Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba

Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation

Hiroshi Aradate

Yasuo Saito

Hiroaki Miyazaki

Katsuyuki Taguchi

Tatsuro Suzuki

Kazuyuki Ihira

Koichi Muraki

An X-ray CT apparatuscomprises an X-ray generating unitand a radiation detector. The radiation detectorincludes a plurality of detecting elements put in two-dimensional positions and separated into a plurality of readout blocks, a readout circuit for reading out electric signals from the detecting elements in the respective readout blocks, a switch circuitfor switching the electric signals read out to the readout circuit from the detecting elements at the readout blocks and a switch control circuitfor controlling the switch circuitso as to read out electric signals with time-sharing from corresponding detecting elements in a common readout block of the readout blocks to the readout circuit and to read out corresponding electric signals in parallel from at least two of the detecting elements to the readout circuit, the two being in different readout blocks each other.

X-ray CT apparatus, radiation detector and method for reading out electric signals of a radiation detector

A radiation detector includes a plurality of detector modules detachably mounted on a detector base. Each of the detector modules has a plurality of element blocks permanently mounted on a module base. Each element block has a plurality of radiation detection elements formed on a signal substrate in the form of an m&times;n matrix. A detector module is made up of a plurality of element blocks. A radiation detector is made up of a plurality of detector modules. This makes it possible to tile many detection elements and manufacture a radiation detector with a wide field of view.

Radiation detector and X-ray CT apparatus

A method, system, and computer-readable medium that can resolve continuous and/or relatively rapid changes with time of a volume V without deterioration in image quality. In one embodiment of this invention, a subset of the projection data collected along a continuous circular orbit is combined with projection data collected along a different orbit to reconstruct the volume V substantially as it was when the subset of the projection data was collected. In one embodiment, the different orbit is a linear or a helical orbit. Further, staggered subsets of the projection data collected along a continuous circular orbit can also be used, as can further projection data collected along a linear orbit to resolve continuous and/or relatively rapid changes of a volume V.

Reconstruction and scan of 4D-CT

Radiation detector and x-ray CT apparatus

An X-ray CT scanner for producing a CT image of a subject by scanning an X-ray fan beam radiated an X-ray source through the subject in a predetermined slice-thickness direction. The scanner comprises a main detector detecting the X-ray beam to produce an X-ray transmission data of a subject and to a plurality of slices in agreement with unequal segment pitches. The detector comprises a two-dimensional array consisting of a plurality of X-ray detecting elements receiving the X-ray beam and being disposed in the slice-thickness direction as a row line and a channel direction as a column line. The X-ray detection sensitivity distributions of all the segments formed by the detecting elements disposed in predetermined element pitches in the slice-thickness direction are adjusted to be uniform or approximately uniform by controlling various members, devices, or factors which are all controllable for X-ray detection sensitivity, thereby enabling the X-ray transmission data of unequal slice thicknesses to be adjusted in sensitivity slice by slice in the detector. The scanner further comprises a switch group selecting and combining the sensitivity-adjusted X-ray transmission data of the plurality of slices, the selected and combined X-ray transmission data being provided to selected ones of a data acquiring elements of a data acquisition system.

X-ray CT scanner using X-ray detector acquiring multi-slice data of unequal slice pitches

A multi-slice X-ray CT scanner is provided to realize high resolution and a wide scanned region in a slice-thickness direction for an object. In the X-ray CT scanner, an X-ray beam for slice imaging is radiated toward an object and scanned in a predetermined slice-thickness direction, a direction orthogonal to the slice-thickness direction being defined as a channel direction. The scanner comprises a two-dimensional X-ray detector, a data acquisition system, and an electrically combining unit. The detector has a plurality of X-ray detecting elements arranged in a two-dimensional array of both rows in the slice-thickness direction and columns in the channel direction, the detecting elements of each row being arranged in unequal pitches. The data acquisition system has a plurality of data acquiring elements arranged in a two-dimensional array of rows and columns, acquiring signals detected by the two-dimensional X-ray detector, and producing digital data proportional to the detected signals. The electrically combining unit electrically combines more than two columns of all the columns in the array of the X-ray detecting elements into at least two columns of all the columns in the array of the data acquiring elements in accordance with a given slice imaging condition. For example, each row of the array of the data acquiring elements are less in number of elements than each row of the array of the X-ray detecting elements.

X-ray CT scanner with two-dimensional X-ray detector having unequal

An X-ray CT scanning apparatus comprises an X-ray source for irradiating a beam of X-ray to an object to be examined, a detector provided with at least two rows of detector elements for detecting the X-ray beam to have a real data, and a couch driver for traveling in an axial direction of the body of the object a couch on which the object is placed, in which the X-ray beam being irradiated from the X-ray source which is being rotated and simultaneously, the couch being traveled with the couch driver, the object is scanned in a helical direction so that the real data sampled by the detector is not identical in the sweep pattern to its opposite data. Two data located on both sides of the target slicing location may be selected from groups of the real data and their opposite data sampled by the detector and used to interpolate a data at the target slicing location. The group of the real data and their opposite data sampled by the detector may be filtered in the direction of slices to produce a desired data at the target slicing location. Also, a combination of the above three methods can be implemented.

X-ray CT scanning apparatus

Only an umbra of an X-ray beam is allowed to enter a designated detecting device arrays of an X-ray detector, whereby stable and good X-ray detection signals and images are provided. Even if a focal spot in an X-ray tube shifts, occurrence of artifacts or shifts of CT numbers is prevented to improve image quality. An X-ray CT scanner comprises an X-ray tube and X-ray detector, which are opposed to each other with a patient lying down on a couchtop between them, and a pre-collimator inserted between the X-ray tube and patient for restricting the width in a slice direction of an X-ray beam irradiated by the X-ray tube. The X-ray detector consists of, for example, a two-dimensional detector in which a plurality of detecting device arrays are arranged in the slice direction, each detecting device array including a plurality of detecting channels. The scanner further comprises a unit for controlling the pre-collimator in a manner that a detecting device array designated among the plurality of detecting device arrays receives only an umbra of the X-ray beam. An X-ray CT image is reconstructed using data detected by the designated detecting device arrays.

Growing community of inventors

Otawara, Japan

Hiroshi Aradate