General Electric Company

Ge Medical Systems Global Technology Company, LLC

Fang Frank Dong

Jiang Hsieh

Larry Y L Mo

Jiahua Fan

Lihong Pan

Thomas John Myers

George E Seidenschnur

Thomas L Toth

Xiaoye Wu

Jean-Baptiste Thibault

Michael J Washburn

Richard Yung Chiao

Kjell Kristoffersen

Anne Lindsay Hall

Jianying Li

James Walter LeBlanc

Steven Charles Miller

Clarence Lavere Gordon, Iii

Naveen Stephan Chandra

Bruce Matthew Dunham

Xiangyang Tang

Cynthia A Owen

Weiguo Lu

Edward Henry Chao

Satchi Panda

Jian Ying Li

Mary Sue Kulpins

Scott McOlash

Brian Peter Geiser

Peter S Crandall

Brian James Grekowicz

Andrew C Johnson

Anne Marie Conry

Robert S Stanson

Zachary William Sopcak

Sastry V S Chilukuri

A CT system includes a generator configured to energize an x-ray source to a first kilovoltage (kVp) and to a second kVp, and a computer that is programmed to acquire a first view dataset with the x-ray source energized to the first kVp and a second view dataset with the x-ray source energized to the second kVp, generate a base correction image using the first view dataset and the second view dataset, and reconstruct a pair of base material images from the first view dataset and from the second view dataset. The computer is also programmed to estimate artifact correlation in the pair of base material images using the base correction image, generate a pair of final base material images and a final monochromatic image, and correct one of the pair of final base material images and the final monochromatic image at a keV value using the estimated artifact correlation.

System and method of image artifact reduction in fast kVp switching CT

A method for reconstructing an image using an imaging apparatus that includes a radiation source, a detector array, and a computer. The method includes performing a helical scan of an object at a selected helical pitch using the radiation source and detector array to obtain image data, and reconstructing an image of the object utilizing the computer programmed to perform a hybrid cone beam image reconstruction having ray-wise 3D weighting, wherein the weighting is dependent upon both helical pitch and z-distance.

Methods and apparatus for hybrid cone beam image reconstruction

A computed tomographic imaging system is provided for generating computed tomography images. The computed tomographic system includes a processor configured to access image data encoding X-ray projections at a detector position and a plurality of X-ray source beam focal spot positions and to align pixel values for the projections in a direction of deviation of the positions. The processor is also configured to determine a correction factor for at least one of the projections based upon the aligned pixel values and upon a sum of the projections and to correct the pixel values for the at least one of the projections based upon the correction factor.

System and method for generating computed tomography images

Methods and apparatus for producing an image of an object with a multi-slice imaging apparatus having a row of detectors are provided. The method includes generating a first partial image using projection data acquired at a first imaging position in a step-and-shoot imaging mode, generating a second partial image using projection data acquired at a second imaging position, and combining the partial images to form a final image.

Methods and apparatus for image reconstruction

Method and apparatus for locally enhancing image data represented as pixels having CT numbers is provided. The image data includes bony structures, and the method comprises segmenting pixels within the image data into areas based on the pixel's CT number. A first area represents a combination of soft tissue and lower density bones and a second area represents higher density bones. A subset of pixels is identified within the first area representative of the lower density bones. An enhancement is applied to the subset of pixels within the first area and to the second area to create an enhanced dataset, and a locally enhanced image is generated based on the image data and the enhanced dataset.

Method and apparatus for improving inner auditory canal images

The present invention provides a method to detect tube spits and to reduce spit related artifacts in a computed tomography imaging system. A way of detecting tube spit is to monitor the generator kilovolt or milliamp waveforms. Changes in kV waveform follow closely with those in offset-corrected projection data. If a tube-spit event is not detected, processing proceeds without tube spit correction. If a tube-spit event is detected, a tube spit correction is performed. The objective of tube-spit correction is to remove image artifacts due to the occurrence of a tube-spit event.

Method for tube spit correction based on high voltage output

A method for performing reference normalization for an image created by an imaging system. The imaging system includes a radiation detector array with a right and left edge. The method includes receiving a projection dataset created by the imaging system in response to a varying x-ray tube current. The projection dataset includes a view and predicted fluxes are calculated for the set of reference channels within the view. A right set of reference channels are located proximate at the right edge of the detector array and a left set of reference channels are located proximate to the left edge of the detector array. The method also includes calculating average actual fluxes for the sets of reference channels. Based on the predicted reference fluxes and the average fluxes, a reference correction value for the view is determined. The correction value is applied for the reference correction of the view.

