Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba

Tokyo Shibaura Denki Kabushiki Kaisha

Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation

The University of Chicago

Konica Minolta Medical and Graphic, Inc.

National Institute of Technology

Institute of National Colleges of Technology

Michitaka Honda

Katsuya Kikuchi

Takuya Sakaguchi

Kenichi Komatsu

Kunio Aoki

Yoshinori Nakatani

Kunio Doi

Manabu Tanaka

Masayuki Nishiki

Osamu Toyama

Kunio Shiraishi

Takehiro Ema

Ichiro Ogura

Seiichiro Nagai

Takayuki Tomisaki

Shinichi Yamada

Heang-Ping Chan

Akihito Takahashi

Hiroko Umazaki

Senzo Fujii

Osamu Takami

Motomu Suzuki

Kwok L Lam

An image processing apparatus according to an embodiment includes a first frequency image generating circuitry, a second frequency image generating circuitry, a signal detecting circuitry, and a display image generating circuitry. The first frequency image generating circuitry performs, on an object pixel of processing, processing based on a pixel value of a neighboring pixel positioned close to the pixel to generate first frequency image data including a specific contrast component and a first frequency component on image data. The second frequency image generating circuitry performs processing of subtracting the first frequency image data from the image data to generate second frequency image data including a second frequency component. The signal detecting circuitry detects a linear signal derived from a linear structural object from the second frequency image data. The display image generating circuitry generates a display image according to the linear signal detected.

Image processing apparatus, medical image diagnostic apparatus, and x-ray diagnostic apparatus

The present invention provides a technique capable of objectively discriminating the constituent of a subject also in an image in which density difference is not easily discriminated on a gray image obtained by image capturing for medical use using X-rays. An image capturing system for medical use includes: a detecting unit for detecting an X-ray dose by absorbing X-rays passed through a subject in image capturing for medical use and outputting absorbed X-ray dose information; an obtaining unit for obtaining image information of the subject from the absorbed X-ray dose information; an image processing unit for calculating average detection energy in each first predetermined region in the image information; and an output unit for outputting the average detection energy.

Image capturing system for medical use, image processing apparatus, and image processing method

An X-ray diagnosis apparatus having a flat panel detector which converts an X-ray into an electric signal, comprises extracting means for extracting a noise element, which is stable in a row direction and fluctuant in a column direction, included in an X-ray image obtained on the basis of the electric signal, and subtracting means for subtracting the noise element extracted by the extracting means from the X-ray image.

X-ray diagnosis apparatus having a flat panel detector for detecting an X-ray image

An input image is inputted into a pre-process circuit and a spatial filter. The pre-process circuit emphasizes a linear shadow or an edge to some extent, or reduces noises overall. Following pre-processing, the image signal is supplied to a direction detection circuit, a direction and its intensity of an area of interest are detected. These two results of the detections are correlated with peripheral areas of interest to some extent by a vector filter. An output of the vector filter is supplied to a spatial filter coefficient generation circuit, and a filter coefficient of the spatial filter is decided. The spatial filter processes the input image based on the direction of the shadow and its intensity, whereby selectively suppressing noise components of the background in real time without damaging the contrasts of a linear shadow or an edge-like shadow.

Image processing apparatus

When X -ray irradiation is performed with many X doses and the fall of temporary sensibility or the rise of the temporary offset arises, it is the X-ray diagnostic equipment which computes the correction by sensitiveness multiplier based on the sensibility characteristic or offset characteristic of each pixel, and rectifies data. In this X-ray diagnostic equipment, the correction by sensitiveness multiplier for data correction is determined based on the signal value detected last time at least. In integrating this correction by sensitiveness value from each pixel to the output signal, the influence by the fall of temporary sensibility or the rise of the temporary offset is removed.

X-ray diagnostic apparatus

A radiation detector has a plurality of charge conversion elements which are laid out in a matrix and convert incoming radiation into charges, a plurality of capacitors for storing the charges generated by the charge conversion elements, and charge read elements for reading the charges stored in the capacitors. Signals other than signals originated to charges stored in the capacitors, which are produced upon, e.g., turning on/off the charge read elements are canceled by adjustment means, thus improving the S/N ratio.

Radiation detector

A radiographic diagnosis apparatus includes an X-ray generation device for irradiating an object with X-rays, a two-dimensional array detector which is formed by arraying small detecting elements in a two-dimensional matrix and opposing the X-ray generation device with the object interposed between them and detects X-rays transmitted through the object in units of pixels, a ray conversion plate adhered to the detecting surface of the array detector to change the properties of X-rays in units of pixels, and an image processor for performing image processing based on data from the array detector, thereby generating a radiographic diagnosis image. The ray conversion plate includes a plurality of different types of attenuating elements arrayed in a checkerboard pattern to attenuate radiation at different attenuation ratios. The properties of X-rays are changed via the ray conversion plate. The ray conversion plate changes the properties into two types. The array detector detects two types of property-changed X-ray signals transmitted through the object in units of pixels, and converts the signals into digital signals.

