Indirect radiographic imaging systems including integrated beam detect

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9348034-B2
Application number	US-201314423441-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 6, 2013
Priority date	Sep 8, 2012
Publication date	May 24, 2016
Grant date	May 24, 2016

Abstract

A wireless X-ray detector for a digital radiography system with remote detection of impinging radiation from the system X-ray source onto a sensor panel having amorphous or crystalline silicon photodiodes or metal insulated semiconductor (MIS) sensors. Certain exemplary embodiments described herein can provide a digital radiography detector including a housing having first and second spaced members and side walls defining a cavity; a radiographic image detector assembly mounted within the cavity for converting a radiographic image to an electronic radiographic image, wherein the detector assembly includes a scintillator screen and a detector imaging array; and a light guiding element positioned proximate the radiographic image detector assembly to detect a start of exposure, a termination of the exposure, dose for the exposure or rate of dose for the exposure using light generated by the scintillator screen.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A digital radiography detector comprising:
a housing having first and second spaced planar members and side walls defining a cavity;
a radiographic image detector assembly mounted within the cavity for converting a radiographic image to an electronic radiographic image, wherein the detector assembly includes a scintillator screen and a detector imaging array; and
a light guiding element positioned proximate the radiographic image detector assembly to redirect light for detection of any one or more of a start of an exposure, a termination of the exposure, a dose for the exposure, or a rate of dose for the exposure, using light generated by the scintillator screen, wherein the light guiding element is not included in the detector imaging array or included in a semiconductor layer of the detector imaging array.

2. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , where the light guiding element is proximate the scintillator screen or positioned on a second side of the scintillating screen opposite a first side of the scintillator screen proximate the imaging array.

3. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , where the imaging array comprises a substrate to support the imaging array or the scintillator screen comprises a backing layer, where the substrate or the backing layer comprises the light guiding element.

4. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , where the light guiding element is a light collection film, an optical film, an optical plate, a single sheet, a plate of optically transparent material, comprises a microstructured light control element, a micro-structured prism, or a wedge shaped optical transmission element.

5. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , where the light guiding element uses internal reflection to propagate a portion of received light to a selected detection point or exit of the light guiding element.

6. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , where the light guiding element is configured to extract a portion of the light from the scintillator screen and guide the extracted light to at least one light detection element, where the at least one light detection element is on a periphery of the scintillator screen or a perimeter of the imaging array.

7. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , comprising an optical coupling element between the light guiding element and the light detection element, where the optical coupling element comprises a lens, an optical fiber, one or more reflectors.

8. The digital radiography detector of claim 1 , where the light guiding element comprises a plurality of light guides each corresponding to different spatial locations of the imaging array or DR detector, and where the light detection element comprises a plurality of light detectors each corresponding to one of the plurality of light guides.

9. The digital radiography detector of claim 8 , comprising:
separate light guides over selected areas of the scintillator screen; and
individual photo-detectors coupled to each of the separate light guides.

10. The digital radiography detector of claim 8 , comprising:
separate light guides coupled at substrates of the imaging array; and
individual photo-detectors coupled to each of the separate light guides.

11. A digital radiography detector comprising:
a housing having first and second spaced planar members and side walls defining a cavity;
a radiographic image detector assembly mounted within the cavity for converting a radiographic image to an electronic radiographic image, wherein the detector assembly includes a scintillator screen and a detector imaging array; and
a light guiding element positioned proximate the radiographic image detector assembly to redirect light for detection of any one or more of a start of an exposure, a termination of the exposure, a dose for the exposure, or a rate of dose for the exposure, using light generated by the scintillator screen, wherein the light guiding element comprises two or more layers each including different refractive indices to control internal reflection, reduce optical loss and/or reduce light leakage in the absence of scattering elements used to direct light out of the light guide, where an optical index change between layers or along a direction in one layer is abrupt, gradual, linear, nonlinear or tiered.

12. A digital radiography detector comprising:
a housing having first and second spaced planar members and side walls defining a cavity;
a radiographic image detector assembly mounted within the cavity for converting a radiographic image to an electronic radiographic image, wherein the detector assembly includes a scintillator screen and a detector imaging array;
a light guiding element positioned proximate the radiographic image detector assembly to redirect light for detection of any one or more of a start of an exposure, a termination of the exposure, a dose for the exposure, or a rate of dose for the exposure, using light generated by the scintillator screen; and
an optical transmission control element adjacent to the light guiding element, where the optical transmission control element passes sufficient light to detect the start-of-beam, to detect the end-of-beam, to estimate dose rate and/or estimate total dose.

13. The digital radiography detector of claim 12 , where the optical transmission control element passes a wavelength of light not substantially detected by the detector imaging array.

14. The digital radiography detector of claim 12 , where the optical transmission control element comprises surface features on at least one surface of the light guiding element to tune optical transmission into the light guiding element.

15. The digital radiography detector of claim 12 , where the optical transmission control element comprises a filter positioned between the scintillator screen and the light guiding element, where a transmission curve of the filter is configured to control one of wavelength or the intensity of transmission from the scintillator screen to the light guiding element.

16. A radiation image capturing device comprising:
an image capturing unit comprising an imaging array and a scintillator, the image capturing unit to capture a radiation image using irradiated radiation;
a radiation detection unit that detects the radiation;
a determination unit to determine whether image capturing preparation is completed; and
a control unit to start detection of the radiation by the radiation detection unit, in a case in which the determination unit determines that the image capturing preparation is completed, and controls the image capturing unit to capture the radiation image, in a case in which the radiation detection unit detects the radiation,
where the radiation detection unit comprises a layer of light guiding material within the image capturing unit but not included in the imaging array, the radiation detection unit configured to transfer light generated by the scintillator of the image capturing unit for the detection of the radiation.

17. The device of claim 16 , where the light guiding material is a layer proximate to one of the scintillator, a radiographic imaging array or a substrate of the imaging array.

18. The device of claim 16 , where the imaging array includes a substrate to support the imaging array and the scintillator includes a backing layer, where the substrate or the backing layer comprises a light guiding material.

Assignees

• Carestream Health Inc

Inventors

• Tredwell Timothy J
• Wong Victor C

Classifications

• A61B6/12

  Arrangements for detecting or locating foreign bodies · CPC title

• A61B6/4233

  using matrix detectors · CPC title

• G01T1/20 Primary

  with scintillation detectors · CPC title

• G01T1/161

  Applications in the field of nuclear medicine, e.g. in vivo counting {(apparatus for radiation diagnosis A61B6/00)} · CPC title

• A61B6/542

  involving control of exposure · CPC title