General Electric Company

The Babcock & Wilcox Company

Koninklijke Philips Corporation N.v.

Other

Ge Medical Systems Global Technology Company, LLC

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.

Xianrui Huang

Evangelos Trifon Laskaris

Minfeng Xu

Paul Shadforth Thompson

Yan Zhao

Anbo Wu

Paul St Mark Shadforth Thompson

Timothy John Havens

Kathleen Melanie Amm

Gregory Alan Lehmann

David Thomas Ryan

Bulent Aksel

Kiruba Sivasubramaniam

James William Bray

Michele Dollar Ogle

Bu-Xin Xu

Bruce Campbell Amm

Michael Anthony Palmo, Jr

John Scaturro, Jr

Gregory F Hayworth

Yu Wang

Johannes Adrianus Overweg

Ernst Wolfgang Stautner

Konrad Roman Weeber

Robert John Nygard

William D Barber

Albert Eugene Steinbach

Chao Yang

Tao Zhang

Phillip William Eckels

Philip Alexander Jonas

Gerardus Bernardus Jozef Mulder

Somanath Nagendra

Jun Pan

Steven Ho-Chong Wong

Yury Lvovsky

Ronald Glenn Wood

Bruce Alan Knudsen

Robert John Zabala

Curtis Alan Johnson

Kenneth Gordon Herd

Thomas Robert Raber

Cornelis Leonardus Gerardus Ham

Robert Adolph Ackermann

James Michael Fogarty

Sergio Paulo Martins Loureiro

Derk Reefman

Judson Sloan Marte

Richard Andrew Ranze

William Louis Einziger

James Howard Kralick

Philippe Abel Menteur

David Jonathan Chalk

John Arthur Urbahn

Jinhua Huang

Glen George Pfleiderer

Johannes Martinus Van Oort

Chung-Yih Ho

Jian Lin

Thomas W Schuck

Matthew Voss

Clifford J Ginfrida

Johannes Ferdinand Van Der Koijk

Charles M Weber

Viktor Mokhnatyuk

Yun Zhou

Lawrence Vincent Bischke

Sylvia Marie Decarr

Richard Thomas Hackett

Joshua Kent Hilderbrand

Peter L Sue

Michael Leslie Allitt

Stanley Louis Morton

Robert Sethfield Smith

Joseph A Waynert

Paulo F Ribeiro

Peter Angus Morgan

Robert Henry Becker, Jr

Shaun Patrick O'Shea

Michael A Palmo

Pan Jun

Xu Minfeng

Robert Adolf Ackermann

Stanley L Morton

Lawrence V Bischke

Shaun P O'shea

Kiruba Haran Sivasubramaniam

A gradient coil assembly () for use in a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system includes primary coils (), shield coils () and a supporting structure () arranged between the primary coils () and the shield coils (). The supporting structure () includes at least a supporting element () including a first end face () and at least a first recess () with an opening () in the first end face (). The first recess () extends in a longitudinal direction () of the supporting element () forming a tray for receiving a passive shim bar.

Supporting structure for a gradient coil assembly of a MRI

An apparatus includes at least a first electrically conductive coil having at least first and second coil sections which are separated and spaced apart from each other, and a support structure disposed to support the first and second coil sections. The support structure, and an associated method of supporting the electrically conductive coil, maintain relative axial positions of the first and second coil sections to be fixed when the first electrically conductive coil is energized and de-energized, and allow each of the first and second coil sections to expand radially when energized.

Superconducting coil support device and method and apparatus including superconducting coil support device

An apparatus includes an electrically conductive coil which produces a magnetic field when an electrical current passes therethrough; a selectively activated persistent current switch connected across the electrically conductive coil; a cryostat having the electrically conductive coil and the persistent current switch disposed therein; an energy dump; at least one sensor which detects an operating parameter of the apparatus and outputs at least one sensor signal in response thereto; and a magnet controller. The magnet controller receives the sensor signal(s) and in response thereto detects whether an operating fault (e.g. a power loss to the compressor of a cryocooler) exists in the apparatus, and when an operating fault is detected, connects the energy dump unit across the electrically conductive coil to transfer energy from the electrically conductive coil to the energy dump unit. The energy dump unit disperses the energy outside of the cryostat.

System and method for automatically ramping down a superconducting persistent magnet

Method for joining wires using low resistivity joints is provided. More specifically, methods of joining one or more wires having superconductive filaments, such as magnesium diboride filaments, are provided. The wires are joined by a low resistivity joint to form wires of a desired length for applications, such in medical imaging applications.

Methods for making low resistivity joints

A superconducting magnet assembly includes a bobbin comprising a central bore along a longitudinal direction, and a superconducting coil package wound on the bobbin. The superconducting coil package includes a plurality of superconducting coil layers wound on the bobbin, a plurality of supporting member layers, each of the supporting member layers being between a corresponding two adjacent superconducting coil layers, and a thermal conduction layer between two superconducting coil layers or between a superconducting coil layer and an adjacent supporting member layer.

