Producing Difference Image (e.g., Angiography) Patents (Class 382/130)
  • Patent number: 9317918
    Abstract: An apparatus for medical diagnostic imaging assistance includes memory that stores first feature information representing the feature of a lesion mask or non-lesion mask, a sampling unit that acquires a plurality of samples by making sampling form the memory based on the first feature information, a machine-learning unit that generates a first discrimination condition corresponding to each of samples by carrying out a machine-learning step on the multiple samples, and a statistical processing unit that generates a second discrimination condition by carrying out a statistical processing step under the first discrimination condition, in which a detection function determines whether a lesion candidate mask is an actual lesion by referring to second feature information representing the feature of a lesion candidate mask under a second discrimination condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2016
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Miyamoto, Junichi Miyakoshi
  • Patent number: 9311570
    Abstract: An apparatus for segmentation of medical image data comprises a data processing unit for obtaining a first set of image data and a second set of image data, wherein a structure is represented in both the first set of image data and the second set of image data, a classification unit configured to determine a classification of a first type of feature from the first set of image data and to determine a classification of a second type of feature from the second set of image data, and a segmentation unit configured to identify image data representing the structure in dependence on both the classification of the first type of feature from the first set of image data and the classification of the second type of feature from the second set of image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2016
    Assignees: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA, TOSHIBA MEDICAL SYSTEMS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Brian Mohr, Marco Razeto
  • Patent number: 9305334
    Abstract: Apparatus and methods are described for use with an input angiogram image of a device inserted inside a portion of subject's body, the angiogram image being acquired in the presence of contrast agent. At least one processor (11) includes background-image-generation functionality (13) configured to generate a background image in which a relative value is assigned to a first pixel with respect to a second pixel, at least partially based upon relative values of surroundings of the first pixel and the surroundings of the second pixel in the input image. Cleaned-image-generation functionality (14) generates a cleaned image in which visibility of the radiopaque portions of the device is increased relative to the input image, by dividing the input image by the background image. Output-generation functionality (15) drives a display (16) to display an output based upon the cleaned image. Other applications are also described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2016
    Assignee: SYNC-RX, LTD.
    Inventors: Zohar Barzelay, Ran Cohen, David Tolkowsky
  • Patent number: 9299137
    Abstract: An image processing device includes: a candidate abnormal region determining unit that determines a candidate abnormal region from an image using a first determination criterion; a bubble region determining unit that determines a bubble region from the image; a bubble inside determining unit that determines whether the candidate abnormal region is present inside the bubble region based on a determination result of the bubble region; and an abnormal region determining unit that determines whether the candidate abnormal region is an abnormal region using a second determination criterion different from the first determination criterion when the candidate abnormal region is determined to be present inside the bubble region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: OLYMPUS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Makoto Kitamura, Yamato Kanda, Takehiro Matsuda, Takashi Kono, Masashi Hirota
  • Patent number: 9275455
    Abstract: A method for improving the detection of low-contrast and narrow width vessels comprising combining matched-filter responses with that of directional filter bank. A given vessel is characterized by having an elongated structure with a specific width and direction. Matched filters are designed in the form of elliptical second-order Gaussian derivatives at various scales, catering for vessels of widely varying widths. On the other hand, the directional filter bank helps in identifying the orientation of the vessels. Thus, combining both in complementary manner results is an improved response for vessels with varying width and varying direction. Results comparing this hybrid approach to matched filter and directional filter bank alone show substantial improvements both qualitatively and quantitatively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: EFFAT UNIVERSITY
    Inventor: Mohammed Asmatullah Khan
  • Patent number: 9265474
    Abstract: A histogram of pixel values in a difference image between a post-injection X-ray image and composite image is generated. A histogram of pixel values in a difference image between a pre-injection X-ray image and the composite image is generated. From the difference between the histograms, information on pixel values in a region where a radiopaque dye is imaged in the difference image between the post-injection X-ray image and composite image is collected. Pixel values in the difference image between the post-injection X-ray image and composite image are converted by using the collected information, and the converted difference image is output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2016
