Lunar Corporation

Medical Engineering Innovations, Inc.

Nicolet Instrument Corporation

Imago Scientific Instruments Corporation

David R Strait

David L Ergun

Richard Franklin Morris

Richard Schmidt

Steven Taylor Morris

Cornelis H Slump

Geert Jan Laanstra

Steven Charles Southwell

Joshua Cook

Hendrik Kuipers

Tim Holzmann

Marcel J Dijkstra

Hans Sjoerd Peter Van Der Schaar

Hans Sjoerd Van Der Schaar

Marcel J Dykema

The present invention relates to systems for use for radio frequency ablation. The systems can include one or more of an ablation tool, power source for use with the ablation tool and a backstop for use in conjunction with the ablation tool during surgical procedures. Preferred ablation tools comprise a series of three or more blade-shaped electrodes disposed in a linear, curved, curvilinear or circular array. The backstops are useful for reducing direct physical and thermal heat transfer injuries to the patient or surgeon during procedures using radiofrequency (RF) ablation devices.

Radio frequency ablation systems

A vacuum chamber includes chamber walls separating a chamber interior and a chamber exterior, with one or more access ports defined in the chamber walls. A viewing tube extends from the chamber exterior into the chamber interior and terminates in a window. A positioner for imaging devices is then provided within the viewing tube, and is thus situated at least partially within the chamber interior with its imaging device(s) oriented towards the window of the viewing tube to allow imaging of areas within the vacuum chamber. The positioner preferably allows translation and/or rotation of an imaging device within the viewing tube within two perpendicular planes oriented along the axis of the viewing tube, thereby allowing the imaging device to view an area of interest from more angles oriented about the area of interest than would otherwise be possible if the imaging device was situated outside the vacuum chamber.

Vacuum chamber with recessed viewing tube and imaging device situated therein

A contained water ultrasonic densitometer employs pre-inflated bladders holding coupling fluid about ultrasonic transducers. The bladders in a relaxed state define a cavity smaller than the human heel so that when the heel is inserted, the bladders conform to the heel in a wiping action removing entrapped air.

Ultrasonic densitometer with pre-inflated fluid coupling membranes

An x-ray imaging system provides automatic adjustment of x-ray tube voltage and current as deduced from two exposures at different voltages. Real-time image distortion removal and image rotation are accomplished by computer processing using a generalized image transformation polynomial. Scatter in the image is reduced by calculating a scatter map based on a blurring of the received image and normalizing the scatter map to point scatter measurements made with an x-ray occluder eliminating direct exposure of certain areas of the image. Improved signal to noise ratio in a moving x-ray image is provided by averaging stationary portions of the image over a longer time than the moving portions of the image. A non-linear white compression function further reduced image noise by transforming the raw image to a gray scale having equal noise intervals.

X-ray imaging system

An x-ray imaging system provides automatic adjustment of x-ray tube voltage and current based on an identification and removal of background pixels in the image and a calculation of the functional relationship between voltage and current and dose for the particular imaged object as deduced from two exposures at different voltages. Real-time image distortion removal and image rotation are accomplished by computer processing using a generalized image transformation polynomial. Scatter in the image is reduced by calculating a scatter map based on a blurring of the received image and normalizing the scatter map to point scatter measurements made with an x-ray occluder eliminating direct exposure of certain areas of the image. Improved signal to noise ratio in a moving x-ray image is provided by averaging stationary portions of the image over a longer time than the moving portions of the image. A non-linear white compression function further reduced image noise by transforming the raw image to a gray scale having equal noise intervals.

A compact mobile x-ray C-arm system employs a cart supporting a video monitor on a top shelf and other imaging equipment on lower shelves opening from the front of the cart. The C-arm is supported by a pivot attached to the side of the cart below the platform allowing the C-arm to extend forward without obstructing the shelves or video monitor and yet providing for a balanced operation permitting a smaller footprint area of the cart. Use of the C-arm as a heat sink for the x-ray source and swiveling casters to allow an additional axis of rotation allow a more compact structure to be produced.

Combined mobile x-ray imaging system and monitor cart

An interferometer modulator (10) has a housing (12) that encloses a moving mirror (14) attached to a mirror arm (18) which is suspended by links (34, 36) from the housing (12). The links (34, 36) are attached to the mirror arm (18) at swinging pivots (42, 44) and are attached to the housing (12) at fixed pivots (46, 48). One of the fixed pivots (46) is mounted within an adjustable block (68) the position of which may be adjusted by the turning of adjust screws (82, 76). Turning of one of the adjust screws (82) adjusts the distance between the fixed pivots (46, 48) to match the distance of the swinging pivots (42, 44), thus correcting for vertical tilt. Turning of the second of the adjust screws (76) compensates for any angular differences that would prevent the links (34, 36) from moving in the same plane of motion, thus correcting for horizontal tilt.

Growing community of inventors

Madison, WI, United States of America

David R Strait