Patents Assigned to AGFA-Healthcare
  • Patent number: 9153016
    Abstract: In a method to enhance the contrast of spatially-localized phenomena in an image such as microcalcifications in a mammogram, a multi-scale decomposition is applied to a digital signal representation of the image thereby generating a number of detail images at different scales, the detail signals pertaining to the spatially-localized phenomena having a common polarity (either negative or positive) being modified at at least one scale.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa Healthcare NV
    Inventors: Tom Bertens, Pieter Vuylsteke, Gert Behiels
  • Patent number: 9128197
    Abstract: A system, a device, and a method for reading out X-ray information stored in a storage phosphor plate includes a storage phosphor plate and a device for reading out X-ray information stored in the storage phosphor plate including a light source for generating stimulating light that excites the storage phosphor plate to have it emit first emission light, and a detector for detecting the first emission light emitted by the storage phosphor plate. At least one marking is arranged and configured in such a way that stimulating light can impinge on the marking and can be at least partially reflected and/or scattered by the marking and/or can excite the marking to have it emit second emission light, wherein the reflected or scattered stimulating light, respectively, or emitted second emission light, respectively, can be detected by the detector, and marking information can be derived therefrom.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventor: Stephan Mair
  • Patent number: 9129390
    Abstract: For each of a number of landmarks in an image an initial position of the landmark is defined. Next a neighborhood around the initial position comprising a number of candidate locations of the landmark, is sampled and a cost is associated with each of the candidate locations. A cost function expressing a weighted sum of overall gray level cost and overall shape cost for all candidate locations is optimized. A segmented anatomic entity is defined as a path through a selected combination of candidate locations for which combination the cost function is optimized. During optimization towards the optimal segmented surface/volume graph traversal methods are exploited.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventor: Piet Dewaele
  • Publication number: 20150248749
    Abstract: A method and system for acquiring an image of an object using optical coherence tomography using an interferometer and a detector, wherein the object is irradiated with light emitted by the interferometer, light reflected by the object is fed back into the interferometer and detected by the detector, the image of the object is derived from the detected light, and a file containing information, in particular graphical information and/or photographic image information, relating to the object is assigned to and/or correlated with the image of the object.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 26, 2013
    Publication date: September 3, 2015
    Applicant: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventors: Rainer Nebosis, Wolfgang Schorre
  • Publication number: 20150228072
    Abstract: An image is segmented by subjecting the image to an iterative thresholding operation, and a hierarchical representation of clusters is obtained by analyzing the results of each of the iterative thresholding steps to find clusters of adjacent image elements. A type class is assigned to a leaf cluster of the hierarchical representation and the assigned class is propagated towards the top of the hierarchical representation. Then a mask is generated marking the locations of image elements contained in the top ancestral clusters of a specific type.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2013
    Publication date: August 13, 2015
    Applicant: AGFA HEALTHCARE NV
    Inventors: Gert Merckx, Jeroen Cant
  • Patent number: 9081487
    Abstract: A method and system for receiving input from a touch-sensitive device for manipulating an image shown in a display area. The method and system involve receiving an initial input for initializing an image manipulation for generating a mirror image in a mirroring direction, the mirroring direction is defined by a start and an end, the initial input corresponds to an initial location within the display area; receiving a first subsequent input corresponding to a first location, the first location corresponds to the start of the mirroring direction; receiving a second subsequent input corresponding to a second location, the second location corresponds to the end of the mirroring direction, the first and second locations are positioned on opposite sides of the initial location; and in response to the second subsequent input, generating the mirror image by mirroring the image according to the mirroring direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare Inc.
    Inventor: Giovan Giuseppe Boccanfuso
  • Patent number: 9081876
    Abstract: A method and system are provided for navigating an image series that includes at least one image. The method and system involve receiving an input corresponding to a reference location; operating at least one processor for determining a target position in the image series based on the reference location, the at least one processor being configured to receive initial series data corresponding to an initial location in the image series and a separation distance corresponding to a distance between two sequential images in the image series; determine a target distance for the image series, the target distance corresponding to a distance from the reference location to the initial location; and determine the target position based on the separation distance and the target distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: AGFA HEALTHCARE INC.
