Patents by Inventor Qingmao Hu

Qingmao Hu 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).

  • Publication number: 20080273772
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are methods, computer systems and computer program products for labeling components. One method includes the step of labeling (130) with a current label all voxels that are internal to a predetermined sub-volume oriented with respect to an unlabeled voxel, and directly connected to the unmarked voxel. The labeling step is repeated for all voxels that are not internal to the predetermined sub-volume, but which are labeled with a current label. The method includes the step of incrementing the current label and may include the step of increasing a window size to a predetermined maximum. The preceding steps are repeated for remaining unlabeled object voxels.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 7, 2006
    Publication date: November 6, 2008
    Applicant: Agency for Science, Technology and Research
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Wieslaw Lucjan Nowinski, Guoyu Qian
  • Patent number: 7409085
    Abstract: A method of determining symmetry in an image, a method of determining a symmetry plane line segment of a 3D image, a method of determining a symmetry line of a 2D image, and a computer program product. The method includes a) determining at least one searching line segment within a predefined search area of an image portion, the at least one searching line segment including a reference point (x, y) at its center and an angle ? with respect to a predetermined axis of the image portion; b) for each searching line segment, determining a first local characteristic in accordance with a measurement at points adjacent the searching line segment; c) determining the symmetry in the image in accordance with a calculation based on the first local characteristic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2008
    Assignee: Kent Ridge Digital Labs
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Wieslaw Lucjan Nowinski
  • Publication number: 20070280518
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for identifying pathology in a brain image comprises the steps of firstly determining the location of the midsagittal plane (MSP) of the brain illustrated in the image under examination by identifying the symmetry of the two hemispheres based on the determination of up to 16 approximated fissure line segments (AFLSs). Those AFLSs with a larger angular deviation from the MSP than a predefined threshold are considered as outlier AFLSs while the rest are taken as inlier AFLSs. The ratio of the number of the outlier AFLSs to the number of inlier AFLSs is then calculated. A comparison of the ratio with a further predetermined threshold value is made and if the ratio exceeds the further predetermined threshold value, pathology is present in the brain image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 12, 2003
    Publication date: December 6, 2007
    Inventors: Wieslaw Nowinski, Qingmao Hu
  • Publication number: 20070122033
    Abstract: A method is proposed for binarising an image by deriving an intensity threshold and classifying pixels according to whether their intensity is below or above the threshold. In the derivation of the threshold, prior konwledge is used to define a region of interest (ROI) in the image. Furthermore, prior knowledge is used to select a range in the frequency distribution of the intensities of the pixels in the ROI, and that only data within this frequency range is used to derive the threshold. These techniques provide a highly effective mechanism for incorporating prior knowledge into the threshold selection which is critical whether the image is a medical image or not. In particular, a threshold can be found to binarise images which exhibits high robustness to imaging artefacts such a gray level inhomogeneity and noise.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2004
    Publication date: May 31, 2007
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Zujun Hou, Wieslaw Nowinski
  • Publication number: 20060270926
    Abstract: Methods, computer systems, and computer program products for segmenting tissue based upon image data representing brain tissue are disclosed. In the method, image data representing brain tissue is reformatted to a predetermined spatial orientation. Spatial statistics relating to spatial features of the represented brain tissue are determined. The represented brain tissue is classified within categories of white matter, gray matter and cerebrospinal fluid. A region of interest in the represented brain tissue classified as cerebrospinal fluid is identified. The represented brain tissue proximate the identified region is segmented using a region-growing technique based on the identified region of interest.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 7, 2006
    Publication date: November 30, 2006
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Wieslaw Nowinski, Zujun Hou, Wei Zuo, Wenlong Qian
  • Publication number: 20060251310
    Abstract: A method is disclosed for obtaining the location of a landmark in an MR image of a brain. In a first step, a region of interest in a plane within the MR image containing the landmark is defined. In a second step, the ROI is binarised into foreground and background voxels based on at least one threshold selected using anatomical knowledge. In a third step a set of object voxels is identified from the foreground voxels, excluding voxels which were only classified as object due to proximity of cortical and non-cortical structures. This can be done by morphological processing which reclassifies voxels which may have been incorrectly classified as object, followed by restoring voxels due to the partial volume effect and/or morphological erosion/opening. In a fourth step, an automatic process is then carried out to identify one or more landmarks in the modified binarised image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 26, 2004
    Publication date: November 9, 2006
    Applicant: Agency for Science, Technology and Research
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Wieslaw Nowinski
  • Publication number: 20060241900
    Abstract: A functional model for a set of experimental data has K independent parameters. The parameters are to be estimated from an experimental data-set of N data points, comprising “inlier” data points representative of the model and “outlier” data points which are not representative of the model. Multiple subsets of the data points are defined, and each used to estimate the parameters of the model. The various estimates of the parameters are plotted in the parameter space to identify the peak parameters in the parameter space. Data points which are not described by the model using the said peak parameters are judged to be outliers. The method makes it possible to identify up to N?K??3 outliers (K? is the minimum number of data points through any subset of the input data set the K parameters of the model can be uniquely calculated).
