Patents Assigned to Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.
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Patent number: 10456591Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes: a synchrocyclotron to output a particle beam; a magnet to affect a direction of the particle beam to scan the particle beam across at least part of an irradiation target; scattering material that is configurable to change a spot size of the particle beam, where the scattering material is down-beam of the magnet relative to the synchrocyclotron; and a degrader to change an energy of the beam prior to output of the particle beam to the irradiation target, where the degrader is down-beam of the scattering material relative to the synchrocyclotron.Type: GrantFiled: October 27, 2017Date of Patent: October 29, 2019Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, James Cooley, Ken Yoshiki Franzen, Mark R. Jones, Tao Li, Michael Busky
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Patent number: 10434331Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes: a particle accelerator to output a beam of charged particles; and a scanning system to scan the beam across at least part of an irradiation target. An example scanning system includes: a scanning magnet to move the beam during scanning; and a control system (i) to control the scanning magnet to produce uninterrupted movement of the beam over at least part of a depth-wise layer of the irradiation target so as to deliver doses of charged particles to the irradiation target; and (ii) to determine, in synchronism with delivery of a dose, information identifying the dose actually delivered at different positions along the depth-wise layer.Type: GrantFiled: April 20, 2017Date of Patent: October 8, 2019Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Charles D. O'Neal, III, Adam C. Molzahn
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Patent number: 10368429Abstract: An example particle accelerator includes the following: a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to a cavity to accelerate particles from a plasma column, where the cavity has a magnetic field causing particles accelerated from the plasma column to move orbitally within the cavity; an extraction channel to receive the particles accelerated from the plasma column and to output the received particles from the cavity; and a regenerator to provide a magnetic field bump within the cavity to thereby change successive orbits of the particles accelerated from the plasma column so that, eventually, particles output to the extraction channel. The magnetic field is at least 6 Tesla and the magnetic field bump is at most 2 Tesla.Type: GrantFiled: February 24, 2017Date of Patent: July 30, 2019Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Jan Van der Laan, Ken Yoshiki Franzen
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Patent number: 10279199Abstract: A system includes a patient support and an outer gantry on which an accelerator is mounted to enable the accelerator to move through a range of positions around a patient on the patient support. The accelerator is configured to produce a proton or ion beam having an energy level sufficient to reach a target in the patient. An inner gantry includes an aperture for directing the proton or ion beam towards the target.Type: GrantFiled: February 14, 2018Date of Patent: May 7, 2019Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley J. Rosenthal, Gordon D. Row, Michael J. Ahearn
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Patent number: 10258810Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes: a synchrocyclotron to output a particle beam; a magnet to affect a direction of the particle beam to scan the particle beam across at least part of an irradiation target; scattering material that is configurable to change a spot size of the particle beam, where the scattering material is down-beam of the magnet relative to the synchrocyclotron; and a degrader to change an energy of the beam prior to output of the particle beam to the irradiation target, where the degrader is down-beam of the scattering material relative to the synchrocyclotron.Type: GrantFiled: September 26, 2014Date of Patent: April 16, 2019Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, James Cooley, Ken Yoshiki Franzen, Mark R. Jones, Tao Li, Michael Busky
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Patent number: 10254739Abstract: An example system includes: a magnet including one or more coils to conduct current to generate a magnetic field, with the magnetic field to affect output of radiation to a target; and one or more actuators, with an actuator among the one or more actuators being at least part of a physical coupling to the one or more coils, and with the actuator being controllable to move the one or more coils via the physical coupling based on movement of the magnet.Type: GrantFiled: March 24, 2017Date of Patent: April 9, 2019Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Mark R. Jones, Mark Robinson, Ken Yoshiki Franzen
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Patent number: 10155124Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes the following: a gantry that is rotatable relative to a patient position; a particle accelerator mounted to the gantry, where the particle accelerator is for outputting a particle beam essentially directly to the patient position; and a control system to receive a prescription and to generate machine instructions for configuring one or more operational characteristics of the particle therapy system. At least one of the operational characteristics relates to a rotational angle of the gantry relative to the patient position.Type: GrantFiled: September 14, 2016Date of Patent: December 18, 2018Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley J. Rosenthal, Thomas C. Sobczynski, Adam C. Molzahn, Charles D. O'Neal, James Cooley
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Patent number: 9962560Abstract: A particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam; and a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam across at least part of an irradiation target. The scanning system is configured to scan the particle beam in two dimensions that are at an angle relative to a direction of the particle beam. A structure defines an edge. The structure is controllable to move in the two dimensions relative to the irradiation target such that at least part of the structure is between at least part of the particle beam and the irradiation target. The structure includes a material that inhibits transmission of the particle beam.Type: GrantFiled: December 20, 2013Date of Patent: May 8, 2018Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, James Cooley
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Patent number: 9950194Abstract: An example treatment system includes: a treatment couch for holding a patient; fiducials associated with the patient; an imaging system to capture an image of the fiducials and of an irradiation target while the patient is on the treatment couch, where the image is captured in a treatment room where treatment is to be performed; a mechanism to move the treatment couch; and a computer system programmed to align locations of the fiducials to the fiducials in the image, and to determine a location of the irradiation target relative to a treatment system based on locations of the fiducials and based on the image. The movement of the treatment couch into a treatment position in the treatment room may be based on the location of the irradiation target.Type: GrantFiled: September 9, 2014Date of Patent: April 24, 2018Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Lionel G. Bouchet, Richard Bruce Rakes
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Patent number: 9925395Abstract: A system includes a patient support and an outer gantry on which an accelerator is mounted to enable the accelerator to move through a range of positions around a patient on the patient support. The accelerator is configured to produce a proton or ion beam having an energy level sufficient to reach a target in the patient. An inner gantry includes an aperture for directing the proton or ion beam towards the target.Type: GrantFiled: July 28, 2016Date of Patent: March 27, 2018Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley J. Rosenthal, Gordon D. Row, Michael J. Ahearn
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Patent number: 9730308Abstract: An example synchrocyclotron includes the following: a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to a cavity to accelerate particles from a particle source; a coil to receive a variable electrical current and to generate a magnetic field that is at least 4 Tesla to cause the particles to move orbitally within the cavity; and an extraction channel to receive the accelerated particles and to output the received particles from the cavity. The particles that are output from the cavity have an energy that is variable based at least on the variable electrical current applied to the coil.Type: GrantFiled: June 12, 2013Date of Patent: August 8, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Charles D. O'Neal, III, Ken Yoshiki Franzen
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Patent number: 9723705Abstract: In an example, a synchrocyclotron includes a particle source to provide pulses of ionized plasma to a cavity; a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to the cavity to accelerate particles from the plasma column outwardly; and an extraction channel to receive a beam of particles from the cavity for output from the particle accelerator. The particle source is configured to control pulse widths of the ionized plasma in order to control an intensity of the beam of particles. This example synchrocyclotron may include one or more of the following features, either alone or in combination.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2013Date of Patent: August 1, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Jan Van der Laan, Adam C. Molzahn, Charles D. O'Neal, III, Thomas C. Sobczynski, James Cooley
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Patent number: 9706636Abstract: An example particle accelerator includes a coil to provide a magnetic field to a cavity; a particle source to provide a plasma column to the cavity; a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to the cavity to accelerate particles from the plasma column, where the magnetic field causes particles accelerated from the plasma column to move orbitally within the cavity; an enclosure containing an extraction channel to receive the particles accelerated from the plasma column and to output the received particles from the cavity; and a structure arranged proximate to the extraction channel to change an energy level of the received particles.Type: GrantFiled: March 18, 2016Date of Patent: July 11, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Kenneth P. Gall, Jan Van der Laan, Stanley Rosenthal, Michael Busky, Charles D. O'Neal, III, Ken Yoshiki Franzen
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Patent number: 9681531Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam, where the particle accelerator includes: a particle source to provide pulses of ionized plasma to a cavity, where each pulse of the particle source has a pulse width corresponding to a duration of operation of the particle source to produce the corresponding pulse, and where the particle beam is based on the pulses of ionized plasma; and a modulator wheel having different thicknesses, where each thickness extends across a different circumferential length of the modulator wheel, and where the modulator wheel is arranged to receive a precursor to the particle beam and is configured to create a spread-out Bragg peak for the particle beam.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2013Date of Patent: June 13, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley Rosenthal, Thomas C. Sobczynski, Adam C. Molzahn
