Patents by Inventor Gerrit Townsend Zwart
Gerrit Townsend Zwart 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).
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Patent number: 11786754Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam having a spot size; a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam in two dimensions across at least part of a treatment area of an irradiation target; and an adaptive aperture between the scanning system and the irradiation target. The adaptive aperture includes structures that are movable relative to the irradiation target to approximate a shape to trim part of the treatment area. The part of the treatment area has a size that is based on an area of the spot size.Type: GrantFiled: January 3, 2022Date of Patent: October 17, 2023Assignee: MEVION MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, Miles S. Wagner, James Cooley, Eros Pedroni, Robert Silva
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Publication number: 20220272827Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a gantry having a beamline structure configured to direct a particle beam that is monoenergetic from an output of a particle accelerator towards an irradiation target, where the beamline structure includes magnetic bending elements to bend the particle beam along a length of the beamline structure; and an energy degrader downstream of the beamline structure relative to the particle accelerator, where the energy degrader is configured and controllable to change an energy of the particle beam prior to at least part of the particle beam reaching the irradiation target.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 18, 2022Publication date: August 25, 2022Applicant: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Yan Zhang, Gerrit Townsend Zwart, James Cooley, Mark R. Jones, Honghai Song, Yan Liu, Xunjie Yu
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Publication number: 20220118284Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam having a spot size; a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam in two dimensions across at least part of a treatment area of an irradiation target; and an adaptive aperture between the scanning system and the irradiation target. The adaptive aperture includes structures that are movable relative to the irradiation target to approximate a shape to trim part of the treatment area. The part of the treatment area has a size that is based on an area of the spot size.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 3, 2022Publication date: April 21, 2022Applicant: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, Miles S. Wagner, James Cooley, Eros Pedroni, Robert Silva
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Patent number: 11213697Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam having a spot size; a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam in two dimensions across at least part of a treatment area of an irradiation target; and an adaptive aperture between the scanning system and the irradiation target. The adaptive aperture includes structures that are movable relative to the irradiation target to approximate a shape to trim part of the treatment area. The part of the treatment area has a size that is based on an area of the spot size.Type: GrantFiled: August 21, 2020Date of Patent: January 4, 2022Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, Miles S. Wagner, James Cooley, Eros Pedroni, Robert Silva
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Publication number: 20210370096Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle beam output device to direct output of a particle beam; a treatment couch to support a patient containing an irradiation target, with the treatment couch being configured for movement; a movable device on which the particle beam output device is mounted for movement relative to the treatment couch; and a control system to provide automated control of at least one of the movable device or the treatment couch to position at least one of the particle beam or the irradiation target for treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam and, following the treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam, to provide automated control of at least one of the movable device or the treatment couch to reposition at least one of the particle beam or the irradiation target for additional treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 17, 2021Publication date: December 2, 2021Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, James Cooley, Stanley J. Rosenthal
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Publication number: 20210274635Abstract: An example method includes: receiving, from a treatment planning process, information that is based on a dose distribution for an irradiation target; and performing at least one of the following operations: moving structures to trim spots of a particle beam so that the spots of the particle beam approximate pre-trimmed spots for which characteristics are obtained based on the information received; moving structures to produce a trimming curve for a layer of an irradiation target based on a specification of a trimming curve for the layer included in the information received; moving structures to produce a single trimming curve for all radiation fields of an irradiation target based on specifications of the single trimming curve included in the information received; or moving structures based on configuration information for the structures in the information received.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 12, 2021Publication date: September 2, 2021Inventors: James Cooley, Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Stanley J. Rosenthal, Mark R. Jones, Lionel G. Bouchet, Robert Cessac, Joseph Jachinowski
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Patent number: 11103730Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle beam output device to direct output of a particle beam; a treatment couch to support a patient containing an irradiation target, with the treatment couch being configured for movement; a movable device on which the particle beam output device is mounted for movement relative to the treatment couch; and a control system to provide automated control of at least one of the movable device or the treatment couch to position at least one of the particle beam or the irradiation target for treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam and, following the treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam, to provide automated control of at least one of the movable device or the treatment couch to reposition at least one of the particle beam or the irradiation target for additional treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam.Type: GrantFiled: February 23, 2017Date of Patent: August 31, 2021Assignee: MEVION MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, James Cooley, Stanley J. Rosenthal
