US 2017/0249734 A1 · AUTOMATIC SEGMENTATION OF BREAST TISSUE IN A THERMOGRAPHIC IMAGE

Abstract

What is disclosed is a system and method for automatically segmenting a breast from surrounding tissue in a thermal image. A thermal image of at least one breast of the patient is received. The thermal image is then analyzed to identify a set of N points around the breast, a contour of an outline of the body, and isotherms of the axilla and infra-mammary fold. Thereafter, the points are connected together to form a N-sided irregular polygon which segments the breast from surrounding tissue. Each of the points is a vertex of the polygon and comprises a draggable object which enables a user to selectively manipulate a shape of the polygon. A user can add/delete vertices from the polygon as desired. The area of the image encompassed by the polygon is communicated to a breast cancer screening algorithm performing automated or semi-automated screening.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A method for segmenting a breast from surrounding tissue in a thermographic image for breast cancer screening, the method comprising:

receiving a thermal image of a breast area of a person, pixels in the thermal image with a highest temperature value being displayed in a first color and pixels with a lowest temperature value being displayed in a second color, pixels with temperature values between the lowest and highest temperature values being displayed in gradations of color between the first and second colors;
analyzing the thermal image to identify a plurality of points PN, where N≧5, in the thermal image surrounding the breast area;
and
connecting the points together to obtain a N-sided polygon which segments the breast from surrounding tissue in the thermal image.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Automatic segmentation of breast tissue in a thermographic image

Life of this patent

Automatic segmentation of breast tissue in a thermographic image

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims9