The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 07, 2020
Filed:
Oct. 29, 2015
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA (US);
The General Hospital Corporation, Boston, MA (US);
Achuta Kadambi, Cambridge, MA (US);
Ramesh Raskar, Cambridge, MA (US);
Rajiv Gupta, Wayland, MA (US);
Adam Pan, New Haven, CT (US);
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA (US);
The General Hospital Corporation, Boston, MA (US);
Abstract
For each X-ray path through a tissue, numerous trials are conducted. In each trial, X-ray photons are emitted along the path until a Geiger-mode avalanche photodiode 'clicks'. A temporal average—i.e., the average amount of time elapsed before a 'click' occurs—is calculated. This temporal average is, in turn, used to estimate a causal intensity of X-ray light that passes through the tissue along the path and reaches the diode. Based on the causal intensities for multiple paths, a computer generates computed tomography (CT) images or 2D digital radiographic images. The causal intensities used to create the images are estimated from temporal statistics, and not from conventional measurements of intensity at a pixel. X-ray dosage needed for imaging is dramatically reduced as follows: a “click” of the photodiode triggers negative feedback that causes the system to halt irradiation of the tissue along a path, until the next trial begins.