# US 10,120,043 B2 · Magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and coil device

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- Number: US 10,120,043 B2
- Document ID: US10120043B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/053,285
- Filed: 2016-02-25
- Published: 2016-09-08
- Granted: 2018-11-06
- Earliest claimed: 2015-03-02
- Assignees: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation
- Applicants: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation
- Inventors: Kazuya Okamoto
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10120043B2

## CPC

- G01R 33/34092: {RF coils specially adapted for NMR spectrometers}
- G01R 33/307: {specially adapted for moving the sample relative to the MR system, e.g. spinning mechanisms, flow cells or means for positioning the sample inside a spectrometer}
- G01R 33/34076: {Birdcage coils}
- G01R 33/3453: {Transverse electromagnetic [TEM] coils}
- G01R 33/385: using gradient magnetic field coils
- G01R 33/34007: {Manufacture of RF coils, e.g. using printed circuit board technology; additional hardware for providing mechanical support to the RF coil assembly or to part thereof, e.g. a support for moving the coil assembly relative to the remainder of the MR system}
- G01R 33/3657: {Decoupling of multiple RF coils wherein the multiple RF coils do not have the same function in MR, e.g. decoupling of a transmission coil from a receive coil}
- G01R 33/4215: {of the gradient magnetic field, e.g. using passive or active shielding of the gradient magnetic field}
- G01R: MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES (indicating correct tuning of resonant circuits H03J3/12)

## Abstract

In one embodiment, a magnetic resonance apparatus includes a gradient coil configured to be cylindrically-shaped and to apply a gradient magnetic field to a hollow region into which an object is inserted, the hollow region being formed, the hollow region being formed inside the gradient coil; and an RF coil configured to include a resonance circuit whose plural connecting conductors are folded back at one end side of the gradient coil so that the resonance circuit extends from the hollow region to an outer region of the gradient coil.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising:
a gradient coil configured to be cylindrically-shaped and to apply a gradient magnetic field to a hollow region into which an object is inserted, the hollow region being formed inside the gradient coil; and
an RF coil configured to include a resonance circuit whose plural connecting conductors are folded back at one end side of the gradient coil so that the resonance circuit extends from the hollow region to an outer region of the gradient coil.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the gradient coil is a local gradient coil configured to be arranged inside cylindrical structure in which a static magnet field magnet, a whole-body gradient coil, and a whole-body RF coil are included; and
the RF coil is a local RF coil integrated with the local gradient coil.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the gradient coil is a whole-body gradient coil; and
the RF coil is a whole-body RF coil integrated with the whole-body gradient coil.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the gradient coil includes a shield gradient coil configured to shield the gradient magnetic field; and
the plural connecting conductors of the resonance circuit are folded back at one end side of the shield gradient coil so that the resonance circuit extends from the hollow region to an outer periphery of the shield gradient coil.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the RF coil includes plural switch circuits; and
each of the plural switch circuits is connected between two of the plural connecting conductors and switches between a conductive state and a non-conductive state with respect to an alternating current of a Larmor frequency band according to externally supplied power.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the RF coil includes plural detuning circuits; and
each of the plural detuning circuits is connected between two of the plural connecting conductors, includes a diode, and becomes a resonant condition in a period during which an on-voltage bringing the diode into a conductive state is supplied.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the gradient coil is configured as cylindrical structure whose two annular end planes face each other;
the RF coil is a birdcage type RF coil; and
the plural connecting conductors are folded back via at least one of the two annular end planes so as to extend from a hollow region of the cylindrical structure to an outer periphery of the cylindrical structure.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 7,
wherein a wiring part of each the plural connecting conductors outside the gradient coil extends along a direction from one of the two annular end planes to another of the two annular end planes;
a wiring part of each of the plural connecting conductors inside the hollow region extends along the direction from one of the two annular end planes to another of the two annular end planes; and
the resonance circuit is configured in such a manner that an electric current value flowing in the wiring part of each of the plural connecting conductors outside the gradient coil becomes equal to an electric current value flowing in the wiring part of each of the plural connecting conductors inside the hollow region.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 8,
wherein the local gradient coil includes an X-axis local gradient coil, a Y-axis local gradient coil, and a Z-axis local gradient coil each of which generates a gradient magnetic field in a direction perpendicular to each other; and
the Z-axis local gradient coil includes wiring configured to generate a gradient magnetic field in an axial direction of the cylindrical structure by being wound on a side of one of the two annular end planes in a circumferential direction of the cylindrical structure, without including wiring on a side of another of the two annular end planes.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 9,
wherein each of the X-axis local gradient coil and the Y-axis local gradient coil is configured as spiral wiring so that wiring interval in the axial direction on the side of one of the two annular end planes becomes wider than wiring interval in the axial direction on the side of another of the two annular end plane.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the RF coil is configured to detect a magnetic resonance signal emitted from the object by the resonance circuit.

### Claim 12 (depends on 2)

The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising moving structure configured to move the local gradient coil and the local RF coil.

### Claim 13

A coil device comprising:
a local gradient coil configured to be arranged inside cylindrical structure in which a static magnetic field magnet, a whole-body gradient coil, and a whole-body RF coil are included and to apply a local gradient magnetic field inside the cylindrical structure; and
a local RF coil configured to
(a) include a resonance circuit whose plural connecting conductors are folded back at one end side of the local gradient coil so that the resonance circuit extends from a hollow region inside the local gradient coil to an outer region of the local gradient coil, and
(b) be integrated with the local gradient coil.