image was then rotated slightly in
sequence. For this example I have chosen a case treated order to align the occlusal planes as much as possible.
with rapid maxillary expansion (Fig 1). There are a This step is most critical and needs care. Failure to
number of preliminary steps that need to be taken align the images will result in a movie, where all the
before starting the morphing procedure. These aim to teeth seem to move around, thus masking the specific
make the two images as similar as possible so that the effect of the appliance. Next, most of the upper and
morphing sequence shows mainly shape changes rather lower part of the images that contained the lips were
than changes in position, color, or brightness. Prepro- cropped. Color and brightness adjustments were not
cessing stages should include the following: found necessary.
1. Try to achieve the same orientation and position of
your subject in both images, so rotate and crop as nec- NODE AND BOUNDARY POSITIONING
essary. It is best to have your subject centered in the Once the initial and final images are ready, we can
image. start the morphing procedure. Import the initial and
2. Try to minimize the peripheral portion of the image as final images into Morpher for Windows and start plac-
much as possible because changes in this area during ing nodes and boundaries, as explained in Part I. There
morphing will distract the viewer from the main are a few guidelines that need to be followed for an
theme. This can be done either by cropping the image effective morphing:
around the central part or by blurring the peripheral 1. Use nodes and boundaries to outline the most promi-
part of the image. nent features of the image. These are features that dif-
fer from neighboring regions by color or contrast, or
aPart-time instructor, Orthodontic Department, Athens University, Greece.
features that attract our eye, for example, the eyes and
Reprint requests to: D. Halazonetis, 6 Menandrou Street, Kifissia 145 61, mouth in a face.
Greece; e-mail, dhal@dhal.com; web site, http://www.dhal.com 2. Do the same for features that change position between

706 American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics/June 1999

707 Ortho bytes American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics
June 1999

Fig 1. Initial and final images show a treated case before and immediately after rapid maxillary
expansion of approximately 10 mm.

Fig 2. Position of nodes and boundaries. Note that each anterior tooth of the maxillary arch has been
enclosed in a boundary. Nodes have also been placed in the mandibular arch to ensure that mandibu-
lar teeth are not distorted during the morph by the movement of the opposing maxillary teeth.

THE MOVIE
the two images. In the example used here, the maxil-
lary teeth need to be marked in this way. Make sure that the rendering option (Mode | Image
3. Although this may seem unnecessary, nodes need to be transform option...) is set to Morphing. Select Mode
placed even on areas that do not move. This is because | Start rendering, choose Make digital movie and
these areas are affected by neighboring nodes that do click the OK button. Morpher for Windows will dis-
move (remember that node effect is global). Therefore, play each frame of the movie as it is constructed and
place nodes on the mandibular teeth as well. It is best will then show you the completed movie. Unfortu-
to position these as close to the nodes of the maxillary nately, the movie cannot be shown through the pages of
teeth as possible, so that a clear line of demarcation a printed journal. However, this and other movies can
between the upper and lower teeth is formed. be found at the web site http://www.dhal.com.
After placing nodes on the initial image and con-
necting them with boundaries, adjust the position of OTHER USES OF MORPHING
the nodes on the final image so that each corre- Morphing is a relatively recent development; its
sponds to the same structure as in the initial image. applications in orthodontics and the general dental and
The closer the correspondence, the better the final medical profession are steadily increasing. The cre-
morph sequence will be. The position of the nodes ation of educational movies is probably the most com-
for the example can be seen in Fig 2. There are no mon use. Another interesting and innovative use is the
hard rules for the placement of nodes. Other config- creation of fictional images of human faces from the
urations could work just as good or better, as long as combination of a number of real faces. These fictional
the general recommendations outlined here are fol- faces can be used to demonstrate various dental and
lowed. medical conditions. Because they do not resemble the
American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics Ortho bytes 708
Volume 115, Number 6

original real faces, they can be used without requiring movies are available from several sources. Examples
the informed consent of the patient.2 include the Case Presenter CD-ROM by InterActive
Communications and Training (IACT)3 with 870 ani-
RESOURCES mations and 760 movies, OrthoMation by GAC, and
There are numerous sites on the Internet where you two choices from Orthomorph Inc. The last company,
can find additional information, examples, and by Dr. Philippe G Brunelle, also provides a service to
resources. Except for “Morpher for Windows,” you can create a morphing movie from photographs of your
try MorphMan, a very good morphing program from own cases. You supply the initial and final images, and
Stoik Software, a Russian company, which can be they send you the completed movie for $20. Their site
found at http://www.stoik.com. MorphMan 1.1 is avail- is at http://members.aol.com/orthomorph/intro.htm.
able as freeware. A more advanced version (v. 2.01) For the more adventurous and technically minded,
can be purchased over the Internet. morphing has now moved to 3 dimensions. Morphing
Print Artist Pro Morph version 2.5 is available from of 3D models is described at several Internet sites, and
Sierra Home. This program was developed by Gryphon papers from educational institutions can be down-
Software Corporation, it is very comprehensive and is avail- loaded. Try the detailed paper by Apostolos Lerios at
able for PCs and Macs. Suggested price is $49.95. Sierra’s http://www-graphics.stanford.edu/papers/morph/
page for Morph 2.5 is at http://www.sierra.com/sierra-
REFERENCES
home/publishing/titles/pamorph/. Gryphon’s page is at
1. Halazonetis DJ. Morphing and Warping. Part I. Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop
http://www.gryphonsw.com/morph/indexp.html, where 1999;115:466-70.
more information can be found and a demo, with the save 2. Pallen M, Loman N. Medical educationalists can free themselves from constraints of
“real world” images (Letter). BMJ 1998;317:1522.
command disabled, can be downloaded. 3. Scholz RP. Off-the-self digital imaging/prediction. Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop
Educational CD-ROMs containing images and 1998;113:476-477.

ORTHOLINKS
from Demetrios J. Halazonetis; e-mail, dhal@dhal.com
This section of OrthoBytes will present Internet links that are of interest to the orthodontic community. Readers
who wish to submit Internet addresses for this section should contact the Editors.

Dr Potter’s Interview in the Orthodontic CYBERJournal and the ToothCam

http://www.oc-j.com/2-99/toothcam.htm
http://www.caltech.edu/~pinelab/TimeLapse/ToothCam/toothcam.html

The Orthodontic CYBERJournal contains an interview given by Dr Potter, a neurobiologist, who underwent
orthodontic treatment as an adult. His experiences may be enlightening to many orthodontists. Although the gen-
eral impression seems positive, orthodontic technology was described as “prehistoric and barbaric,” and diagno-
sis was considered superficial. Read the whole interview and then visit the ToothCam web site, from where you
can download movies of treatment progress made by the patient and read a detailed diary.

Hominid Evolution, Dental Anthropology, and Human Variation

http://www.uic.edu/classes/osci/osci590/
This website, by Dr Clarke Johnson of the Department of Orthodontics UIC College of Dentistry, is a learn-
ing resource that integrates hominid origins, dental anthropology, and human variation. It consists of original arti-
cles and lecture notes. Topics include Evolution, Genetics, Variation, Human Growth, and Human Adaptability. A
great place to brush-up on the latest knowledge in this area.