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Yoshihito Machida
  • Patent number: 9259204
    Abstract: An ultrasound diagnostic apparatus is provided. The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus includes an input device configured to receive an input to display a cross-section of a reference medical image, wherein the reference medical image identifies a location of the cross-section in relation to a subject, and includes a characteristic region, and a reference medical image display control device configured to display the cross-section of the reference medical image based on volume data of the reference medical image previously acquired, the cross-section displayed according to the input.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Tsutomu Yawata
  • Patent number: 9256966
    Abstract: Featured are methods and systems to multiparametric non-linear dimension reduction (NLDR) methods for segmentation and classification of radiological images. Such methods for segmentation and classification of radiological images, includes pre-processing of acquired image data; and reconstructing the acquired image data using a non-linear dimension reduction technique so as to yield an embedded image representing all of the acquired, where the acquired image data comprises a plurality of different sets of image data of the same region of interest. Such NLDR methods and systems are particularly suitable for the ability to combine multiple input images into a single unit for increased specificity of diagnosis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: The Johns Hopkins University
    Inventors: Michael A. Jacobs, Alireza Akhbardeh
  • Patent number: 9232925
    Abstract: An X-ray diagnostic apparatus includes a peak frequency detector detecting a peak frequency of a first harmonic in a moiré pattern of a grid in an image; a harmonic remover removing the first harmonic and a second harmonic in the moiré pattern from the image in accordance with the peak frequency of the first harmonic to obtain a first and second harmonic removed image; a harmonic extracting-filter generating unit calculating a peak frequency of a third harmonic in the moiré pattern in accordance with the peak frequency of the first harmonic to generate a harmonic extracting filter to extract the third harmonic; a harmonic extracting unit extracting the third harmonic from the first and second harmonic removed image based on the harmonic extracting filter; and a harmonic subtracting unit subtracting the extracted third harmonic from the first and second harmonic removed image to obtain a third harmonic removed image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2016
    Assignee: SHIMADZU CORPORATION
    Inventor: Naoki Hasegawa
  • Patent number: 9216008
    Abstract: Systems and methods using contrast enhanced ultrasound imaging for quantitative assessment of neovascularization, such as within a tumor or a plaque. The contrast agent moves in small blotches rather than in continuous flow, but image processing methods enable the detection and quantification of the blood flow, even in the tiny blood vessels of the vasculature tree. The image processing includes compensation for motion of the tissue arising from body movement. The position and extent of the discrete positions of contrast material may be accumulating during a complete heart cycle onto a single 2D image, to enable an indication of a vascular tree based on this local accumulated image. Dynamic processing (DP) of the discrete positions of contrast material enables a complete vascular tree to be obtained. The neovascularization is quantified by the ratio of its total area to that of the plaque in which the neovascularization has grown.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 22, 2015
    Assignee: Technion Research & Development Foundation Limited
    Inventors: Assaf Hoogi, Avinoam Bar-Zion, Dan Adam
  • Patent number: 9202140
    Abstract: Described herein is a technology for facilitating classification of an object. In one implementation, at least one quotient appearance manifold mapping is constructed from a sample image to untangle appearance fiber bundles. A feature characteristic of the sample image may then be extracted based on the quotient appearance manifold mapping. A classifier may further be trained based on the extracted feature, and adapted for associating the object with an object class.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshihisa Shinagawa, Yuping Lin, Gerardo Hermosillo Valadez, Bing Jian
  • Patent number: 9202272
    Abstract: An apparatus and method process image data, including motion corrupted data, from a magnetic resonance imaging procedure to obtain and reconstruct images for cardiac, cardiovascular, coronary arterial, and/or pulmonary vein diagnoses in a subject. The apparatus and method include a processor operating predetermined software which receives the image data, classifies the received image data as accepted image data or rejected image data, and applies a predetermined relationship between the accepted image data and the rejected image data to correct for motion of the subject and to generate and output a reconstructed image of the subject corrected for the motion from the image data, with the reconstructed image having a relatively high signal-to-noise ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2015
    Assignee: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Inc. (BIDMC, INC.)
