Particle beam irradiation system and method for operating the same

A charged particle beam irradiation system comprising:

• a synchrotron accelerating an ion beam and having the accelerated ion beam extracted therefrom;
• an irradiation device for executing irradiation with the ion beam extracted from the synchrotron;
• a detection means for detecting a movement of an affected part of a patient caused by physiological activities of the patient;
• an extraction permission determination means for outputting an extraction permission determination signal on the basis of an output value from the detection means;
• a data storage device for storing, as module data, control data items for permitting beam extraction at all energy stages corresponding to irradiation conditions for a plural predictable patients, the control data items including at least one initial acceleration control data item, a plural extraction control data items, a plural energy change control data items, and a plural deceleration control data items corresponding to the ion beam at a plural energy stages;
• a power supply controller for controlling component devices making up the synchrotron;
• and
• a controller which, given the irradiation conditions of a specific patent preparatory to irradiation, selects the applicable control data items from among the module data stored in the data storage device and stores the selected data items into the power supply controller so as to constitute the operation control data about the devices making up the synchrotron, wherein
• the controller performs control of beam extraction from the synchrotron on the basis of the extraction permission determination signal output from the extraction permission determination means.

A method for operating a charged particle beam irradiation system including

• a synchrotron accelerating an ion beam and having the accelerated ion beam extracted therefrom;
• an irradiation device for executing irradiation with the ion beam extracted from the synchrotron;
• a detection means for detecting a movement of an affected part of a patient caused by physiological activities of the patient;
• and
• an extraction permission determination means for outputting an extraction permission determination signal on the basis of an output value from the detection means, the method comprising:
• causing operation control data about component devices making up the synchrotron to be formed by an initial acceleration control data item, a plural extraction control data items for ion beam extraction at a plural energy stages, a plural energy change control data items connecting the plural extraction control data items, and a plural deceleration control data items corresponding to the plural extraction control data items;
• combining the control data items to provide beam extraction control at the plural energy stages;
• permitting rapid transition to deceleration control from any energy stage by use of the plural deceleration control data items corresponding to the plural energy stages;
• and
• performing control of beam extraction from the synchrotron on the basis of the extraction permission determination signal output from the extraction permission determination means.