Patents Assigned to Neuromag Oy
  • Patent number: 7720519
    Abstract: A method is disclosed in this publication for modeling different internal structures of a head, such as different parts of the brain, the method comprising the step of determining the location of the internal structures, such as the different cerebral parts, of at least one first head in a three-dimensional space by techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging or computer-aided tomography. According to the invention, the external dimensions of at least one second head are determined, and the location data of the internal structures of the first head are scaled in a three-dimensional space to correlate with the external dimensions of the second head, whereby the location data of the internal structures of the second head also become modeled without the need for anatomical images of the second head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2010
    Assignee: Elekta Neuromag Oy
    Inventor: Jarmo Ruohonen
  • Patent number: 7463024
    Abstract: A method and device by means of which an irrotational, sourceless vector field can be expressed by a number of physically reasonable basis vectors. In the method and device for processing a multi-channel measurement of magnetic fields of the present invention, measured signals can be unambiguously divided into signals of the irrotational, sourceless vector field that are caused by an interesting object or external interferences, as well as into a signal caused by the nonideality of the measuring device. The invention is based on the combining of two very fundamental mathematical regularities and applying in the processing of signal vectors of a multi-channel measuring device that measures an irrotational, sourceless vector field. The invention is based on the Maxwell's equations of an irrotational, sourceless vector field, as well as on the convergence characteristics of series developments.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2008
    Assignee: Elekta Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Juha Simola, Matti Kajola, Samu Taulu
  • Patent number: 7342396
    Abstract: The device for sensing a magnetic field comprises a closed superconducting pick-up loop (1) having a path width (d) etched out of a single layer superconducting thin film and provided with a constriction (15) having a width (w) of narrow dimension smaller than the path width (d). The closed superconducting pick-up loop (1) constitutes a flux-to-field transformer (FFDT). At least one magnetoresistive element (2) is placed on top of or below the superconducting thin film, is isolated from the superconducting thin film by a thin insulating layer and is located so that an active part of the magnetoresistive element (2) is at the location of the constriction (15) and has a width equal to or less than the width of the constriction (15). The active part of the magnetoresistive element (2) is oriented so that the bias current in this active part is directed essentially along the constriction (15), orthogonally to the width of narrow dimension.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2008
    Assignees: Commissariat Energie Atomique, Elekta Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Myriam Pannetier, Claude Fermon, Juha Simola
  • Publication number: 20060031038
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and device by means of which an irrotational, sourceless vector field can be expressed by a number of physically reasonable basis vectors as small as possible in such a manner that the measured signals can be unambiguously divided into signals of the irrotational, sourceless vector field that are caused by an interesting object or external interferences, as well as into a signal caused by the nonideality of the measuring device, which signal is not included in the model of the signal space describing an irrotational, sourceless vector field. The invention is based on the combining of two very fundamental mathematical regularities and applying in the processing of signal vectors of a multi-channel measuring device that measures an irrotational, sourceless vector field: on the Maxell's equations of an irrotational, sourceless vector field, as well as on the convergence characteristics of series developments.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 7, 2005
    Publication date: February 9, 2006
    Applicant: Elekta Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Juha Simola, Matti Kajola, Samu Taulu
  • Publication number: 20050162249
    Abstract: The invention relates to a wall element for a magnetically shielded room and to a magnetically shielded room. The wall element comprises at least one first layer (1) which is formed of metal plate having a high electrical conductivity, and at least two layers, a second layer (2) and a third layer (3), which consist of metal plates having a high magnetic permeability. The layers (1, 2, 3) are superimposed one on top of another in surface contact with each other without any separating air gaps, so that each first layer (1) having a high electrical conductivity lies between each second (2) and third layers (3) having a high permeability substantially in surface contact with the second and third layers, the layers together forming a compact structure in which the product (?×?) of electrical conductivity (?) and permeability (?) is maximized so as to minimize the penetration depth of magnetic interference.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 3, 2003
    Publication date: July 28, 2005
    Applicant: ELEKTA NEUROMAG OY
    Inventor: Juha Simola
  • Patent number: 6876196
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and device by means of which the location and position of an object may be determined in relation to another object by electromagnetic signals. In the arrangement in accordance with the invention there are two objects to the one of which there are attached signal sources, i.e. transmitters that generate electromagnetic signals, and the other object contains one or more receivers for measuring the transmitter signals. Usually the object containing transmitters is the one whose location or position is of interest and which is the object of the measurement. For example, in MEG measurements the object associated with the transmitters is the head of a human being on whose surface the transmitters are placed. By means of the arrangement in accordance with the invention is possible to find out the location and position of the head, in which case the location of the signals generated by the brain may be found out and utilized when examining the brain activity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2005
    Assignee: Elekta Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Samu Taulu, Lauri Parkkonen, Matti Kajola
  • Patent number: 6538436
    Abstract: A method and apparatus is described for making multichannel signal measurements of weak signals in noisy environments, wherein the elimination of background interference signals from the multichannel signal measurement is performed. The method is based on an adaptive compensation technique in which the large interfering background signals are first recorded. By a statistical analysis of this multichannel measurement, independent components of the interference are determined. The apparatus is provided with compensator elements which are coupled to individual sensors for both collection and distribution of information on the interference signals during the measurement. In this way the output of a device can be made immune to the large amplitude interference components present in the device's environment. This reduces the dynamic range requirement for the data transport and storage systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2003
