Methods and devices for guiding a patient

A computer-implemented method for guiding a patient for a medical examination using a medical apparatus, the method comprising:

• receiving an examination protocol for the medical apparatus;
• determining, by one or more processors, a reference position based at least in part on the examination protocol;
• acquiring a patient position;
• determining, by the one or more processors, a deviation metric based at least in part on comparing the patient position and the reference position;
• determining, by the one or more processors, whether the deviation metric is greater than a deviation threshold;
• and
• if the deviation metric is greater than the deviation threshold:
• generating a positioning guidance based at least in part on the determined deviation metric, the positioning guidance including guidance for positioning the patient relative to the medical apparatus;
• wherein the generating a positioning guidance based at least in part on the determined deviation metric includes:
• generating at least one selected from a visual guidance and an audio guidance.

A system for guiding a patient for a medical examination using a medical apparatus, the system comprising:

• a protocol receiving module implemented on one or more processors and configured to receive an examination protocol for the medical apparatus;
• a reference position determining module implemented on the one or more processors and configured to determine a reference position based at least in part on the examination protocol;
• a patient position acquiring module implemented on the one or more processors and configured to acquire a patient position;
• a deviation metric determining module implemented on the one or more processors and configured to determine a deviation metric based at least in part on comparing the patient position and the reference position;
• a positioning guidance module implemented on the one or more processors and configured to:
• determine whether the deviation metric is greater than a deviation threshold;
• and
• if the deviation metric is greater than a deviation threshold:
• generate a positioning guidance based at least in part on the determined deviation metric, the positioning guidance including guidance for positioning the patient relative to the medical apparatus;
• wherein the generating a positioning guidance based at least in part on the determined deviation metric includes:
• generating at least one selected from a visual guidance and an audio guidance.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium with instructions stored thereon, that when executed by a processor, perform the processes comprising:

• receiving an examination protocol for the medical apparatus;
• determining a reference position based at least in part on the examination protocol;
• acquiring a patient position;
• determining a deviation metric based at least in part on comparing the patient position and the reference position;
• determining whether the deviation metric is greater than a deviation threshold;
• and
• if the deviation metric is greater than the deviation threshold:
• generating a positioning guidance based at least in part on the determined deviation metric, the positioning guidance including guidance for positioning the patient relative to the medical apparatus;
• wherein the generating a positioning guidance based at least in part on the determined deviation metric includes:
• generating at least one selected from a visual guidance and an audio guidance.