    Inventors: Mehmet Akcakaya, Jaime L Shaw, Reza Nezafat, Sebastien Roujol
  • Patent number: 9109998
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method for generating a panoramic image of a region of interest (ROI) which is larger than a field of a view of a radiation based imaging device, comprising, positioning markers along the ROI, acquiring a set of images along the ROI, wherein the acquired images have at least partially overlapping portions, aligning at least two separate images by aligning a common marker found in both images and compensating for a difference between a distance from a radiation source to the marker element and the distance from the radiation source to a plane of interest.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: ORTHOPEDIC NAVIGATION LTD.
    Inventors: Ram Nathaniel, Dan Rappaport, Ishay Goldin
  • Patent number: 9109194
    Abstract: When multiple kinds of bacterial colonies are present in a petri dish and, for example, a drug tolerance is to be measured, harvesting of mixed colonies of different types of bacteria makes it impossible to accurately determine the drug tolerance. Also, it is required to improve the throughput of a device for harvesting a bacterial colony. From images illuminated from multiple directions, isolating bacterial colonies are automatically extracted. Next, the image feature amounts are calculated from the multiple images that are illuminated from multiple directions and colonies are grouped depending on the feature amounts. Then, bacterial colonies to be harvested are determined based on the results of the grouping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: HITACHI HIGH-TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toshifumi Honda, Hiroko Fujita, Muneo Maeshima, Akira Maekawa, Yoshiko Ishida, Yuta Urano, Shinya Murakami
  • Patent number: 9087373
    Abstract: A Computer-Aided Diagnosis (CAD) apparatus for correctly detecting a nodule is provided. The CAD apparatus includes an input device for receiving a first image captured by emitting X-rays towards a user and a second image that is discriminated from the first image and is an image of the user; an information acquisition device for acquiring a bone model of the user by using the second image; and a CAD device for compensating for the first image by using the bone model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Ki-won Sohn, Ho-kyung Kang, Young-yoon Lee, Young-ho Moon, Hae-kyung Jung
  • Patent number: 9081882
    Abstract: Embodiments include a system for determining cardiovascular information for a patient. The system may include at least one computer system configured to receive patient-specific data regarding a geometry of the patient's heart, and create a three-dimensional model representing at least a portion of the patient's heart based on the patient-specific data. The at least one computer system may be further configured to create a physics-based model relating to a blood flow characteristic of the patient's heart and determine a fractional flow reserve within the patient's heart based on the three-dimensional model and the physics-based model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: HeartFlow, Inc
    Inventor: Charles A. Taylor
  • Patent number: 9058688
    Abstract: A method for processing a sequence of a plurality of 2D projection images of an object of interest, acquired with a medical imaging system comprising a source of X-rays adapted to move around the object is provided. The method comprises obtaining 2D projection images of the object of interest according to a plurality of angulations at a first time when the object is without injection of a contrast product; obtaining 2D projection images of the object of interest according to a plurality of angulations at a second time when the object is opacified by injection of a contrast product iteratively treating the projection images by minimizing relative to a sequence of 3D images, wherein the minimizing solution is a set of estimated 3D images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2015
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Hélène Langet, Cyril Riddell
  • Patent number: 9047664
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for utilizing mammogram images for verification, including obtaining one or more mammogram image of a patient; determining a first set of breast characteristics from the one or more mammogram image, wherein the first set of breast characteristics include breast landmark, breast tissue density, tissue pattern and breast finding; comparing the first set of breast characteristics with a second set of breast characteristics to yield a comparison, wherein the second set of breast characteristics is from one or more previous mammogram image identified as potentially belonging to the patient using an identification not related to content of a mammogram image; and determining based on the comparison whether the one or more previous mammogram image belongs to the patient.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Inventor: Kathryn Pearson Peyton
  • Publication number: 20150146949
    Abstract: A system and method are provided for reconstructing images from limited or incomplete data, such as few view data or limited angle data or truncated data generated from divergent beams. The method and apparatus may iteratively constrain the variation of an estimated image in order to reconstruct the image. To reconstruct an image, a first estimated image may be generated. Estimated data may be generated from the first estimated image, and compared with the actual data. The comparison of the estimated data with the actual data may include determining a difference between the estimated and actual data. The comparison may then be used to generate a new estimated image. For example, the first estimated image may be combined with an image generated from the difference data to generate a new estimated image. To generate the image for the next iteration, the variation of the new estimated image may be constrained.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 29, 2014
