Abstract: The present invention relates to production of 2D digital images suitable for use in medical imaging. The invention particularly relates to remapping X-ray images taken from a first viewpoint so that they present the same image as seen from a second viewpoint. Remapping is achieved by registering separate 2D images taken from the first and second viewpoints of an area with a 3D scan volume of the same region to ascertain their relative viewpoints with respect to the 3D scan volume. The image taken with respect to the first viewpoint is then remapped to yield the image as seen from the second viewpoint.

Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer program code for automatically planning at least a part of a surgical procedure to be carried out on a body part of a patient are described. A virtual model of the body part is provided, in which the model has data associated with it representing at least a part of a planned surgical procedure. The virtual model is then morphed to the body part using data derived from the patient's real body part thereby also adapting the part of the planned surgical procedure to reflect the anatomy of the patient's real body part.

Abstract: A method is described for adapting 3D image datasets so that they can be registered and combined with 2D images of the same subject, wherein deformation or movement of parts of the subject has occurred between obtaining the 3D image and the 2D image. 2D-3D registrations of the images with respect to multiple features visible in both images are used to provide point correspondences between the images in order to provide an interpolation function that can be used to determine the position of a feature visible in the first image but not the second image and thus mark the location of the feature on the second image. Also described is apparatus for carrying out this method.

Abstract: An image generation method is described, comprising obtaining a plurality of 2D images through an object to be imaged, obtaining a 3D image data set of the object to be imaged, and registering the 2D images with the 3D image data set. The method then further includes defining an image reconstruction plane internal to the object, being the plane of an image to be reconstructed from the plurality of 2D images. Then, for a pixel in the image reconstruction plane, corresponding pixel values from the plurality of 2D images are mapped thereto, and the mapped pixel values are combined into a single value to give a value for the pixel in the image reconstruction plane. Another aspect of the method provides for clutter removal from the image. In a medical imaging context this can provide for “de-boned” images, allowing soft tissue to be more clearly seen.

Abstract: A method is described for adapting 3D image datasets so that they can be registered and combined with 2D images of the same subject, wherein deformation or movement of parts of the subject has occurred between obtaining the 3D image and the 2D image. 2D-3D registrations of the images with respect to multiple features visible in both images are used to provide point correspondences between the images in order to provide an interpolation function that can be used to determine the position of a feature visible in the first image but not the second image and thus mark the location of the feature on the second image. Also described is apparatus for carrying out this method.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention introduce the concept of a virtual fiducial marker (VFM). This marker will not be placed prior to preoperative imaging. It will therefore not initially appear in the preoperative 3D image. Instead, the marker will be virtually placed in the 3D data set prior to surgery, and as such the marker does not even need to be attached to the patient, if the patient is not expected to move during surgery. The idea behind such a VFM comes from the observation that there is a big variation in the difficulty of an image based registration depending on the quality of the images and their field of view. However, provided two initial registrations to high quality wide field of view images can be carried out, it then becomes possible to use these registrations to insert a virtual fiducial marker within the 3D preoperative image. Once inserted it may then be used to obtain a starting position for a registration procedure, and particularly to obtain in-plane translations.

Abstract: The present invention relates to production of 2D digital images suitable for use in medical imaging. The invention particularly relates to remapping X-ray images taken from a first viewpoint so that they present the same image as seen from a second viewpoint. Remapping is achieved by registering separate 2D images taken from the first and second viewpoints of an area with a 3D scan volume of the same region to ascertain their relative viewpoints with respect to the 3D scan volume. The image taken with respect to the first viewpoint is then remapped to yield the image as seen from the second viewpoint.

Abstract: An image generation method is described, comprising obtaining a plurality of 2D images through an object to be imaged, obtaining a 3D image data set of the object to be imaged, and registering the 2D images with the 3D image data set. The method then further includes defining an image reconstruction plane internal to the object, being the plane of an image to be reconstructed from the plurality of 2D images. Then, for a pixel in the image reconstruction plane, corresponding pixel values from the plurality of 2D images are mapped thereto, and the mapped pixel values are combined into a single value to give a value for the pixel in the image reconstruction plane. Another aspect of the method provides for clutter removal from the image. In a medical imaging context this can provide for “de-boned” images, allowing soft tissue to be more clearly seen.

