Contour collimator for radiation therapy
AssigneeSiemens Aktiengesellschaft
InventorsOtto Pastyr, Wolfgang Maier-Borst
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A contour collimator has diaphragm plates arranged in displaceable fashion relative to one another. Each diaphragm plate is individually engageable with an adjustment element shared by all of the diaphragm plates for displacing one diaphragm plate relative to the remaining diaphragm plates. An interlock mechanism in engagement with the remaining diaphragm plates retains those plates in their respectively existing positions during displacement of the one plate. The adjustment element is displaceable from the one diaphragm plate to another diaphragm plate which can then be displaced by the adjustment element while the other plates are retained in position.
Claims40
A contour collimator for use in shaping a radiation beam comprising:
- a plurality of radiation-impermeable diaphragm plates, each plate having an engagement means;
- means for mounting said diaphragm plates side-by-side in the path of said radiation beam with each diaphragm plate being individually displaceable so as to permit passage of radiation through said collimator;
- means for selecting at least one of said diaphragm plates and for displacing said at least one diaphragm plate relative to the remaining diaphragm plates, said means for selecting and displacing being engageable with the engagement means of said at least one diaphragm plate;
- interlock means for maintaining said remainder of said diaphragm plates in their respectively existing positions during displacement of said at least one diaphragm plate, said interlock means being engageable with the engagement means of each of said remaining diaphragm plates;
- and
- means for changing the position of said means for selecting and displacing such that said means for selecting and displacing engages the engagement means of at least one different diaphragm plate from the at least one diaphragm plate previously displaced, said means for selecting and displacing then displacing said at least one different diaphragm plate while said interlock means maintains the remainder of said diaphragm plates in their respectively existing positions.
A contour collimator for use in shaping a radiation beam, said collimator having a plane of symmetry and comprising on each side of said plane of symmetry:
- a plurality of radiation-impermeable diaphragm plates, each plate having a plurality of teeth thereon;
- means for mounting said diaphragm plates side-by-side in the path of said radiation beam with each diaphragm plate being individually displaceable so as to permit passage of radiation through said collimator;
- at least one drive gear wheel having teeth engageable with said teeth of said diaphragm plates and carried on a shaft connected to a motor which rotates said shaft and said drive gear wheel to displace one of said diaphragm plates;
- at least one interlock shaft having exterior teeth for engaging said teeth of said diaphragm plates, said interlock shaft having a bore therein in which said shaft carrying said drive gear wheel is rotatably received, said interlock shaft retaining a remainder of said diaphragm plates in their respectively existing positions during displacement of said one diaphragm plate;
- a frame on which said interlock shaft and said shaft carrying said drive gear wheel are mounted;
- and
- means for selectively displacing said frame transversely to the direction of displacement of said diaphragm plates for positioning said drive gear wheel in engagement with a selected one of said diaphragm plates to be displaced.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.