    Publication date: May 28, 2015
    Inventors: Xiaochuan M. Pan, Emil Sidky, Chien-min Kao
  • Patent number: 9042623
    Abstract: Systems and methods for processing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data are provided. A method includes receiving MRI data comprising a plurality of k-space points and deriving a plurality of image data sets based on the MRI data, each of the plurality of MRI image sets obtained by zeroing a different one of the plurality of k-space points. The method further includes computing image space metric values for each of the plurality of image data sets and adjusting a portion of the MRI data associated with ones of the image space metric values that fail to meet a threshold value to yield adjusted MRI data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2015
    Assignee: Vanderbilt University
    Inventors: David S. Smith, Edward B. Welch
  • Patent number: 9036899
    Abstract: A method and system for volumetric quantification of local bone changes includes the steps of loading at least a first and second (cone-beam) computed tomography three dimensional image, registering the first three dimensional image and second three dimensional image to one coordinate system, selecting a region of interest in one of the first three dimensional image or the second three dimensional image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignee: KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN
    Inventor: Bart Vandenberghe
  • Patent number: 9031295
    Abstract: An angiographic method is provided. The method includes: identification of a relevant part in acquired angiography 4D sequences which exhibit a vascular disorder or change; determination of a centerline for the part; ascertainment of lines parallel and surrounding the centerline; specification of perpendicular cross-sections; determination of voxels; ascertainment of bolus curves as a function of time for each voxel; which intersects one of the cross-sections; determination of a time for each voxel; measurement of the true Euclidean distance between voxels at the positions along the centerline and the parallel lines; division of the measured distance by the time difference; determination of second speed components, running transversely, proportional to the relative change in mass for each voxel; and calculation of the blood flow in the relevant part of the vascular system on the basis of the speed components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventor: Klaus Klingenbeck
  • Patent number: 9025862
    Abstract: A method for matching the pixels (10-1, 10-2) of a first range image of a scene (18) as seen from a first point of sight (14) with pixels (12-1, 12-2) of a second range image of the scene as seen from a second point of sight (16) comprises the following steps: providing the first range image as a grid of source pixels (10), on which the scene is mapped in accordance with a first projection associated with the first point of sight, wherein each source pixel has a point in the scene projected thereon in accordance with the first projection and has associated therewith a range value determined for that point in the scene; providing a grid of target pixels (12) for the second range image and a second projection associated with the second point of sight; and for each one of the target pixels, a) determining which source pixel would have the same point (P1, P2) in the scene projected thereon in accordance with the first projection as the target pixel would have projected thereon in accordance with the second projec
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2015
    Assignee: IEE International Electronics & Engineering S.A.
    Inventors: Frederic Garcia Becerro, Bruno Mirbach
  • Patent number: 9025840
    Abstract: A method and an apparatus for motion visualization of a moving object in angiographic images are described. In a preferred embodiment of the method, first a mask image of the object of interest is acquired and a sequence of angiographic images of the object in different phases of motion of the object is acquired. Then, a first angiographic subtraction image and at least a second angiographic subtraction image are generated by subtracting the angiographic images from the mask image. Subsequently, a twice subtracted image is generated by subtracting the first angiographic subtraction image from the second angiographic subtraction image. In this way a double subtraction, i.e. a twice subtracted angiography is performed, to facilitate the assessment of the motion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2015
    Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
    Inventors: Irina Waechter-Stehle, Alexandra Groth, Ronaldus Petrus Johannes Hermans, Matthias Bertram
  • Patent number: 9026191
    Abstract: In a method and device for automatic determination of a flow of a bodily fluid within vessels of an organism by a magnetic resonance, a magnetic resonance angiography to procedure is implemented generate magnetic resonance angiography images, a of magnetic resonance flow measurement is implemented to generate magnetic resonance flow images, and the magnetic resonance angiography images are applied to the magnetic resonance flow images as a mask to produce a resulting image depicting vessels with flow therein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Stefan Assmann, Okan Ekinci
  • Patent number: 9020221
    Abstract: Certain aspects of an apparatus and method for automatic ER/PR scoring of tissue samples may include for determining a cancer diagnosis score comprising identifying a positive stained nucleus in a slide image of the tissue sample, identifying a negative stained nucleus in the slide image, computing a proportion score based on number of the positive stained nucleus identified and number of the negative stained nucleus identified and determining the cancer diagnosis score based on the proportion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Ming-Chang Liu, Ximin Zhang
  • Patent number: 9020222
