Patents by Inventor Ralf Ladebeck

Ralf Ladebeck has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20220091206
    Abstract: A method is for determining a heating effect of an imaging sequence of a second imaging modality on a detector of a first modality of a combined imaging device in dependence of a reference imaging sequence of the second imaging modality. A further method is for compensating a heating effect of an imaging sequence of a second imaging modality on a detector of a first modality of a combined imaging device. Furthermore, a combined imaging device includes a magnetic resonance imaging device and a first modality including a detector and a temperature compensation unit configured to compensate for a temperature variation of the detector. The combined imaging device is configured to perform a method for determining a heating effect of an imaging sequence of the magnetic resonance imaging device on the detector of the first modality in dependence of a reference imaging sequence of the magnetic resonance imaging device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2021
    Publication date: March 24, 2022
    Applicant: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Ludwig EBERLER, Ralf LADEBECK, Philipp HOECHT, Sanghee CHO, Robert A. MINTZER, Nan ZHANG, Johannes BREUER, Martin JUDENHOFER
  • Publication number: 20210293915
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to an RF coil device for an MR or hybrid MR-PET imaging modality, the RF coil device having a marker arrangement comprising a plurality of electromagnetic radiation markers disposed at the outer surface of its housing, wherein the electromagnetic radiation markers are adapted to reflect or emit electromagnetic radiation within the ultraviolet, visible, infrared (IR) and/or Terahertz spectrum. The disclosure also relates to detecting the position and/or orientation and/or shape of the RF coil device using electromagnetic radiation emitted from the electromagnetic radiation markers, and determining an attenuation map for the RF coil device by transforming a predefined attenuation map using the determined position and/or orientation and/or shape of the RF coil device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2021
    Publication date: September 23, 2021
    Applicant: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Matthias Fenchel, Ralf Ladebeck, Johann Sukkau
  • Patent number: 10429465
    Abstract: In a method and magnetic resonance apparatus for determining a shim setting in order to increase a homogeneity of the basic magnetic field of the scanner of the apparatus by operating a shim element, information is obtained concerning the dependence of an induced field of the shim element on a set shim setting. A first field map is recorded and a first shim setting for the shim element is determined based on the first field map. A second field map is recorded while the shim element is driven with the first shim setting. A field induced by the shim element by the first shim setting is determined based on the first field map and the second field map. A second shim setting for the shim element is determined based on the determined induced field and the acquired information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2019
    Assignee: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Ralf Ladebeck, Daniel Niederloehner, Johann Sukkau
  • Patent number: 10393829
    Abstract: A method for determining a position of a mobile device relative to a B0 field magnet along a z-coordinate axis, and a device and a magnetic resonance tomography unit for performing the method are provided. The device includes a magnetic field strength sensor arranged in a fixed relative position. A characteristic magnetic field strength Bref of the B0 field magnet that emerges for a plurality of x-y coordinate pairs with a same reference z-coordinate zref is ascertained. The device is moved along the z-coordinate axis until the magnetic field strength sensor measures the characteristic magnetic field strength Bref.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2019
    Assignee: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Klaus Ludwig, Volker Schnetter, Johann Sukkau, Andrew Dewdney, Axel Heitland, Ralf Ladebeck, Ronny Pflichtbeil, Jörg Rothard, Volker Weißenberger
  • Patent number: 10345406
    Abstract: Calculation of shim settings for magnetic resonance imaging includes defining an examination volume for the magnetic resonance imaging in a body of the examination object, determining a local shim volume, which includes a subregion of the examination volume, calculating shim settings, wherein a tissue, which is present in the local shim volume, of the body of the examination object is incorporated into the calculation of the shim settings, and acquiring magnetic resonance raw data of the examination volume by operation of a magnetic resonance scanner, using the calculated shim settings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2019
    Assignee: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Stefanie Splitthoff, Ralf Ladebeck, Joerg Rothard, Johann Sukkau, Michael Wullenweber
  • Patent number: 10335035
    Abstract: A shim coil device for compensating for basic magnetic field inhomogeneities during medical magnetic resonance imaging of a breast of a patient, said shim coil has a housing with a contact surface that configures to bear against a patient, and at least one shim coil element having a shim coil axis. The shim coil is arranged on the patient such that the at least one shim coil axis has an angle of inclination ? to the contact surface and/or to a patient surface, where ? is ?45° and ? is ?135°.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2019
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Stephan Biber, Ralf Ladebeck, Kuan Jin Lee, Sebastian Martius, Elisabeth Weiland
  • Patent number: 10036790
    Abstract: APD-based PET modules are provided for use in combined PET/MR imaging. Each module includes a number of independent, optically isolated detectors. Each detector includes an array of scintillator (e.g. LSO) crystals read out by an array of APDs. The modules are positioned in the tunnel of a MR scanner. Simultaneous, artifact-free images can be acquired with the APD-based PET and MR system resulting in a high-resolution and cost-effective integrated PET/MR system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2018
    Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Matthias J. Schmand, Ronald Grazioso, Ronald Nutt, Robert E. Nutt, Nan Zhang, James L. Corbeil, Ralf Ladebeck, Marcus Vester, Günter Schnur, Wolfgang Renz, Hubertus Fischer, Bernd J. Pichler
  • Patent number: 9869741
    Abstract: A method for imaging a part region of an examination object in a magnetic resonance system. In an embodiment, a first and second gradient field are respectively created such that, at a respective first and second position at the edge of the field of view, a distortion caused by a non-linearity of the respective first and second gradient field, and a distortion caused by a Bo field inhomogeneity, cancel each other out. By way of the respective first and second gradient, respective first and second magnetic resonance data which contains the respective first and second position are acquired. A first and second respective readout direction, in which the respective first and second magnetic resonance data are acquired, are selected as a function of a location of the respective first and second position. From the magnetic resonance data, an image of the part region is defined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2018
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Jan Ole Blumhagen, Matthias Fenchel, Ralf Ladebeck, Harald H. Quick
  • Patent number: 9851423
    Abstract: The embodiments relate to methods and to magnetic resonance tomography systems having a shim system, where the shim system includes at least one global shim coil in an area surrounding the bore of the magnetic resonance tomography system, and where the shim system includes a local shim coil in a local coil of the magnetic resonance tomography system with a shim controller, where the shim controller embodied to define shim currents for the global shim coil and for the local shim coil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Stephan Biber, Ralf Ladebeck
  • Patent number: 9817095
    Abstract: In one embodiment, an electromagnetic shielding of a device is disclosed for a magnetic resonance system. The device is shielded via a conductive layer which surrounds an inner part of the device in such a manner that an electrical current path completely around the inner part can be formed in the layer. The layer is arranged between a housing of the device, surrounding the inner part, and the inner part. In another embodiment, an electromagnetic shielding of a device is disclosed for a magnetic resonance system, wherein the device is shielded via a conductive layer which surrounds the device in such a manner that an electrical current path completely around the device is formed. In this situation, the device having the layer is mounted by way of projections on the magnetic resonance system. Each projection has a contact surface with the layer, at which the respective projection contacts the layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2017
    Assignees: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft, Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.
    Inventors: James Corbeil, Ralf Ladebeck, Stefan Stocker
  • Patent number: 9808203
    Abstract: A method includes introducing the examination object into an examination region of a combination device; recording emission computed tomography data over a measurement period and storing detection events and detection instants associated therewith; measuring magnetic resonance data of at least two subregions of the examination region at at least two instants during the recording period of the emission computed tomography data and storing the magnetic resonance data and the recording instants; determining motion information describing a motion of a region of the examination object at a first instant relative to the position at a second instant from the magnetic resonance data recorded at the first instant and the second instant, for each subregion; determining a motion model describing motion of the examination object, for the entire object, from information for the subregions; and calculating motion-corrected emission tomography data from detection events, detection instants and the motion model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignees: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft, Westfaelische Wilhems-Universitaet Muenster
    Inventors: Carmel Hayes, Ralf Ladebeck, Klaus Schäfers
  • Publication number: 20170293004
    Abstract: In a method and magnetic resonance apparatus for determining a shim setting in order to increase a homogeneity of the basic magnetic field of the scanner of the apparatus by operating a shim element, information is obtained concerning the dependence of an induced field of the shim element on a set shim setting. A first field map is recorded and a first shim setting for the shim element is determined based on the first field map. A second field map is recorded while the shim element is driven with the first shim setting. A field induced by the shim element by the first shim setting is determined based on the first field map and the second field map. A second shim setting for the shim element is determined based on the determined induced field and the acquired information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2017
    Publication date: October 12, 2017
    Applicant: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Ralf Ladebeck, Daniel Niederloehner, Johann Sukkau
  • Patent number: 9778382
    Abstract: A method is disclosed for generating a motion-corrected PET image of an examination area in a combined MR-PET system. In an embodiment, the method includes recording PET events from the examination area in a first recording time frame; recording a number of MR images of the examination area in at least the first recording time frame; calculating an at least two-dimensional movement information of the examination area on the basis of the number of MR images, wherein the movement information describes the movement information of the examination area during the first recording time frame, and determining the motion-corrected PET image from the PET events using the calculated movement information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