    Inventors: Giovan Giuseppe Boccanfuso, Marc Alain Bernard
  • Publication number: 20150154530
    Abstract: When standardized messages including additional clinical information are received by a system for task management on clinical information, the system uses the metadata of the standardized messages to automatically verify if a report already exists for the medical procedure where the additional clinical information belongs to. When a report already exists, a workflow engine is triggered to automatically create in the system a task for the author of the report to verify the existing report in view of the additional clinical information received. Thereby, the sending of manually entered notifications by e-mail or sms is avoided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 3, 2013
    Publication date: June 4, 2015
    Applicant: AGFA HEALTHCARE NV
    Inventors: Joost Felix, Olivier Debels, Wannes Kieckens
  • Patent number: 9036156
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a device and a corresponding method having a light source (20) for emitting light, an interferometer (10), into which light emitted by the light source (20) is injected, for irradiating a sample (1) with light, and a, in particular spatially resolving, detector (40) for detecting interference patterns obtained by superimposing the light reflected from the sample (1) with a partial beam of the light injected into the interferometer (10) which is reflected at a reference mirror (16) of the interferometer (10). In order to obtain OCT images in the simplest way possible and with the highest possible resolution and image quality, the light source (20) comprises a radiation source (21) for generating spatially incoherent light, and an optical filter (22) with a bell-shaped or Gaussian-shaped spectral filter characteristic for filtering the light generated by the radiation source (21).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventor: Rainer Nebosis
  • Patent number: 9031193
    Abstract: Method of generating a radiation image of an elongate body by taking plural partial X-ray images on a digital radiography detector using a multiple shot exposure technique. Partial image dimensions are determined so that the partial image representing that part of the elongate body that is most susceptible of movement during the multiple shot exposure is recorded covering an as large as possible area of the detector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventor: Gert Behiels
  • Patent number: 9018609
    Abstract: A device and a corresponding system for reading X-ray information stored in a storage phosphor plate includes a reading device for irradiating the storage phosphor plate with stimulation light and for detecting emission light stimulated in the storage phosphor plate, and a conveyance device for conveying the storage phosphor plate including at least one roller that can be put into rotation about its rotational axis. In order to guarantee, with a simple structure, the most reliable possible transport of the storage phosphor plate, one or more magnets, more particularly permanent magnets, are arranged in the interior of the cylinder which is formed as a hollow body, more particularly a hollow cylinder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa Healthcare NV
    Inventors: Florian Von Stein, Heinz Backhaus
  • Patent number: 8987672
    Abstract: An apparatus and a corresponding system and method for reading out X-ray information stored in a storage phosphor plate includes a receiving device, in particular a cassette, for receiving the storage phosphor plate, a removal device for removing the storage phosphor plate from the receiving device, and a reading device for irradiating the storage phosphor plate removed from the receiving device with stimulation light and for detecting emitted light excited thereby in the storage phosphor plate. In order to permit as reliable a removal and/or return of the storage phosphor plate from and to the receiving device as possible while providing a simple design, the removal device has at least one removal element, which can be coupled to the storage phosphor plate and which can move along a curved path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa Healthcare NV
    Inventors: Patrick Sandmann, Anton Pirmann, Günther Schindlbeck, Johannes Hölzl, Sven Behr
  • Patent number: 8975608
    Abstract: An apparatus and a corresponding system for reading out X-ray information stored in a storage phosphor plate includes a reading device for irradiating the storage phosphor plate with stimulation light and for detecting emitted light excited thereby in the storage phosphor plate, and a transport device for transporting the storage phosphor plate relative to the reading device and having a roller drive and at least one roller that can be set rotating about the axis of rotation thereof by the roller drive. In order to simplify the design of the apparatus and of the system while providing as reliable a transport of the storage phosphor plate as possible, the roller includes at least one magnetic area that has a helical progression.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventor: Anton Pirmann