    Abstract: An arrangement for computer-assisted structuring of medical examination data is provided. The arrangement has a device for receiving at least one medical examination data record including at least one image data record created with a radiological imaging device, a device for receiving medical video data from external video sources, a device for converting the medical video data into a medical standard format in which a time stamp of the video data generation is stored, a device for storing the converted video data and the at least one examination data record, and a device for outputting the video data and examination data record. The video data and the at least one image data record can be arranged according to their time stamp.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventor: Michael Wiets
  • Patent number: 9020220
    Abstract: An X-ray CT apparatus is provided. The X-ray CT apparatus includes an estimation device configured to estimate a feature quantity that relates to one of image quality and a pixel value of an image obtained by performing an X-ray CT scan on a imaging target under a predetermined scan condition, wherein the feature quantity has a correlative relationship with a dose that is based on data obtained from X-ray imaging performed on the imaging target before a main scan, and a calculation device configured to calculate a dose for the imaging target for a case when an X-ray CT scan is performed under a desired setup scan condition, the dose calculated based on the estimated feature quantity and the correlative relationship between feature quantity and dose.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: GE Medical Systems Global Technology Company, LLC
    Inventor: Masatake Nukui
  • Patent number: 9020223
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for non-invasive reproducible determination of a corrected surface on a 3D bone surface model constructed from 3D medical image of a bone having a deformation consisting in a bump overgrowth at the head-neck junction; wherein said corrected surface comprises: i) a 3D spherical corrected surface patch on the head portion of said 3D bone surface model, and ii) a 3D smooth transition corrected surface patch on the neck portion of said 3D bone surface model, contiguous to said 3D spherical corrected surface patch; Said corrected surface patches are defined by a set of parameters comprising: iii) at least one first parameter (a*) representing a spherical extent value of said 3D spherical corrected surface patch, iv) and a set of at least one second parameter, said set determining the 3D correction boundary of said corrected surface patches, such that said corrected surface patches are continuous with said 3D bone surface model along said boundary.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: A2 Surgical
    Inventors: Laurence Chabanas, Stéphane Lavallee, Jerome Tonetti, Thomas Byrd, Bryan Talmadge Kelly, Christopher Larson
  • Publication number: 20150110372
    Abstract: Embodiments disclose systems and methods that aid in screening, diagnosis and/or monitoring of medical conditions. The systems and methods may allow, for example, for automated identification and localization of lesions and other anatomical structures from medical data obtained from medical imaging devices, computation of image-based biomarkers including quantification of dynamics of lesions, and/or integration with telemedicine services, programs, or software.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2014
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Inventors: Kaushal Mohanlal Solanki, Chaithanya Amai Ramachandra, Sandeep Bhat Krupakar
  • Patent number: 9014442
    Abstract: In a method or apparatus for identifying a region of interest in a medical image of a subject, at least one local maximum region of the image is determined for which a value of a given variable is a local maximum value. A user-selection of an initial voxel in the image is registered. As the region of interest, a connected set of voxels for which values of the given variable are greater than a threshold is selected, the selected set of voxels comprising a first local maximum region at a distance from the user-selected voxel, and the threshold being a given fraction of the local maximum value of the first local maximum region in the set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Matthew David Kelly, Kinda Anna Saddi
  • Patent number: 9008397
    Abstract: A tomography system based on Cerenkov tomography, comprising: a detector of Cerenkov fluorescence for acquiring optical plane images; a structural imaging system for acquiring three-dimensional structural images; a bed device for supporting an object to be imaged; a computer for forming an optical image, a structural image and a CLT image. The invention adopts the SP3 model and the semi threshold iterator to implement the global reconstruction of the CLT, and obtains the three-dimensional tomography image of the distribution of the radiopharmaceutical and the molecular probe in vivo within a short time. Since ordinary CCD camera is used, the cost of the imaging system has been sharply reduced for the equipment's construct and maintenance compared with PET/SPECT or ? camera. Therefore the present invention expands the options of the molecular probe, and application of the medicine Imaging.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Science
    Inventors: Jie Tian, Jianghong Zhong, Xin Yang, Chenghu Qin
  • Patent number: 9008386
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of optimizing workflow for an intervention, comprising the steps of reconstruction of an image of a target area representative of an envisaged intervention based on imaging dataset; automatically selecting an optimal viewing direction for enabling a pre-operative quantitative analysis of intervention features. The invention further relates to a computer program and a system for optimizing a workflow of an intervention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: 3mensio Medical Imaging B.V.
