Abstract: An image processing and reproducing apparatus comprises an image signal output device for outputting an image signal representing an image, a plurality of image displaying devices, each of which reproduces a visible image from the received image signal and displays the visible image, and a transmission line for transmitting the image signal, which has been outputted from the image signal output device, to the plurality of the image displaying devices. The image signal output device is provided with a first image processing section for carrying out principal image processing on an original image signal representing an original image. Each of the image displaying devices is provided with a second image processing section for carrying out necessary image processing, which is other than the principal image processing, on an image signal, which has been obtained from the principal image processing. The image processing and image displaying are thereby carried out quickly, and the cost of the apparatus is kept low.

Abstract: An image is reproduced on a light emission display system such as a CRT by use of an image signal obtained from the image. The image to be reproduced is an image which is taken by use of an irradiation field stop and the image signal is obtained from the image in such a manner that image signal components obtained from an area outside the irradiation field becomes lower in signal level than those obtained from the area inside the irradiation field. The image is reproduced as a visible image on the light emission display system according to gradation properties where the brightness level of a picture element becomes higher as the level of the image signal component for the picture element becomes lower. A picture element the signal level of the image signal component for which is not higher than a predetermined threshold value is displayed at a brightness within a predetermined lowest brightness level range.

Abstract: A first image signal representing a radiation image of an object is obtained by exposing a stimulable phosphor sheet, on which the radiation image has been stored, to stimulating rays, which cause the stimulable phosphor sheet to emit light in proportion to the amount of energy stored thereon during its exposure to radiation, the emitted light being detected. A second image signal representing the radiation image is thereafter obtained by again exposing the stimulable phosphor sheet to stimulating rays, the light emitted by the stimulable phosphor sheet being detected. Read-out conditions, under which the second image signal is to be obtained, and/or image processing conditions, under which the second image signal having been obtained is to be image processed, are adjusted on the basis of the first image signal. A storage device stores information representing a standard pattern of radiation images.

Abstract: Two radiation images of a single object, which comprises a soft tissue and a bone tissue, are formed respectively with two kinds of radiation having different energy distributions, the two radiation images being to be subjected to energy subtraction processing. The energy subtraction processing is carried out on the two radiation images, and a bone image, in which the pattern of the bone tissue in the object has been extracted or emphasized, is thereby formed. Numerical information concerning the density of the bone constituent is obtained in accordance with the bone image. A bone trabecula pattern emphasizing process is carried out on the bone image, and information representing the form of bone trabeculae is thereby obtained.

Abstract: A signal is quantized, and a quantized signal is thereby obtained. The quantized signal is separated into a binary signal, which represents whether the signal values of the quantized signal are equal to zero or are other than zero, and a sign and intensity signal, which is constituted of a sign and intensity with respect to signal components of the quantized signal having signal values other than zero. The binary signal is converted such that the information of the binary signal, which represents N number of picture elements, may be converted into a signal, which represents a single picture element and is composed of Nnumber of bits. The converted binary signal, which has been obtained from the conversion, the sign and intensity signal are then encoded. The encoding efficiency is thereby enhanced, and the amount of the signal after being encoded is kept small.

Abstract: An abnormal pattern detecting apparatus comprises a device for finding prospective abnormal patterns in a radiation image of an object from an image signal representing the radiation image, and a device for finding anatomical information about the object from the image signal. From the image signal components of the image signal, which represent the image information at positions in the vicinity of each prospective abnormal pattern, a characteristic measure calculating device calculates a plurality of characteristic measures for each prospective abnormal pattern. An abnormal pattern finding device utilizes the characteristic measures and the anatomical information in order to find a true abnormal pattern from the prospective abnormal patterns.

Abstract: A first image signal representing a radiation image of an object is obtained by exposing a stimulable phosphor sheet, on which the radiation image has been stored, to stimulating rays, which cause the stimulable phosphor sheet to emit light in proportion to the amount of energy stored thereon during its exposure to radiation, the emitted light being detected. A second image signal representing the radiation image is thereafter obtained by again exposing the stimulable phosphor sheet to stimulating rays, the light emitted by the stimulable phosphor sheet being detected. Read-out conditions, under which the second image signal is to be obtained, and/or image processing conditions, under which the second image signal having been obtained is to be image processed, are adjusted on the basis of the first image signal. A storage device stores information representing a standard pattern of radiation images.