Radiographic diagnosis apparatus, radiographic diagnosis method, plate member, and position detecting method

According to information input through a keyboard, an X-ray irradiation condition selecting portion selects an X-ray irradiation condition, retrieves a correspondence table according to this X-ray irradiation condition so as to read out a gain control state suitable for an irradiation condition, and drives an analog SW setting portion. According to a signal from the analog SW setting portion, an integration capacity of an initial stage integration amplifier is changed over. Further, according to other mode, accumulated electric charge Q of a picture element Cp is read out on a signal line and converted to a voltage Vo by the integration amplifier. By appropriately determining a sampling time by a sample/hold circuit after electric charge is read out, an influence of a switching element resistance can be excluded from a voltage Vx. Therefore, the voltage Vx can be sample held stably. Further, because the integration circuit has a characteristic of damping a high frequency noise generated in the integration amplifier, the S/N ratio of the voltage Vx can be improved.

Radiation detector, radiation detecting method and X-ray diagnosing

An X-ray imaging system wherein serial frame images are stored in the image memories. Memory selection of image memories is controlled by a microcomputer in accordance with the number of frame images and an interval between R-waves of an electrocardiogram signal of a subject detected by phase detector. By such a system, each serial frame the image read out from image memories in accordance with an address signal supplied by address generator can be displayed by a TV monitor in the same period.

Method and system for displaying serial images

In a diagnostic X-ray apparatus, an image signal output from a TV camera connected to an image intensifier tube is supplied to a noise reducer through an A/D converter. The noise reducer comprises a first recursive filter for adding a value which is (1-a) times the input to the noise reducer and a value which is a times an output of the first recursive filter (a factor a is fixed to a value close to 1), a second recursive filter for adding a value which is (1-k) times the output of said fluoroscopy means and a value which is k times the output of the first recursive filter, a subtracter for subtracting the output of the second recursive filter from the input to the noise filter for every pixel, and a factor table for setting the factor k of the second recursive filter in accordance with the difference obtained by the subtracter such that the factor k and the difference have an inverse proportional relationship if the difference has a positive value.

Image processing apparatus using recursive filters

To discriminate a contrast image from a non-contrast image, an X-ray imaging method is characterized by comprising the steps of: acquiring a plurality of X-ray images of a biological body under medical examination; subtracting at least two sets of the X-ray images with each other acquired at temporally different timings to obtain a subtraction image; subdividing one subtraction image into a plurality of image blocks; calculating an averaged value of image concentration with respect to each of the image blocks, thereby obtaining a plurality of averaged values for the subdivided image blocks; calculating a difference between at least two averaged values of image concentration with respect to the image blocks acquired within substantially same temporal timing period; and, judging whether or not the X-ray image is acquired under such a condition that an X-ray contrast medium appears therein based upon the difference in said two averaged values of image concentration.

Method for discriminating x-ray contrast image from non-contrast image

Image data of a plurality of frames obtained upon irradiating a radiation onto an object to be examined, the object being injected with a catheter in a blood vessel thereof, are converted into digital image of a plurality of frames by an A/D. Digital image data of a first predetermined frame and digital image data of a second predetermined frame prior to the first predetermined frame, which are converted by the A/D, are alternately stored in first and second memories. A difference between the digital image data of the first predetermined frame output from the A/D and the digital image data of the second predetermined frame output from the one of first and second memories is calculated by a subtractor to obtain subtraction image data denoting a motion of the catheter. This subtraction image data is multiplied by a multiplier with a predetermined weighting factor input by a console to emphasize the subtraction image data, thereby displaying subtraction image data emphasized in correspondence with the catheter motion on a TV monitor.

Image display apparatus for radiation diagnosis

An image processing apparatus for medical diagnostic purposes includes a spatial shift variant filtering unit. Whole pixels of one image are filtered by different variant filtering coefficients , with each pixel being filtered by a different matrix of shift variant filtering coefficients in accordance with the location and characteristics of the original image.

Image processing apparatus including spatial shift variant filter

In X-ray photography by an X-ray equipment, grid images based on only a grid are acquired by a grid image generating circuit under various photograph conditions, and are stored in image memories. A subject image based on a subject to be examined is acquired under a predetermined photograph condition. A grid image which is acquired under the same photograph condition as that of the subject image or under a condition similar thereto is read out from a corresponding image memory. The subject image and the readout grid image are regulated by gain regulators to have the same gain. The subject image is then divided by the grid image in the divider. As a result, the subject image without the grid image can be obtained.

Method and system for processing X-ray image in X-ray equipment

An estimating circuit estimates the thickness of the subject appearing on a mask image, by using the value of the thickness of a uniform material equivalent to a subject, with respect to each pixel of the mask image, based on radiographic conditions and pixel density of each pixel. A correction coefficient table has correction coefficients corresponding to the thickness of the uniform material. One of the correction coefficients is selected from the correction coefficient table, based on the estimated thickness obtained from the estimating circuit. The selected correction coefficient and each pixel of the mask image are subjected to an arithmetic operation, thereby to produce a mask image in which influence due to beam-hardening effect is corrected. On the other hand, a suitable correction coefficient is selected from a correction coefficient table having correction coefficients corresponding to the thickness of the contrast medium, based on the estimated thickness of the image and on a subtraction image obtained by subtracting the mask image from a contrast image produced by irradiating radioactive rays onto the subject in which the contrast medium is injected. The selected correction coefficient and each pixel of the subtraction image are subjected to an arithmetic operation, thereby to obtain a mask image in which influence due to beam-hardening effect is corrected.

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Takamatsu, Japan

Michitaka Honda