    Inventors: Matthias Fenchel, Ralf Ladebeck
  • Patent number: 9753113
    Abstract: In a method and magnetic resonance (MR) apparatus to image a partial region of an examination subject by means of a multislice measurement, which partial region includes at least two measurement slices, and is located at least in part at the edge of a field of view of the magnetic resonance apparatus, for each voxel to be optimized that is located at the edge of the field of view, a gradient field is configured for each measurement slice of the partial region that is to be measured and is used to acquire magnetic resonance data in the multislice measurement. The gradient field is configured so as to cause a nonlinearity of the gradient field and a B0 field inhomogeneity to cancel at each of the aforementioned voxel to be optimized at the partial region at the edge of the field of view. An image of the partial region of the examination subject is determined from the magnetic resonance data acquired in this manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Jan Ole Blumhagen, Matthias Fenchel, Ralf Ladebeck
  • Publication number: 20170248665
    Abstract: A method for determining a position of a mobile device relative to a B0 field magnet along a z-coordinate axis, and a device and a magnetic resonance tomography unit for performing the method are provided. The device includes a magnetic field strength sensor arranged in a fixed relative position. A characteristic magnetic field strength Bref of the B0 field magnet that emerges for a plurality of x-y coordinate pairs with a same reference z-coordinate zref is ascertained. The device is moved along the z-coordinate axis until the magnetic field strength sensor measures the characteristic magnetic field strength Bref.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 28, 2017
    Publication date: August 31, 2017
    Inventors: Klaus Ludwig, Volker Schnetter, Johann Sukkau, Andrew Dewdney, Axel Heitland, Ralf Ladebeck, Ronny Pflichtbeil, Jörg Rothard, Volker Weißenberger
  • Patent number: 9709647
    Abstract: A method for operating a mobile magnetic resonance tomography system having magnets and/or coils generating a magnetic field and a shield surrounding the magnets and/or coils is intended to enable an optimal image quality during the examination and at the same time have a small space requirement. For this purpose, a temperature is measured at a plurality of points on the shield by a temperature measuring system, where measured data of the temperature measuring system is sent to a compensation system, and where effects of temperature differences on the homogeneity of the magnetic field are compensated by the compensation system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Andrew Dewdney, Matthias Drobnitzky, Ralf Ladebeck
  • Publication number: 20170153308
    Abstract: Calculation of shim settings for magnetic resonance imaging includes defining an examination volume for the magnetic resonance imaging in a body of the examination object, determining a local shim volume, which includes a subregion of the examination volume, calculating shim settings, wherein a tissue, which is present in the local shim volume, of the body of the examination object is incorporated into the calculation of the shim settings, and acquiring magnetic resonance raw data of the examination volume by operation of a magnetic resonance scanner, using the calculated shim settings.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 1, 2016
    Publication date: June 1, 2017
    Applicant: Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    Inventors: Stefanie Buchenau, Ralf Ladebeck, Joerg Rothard, Johann Sukkau, Michael Wullenweber
  • Patent number: 9572493
    Abstract: A method, a computer program product and a computer-readable storage medium are disclosed for displaying signal values of a combined magnetic resonance positron emission tomography device. In at least one embodiment, the spatial correspondence of signal values, which result from a magnetic resonance measurement, and of signal values, which result from a positron emission tomography measurement, are used and the corresponding signal values are arranged in matrix form and displayed graphically as a multi-dimensional scatter plot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2017
    Assignee: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
    Inventors: Matthias Fenchel, Björn Heismann, Kirstin Jattke, Ralf Ladebeck, Sebastian Schmidt
  • Patent number: 9541622
    Abstract: A method is disclosed for determining a position-dependent attenuation map of at least one surface coil of a combined magnetic resonance/PET apparatus. In an embodiment, the method includes acquiring magnetic resonance image data by way of the at least one surface coil during a magnetic resonance/PET examination of a patient; reconstructing the position of the at least one surface coil on the basis of the acquired magnetic resonance image data; and determining the position-dependent attenuation map of the at least one surface coil on the basis of the reconstructed position of the at least one surface coil. A magnetic resonance/PET apparatus and a computer program product, embodied to perform the method, are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2017
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: René Kartmann, Ralf Ladebeck, Harald H. Quick, Stefan Rietsch
  • Patent number: 9459333
    Abstract: A phantom for co-registering a magnetic resonance image and a nuclear medical image is disclosed. The phantom includes a longitudinal member having a first end cap and a second end cap and a chamber contained within the longitudinal member. The chamber contains a fluid for producing a first image using a first imaging modality. The phantom further includes a first rod disposed within the chamber of the longitudinal member. The first rod contains a radioactive substance for producing a second image using a second imaging modality.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2016
    Assignees: Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Jun Bao, David Faul, Ralf Ladebeck, John Thomas Pawlak, Elmar Rummert, Charles C. Watson