Abstract: A filtering process is carried out on an original image, which is constituted of a lattice-like array of picture elements, that are located at predetermined intervals along the rows and columns of the lattice-like array, by using a mask having a predetermined size and with respect to each of the picture elements of the original image. The mean value of the values of picture elements falling within the mask is calculated with the filtering process, and a smoothed image represented by the thus calculated mean values is thereby obtained. The filtering process is carried out repeatedly on the smoothed image. Processing for emphasizing high frequency components of the original image is then carried out in accordance with the smoothed image, which has thereby been obtained. A processed image, in which an artifact is not perceptible, is thereby obtained.

Abstract: From an image signal made up of a series of image signal components representing a radiation image, an abnormal pattern appearing as an approximately circular pattern in the radiation image is detected. A first finding device finds a prospective abnormal pattern appearing in the radiation image by processing the image signal with a first filter capable of finding an approximately circular pattern. A second finding device finds a linear pattern appearing in the radiation image by processing the image signal with a second filter capable of finding a linear pattern or a linear pattern the width and the length of which are approximately equal to each other. A judgment device selects an enlarged prospective abnormal pattern region in an image area, in which both the prospective abnormal pattern and the linear pattern have been found, the enlarged prospective abnormal pattern region including the prospective abnormal pattern and extending to parts around the prospective abnormal pattern.

Abstract: From an image signal made up of a series of image signal components representing a radiation image, an abnormal pattern appearing as an approximately circular pattern in the radiation image is detected. A first finding device finds a prospective abnormal pattern appearing in the radiation image by processing the image signal with a first filter capable of finding an approximately circular pattern. A second finding device finds a linear pattern appearing in the radiation image by processing the image signal with a second filter capable of finding a linear pattern or a linear pattern the width and the length of which are approximately equal to each other. A judgment device selects an enlarged prospective abnormal pattern region in an image area, in which both the prospective abnormal pattern and the linear pattern have been found, the enlarged prospective abnormal pattern region including the prospective abnormal pattern and extending to parts around the prospective abnormal pattern.

Abstract: A first image signal representing a radiation image of an object is obtained by exposing a stimulable phosphor sheet, on which the radiation image has been stored, to stimulating rays, which cause the stimulable phosphor sheet to emit light in proportion to the amount of energy stored thereon during its exposure to radiation, the emitted light being detected. A second image signal representing the radiation image is thereafter obtained by again exposing the stimulable phosphor sheet to stimulating rays, the light emitted by the stimulable phosphor sheet being detected. Read-out conditions, under which the second image signal is to be obtained, and/or image processing conditions, under which the second image signal having been obtained is to be image processed, are adjusted on the basis of the first image signal. A storage device stores information representing a standard pattern of radiation images.

Abstract: An apparatus for storing weight coefficients for a multi-layer neural network is disclosed, wherein information representing connection coefficients is stored which represent strengths of connections between neurons of a multi-layer neural network constituted of an input layer, an intermediate layer, and an output layer, each of the input layer, the intermediate layer, and the output layer being composed of at least a single neuron.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for forming an energy subtraction image comprises recording a plurality of radiation images of an object on recording media by irradiating several kinds of radiation with different energy levels to the object, which is constituted of a plurality of tissues exhibiting different levels of radiation absorptivity with respect to the several kinds of radiation with different energy levels, and then detecting a plurality of original image signals representing the plurality of the radiation images. A first image signal, which represents a first image primarily composed of patterns of first tissues of the object, is generated from the plurality of the original image signals. A first smoothed image signal is generated by processing the first image signal, the first smoothed image signal representing a first smoothed image in which noise components of the first image have been reduced or eliminated.