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Patent number: 9661736Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes: a particle accelerator to output a beam of charged particles; and a scanning system to scan the beam across at least part of an irradiation target. An example scanning system includes: a scanning magnet to move the beam during scanning; and a control system (i) to control the scanning magnet to produce uninterrupted movement of the beam over at least part of a depth-wise layer of the irradiation target so as to deliver doses of charged particles to the irradiation target; and (ii) to determine, in synchronism with delivery of a dose, information identifying the dose actually delivered at different positions along the depth-wise layer.Type: GrantFiled: February 20, 2014Date of Patent: May 23, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Charles D. O'Neal, III, Adam C. Molzahn
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Patent number: 9622335Abstract: An example particle accelerator includes the following: a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to a cavity to accelerate particles from a plasma column, where the cavity has a magnetic field causing particles accelerated from the plasma column to move orbitally within the cavity; an extraction channel to receive the particles accelerated from the plasma column and to output the received particles from the cavity; and a regenerator to provide a magnetic field bump within the cavity to thereby change successive orbits of the particles accelerated from the plasma column so that, eventually, particles output to the extraction channel. The magnetic field is at least 6 Tesla and the magnetic field bump is at most 2 Tesla.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2013Date of Patent: April 11, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Jan Van Der Laan, Ken Yoshiki Franzen
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Patent number: 9545528Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes the following: a gantry that is rotatable relative to a patient position; a particle accelerator mounted to the gantry, where the particle accelerator is for outputting a particle beam essentially directly to the patient position; and a control system to receive a prescription and to generate machine instructions for configuring one or more operational characteristics of the particle therapy system. At least one of the operational characteristics relates to a rotational angle of the gantry relative to the patient position.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2013Date of Patent: January 17, 2017Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley Rosenthal, Thomas C. Sobczynski, Adam C. Molzahn, Charles D. O'Neal, III, James Cooley
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Patent number: 9452301Abstract: A system includes a patient support and an outer gantry on which an accelerator is mounted to enable the accelerator to move through a range of positions around a patient on the patient support. The accelerator is configured to produce a proton or ion beam having an energy level sufficient to reach a target in the patient. An inner gantry includes an aperture for directing the proton or ion beam towards the target.Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 2014Date of Patent: September 27, 2016Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley Rosenthal, Gordon D. Row, Michael J. Ahearn
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Patent number: 9301384Abstract: An example particle accelerator includes a coil to provide a magnetic field to a cavity; a particle source to provide a plasma column to the cavity; a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to the cavity to accelerate particles from the plasma column, where the magnetic field causes particles accelerated from the plasma column to move orbitally within the cavity; an enclosure containing an extraction channel to receive the particles accelerated from the plasma column and to output the received particles from the cavity; and a structure arranged proximate to the extraction channel to change an energy level of the received particles.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2013Date of Patent: March 29, 2016Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Kenneth P. Gall, Jan Van der Laan, Stanley Rosenthal, Michael Busky, Charles D O'Neal, III, Ken Yoshiki Franzen
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Patent number: 9192042Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam, where the particle accelerator includes: a particle source to provide pulses of ionized plasma to a cavity, where each pulse of the particle source has a pulse width corresponding to a duration of operation of the particle source to produce the corresponding pulse, and where the particle beam is based on the pulses of ionized plasma; and a modulator wheel having different thicknesses, where each thickness extends across a different circumferential length of the modulator wheel, and where the modulator wheel is arranged to receive a precursor to the particle beam and is configured to create a spread-out Bragg peak for the particle beam.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2013Date of Patent: November 17, 2015Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Stanley Rosenthal, Thomas C. Sobczynski, Adam C. Molzahn