Superconducting magnet assembly and fabricating method

A superconducting magnet apparatus that in one embodiment includes at least one superconducting coil and a passive quench protection circuit electrically coupled to the coil in parallel. The circuit includes a heater and a current limiter connected in series. The heater is thermally coupled to the coil and the current limiter blocks current through the circuit at a current lower than the current rating of the heater.

Passive quench protection circuit for superconducting magnets

A superconducting magnet is described and includes at least one superconducting coil, at least one support member coupled to the superconducting coil and at least one compliant interface between the superconducting coil and the support member. The superconducting coil defines a radial direction. The superconducting coil supports the superconducting coil along an axial direction that is substantially perpendicular to the radial direction. The compliant interface is configured to move along the radial direction when the superconducting magnet is energized.

Superconducting magnets with an improved support structure

A cryogenic system for a superconducting magnet comprises a closed-loop cooling path. The closed-loop cooling path comprises a magnet cooling tube thermally coupled to the superconducting magnet. The magnet cooling tube comprises a cryogen flow passage. The closed-loop cooling tube further comprises a re-condenser is fluidly coupled to the magnet cooling tube through tube sections and a liquid cryogen container fluidly coupled between the magnet cooling tube and the re-condenser. At least one gas tank is fluidly coupled to the magnet cooling tube through a connection tube.

Cryogenic system and method for superconducting magnets and MRI with a fully closed-loop cooling path

A magnet assembly is provided. The magnet assembly comprises a magnet configured to generate a magnetic field and an iron shield configured to shield the magnet. The magnet assembly further comprises one or more positive temperature coefficient heaters disposed on the iron shield and configured to stabilize temperature of the iron shield. An iron shield assembly and a method for temperature control of the magnet assembly are also presented.

Magnet assemblies and methods for temperature control of the magnet assemblies

A superconducting magnet includes at least one superconducting coil and a quench protection circuit electrically coupled to said at least one coil in parallel. The circuit includes at least one quench heater assembly thermally coupled to the at least one coil, and at least one superconducting current limiter electrically connected in series with the at least one quench heater assembly. The superconducting current limiter has a superconducting state with zero resistance, and a normal state with a normal resistance to decrease an electric current flowing through the quench heater assembly.

Quench protection circuit for superconducting magnet coils

A method for cooling a superconducting magnet enclosed in a cryostat includes introducing a gas into a cooling path in the cryostat from an input portion into a cooling path cooled by a refrigerator outside the cryostat. A heat exchanger inside the cryostat above the magnet cools the gas. The cooled gas flows through a magnet cooling tube contacting the magnet. The cooled gas removes heat from the magnet, and to the heat exchanger to re-cool and return to the superconducting magnet, thereby cooling and/or maintaining the magnet at a superconducting temperature.

Cooling system and method for superconducting magnets

A superconducting magnet assembly is provided. The superconducting magnet assembly includes a superconducting magnet configured to generate a static magnetic field, an iron shield configured to shield the superconducting magnet, and a magnetic gradient coil assembly configured to generate a gradient magnetic field. The superconducting magnet assembly further includes one or more magnetic lamination elements disposed on the iron shield to reduce eddy current induced by the gradient magnetic field in the iron shield. A method is also presented.

Magnet assemblies and methods for making the same

A system and method for a magnetic resonance (MR) imaging system includes a coil form, at least one magnet positioned about the coil form and configured to generate a magnetic field, at least one gradient coil for manipulating the magnetic field generated by the at least one magnet by way of a gradient field, and a heat pipe thermally connected to the coil form and having a cryogen therein. The MR imaging system also includes a cryocooler connected to the heat pipe to cool the heat pipe and the cryogen, wherein the coil form is comprised of a thermally conductive material in which eddy currents are substantially reduced during operation of the at least one gradient coil. The present invention has been described in terms of the preferred embodiment, and it is recognized that equivalents, alternatives, and modifications, aside from those expressly stated, are possible and within the scope of the appending claims.

Heat pipe cooled suerconducting magnets with ceramic coil forms

A low eddy current cryogen circuit for superconducting magnets including at least a first cooling coil made of an electrically conducting material and having at least one electrical isolator incorporated in the first cooling coil. The electrical isolator is located to inhibit induced eddy current loops due to inductive coupling of the first cooling coil with eddy current inducing field sources.

Low eddy current cryogen circuit for superconducting magnets

A system for cooling a superconducting rotary machine includes a plurality of sealed siphon tubes disposed in balanced locations around a rotor adjacent to a superconducting coil. Each of the sealed siphon tubes includes a tubular body and a heat transfer medium disposed in the tubular body that undergoes a phase change during operation of the machine to extract heat from the superconducting coil. A siphon heat exchanger is thermally coupled to the siphon tubes for extracting heat from the siphon tubes during operation of the machine.

System and method for cooling a superconducting rotary machine

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Xianrui Huang