Image-based determination of compression element deflection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9532752-B2
Application number	US-201214342190-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 31, 2012
Priority date	Sep 7, 2011
Publication date	Jan 3, 2017
Grant date	Jan 3, 2017

Abstract

An X-ray imaging system element ( 3 ) includes two compression elements ( 8 a, 8 b ), which are movable relative to one another. An object ( 10 ) is introducible and compressible between the compression elements. At least one of the compression elements is adapted to alter its geometrical shape and/or alignment relative to the other during compression. At least one partly X-ray opaque marker element ( 24 ) is provided on one of the compression elements, which marker element is adapted to allow detection of an alteration of the geometrical shape of the respective compression element ( 8 a, b ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An X-ray imaging system element for determining a geometrical parameter of an object, comprising
a first flexible, x-radiation penetrable compression element; and
a second compression element;
wherein the first compression element and the second compression element are:
movable relative to one another and
configured to receive a compressible object asymmetrically therebetween to define an object proximal region comprising the object and an object distal region not comprising the object;

wherein the first flexible compression element is configured to flex altering its geometrical shape when the object is compressed between the first compression element and the second compression element;
a plurality of partly X-ray opaque marker elements disposed on the first flexible compression element, the opaque marker elements being disposed in a plurality of non-parallel lines, each line including at least three marker elements;
wherein the marker elements are arranged in the object distal region.

2. The system element according to claim 1 , wherein the first flexible compression element is flexible in two dimensions and wherein the plurality of lines includes a plurality of the lines extending orthogonal to each other.

3. The system element according to claim 1 , wherein the first flexible compression element is flexible in two dimensions and wherein the plurality of the lines includes at least a first plurality of the lines extending obliquely relative to a second plurality of the lines.

4. The system element according to claim 1 , wherein the first flexible compression element is bendable in two dimensions and wherein each of the marker elements is shared by at least two lines.

5. The system element according to claim 1 , comprising at least seven marker elements arranged in at least three non-identical marker lines.

6. The system element according to claim 4 , comprising one of a combination of:
seven marker elements and five non-identical marker lines;
eight marker elements and six non-identical marker lines;
nine marker elements and eight non-identical marker lines; and
nine marker elements and nine non-identical marker lines.

7. The system element according to claim 1 , wherein the marker elements include lead marker elements.

8. The system element according to claim 1 , wherein the marker elements are circularly or spherically shaped.

9. The system element according to claim 1 , wherein an alteration in a pattern of the lines is indicative of an alteration of the geometrical shape of the first compression element.

10. An X-ray imaging system comprising:
an x-ray source;
an x-ray detector; and
the system element according to claim 1 disposed between the x-ray source and the detector.

11. A method for determining a geometrical parameter of a compressible object, the method comprising:
disposing the object between first and second compression elements, at least one of the compression elements being flexible and x-radiation penetrable, the flexible and x-radiation penetrable compression element including a plurality of lines, each line defined by at least three x-ray opaque marker elements, at least some of the lines being non-parallel to each other and sharing a marker element with at least one other line;
with an x-ray source, projecting x-radiation through the first and second compression elements and the object;
with a radiation detector, detecting the x-radiation which has passed through the first and second compression elements and the object to generate an x-ray image of the object and the markers;
based on differences between the lines on the flexible x-radiation penetrable compression element and the lines of markers in the x-ray image, assessing an object density.

12. An x-ray imaging system comprising:
a pair of compression elements configured to receive a compressible object between proximal ends of the compression elements, at least one of the compressible elements being flexible to bend in two dimensions and carrying a plurality of lines of x-ray opaque markers, each line of x-ray opaque markers including at least three markers with some of the markers being shared between two or more lines;
an x-ray source and an x-ray detector, the x-ray source and x-ray detector being disposed on opposite sides of the pair of compression elements and configured to project x-rays through the pair of compression elements and an object received therebetween and to detect x-rays which passed through the pair of compression elements and received object;
an actuator configured to apply a force to a distal end of the at least one flexible compression element to cause the at least one flexible compression element to bend and compress the object; and
a processor configured to:
reconstruct radiation received by the radiation detector into an x-ray image of the lines of radiation opaque markers and object received between the proximal end of the compression elements; and
based on an alteration of the lines of radiation opaque markers in the x-ray image when the force is applied, the object is compressed, and the at least one flexible compression element bends, determine a density of the compressed object.

Assignees

• Goossen Andre
• Heese Harald Sepp
• Koninklijke Philips Nv

Inventors

• Goossen Andre
• Heese Harald Sepp

Classifications

• A61B6/0414 Primary

  with compression means · CPC title

• A61B6/025

  Tomosynthesis · CPC title

• A61B6/502

  for diagnosis of breast, i.e. mammography · CPC title

• A61B6/5217

  extracting a diagnostic or physiological parameter from medical diagnostic data · CPC title

• A61B6/0492

  using markers or indicia for aiding patient positioning · CPC title