Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which in some embodiments, row-correlated noise of a digital X-ray detector is monitored during idle operation of the digital X-ray detector and the magnitude of the row-correlated noise is compared to a visible threshold.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
May 30, 2007
Date of Patent:
October 5, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Ping Xue, James Zhengshe Liu, Chuande Liu, Scott William Petrick, Kenneth Scott Kump
Abstract: In some implementations, a portable imaging system includes a host computer, a docking station connected to the host computer, and a portable imaging device intermittently attached to the docking station and configured to communicate data with the host computer through a wired connection when the portable imaging device is attached to the docking station, and through a wireless connection when detached from the docking station. In some implementations, a method for communicating data between a portable imaging device and a computer is also provided. In some implementations, the method includes determining whether a wired connection is established between the portable imaging device and the computer. In some implementations, if established, the wired connection is used to communicate data between the portable imaging device and the computer.
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which a safety switch arrangement is assembled to prevent false activation of a subsystem in a medical system. In some embodiments, the safety switching arrangement comprises at least a first and a second type of switching element. In some embodiments, the first and the second type of switch each have an output that is processed by a processor, controller, or logic unit to produce an output signal for activating or deactivating a subsystem in the medical system.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
November 2, 2006
Date of Patent:
August 24, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Scott A. Bielski, Matthew B. Peterson, Kevin A Coombs, Jonathan M. Butzine, Kenneth M Stopar
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which in some implementations field-effect-transistor (FET) leakage from a pixel array panel of a digital X-ray detector is reduced by acquiring an image and an offset image from the pixel array panel of the digital X-ray detector while a negative voltage of the pixel array panel is at a higher level than a negative voltage of a threshold state of the pixel array panel of the digital X-ray detector.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
November 4, 2008
Date of Patent:
July 13, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
James Zhengshe Liu, Ping Xue, Ching-Yeu Wei, Donald Langler, Fengchao Zhang
Abstract: A method of manufacturing a collimator assembly is provided. The method includes placing a first core element within a first center collimator path of a first collimator tube to create a first base-tube couple. A couple cross-section of the first base-tube couple is reduced such that the first base-tube couple becomes a first single-fiber fiber. The first single-fiber fiber is assembled into a collimator group. The first core element is dissolved such that a first hollow fiber is generated.
Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for optimizing visual consistency for a dataset of images by using observed and formulated display attributes. The formulated display attributes are derived from an analysis of a first set of images from the image repository. The formulated display attributes from the first set are combined with observer's display attributes to determine scaling factors. The optimized display attributes are then derived from the calculated scaling factors for a second set of images. In another aspect, a system and method is described where a digital image is processed in order to enhance viewing of the image on a display device in accordance to the optimized attributes associated with the observer.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
September 8, 2005
Date of Patent:
May 18, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Kadri Nizar Jabri, Gopal B. Avinash, Chaitanya Yashwant Deodhar
Abstract: An imaging coil (12) includes multiple end rings (52). A center ring (53) extends parallel to and is coupled between the end rings (52). Multiple legs (86) are coupled between the end rings (52) and the center ring (53). The end rings (52) may have a first radius (R1) that is greater than a second radius (R2) of the center ring (53). The imaging coil (12) may include more than 16 legs. The imaging coil (12) may include multiple capacitor groupings (98) coupled along the end rings (52), each capacitor grouping (98) has multiple capacitors (102) with a coverage area width (W) greater than 5.0 cm. The center ring (53) may be coupled to a ground reference (110) and has low impedance such that the center ring (53) is effectively shorted to the ground reference (110).
Type:
Grant
Filed:
November 18, 2003
Date of Patent:
March 30, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Daniel J. Weyers, David Keren, Kevin Kinsey, Ed B. Boskamp
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which in some embodiments a lateral motion of an imaging device is provided by at least one friction reduction device that provides motion in a direction that is lateral to main wheels of the imaging device.
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which in some embodiments a non-volatile storage medium is or can be operably coupled to a medical image acquisition device to reduce the risk of loss of medical image data.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
October 31, 2006
Date of Patent:
March 23, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Scott William Petrick, Jacob Robert Bauer, Zeljko John Serceki
Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for an online purchasing system. In one embodiment, the online system includes business logic for approving a purchase requisition having a plurality of itemized goods and service and requiring approval by a plurality of authorized approvers on a line item by line item basis. An approval table defining identified authorized approver and conditions under which the authorized approvers must approve specified line items in a particular purchase request is generated by the online purchasing system to enable approvers of the purchase requisition to monitor the status of the particular purchase request. In a second embodiment, the online purchasing system through extracting business logic identified a second group of authorized approver and conditions under which the authorized approvers must approve specified line items.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
April 26, 2004
Date of Patent:
March 9, 2010
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
David J Van De Van, Prashant Sinha, Moshin Dawoodbhai
Abstract: A detector assembly 18 for an imaging system 10 is provided comprising a plurality of scintillator elements 50 positioned within a scintillator pack 56. The scintillator pack 56 forms a scintillator pack upper surface 58 and a plurality of scintillator pack walls 60 positioned between the plurality of scintillator elements 50. A plurality of collimator elements 64 are mounted on the scintillator pack upper surface 58. Each of the plurality of collimator elements 64 is comprised of a stack laminated base 66 mounted to the scintillator pack upper surface 58 and a cast upper wall 68 formed on the stack laminated base 66.
