CloudCompare forum

I am analysing a dental model (imported into CloudCompare software from .stl files) and need to get an occlusal heat map. Is there a way to do this please? If so, I would really appreciate if someone can explain to me step by step on how to achieve this as I cannot figure out how. I have searched online and found that this is possible but there is no steps on how.

Can you maybe define what is an 'occlusal heat map' or point us to the online articles that tell it's possible with CC?

I'm a newbie, but I think the key is exporting the Y coordinates as a Scalar Field and then colour the model by the scalar field. I hope it helps!

Yes, it is possible to create an occlusal heat map from a dental model using CloudCompare software. The heat map will show the pressure distribution of the teeth during biting or chewing.

Here are the steps to create an occlusal heat map in CloudCompare:

Open the dental model in CloudCompare software.

In the toolbar on the left, select the "Mesh" tab, then click on "Compute vertex colors" option.

In the "Color by" drop-down menu, select "Z distance" and choose "Rainbow" as the color scheme.

Adjust the color scale to your preference by dragging the color sliders in the "Color scale" section.

Click on "Apply" to generate the color map.

To view the occlusal heat map, select the "View" tab, then click on "Ortho view" option.

In the "Ortho view" dialog box, select "Z" as the projection axis and adjust the orientation to view the occlusal surface of the teeth.

Click on "OK" to apply the settings.

The occlusal heat map should now be visible on the screen. You can rotate the model and adjust the view to get a better look at the heat map.

You can also save the occlusal heat map as an image file by selecting the "File" tab and clicking on "Save screenshot" option.

Note: The accuracy of the occlusal heat map depends on the quality of the dental model and the input data. It is recommended to clean and preprocess the model before creating the heat map.

Thanks for the detailed explanation!