Abstract: An image generation method is described, comprising obtaining a plurality of 2D images through an object to be imaged, obtaining a 3D image data set of the object to be imaged, and registering the 2D images with the 3D image data set. The method then further includes defining an image reconstruction plane internal to the object, being the plane of an image to be reconstructed from the plurality of 2D images. Then, for a pixel in the image reconstruction plane, corresponding pixel values from the plurality of 2D images are mapped thereto, and the mapped pixel values are combined into a single value to give a value for the pixel in the image reconstruction plane. Another aspect of the method provides for chatter removed from the image. In a medical imaging context this can provide for “de-boned” images, allowing soft tissue to be more clearly seen.

Abstract: An image generation method is described, comprising obtaining a plurality of 2D images through an object to be imaged, obtaining a 3D image data set of the object to be imaged, and registering the 2D images with the 3D image data set. The method then further includes defining an image reconstruction plane internal to the object, being the plane of an image to be reconstructed from the plurality of 2D images. Then, for a pixel in the image reconstruction plane, corresponding pixel values from the plurality of 2D images are mapped thereto, and the mapped pixel values are combined into a single value to give a value for the pixel in the image reconstruction plane. Another aspect of the method provides for clutter removal from the image. In a medical imaging context this can provide for “de-boned” images, allowing soft tissue to be more clearly seen.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide a system and method that is able to automatically provide a starting point for 2D to 3D image registration, without relying on human recognition of features shown in the 2D image. This is achieved by pre-processing the 3D data to obtain synthetically generated 2D images of those parts of the 3D data volume which will be used for registration purposes. Many different synthetically generated 2D images of the or each part of the 3D volume are produced, each from a different possible viewing direction. Each of these synthetic images is then subject to a feature extraction process to extract characterizing feature data of the registration feature shown in the images. Once the feature extraction has been undertaken for each image, when registration is to be performed the real-time 2D image is processed by applying each of the sets of extracted features thereto, to try and identify which set best matches the registration features in the 2D image.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention introduce the concept of a virtual fiducial marker (VFM). This marker will not be placed prior to preoperative imaging. It will therefore not initially appear in the preoperative 3D image. Instead, the marker will be virtually placed in the 3D data set prior to surgery, and as such the marker does not even need to be attached to the patient, if the patient is not expected to move during surgery. The idea behind such a VFM comes from the observation that there is a big variation in the difficulty of an image based registration depending on the quality of the images and their field of view. However, provided two initial registrations to high quality wide field of view images can be carried out, it then becomes possible to use these registrations to insert a virtual fiducial marker within the 3D preoperative image. Once inserted it may then be used to obtain a starting position for a registration procedure, and particularly to obtain in-plane translations.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide a system and method that is able to automatically provide a starting point for 2D to 3D image registration, without relying on human recognition of features shown in the 2D image. This is achieved by pre-processing the 3D data to obtain synthetically generated 2D images of those parts of the 3D data volume which will be used for registration purposes. Many different synthetically generated 2D images of the or each part of the 3D volume are produced, each from a different possible viewing direction. Each of these synthetic images is then subject to a feature extraction process to extract characterising feature data of the registration feature shown in the images. Once the feature extraction has been undertaken for each image, when registration is to be performed the real-time 2D image is processed by applying each of the sets of extracted features thereto, to try and identify which set best matches the registration features in the 2D image.

Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer program code for automatically planning at least a part of a surgical procedure to be carried out on a body part of a patient are described. A virtual model of the body part is provided, in which the model has data associated with it representing at least a part of a planned surgical procedure. The virtual model is then morphed to the body part using data derived from the patient's real body part thereby also adapting the part of the planned surgical procedure to reflect the anatomy of the patient's real body part.