    Inventors: Luc Verstraeten, Jan Svarovsky, Gerard Burgstede, Frank Wessels
  • Patent number: 9008274
    Abstract: An imaging system includes an identification module, a determination module, and a display module. The identification module is configured to identify one or more first scanning parameters and one or more first display parameters corresponding to a first image, and to identify one or more second scanning parameters corresponding to scanning information acquired during a second scan. The determination module is configured to determine, based on the one or more first scanning parameters and the one or more second scanning parameters, one or more second display parameters so that the scanning information acquired during the second scan may be used to provide a second image appearing more similar to the first image. The display module is configured to use the one or more second display parameters to provide the second image configured to be displayed to a viewer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Grant Morey Stevens, Roy A. Nilsen, Brian William Thomsen
  • Patent number: 9008393
    Abstract: Embodiments of the invention relate to automating image classification with respect to coronary vessels in an angiography sequence. Two primary elements are employed, including training and recognition. Training pertains to the pre-processing images and extracting salient features that characterize the appearance of coronary arteries under different viewpoints. Recognition pertains to extraction of features from a new image sequence and determining a classification boundary for the new image from previously classified and labeled image sequences.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David J. Beymer, Hayit Greenspan, Tanveer Syeda-Mahmood, Fei Wang, Yong Zhang
  • Patent number: 9002084
    Abstract: A system includes a detector and a processing module. The detector includes pixels configured to detect an event corresponding to energy from a radiopharmaceutical. The processing module is configured to receive a request for each pixel that detects energy during a reading cycle. The processing module is configured to determine an energy level for each requesting pixel. For each requesting pixel, the processing module is configured to count the event when the energy level corresponds to an energy of the radiopharmaceutical, and to determine a combined energy level of the pixel and at least one adjacent pixel when the energy level does not correspond. The processing module is configured to count the event when the combined energy level corresponds to the energy of the radiopharmaceutical, and to disregard the event when the combined energy level does not correspond to the energy of the radiopharmaceutical.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: GE Medical Systems Israel, Ltd
    Inventors: Arie Shahar, Eliezer Traub, Peter Rusian, Yaron Glazer, Danny Magal, Zeev Gerber
  • Publication number: 20150092907
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for reducing artifacts in Computed Tomography (CT) image reconstruction. The method includes: acquiring an original reconstructed image; conducting total variation processing for the original reconstructed image, to generate a total variation reconstructed image; conducting initial metal artifact reduction processing for the original reconstructed image, to generate an initial metal artifact reduction reconstructed image; generating a weighted image based on the total variation reconstructed image and the initial metal artifact reduction reconstructed image, wherein the weighted image reflects that the original reconstructed image contains white-band artifacts; and combining a portion of the original reconstructed image and a portion of the initial metal artifact reduction reconstructed image through the weighted image to generate a final image, wherein the final image does not contain white-band artifact.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 28, 2014
    Publication date: April 2, 2015
    Inventors: Shuqin DONG, Jiaqin DONG, Shou LI
  • Patent number: 8994747
    Abstract: Disclosed are computer-implemented methods, systems, and computer program products for displaying superimposed image contours. A first centroid or center-of-mass of a contour extracted from a first image that depicts a moving object as the object appeared at a first time is calculated. A second centroid or center-of-mass of a second contour extracted from a second image that depicts the object as the object appeared at a second time is also calculated. The second image depicts the object in substantially the same plane as the first image. The first and second contours are displayed with the respective first and second centroids or centers-of-mass positioned at a common location. In some implementations, the images are ultrasound images depicting, for example, a human heart. The images can be transgastric short axis views of the human heart.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: Imacor Inc.