  • Publication number: 20150066528
    Abstract: A report generating method and system with different modes to complete a report template such as insertion of a transcribed audio file originating from digital dictation, data base retrieval, text input, input of measurement results.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2013
    Publication date: March 5, 2015
    Applicant: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventors: Wannes Kieckens, Joost Felix
  • Publication number: 20150032474
    Abstract: A method and system where a user initiates a medical record creation request that is received at a workstation. A results entry structure corresponding to the received medial creation is selected. Result sections entries are received for each of the types of result sections that are required by the record creation request. Result sections entries are stored with the type of result sections within a medical record as stored result sections. The stored result sections are retrievable for generating a medical report from the medical record. A report generation request is received at a workstation and a report structure corresponding to the report generation request is selected. Results sections required by the report generation request are retrieved from medical records and a medical report is generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 1, 2013
    Publication date: January 29, 2015
    Applicant: Agfa HealthCare Inc.
    Inventors: George Dobrean, Joost Felix, Wannes Kieckens, Nadia De Paepe
  • Patent number: 8928890
    Abstract: The invention relates to a system for optical coherence tomography having an interferometer (20) which has a beam splitter (24), a reflector (25), an illumination arm (21), a specimen arm (22) and a reference arm (23). In order to increase the compactness of the system with at the same time a high image quality a specimen objective is provided in the specimen arm (22) of the interferometer (20) by means of which light is focussed into a focus lying in or on the specimen (1). Moreover, in the reference arm (23) of the interferometer (20) a reference objective is provided by means of which light is focussed onto the reflector (25). The optical properties of the specimen objective differ from the optical properties of the reference objective.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare N.V.
    Inventors: Rainer Nebosis, Rainer Scheunemann, Edgar-Gerald Kopp
  • Patent number: 8913813
    Abstract: Method and system for determining the spatial response signature of a x-ray detector comprising a photostimulable phosphor by generating a flat field image of the detector, generating a low-pass filtered version of the flat field image and background demodulating the flat field image by pixel-wise dividing it by means of corresponding pixel values in the low-pass filtered version.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare N.V.
    Inventors: Marc Cresens, Herman Van Goubergen
  • Publication number: 20140361201
    Abstract: An apparatus, a corresponding system, and a method for reading out X-ray information stored in a storage phosphor panel includes an input device, into which a cassette with a storage phosphor panel therein can be input, and a read-out device, in which the storage phosphor panel can be irradiated with stimulation light and the emission light excited in the storage phosphor panel is detected.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 13, 2012
    Publication date: December 11, 2014
    Applicant: AGFA HEALTHCARE NV
    Inventors: Patrick Sandmann, Günther Schindlbeck, Heribert Hammer
  • Patent number: 8908190
    Abstract: The invention relates to a system and a corresponding method for optical coherence tomography having at least one interferometer for emitting light with which a specimen is irradiated, a specimen arm comprising a specimen objective by means of which light emitted by the interferometer is focused in a focus lying within the specimen, a detector for collecting light which is reflected by the specimen, and a control unit for controlling the system such that during the collection alight, which is respectively reflected at different depths of the specimen, the imaging properties of the specimen objective are changed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2014
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare NV
    Inventors: Rainer Nebosis, Rainer Scheunemann, Edgar-Gerald Kopp
  • Patent number: 8856150
    Abstract: A solution space is computed and stored which comprises for a given set of constraints all possible solutions for all available resources of a certain kind. Upon selection of a specific resource, the solution space is filtered to select all possible combinations containing the specific resource and the result of the filtering is displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: Agfa HealthCare Inc.
    Inventor: Geert Machtelinck