# PixelPrint: a 3D printing platform for creating lifelike patient-based CT phantoms

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · 2024 · $607,304

## Abstract

Abstract.
While CT remains the most highly utilized diagnostic tool in clinical practice, its technology still calls for research
and development along the entire imaging chain to improve diagnostic accuracy and patient outcomes. The
clinical translation of such developments must be safe, efficient, and timely; however, it remains a challenge to
the community how to precisely predict performance during and after the development phase. Technology
development can be aided by CT phantoms, which are specialized tools used to calibrate, test, and evaluate
scanners. Most existing CT phantoms are relatively expensive and lack accurate representations of anatomy
and diagnostic tasks. There is a lack of patient-based phantoms that fully represent attenuation profiles and
textures seen in clinical CT acquisitions, which this proposal aims to address.
As a result of its ability to create accurate and detailed physical models at a fraction of the cost of traditional
methods, three-dimensional (3D) printing has become increasingly popular in medicine. CT phantom 3D printing
studies include manufacturing geometrically accurate organ models, generating realistic texture samples, and
generating accurate attenuation profiles. Although these approaches produce phantoms that are more similar to
actual anatomical structures, several limitations remain, such as the loss of the natural look and feel of
anatomical and pathological features.
Recently, we proposed a 3D printing solution, called PixelPrint, that can achieve accurate organ geometry, image
texture, and attenuation profiles while eliminating the complexities and limitations of previous methods. Our
solution is a one-step method for translating CT or simulated images into printer instructions. As a preliminary
study shows, isolated organs can be replicated so lifelike that an expert reader can't tell the difference between
the CT scan and the original. Our proposal aims to develop 3D printing hardware and software that will be
capable of creating patient-based phantoms with accurate spectral x-ray characteristics and a natural look and
feel of anatomical and pathological structures. By completing the following aims, we aim to provide a more
efficient and cost-effective method for developing and validating novel CT technology: (i) to design and construct
a dedicated multi-material, quad extruder 3D printer for CT phantoms, (ii) to develop algorithms to preprocess
and translate spectral CT images into instructions for 3D printing, and (iii) to evaluate the performance and
reproducibility of patient-based CT phantoms.
The academic and clinical CT community will benefit from a rapid and inexpensive manufacturing process. To
drive dissemination of our development, we will, as part of this project, distribute dedicated patient-based
phantoms to academic institutions. Our research environment and our team’s unique breadth of expertise are
perfectly placed to execute this project. By utilizing the proposed phantoms, ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10774914
- **Project number:** 1R01EB035092-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Peter B Noel
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $607,304
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-03-01 → 2028-02-29

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10774914

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10774914, PixelPrint: a 3D printing platform for creating lifelike patient-based CT phantoms (1R01EB035092-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10774914. Licensed CC0.

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