Portable medical imaging system and method

A portable medical imaging system comprising:

• a movable station comprising a double telescoping C-gantry, the C-gantry including movable first and second C-arms;
• an imaging signal transmitter attached to the movable first C-arm;
• and
• an imaging sensor positioned opposite to the imaging signal transmitter and attached to the movable first C-arm, wherein the imaging sensor defines an angle of incidence with respect to a signal emitted from the imaging signal transmitter,
• wherein, at an initial position the imaging sensor and the imaging signal transmitter define a central axis, the central axis being between the imaging sensor and the imaging signal transmitter and being the central axis of the gantry, and an isocenter located at the central axis and being equidistant between the imaging signal transmitter and the imaging sensor,
• wherein the angle of incidence is defined as a first line from a focal point of the imaging signal transmitter to a middle of the imaging sensor and a second line normal from the imaging sensor to the isocenter,
• wherein the angle of incidence is zero at the initial position, wherein the imaging sensor is configured to rotate about the isocenter and relative to a point approximately on a central axis of the movable first C-arm independently of the imaging signal transmitter, so as to change an angle of incidence for a signal transmitted from the imaging signal transmitter to the imaging sensor while the second line remains normal from the imaging sensor to the isocenter, and provide a field-of-view that is larger than the field-of-view of the imaging sensor at a single position,
• wherein the C-gantry is moved to minimize a zone of collision, the zone of collision being an annular area defined by an extent of possible positions for the imaging sensor.

A portable medical imaging system, comprising:

• a movable station;
• a gantry mount attached to the movable station;
• a gantry rotatably attached to the gantry mount and including a first C-arm slidably mounted to and operable to slide relative to the gantry mount;
• a second C-arm including a imaging signal transmitter and an imaging sensor and slidably coupled to the first C-arm, the first and second C-arms together providing a 360-degree rotation about an object to be imaged;
• and
• a control system for controlling motion of the movable station and first and second C-arms, and for controlling imaging of the portable imaging system, wherein the control system is configured to cause the portable medical imaging system to perform operations,
• wherein the imaging sensor defines an angle of incidence with respect to a signal emitted from the imaging signal transmitter, wherein the imaging sensor and the imaging signal transmitter, in an initial position, define a central axis from the imaging sensor to imaging signal transmitter, and the central axis being between the imaging sensor and the imaging signal transmitter and being the central axis of the gantry, and an isocenter located at the central axis, the first isocenter being equidistant between the imaging signal transmitter and the imaging sensor,
• the angle of incidence is defined as a first line from a focal point of the imaging signal transmitter to a middle of the imaging sensor and a second line normal from the imaging sensor to the first isocenter,
• wherein the angle of incidence is zero at the initial position, wherein the imaging sensor is configured to rotate about the isocenter and relative to a point approximately on a central axis of the movable first C-arm independently of the imaging signal transmitter, so as to change an angle of incidence for a signal transmitted from the imaging signal transmitter to the imaging sensor while the second line remains normal from the imaging sensor to the isocenter.