    Inventor: Nicolas Heron
  • Patent number: 8989467
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a reference surface generating unit that generates a reference surface indicating a reference value of each of a plurality of color elements of pixels constituting an intraluminal image at a pixel position of the each color element by performing a morphology process using pixel values of the color elements; and an abnormal area detecting unit that detects an abnormal area from the intraluminal image based on a difference for each of the color elements between the pixel value of each pixel and the reference surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2015
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Masashi Hirota, Yamato Kanda, Makoto Kitamura, Takehiro Matsuda, Takashi Kono
  • Patent number: 8989457
    Abstract: An angiographic examination method of an examination object for determining the morphology, histology and/or state of moving walls of vessels is disclosed. A series of angiography images of a section of interest of a vessel is disclosed. A quantitative analysis of the vascular wall of the section of the vessel is provided. The inherent motion of the vascular wall from two consecutive angiography images in each instance is calculated. The difference of the inherent motion of the vascular wall is visualized and/or the morphology and/or histology of the vascular wall is visualized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellchaft
    Inventor: Michael Wiets
  • Publication number: 20150078507
    Abstract: Streak artifacts generated by at least one X-ray attenuating object arranged outside a reconstruction volume in a three-dimensional image data set showing the reconstruction volume are reduced. The reconstruction volume is reconstructed from two-dimensional projection images recorded from different projection directions. The object is localized in the projection images showing the object. To determine corrected projection images for the reconstruction of the image data set, the image data of the area of each projection image showing the object is corrected to remove the object. The localization of the object is performed taking into account difference images of the measured projection images and from a reconstruction data set of forward-projected comparative images reconstructed from the measured projection images.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 3, 2014
    Publication date: March 19, 2015
    Inventor: Yiannis Kyriakou
  • Patent number: 8983158
    Abstract: An image data subtraction system receives an electrical signal representing a heart cycle electrical waveform during multiple heart cycles and acquires data representing a first image set comprising multiple temporally sequential individual mask images of vessels of a portion of patient anatomy during the multiple heart cycles in the absence of a contrast agent. The system acquires data representing a second image set comprising a multiple temporally sequential individual contrast enhanced images of vessels of the portion of patient anatomy during the multiple heart cycles in the presence of a contrast agent. An image data processor automatically uses the electrical signal to identify temporally corresponding pairs of images comprising a mask image and a contrast enhanced image acquired substantially at a same point within a heart cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Soroosh Kargar, Weng Lei
  • Patent number: 8977020
    Abstract: An image processing device 100 divides a hollow organ 50 extracted from a volume image 40 using a plurality of planes 20 including an arbitrary eye vector 23 or a plurality of planes along the centerline of the hollow organ 50, transforms the coordinates of a point inside the hollow organ 50 along a predetermined convex surface set outside the hollow organ 50 on each plane 20, and gives a pixel value of an original position to a corresponding point after the coordinate transformation. Then, a folded volume image is generated by combining the respective planes 20 in a reverse procedure of the division procedure, and a shaded folded three-dimensional image 90 is generated by projecting the folded volume image to a projection surface from the arbitrary viewing direction and is displayed on a display device 107.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: Hitachi Medical Corporation
    Inventor: Yoshihiro Goto
  • Patent number: 8977015
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for determining a position for at least one semi-transparent diaphragm during a radiological observation of a body region of a patient by means of a radiological facility, in particular during an observation accompanying an interventional measure, comprising: producing at least one radiological image recording and/or a sequence of image recordings by means of the radiological facility; analyzing the image recording and/or the sequence of image recordings by means of automatic image processing by a computing facility for identifying less absorbent image regions which may be present; and automatically determining the position for the at least one semi-transparent diaphragm as a function of the image analysis result by means of the computing facility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Stefan Böhm, Klaus Finkler
  • Patent number: 8965077
