System for quantitative radiographic imaging
AssigneeUniversity of Massachussetts Medical Center
InventorAndrew Karellas
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system for spectroscopic imaging of bodily tissue in which a scintillation screen and a charged coupled device (CCD) are used to accurately image selected tissue. An x-ray source generates x-rays which pass through a region of a subject's body, forming an x-ray image which reaches the scintillation screen. The scintillation screen reradiates a spatial intensity pattern corresponding to the image, the pattern being detected by a CCD sensor. The image is digitized by the sensor and processed by a controller before being stored as an electronic image. Each image is directed onto an associated respective CCD or amorphous silicon detector to generate individual electronic representations of the separate images.
Claims52
A method of examining soft tissue in a patient comprising:
- positioning the soft tissue of the patient between an x-ray source and a scintillator having a first two-dimensional area;
- directing radiation from x-ray radiation source through the soft tissue;
- receiving radiation with the scintillator, the radiation being transmitted through the soft tissue, and generating an optical signal correlated with the received radiation, said optical signal extending across the first two-dimensional area;
- optically coupling the optical signal from the first two-dimensional area to a second two-dimensional area with a fiber optic coupler;
- and
- detecting the optical signal from the scintillator with a charge coupled device (CCD) at a plurality of pixels and generating an electronic representation of the soft tissue, the optical signal received at the CCD extending across the second two-dimensional area such that the first and second two-dimensional areas have a one-one correspondence without a change in area to form a single image of the soft tissue.
A method of examining soft tissue in a patient comprising;
- positioning the soft tissue of the patient to be examined between an x-ray radiation source and a scintillator;
- directing x-ray radiation from the x-ray radiation source through the soft tissue;
- receiving the x-ray radiation with the scintillator and generating an optical signal correlated with the received radiation;
- and
- sensing with a charge coupled device (CCD) the optical signal from the scintillator at a plurality of pixels and generating an electronic representation of the soft tissue, the scintillator being coupled without an image intensifier to the CCD with a fiber optic plate having a plurality of straight, parallel optical fibers, each optical fiber coupling a portion of the optical signal to a region of the CCD to image a lesion within the soft tissue of the patient, the image having a resolution of at least about 1 mm.
A method of examining soft tissue in a patient comprising:
- positioning the soft tissue of the patient between an x-ray source and a scintillator having a first two-dimensional area;
- directing radiation from x-ray radiation source through the soft tissue;
- receiving radiation with the scintillator transmitted through the soft tissue and generating an optical signal correlated with the received radiation, said optical signal extending across the first two-dimensional area;
- optically coupling the optical signal from the first two-dimensional area to a second two-dimensional area with a fiber optic coupler;
- and
- detecting the optical signal from the scintillator with a sensor having a two dimensional pixel array and generating an electronic representation of the soft tissue, the optical signal received at the sensor extending across the second two-dimensional area of the pixel array such that the first and second two-dimensional areas have a one-one correspondence without a change in area of the pixel array to form a single image of the soft tissue.
A method of examining soft tissue in a patient comprising;
- positioning the soft tissue of the patient to be examined between an x-ray radiation source and a scintillator;
- directing x-ray radiation from the x-ray radiation source through the soft tissue;
- receiving the x-ray radiation with the scintillator and generating an optical signal correlated with the received radiation;
- sensing the optical signal from the scintillator at a plurality of pixels on a two-dimensional array integrated circuit imaging sensor and generating an electronic representation of the soft tissue, the scintillator being coupled to the sensor with a fiber optic plate having a plurality of straight, parallel optical fibers, each optical fiber coupling a portion of the optical signal to a region of the sensor to image a lesion within the soft tissue of the patient.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.