A rubber torso mockup was made following the geometry of the Visible Human Project of the National Library of Medicine. 3D reconstruction was performed in Pro/Engineer, which allowed the CNC manufacturing of exact molds. The lungs and abdominal cavities were created and a skeleton was incorporated in the mold.

 

A respiratory pump connected to the lung cavities is pressurizing the model to simulate breathing. The abdominal cavity can be populated with synthetic or ex-vivo organs.

The validity of the respiration model relies on the similarity with the human in the geometrical shape, mechanical properties, and its actuation. Two similar objects move similarly under similar actions. The torso is an exact geometric replica of the VH model.