Radiation tomographic imaging apparatus and method

A radiation tomographic imaging method comprising the steps of:

• emitting radiation using a radiation tube;
• forming radiation emitted by said radiation tube into a radiation beam to emit said radiation beam and changing a range irradiated by said radiation beam in response to a first control signal;
• applying said radiation beam to a detector element array comprising a plurality of radiation detector elements with irradiated surfaces thereof facing in an impinging direction of said radiation beam, wherein an array of said radiation detector elements are arranged in one of two mutually perpendicular directions to form a detector element row, and wherein a plurality of said detector element rows are arranged side by side in another of said two mutually perpendicular directions;
• moving an emission center of said radiation tube in another of said two mutually perpendicular directions in response to a second control signal;
• generating said first control signal and said second control signal in response to said irradiated range information;
• and
• producing multi-slice tomographic images of a region through which said radiation beam passes based on radiation detected signals for a plurality of views detected by said detector element array corresponding to said irradiated range information.

A radiation tomographic imaging apparatus comprising:

• first means for emitting radiation beam and for changing a range irradiated by said radiation beam in response to a first control signal;
• a detector element array comprising a plurality of radiation detector elements with irradiated surfaces thereof facing in an impinging direction of said radiation beam, wherein said plurality of detector elements are arranged in one of two mutually perpendicular directions to form a detector element row, and wherein a plurality of said detector element rows are arranged side by side in another of said two mutually perpendicular directions;
• moving means for moving an emission center of said first means in another of said two mutually perpendicular directions in response to a second control signal;
• second means for producing said first control signal and said second control signal in response to irradiated range information from said first means and for outputting said first control signal to said first means and said second control signal to said moving means;
• and
• third means for producing multi-slice tomographic images of a region through which said radiation beam passes based on radiation detected signals for a plurality of views detected by said detector element array corresponding to said irradiated range information.