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US 9,437,017 B2Granted
Method and apparatus for metal artifact elimination in a medical image
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsShuqin Dong, Jiaqin Dong, Shuo Li, Jiang Hsieh
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for metal artifact elimination in a medical image. The method includes: obtaining a medical image to be processed; determining whether or not a metal region is contained in the medial image; and performing artifact elimination processing to the medical image when metal regions are contained in the medical image and a metal density value of one of the metal regions is greater than or equal to a preset density value.
Claims8
A method for metal artifact elimination in a medical image, operable in a medical imaging device, the method comprising:
- obtaining a medical image;
- determining a metal region in the medial image;
- determining a metal density value of the metal region;
- and
- performing an artifact elimination processing to the medical image when the metal density value of the metal region is greater than or equal to a preset density value, said artifact elimination processing comprising:
- determining a boundary region of the metal region as:
- forming a circular detecting area for determining a boundary region with each of the pixel points in the metal region being as a center of a circle, and
- presetting an initial radius;
- determining the circular detection area is the boundary region when a ratio between the metal region and the non-metal region within the circular detecting area is greater than or equal to a preset value, and
- reducing the initial radius gradually when the ratio between the metal region and the non-metal region within the circular detecting area is smaller than the preset value until the ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the formed circular detecting area is greater than the preset value;
- and
- performing boundary smoothing processing to the boundary region.
9 more elements
An apparatus for metal artifact elimination in a medical image, the apparatus comprising:
- a computer comprising:
- an obtaining module configured to obtain the medical image;
- a metal region determining module configured to determine a metal region in the medical image and a metal density value of the metal region;
- and
- a first artifact eliminating module configured to perform an artifact elimination processing on the medical image when the metal density value of the metal region is greater than or equal to a preset density value, said first artifact eliminating module comprising:
- a boundary determining module configured to determine a boundary region of the metal region, said boundary determining module comprising:
- a circular detecting area forming sub-module configured to form a circular detecting area determining a boundary region with each of the pixel points in the metal region being as a center of circle, and presetting an initial radius;
- and
- a boundary determining sub-module configured to determine the circular detecting area is the boundary region when a ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the circular detecting area is greater than or equal to a preset value, and when the ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the circular detecting area is smaller than the preset value, reducing the initial radius gradually until the ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the formed circular detecting area is greater than the preset value;
- a boundary processing module configured to perform a boundary smoothing processing to the boundary region.
7 more elements
An apparatus for metal artifact elimination in a medical image, the apparatus comprising:
- a computer comprising:
- an obtaining module configured to obtain the medical image;
- a metal region determining module configured to:
- determine at least one metal region in the medical image;
- and
- a corresponding metal density value of for each of the at least one metal region;
- and
- for each of the at least one metal region:
- determining whether the metal density value of the metal region is greater than a preset density value;
- for each of the at least one metal region having a metal density greater than the preset density value:
- perform an artifact eliminating module comprising;
- a boundary determining module configured to:
- determine a boundary region of the metal region, said boundary determining module comprising:
- a circular detecting area forming sub-module configured to:
- form a circular detecting area determining a boundary region with each of the pixel points in the metal region being a center of a circle, and
- preset an initial radius;
- and
- a boundary determining sub-module configured to:
- determine the circular detecting area as the boundary region when a ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the circular detecting area is greater than or equal to a second preset value, and
- when the ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the circular detecting area is smaller than the second preset value:
- reducing the initial radius gradually until the ratio between the metal region and non-metal region within the formed circular detecting area is greater than the second preset value;
- and
- a boundary processing module configured to:
- perform a boundary smoothing processing to the boundary region.
21 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.