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Patent number: 10925147Abstract: An example method includes: receiving, from a treatment planning process, information that is based on a dose distribution for an irradiation target; and performing at least one of the following operations: moving structures to trim spots of a particle beam so that the spots of the particle beam approximate pre-trimmed spots for which characteristics are obtained based on the information received; moving structures to produce a trimming curve for a layer of an irradiation target based on a specification of a trimming curve for the layer included in the information received; moving structures to produce a single trimming curve for all radiation fields of an irradiation target based on specifications of the single trimming curve included in the information received; or moving structures based on configuration information for the structures in the information received.Type: GrantFiled: July 7, 2017Date of Patent: February 16, 2021Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: James Cooley, Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Stanley J. Rosenthal, Mark R. Jones, Lionel G. Bouchet, Robert Cessac, Joseph Jachinowski
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Publication number: 20210038915Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam having a spot size; a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam in two dimensions across at least part of a treatment area of an irradiation target; and an adaptive aperture between the scanning system and the irradiation target. The adaptive aperture includes structures that are movable relative to the irradiation target to approximate a shape to trim part of the treatment area. The part of the treatment area has a size that is based on an area of the spot size.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 21, 2020Publication date: February 11, 2021Applicant: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, Miles S. Wagner, James Cooley, Eros Pedroni, Robert Silva
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Publication number: 20200368556Abstract: An example particle therapy system may include: a synchrocyclotron to produce a particle beam; a scanner to move the particle beam in one or more dimensions relative to an irradiation target; and an energy degrader that is between the scanner and the irradiation target. The energy degrader may include multiple plates that are movable relative to a path of the particle beam, with the multiple plates each being controllable to move while in the path of the particle beam and during movement of the particle beam. An aperture may be between the energy degrader and the irradiation target. The aperture being may be to trim the particle beam prior to the particle beam reaching the irradiation target.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 8, 2020Publication date: November 26, 2020Applicant: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, James Cooley, Adam Molzahn
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Patent number: 10786689Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam having a spot size; a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam in two dimensions across at least part of a treatment area of an irradiation target; and an adaptive aperture between the scanning system and the irradiation target. The adaptive aperture includes structures that are movable relative to the irradiation target to approximate a shape to trim part of the treatment area. The part of the treatment area has a size that is based on an area of the spot size.Type: GrantFiled: November 10, 2015Date of Patent: September 29, 2020Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, Miles S. Wagner, James Cooley, Eros Pedroni, Robert Silva
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Patent number: 10675487Abstract: An example particle therapy system may include: a synchrocyclotron to produce a particle beam; a scanner to move the particle beam in one or more dimensions relative to an irradiation target; and an energy degrader that is between the scanner and the irradiation target. The energy degrader may include multiple plates that are movable relative to a path of the particle beam, with the multiple plates each being controllable to move while in the path of the particle beam and during movement of the particle beam. An aperture may be between the energy degrader and the irradiation target. The aperture being may be to trim the particle beam prior to the particle beam reaching the irradiation target.Type: GrantFiled: January 5, 2017Date of Patent: June 9, 2020Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, James Cooley, Adam Molzahn
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Patent number: 10646728Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle accelerator to output a particle beam having a spot size; a scanning system for the particle accelerator to scan the particle beam in two dimensions across at least part of a treatment area of an irradiation target; and an adaptive aperture between the scanning system and the irradiation target. The adaptive aperture includes structures that are movable relative to the irradiation target to approximate a shape to trim part of the treatment area. The part of the treatment area has a size that is based on an area of the spot size.Type: GrantFiled: February 21, 2017Date of Patent: May 12, 2020Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, Miles S. Wagner, James Cooley, Eros Pedroni, Robert Silva
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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: 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: 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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Publication number: 20180236268Abstract: An example particle therapy system includes a particle beam output device to direct output of a particle beam; a treatment couch to support a patient containing an irradiation target, with the treatment couch being configured for movement; a movable device on which the particle beam output device is mounted for movement relative to the treatment couch; and a control system to provide automated control of at least one of the movable device or the treatment couch to position at least one of the particle beam or the irradiation target for treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam and, following the treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam, to provide automated control of at least one of the movable device or the treatment couch to reposition at least one of the particle beam or the irradiation target for additional treatment of the irradiation target with the particle beam.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 23, 2017Publication date: August 23, 2018Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, Mark R. Jones, James Cooley, Stanley J. Rosenthal
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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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Publication number: 20180043181Abstract: 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: ApplicationFiled: October 27, 2017Publication date: February 15, 2018Inventors: Gerrit Townsend Zwart, James Cooley, Ken Yoshiki Franzen, Mark R. Jones, Tao Li, Michael Busky
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Patent number: RE48317Abstract: A synchrocyclotron includes magnetic structures to provide a magnetic field to a cavity, a particle source to provide a plasma column to the cavity, where the particle source has a housing to hold the plasma column, and where the housing is interrupted at an acceleration region to expose the plasma column, and a voltage source to provide a radio frequency (RF) voltage to the cavity to accelerate particles from the plasma column at the acceleration region.Type: GrantFiled: March 1, 2017Date of Patent: November 17, 2020Assignee: Mevion Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth P. Gall, Gerrit Townsend Zwart