Low-dimensional data-based surrogate model of a continuum-mechanical musculoskeletal system based on non-intrusive model order reduction

Over the last decades, computer modeling has evolved from a supporting tool for engineering prototype design to an ubiquitous instrument in non-traditional fields such as medical rehabilitation. This area comes with unique challenges, e.g. the complex modeling of soft tissue or the analysis of musculoskeletal systems. Conventional modeling approaches like the finite element (FE) method are computationally costly when dealing with such models, limiting their usability for real-time simulation or deployment on low-end hardware, if the model at hand cannot be simplified without losing its expressiveness. Non-traditional approaches such as surrogate modeling using data-driven model order reduction are used to make complex high-fidelity models more widely available regardless. They often involve a dimensionality reduction step, in which the high-dimensional system state is transformed onto a low-dimensional subspace or manifold, and a regression approach to capture the reduced system behavior. While most publications focus on one dimensionality reduction, such as principal component analysis (PCA) (linear) or autoencoder (nonlinear), we consider and compare PCA, kernel PCA, autoencoders, as well as variational autoencoders for the approximation of a continuum-mechanical system. In detail, we demonstrate the benefits of the surrogate modeling approach on a complex musculoskeletal system of a human upper-arm with severe nonlinearities and physiological geometry. We consider both, the model’s deformation and the internal stress as the two main quantities of interest in a FE context. By doing so we are able to create computationally low-cost surrogate models which capture the system behavior with high approximation quality and fast evaluations.