    Assignee: Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Juha Simola, Juha Tuoriniemi, Matti Kajola, Lauri Parkkonen, Antti Ahonen
  • Patent number: 5323777
    Abstract: Sensor position indicator coils to be used in magnetoencephalographic experiments and a means of attaching them to the head. The invention comprises a headband (1) and a coil assembly attached to it. The coil assembly consists of a coil set (5) and of at least three fastening strips (6) or of fastening strips having coil sets of individual coils (5') on them. The mechanical properties of the coils are very important. The coil set (5) has three thin- or thick-film coils cast in epoxy resin. The outside surface of the headband (1) and the inside surfaces of the fastening strips (6) have been covered with materials adhering to each other easily. In addition, the underside of the coil set (5) can contain three small knobs, formed during casting, on which the coil set leans when pressed against the head, staying in the tangent plane of the head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 1991
    Date of Patent: June 28, 1994
    Assignee: Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Antti I. Ahonen, Matti S. Hamalainen, Pasi P. Laine, Visa A. Vilkman
  • Patent number: 5309095
    Abstract: A sensor element of thin film components and fiber glass, and a support structure of fiber glass; when sensor elements are attached to the support structure, a sensor system for magnetoencephalographic measurements is formed. A substrate containing a planar signal coil and a SQUID is attached on a circuit board of fiber glass using a spring cut on the edge of a body plate. On the sensor element, is a small but mechanically stable connector or several such connectors (5); when the sensor element is plugged in receptacles (6) on the support structure (7), the element settles in a well defined orientation. Support structure (7) is made of a fiber glass shell following the shape of the bottom (10) dewar vessel, adapted to the shape of the head. The receptacles (6) are attached to the glass fiber shell by springs (9) made of thin fiber glass plate such that an array covering the whole skull as evenly as possible is formed when the sensor elements are plugged to the receptacles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1991
    Date of Patent: May 3, 1994
    Assignee: Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Antti I. Ahonen, Jukka E. T. Knuutila, Juha T. A. Simola, Visa A. Vilkman
  • Patent number: 5289121
    Abstract: The invention concerns a pickup coil to measure components of gradients. The coil consists of two pairs of loops connected in series; these pairs are then connected in parallel. The coil so formed has a low inductance, and no shielding currents are induced to superconducting coils in homogeneous magnetic fields. One coil can be employed to measure several field components simultaneously when the coil is coupled to current sensing elements, for example to SQUIDS, so that the current components measured by the sensing elements do not couple magnetically because of the symmetry. This can be accomplished by connecting the said elements between terminals between the loops (5, 6 and 7, 8). The inductance of this coil can be further reduced by subdividing the loops into parts connected in parallel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1991
    Date of Patent: February 22, 1994
    Assignee: Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Matti J. Kajola, Jukka E. T. Knuutila
  • Patent number: 5243281
    Abstract: A superconducting device for measuring weak magnetic fields, especially those generated by the human brain and detected simultaneously over the whole skull. The superconducting magnetometer or gradiometer elements of the device are attached with connectors to a cross-connection/support element which, in turn, is attached to a connecting element containing the electric components necessary for connecting the SQUIDs to the room temperature electronics. The connecting element is attached to a neck plug for the dewar flask. The neck plug is made of a stiff thermal insulation to prevent convection and a ribbon cable containing parallel twisted pairs. The latter element is self-supporting and forms an integral part of the magnetometer support structure. The cables in the neck plug have been made out of wires having a relatively high resistance in order to minimize the heat leak between room temperature and the cryogenic environment of the magnetometers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1991
    Date of Patent: September 7, 1993
    Assignee: Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Antti I. Ahonen, Jukka E. T. Knuutila, Juha T. A. Simola, Visa A. Vilkman
  • Patent number: 5148262
    Abstract: A reliable superconducting contact for superconducting thin film components, based on soft superconducting materials, and a method for making the contacts. A wire blank is squeezed to a thin plate and then this plate is cut into slabs used in the bonding. The ends of the slabs are longitudinally cut so that double or multiple parallel joints can be made. The slabs have elastic, bent central portions for absorbing stresses and stiff ends having a U-beam shape joined to the components. The U-beam shape may be formed by the soldering tool used to make the joints. The ribbon-like character, thinness and other features of the bonding slab permit a precise control of the bonding temperature, reduce the strain and bending forces caused by thermal contraction, and prevent the contact from peeling off while cooling the superconducting component to the operational temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 1991
    Date of Patent: September 15, 1992
    Assignee: Neuromag Oy
    Inventors: Antti I. Ahonen, Matti J. Kajola, Juha T. A. Simola
  • Patent number: 4995395
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for finding the location of electrodes attached to a body, particularly to the head is provided with at least one first coil arranged in conjunction with each electrode. The coils of the electrodes form a coil group to be localized. A plurality of other coils are arranged in the vicinity of the electrodes so that the position of the coils is uniquely known. The second set of coils forms a fixed coil group. A magnetic field is induced in at least a part of either the first coil group or the second coil group. The set of coils not generating the magnetic field are used for detecting the induced magnetic field. The measured results from the group of coils acting as a magnetometer are used to determine the position of electrodes. Using this implementation, the positions of the electrodes can be determined in a quick and accurate manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 1989
    Date of Patent: February 26, 1991
    Assignee: Neuromag OY
    Inventors: Risto Ilmoniemi, Seppo Ahlfors