Abstract: In one embodiment, a radiation shielding composition comprises lead oxide or lead composite material of predetermined particle size, and an adhesive, wherein the composition comprises free flow property.
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided for angulation enhancement. An X-ray system comprising X-ray detector and X-ray source disposed at different ends of the X-ray system. An apparatus shifts a beam field produced by the X-ray source towards the edge of the X-ray detector whereby a large X-ray detector on a vascular X-ray system can be utilized to image smaller anatomy at extremes angles.
Abstract: A method of differentiating tissues in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) comprising applying a Magnetization Transfer (MT) pre-pulse in combination with the Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI) pulse sequence to obtain an image of the tissue under evaluation. Analysis maps and/or measurements are generated from the obtained image, from which values representative of the macromolecular content are computed for obtaining tissue differentiation.
Abstract: An image processing system includes a dataset generator within an image controller generating a first derived member of a first dataset from an acquired member of the first dataset. The dataset generator further generates a first derived member of a second dataset from an acquired member of the second dataset. Temporal comparators within the image controller compare the first derived member of the first dataset and the first derived member the second dataset and generate a comparison signal therefrom.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
June 13, 2003
Date of Patent:
December 1, 2009
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Gopal B. Avinash, Kadri Nizar Jabri, John M. Sabol, Renuka Uppaluri, Vianney Pierre Battle
Abstract: In some embodiments, an optical mask for a CT detector is disclosed. In some embodiments, the mask is intercalated between a photodiode array and a scintillator array forming the CT detector. In some embodiments, the optical mask may extend along one or more axes and differentially absorbs and/or reflects light emitted from the scintillators at edges of photodiodes forming the diode array, with less absorption or reflection at edges of tiled die forming the diode array than in central portions of each of the die. Through selective absorption and/or reflection, transference of light photons from a scintillator to the photodiode corresponding to a neighboring scintillator is spatially modified, at least partially compensating for spatial differences in crosstalk signals between adjacent pairs of photodiode/scintillator cell elements. This reduction in differential crosstalk reduces artifacts in a reconstructing data descriptive of internal portions of a subject, which improves diagnostic value of the data.
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which a partially elongated field-of-view in a magnetic resonance imaging system is generated either by an asymmetric primary coil or a conventional symmetrical primary coil with a supplementary high odd-order shim that elongates the field-of-view towards one end of the bore. For significantly increased efficiency, the high odd-order shim can evoke specific parts of the primary coil by injecting additional current and/or subtracting current from specific turns, as required.
Abstract: The invention relates to a communication system comprising a modulator, encoder, decoder, demodulator, and a data input source, which employs an improved modulation technique by effectively utilizing the conjugate signal space in Digital Pulse Position Modulation (DPPM) format. This technique utilizes multiple the DPPM formats, whereby M data bits are conveyed by splitting them into sets of k bits. The split data are encoded to have forward and conjugate pulse positions for transmission over a transmission channel, which are discriminated and combined into a M-bit digital output. The system and method achieve superior characteristics in terms of data rate, channel utilization and coding efficiency.
Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided through which mechanical members associated with a moving subsystem on a mobile X-ray medical imaging system are accelerated and decelerated using triangular acceleration and deceleration pulses having pulse widths that do not provide excitation energy that will cause unwanted vibrations in the members.
Abstract: Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which a specialized back-projection process reconstructs a finely detailed and crisp three-dimensional image (3-D) from a series of two-dimensional (2-D) images by pre-filtering the 2-D images with a first group of settings before back-projecting the 2-D images into a 3-D image, and then post-filtering the 3-D image with another group of settings. In some embodiments, the first group of settings and the second group of settings are synergistically optimized in relation to each other to provide emphasis on a structure of interest in the object.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
March 1, 2005
Date of Patent:
April 21, 2009
Assignee:
General Electric Company
Inventors:
Baojun Li, Gopal B. Avinash, Renuka Uppaluri