Abstract: With a method for compressing a dynamic range of an image, the value of an unsharp mask signal Sus corresponding to each of picture elements in an original image is calculated by averaging the values of image signal components of an original image signal Sorg representing the original image, which image signal components represent the picture elements belonging to a predetermined region surrounding each of the picture elements. The original image signal Sorg is then processed with the formulaSproc=Sorg+f.sub.1 (Sus)where f.sub.1 (Sus) represents a function, the value of which decreases monotonously as the value of the unsharp mask signal Sus increases, and the values of a processed image signal Sproc representing an image having a narrower dynamic range than the original image is thereby generated. The method comprises the steps of calculating the contrast of the original image signal Sorg from the values of the original image signal Sorg, and determining a signal range, to which the function f.sub.

Abstract: A tube voltage, at which each of at least two kinds of radiation having different energy levels is produced, is adjusted such that a ratio between a change in the image density of bones, which change occurs due to a beam hardening phenomenon of the radiation having a high energy level, and a change in the image density of the bones, which change occurs due to a beam hardening phenomenon of the radiation having a low energy level, may become approximately equal to a ratio between subtraction factors employed in a subtraction process. Each of at least two kinds of the radiation, each of which has been produced at the thus adjusted tube voltage, is irradiated to one of at least two stimulable phosphor sheets, and radiation images of the object are thereby stored on the stimulable phosphor sheets. The radiation images are then photoelectrically read out, and digital image signals are thereby obtained.

Abstract: In energy subtraction processing, a filter for filtering out radiation having a low energy level is located between first and second recording media. Radiation, which has passed through an object, is irradiated from the side of the first recording medium such that only the radiation having a high energy level may impinge upon the second recording medium, radiation images of the object being thereby recorded on the two recording media. Image signals representing the radiation images are subtracted from each other, and an image signal representing an energy subtraction image is thereby obtained. The subtraction process is not carried out on high frequency components of the image signals representing the radiation images and is carried out only on low frequency components of the image signals such that an image signal representing an energy subtraction image having improved graininess may be obtained. A stimulable phosphor sheet is utilized as the filter for filtering out radiation having a low energy level.

Abstract: A method for adjusting conditions comprises the steps of, when a radiation image of a specific object is recorded and read out, investigating whether recording and read-out operations were or were not carried out in the past for the same object as the specific object. When recording and read-out operations were carried out in the past for the same object as the specific object, image recording conditions for the specific object are adjusted such that they coincide with those under which the recording operation was carried out for the same object as the specific object.

Abstract: In image signal storing method and apparatus, a continuous tone image signal representing a continuous tone image and a binary image signal representing a binary image, which carries information giving specifics about the continuous tone image, are obtained. A redundancy imparting process is carried out on the binary image signal in accordance with irreversible signal compression processing such that the information represented by the binary image signal may not be reduced when the irreversible signal compression processing is carried out. Thereafter part of the continuous tone image signal, which part corresponds to part of the region in the continuous tone image, is replaced by the binary image signal, which has been obtained from the redundancy imparting process. The irreversible signal compression processing is then carried out on an image signal, which has been obtained from the replacement. An image signal, which has been obtained from the irreversible signal compression processing, is then stored.

Abstract: Radiation images are recorded with several kinds of radiation having different energy distributions and having passed through an object and a bone calcium reference material composed of sections simulating amounts of bone calcium varying step-wise, the object being constituted of bones and soft tissues. A bone image, in which only the patterns of the bones are formed or emphasized, is formed from the radiation images. A difference between a mean value of image signal components, which represent part of the pattern of each section of the bone calcium reference material in the bone image, and a mean value of background signal components, which represent areas in the vicinity of the pattern of each section of the bone calcium reference material, is calculated.

Abstract: In a radiation image processing apparatus, signal processing for determining the shape and location of an irradiation field, adjusting read-out conditions for a final readout from a preliminary read-out image signal, adjusting image processing conditions, and/or detecting an abnormal pattern is carried out on an image signal representing a radiation image by using a neural network. After the neural network, the learning operations of which have been carried out, is incorporated into the radiation image processing apparatus, modifying information is entered from an input device into the neural network. The modifying information is used to modify the signal processing carried out by the neural network and thereby to carry out re-learning operations of the neural network.