Method, system and storage medium for reference normalization for blocked reference channels

Certain embodiments include a system and method for banding suppression in a B-mode ultrasound image. Banding occurs in a diagnostic image when two or more focal regions having different waveforms and/or frequencies, for example, are combined. The resulting difference in intensity between the focal regions produces banding in the final image. For purposes of illustration only, the method below will be described with two focal zones. Certain embodiments of the present invention reduce banding in a diagnostic image including a plurality of focal zones by processing the first focal zone, determining intensity around the border or 'stitch line' between the two focal regions, and adjusting the second focal region based on the difference in intensity. Preferably, processing is done in real time as image frames are updated.

Method and apparatus for B-mode image banding suppression

1 method is provided for obtaining an extended field of view diagnostic ultrasound image. A first image frame and a second image frame of an object of interest are acquired. The image frames are rotated relative to one another. Pixel points, representing spatial points in the object of interest, are identified in the first image frame. Pixel points corresponding to the pixel points in the first image frame are then computed in the second image frame. A rotation angle between the first and the second image frames is calculated based on a least-squares relation between the pixel points. The first and second image frames are combined to form a part of an extended field of view image.

Method and apparatus for rotation registration of extended field of view ultrasound images

A method and an apparatus for spatially compounding ultrasound frames by using multiple angle views. Successive image frames of pixel data are processed using a Sum of Absolute Difference registration algorithm. The multiple angle views are achieved by operator manipulation of a probe ( ).

Real-time ultrasound spatial compounding using multiple angles of view

A method and an apparatus for automatically maintaining the Doppler sample gate position at a preselected vessel position in B-mode or color flow images during tissue or probe motion. The sample gate is locked onto the selected vessel automatically when the vessel position has changed. Optionally, the vessel slope cursor is automatically updated when the vessel position has changed. The method employs pattern matching of images from successive frames to determine how much a vessel in the image frame has been translated and rotated from one frame to the next. Preferably, either a cross-correlation method is applied to the imaging data in the spatial domain to determine the relative object translation and/or rotation between image frames, or a matched filtering method is applied to the imaging data in the frequency (i.e., Fourier) domain to determine the relative object translation and/or rotation between image frames.

Method and apparatus for locking sample volume onto moving vessel in pulsed doppler ultrasound imaging

A method and an apparatus for registering frames of imaging data using Fourier phase matching. Successive image frames of pixel data are processed using an image registration algorithm. Either image frames or the frames after edge detection are transformed into polar-logarithmic coordinates in the frequency domain and the phases of the Fourier transform of the resulting image representations, after inverse Fast Fourier transformation, are matched. The coordinates at the maximum phase difference are used to determine the scaling and rotation parameters needed for image frame registration. The frequency domain representation of one of the image frames is then scaled and rotated using an anti-aliasing algorithm in accordance with those parameters. The phase of the result is matched with the phase of the frequency domain representation of the other image frame to determine the translation parameters needed for image frame registration.

Image registration using fourier phase matching

A method and an apparatus for automatically initializing and adjusting the Doppler sample gate position and size settings based on actual vessel image data. A vessel segment search method employs an object search technique based solely on geometric and morphological information in a binarized vessel image obtained from either B-mode or color flow image data. The morphologically best or nearest vessel segment within a target search region in the two-dimensional image is found. The sample gate is placed at or near the center of the targeted vessel segment. The sample gate size is adjusted in relation to the vessel size. Then the best available steering angle that minimizes the Doppler angle is selected.

Method and apparatus for automatic setting of sample gate in pulsed doppler ultrasound imaging

Method and apparatus for automatically detecting and sizing cystic objects in ultrasound imaging. The cystic objects can be automatically detected by the steps of reading an image frame from memory; defining a search region within the image frame or a decimated version of the image frame; binarizing the pixel values within the search region based on a pixel value threshold that is adaptive to local pixel value statistics; morphological filtering the binarized pixel values to eliminate structures smaller than the speckle size; counting the number of continuous objects and keeping track of their area; and rejecting objects that are outside a predetermined size range. Each detected cystic object is automatically sized and graphical information representing the results of the automatic sizing process may be displayed.

Method and apparatus for automatic detection and sizing of cystic objects

An ultrasonic imaging system for displaying velocity of fluid includes a receiver which demodulates ultrasonic echo signals received by a transducer array from two different positions. The resulting data is organized into frames of data from the two different positions. The data is used to calculate the angle of rotation between the frames. The fluid flow velocity then is calculated from the frames of data and the angle of rotation.

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Waukesha, WI, United States of America

Fang Frank Dong