    Abstract: Methods and systems determine a correspondence of two sets of data, each data set represents an object. A weighted graph is created from each data set, and a Laplacian is determined for each weighted graph, from which spectral components are determined. The spectral components determine a coordinate of a node in a weighted graph. Nodes of a weighted graph are weighted with a quantified feature related to anode. A coordinate related to a quantified feature of a node is added to the coordinate based on the spectral components. Spectral components related to a weighted graph are reordered to a common ordering. Reordered spectral components related to the first and second data set are aligned and a correspondence is determined. An object may be a brain and a feature may be a sulcal depth. Other objects for which a correspondence may be determined include an electrical network, an image and a social network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignees: Siemens Corporation, The General Hospital Corporation
    Inventors: Leo Grady, Herve Jun Alfred Lombaert, Jonathan Rizzo Polimeni, Farida Cheriet
  • Patent number: 8954181
    Abstract: A dental Computer-aided design (CAD)/Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) system forms a custom dental preparation guide for guiding a dental tool that alters a shapes a tooth structure to which a custom prosthetic dental item is to be attached. The system acquires an optical measurement and an x-ray of at least one dental structure. The system correlates the acquired optical measurement and the x-ray to form a model of the at least one dental structure. The system generates a model of a reduced tooth structure based on the model of the at least one dental structure. The system also provides at least one dental preparation guide based on the model of the reduced tooth structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2015
    Assignee: Sirona Dental Systems GmbH
    Inventors: Roddy MacLeod, Daniel Michaeli, Volker Wedler
  • Patent number: 8946631
    Abstract: A substrate is irradiated by primary electrons and secondary electrons generated from the substrate are detected by a detector. A reference die is placed on the stage to obtain a pattern matching template image including feature coordinates of the reference die. A pattern matching is performed with an arbitrary die in a row or column including the reference die using the template image to obtain feature coordinates of the arbitrary die. An angle of misalignment is calculated between the direction of the row or column including the reference die and one of the directions of movement of the substrate on the basis of the feature coordinates of the arbitrary die and those of the reference die. The stage is rotated to correct the angle of misalignment to conform the direction of the row or column including the reference die with the one of the directions of movement of the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Ebara Corporation
    Inventors: Nobuharu Noji, Tohru Satake, Hirosi Sobukawa, Toshifumi Kimba, Masahiro Hatakeyama, Shoji Yoshikawa, Takeshi Murakami, Kenji Watanabe, Tsutomu Karimata, Kenichi Suematsu, Yutaka Tabe, Ryo Tajima, Keiichi Tohyama
  • Patent number: 8948482
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides computing device implemented methods, computing device readable media, and systems for motion compensation in a three dimensional scan. Motion compensation can include receiving three-dimensional (3D) scans of a dentition, estimating a motion trajectory from one scan to another, and calculating a corrected scan by compensating for the motion trajectory. Estimating the motion trajectory can include one or more of: registering a scan to another scan and determining whether an amount of movement between the scans is within a registration threshold; determining an optical flow based on local motion between consecutive two-dimensional (2D) images taken during the scan, estimating and improving a motion trajectory of a point in the scan using the optical flow; and estimating an amount of motion of a 3D scanner during the scan as a rigid body transformation based on input from a position tracking device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Adi Levin
  • Patent number: 8948486
    Abstract: A method to process radiological images is provided. The method comprises partitioning a radiological image of a region to be treated into a superimposition of layers, the region to be treated comprising at least one first structure and a second structure, wherein one layer solely comprises part of the first structure to be isolated from the remainder of the image, the layer solely comprising that part of the first structure to be isolated from the remainder of the image being determined by means of a parametric model of the first structure. The method further comprises determining an image of the region to be treated from the layering thus obtained, in which the isolated part of the first structure is omitted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Vincent Bismuth, Regis Vaillant
  • Patent number: 8948472
    Abstract: A device and method for capturing images of a specific part of an anatomical structure using a series of images, wherein an image is taken of the anatomical structure and is compared to a database of information is order to determine and optimize the imaging conditions used for taken subsequent images of the specific part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Brainlab AG
    Inventors: Richard Wohlgemuth, Gregor Tuma