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 11, 2002
    Publication date: October 26, 2006
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Wieslaw Nowinski
  • Publication number: 20060239519
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for extracting a cerebral ventricular system from images of one or more cerebral ventricular regions comprises defining multiple regions of interest (ROI) in the images, defining seed points within each ROI, growing images of ventricular regions while correcting for leakages into extraventricular space and connecting the ventricular regions grown
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2003
    Publication date: October 26, 2006
    Applicant: Agency for Science, Technology and Research
    Inventors: Wieslaw Nowinski, Yan Xia, Aamer Aziz, Qingmao Hu
  • Publication number: 20060182321
    Abstract: A method for extracting third ventricle information from images of a plurality of axial slices of a third ventricle of a brain comprises determining a midline for each of a number of the axial slices, determining the orientation of each of the midlines, generating a histogram of the orientations of the midlines, determining the peak of the histogram to provide a peak orientation, selecting the midlines having an orientation within a predetermined angle from the peak orientation and calculating the third ventricle plane from the midlines having an orientation within the predetermined angle from the peak orientation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 6, 2004
    Publication date: August 17, 2006
    Applicant: AGENCY FOR SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND RESEARCH
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Aamer Aziz, Wieslaw Nowinski
  • Publication number: 20040240753
    Abstract: The present invention is suitable for use in determining symmetry in images, namely 2D images or 3D images, which comprise 2D images slices. In a preferred form, a method is disclosed for extracting a midsagittal plane MSP of human brains from radiological images. The method includes the steps of: 1) determining axial slices to be processed from said radiological images; 2) analysing said axial slices to determine fissure line segments; and 3) calculating plane equation of MSP from said fissure line segments.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 15, 2004
    Publication date: December 2, 2004
    Inventors: Qingmao Hu, Wieslaw Lucian Nowinski
  • Publication number: 20040091143
    Abstract: A method is disclosed for determining skeletons of any two dimensional images and three-dimensional skeletons of vessel trees. In the three dimensional case, the method takes a binary volume of any vessel tree as input and produces centred, connected and one-voxel wide skeleton of the input vessel tree. In the two dimensional case, centred, connected and one-pixel wide skeletons of input binary images are produced. The method includes the steps of: (1) calculating a 3D/2D distance transform, (2) locating local maximum voxels/pixels, one-voxels/pixel, (3) propagating skeletal elements to get a full set of skeletal elements, and (4) removing redundant local maximum voxels/pixels to obtain a one-voxel/pixel wide skeleton.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 16, 2003
    Publication date: May 13, 2004
    Inventor: Qingmao Hu
  • Publication number: 20030176783
    Abstract: One aspect of the present invention relates to a method of determining the presence of impingement between at least first and second bodies.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 6, 2003
    Publication date: September 18, 2003
    Inventor: Qingmao Hu