Universal, modular temperature controlled MRI phantom for calibrated anisotropic and isotropic imaging including hollow fluid filled tubular textiles for calibrated anisotropic imaging

• US 10,345,415 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2017
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Psychology Software Tools Inc., University of Pittsburgh of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education
• Original Assignee: Psychology Software Tools Inc.
• Inventors: Zuccolotto, Anthony P, Basler, Leroy K, Dzikiy, John, Schneider, Walter, Shaffer, Richard A
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller, Daniel R
• Application Number:
  US15/403,304
• Publication Number:
  US 20170184696A1
• Time in Patent Office: 909 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0042 for the brain
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/055 involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/31 Temperature control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/56341 Diffusion imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/58 Calibration of imaging systems, e.g. using test probes , Phantoms; Calibration objects or fiducial markers such as active or passive RF coils surrounding an MR active material
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 23/28 for medicine

Abstract

A universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom for calibration and validation for anisotropic and isotropic imaging comprises an outer insulating shell configured to be received within an MRI chamber; an inner shell received within the outer insulating shell; a fluid conduits adjacent the inner shell for receiving temperature controlling fluid or gas cycling there-through; and a series of stacked layers of frames containing test points for the MRI phantom, each layer including at least one fiducial and including at least some anisotropic imaging test points in at least one frame and at least one isotropic imaging test point in at least one frame. The anisotropic imaging comprises hollow tubular textile fibers, wherein each hollow tubular fiber has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, wherein at least some hollow tubular fibers are filled with a fluid.

Claims

1. An MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging comprising hollow tubular textile fibers [12], wherein the improvement comprises that each hollow tubular fiber [12] has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, and wherein at least half of the hollow tubular fibers [12] are filled with a fluid [14], wherein the phantom [10] is configured to be worn by a patient in the MRI and wherein the phantom includes a plurality of alignment targets visible to the MRI.

2. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 1 wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers [12] are formed in fasciculi [16].

3. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 2 wherein at least some fasciculi [16] include interstitial fluid, wherein hollow tubular fluid [14] and the interstitial fluid is formed of both water and deuterium oxide, and wherein in at least some fasciculi [16] the hollow tubular fluid [14] is one of water and deuterium oxide and the interstitial fluid is formed of the other of water and deuterium oxide.

4. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 2 wherein at least some fasciculi [16] are combined into tracks [18] that are supported in fixed frames [20] within the phantom [10].

5. An MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging comprising hollow tubular textile fibers [12], wherein the improvement comprises that each hollow tubular fiber [12] has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, and wherein at least half of the hollow tubular fibers [12] are filled with a fluid [14], wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers [12] are formed in fasciculi [16], wherein at least some fasciculi [16] are combined into tracks [18] that are supported in fixed frames [20] within the phantom [10], and wherein at least one fixed frame [20] is formed as a fiber density frame which includes fiber [12] density variations across the fixed frame [20], whereby the fibers [12]/unit area in the fixed frame [20] are provided at distinct known varied amounts at least three distinct test points across the fixed frame [20].

6. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 5 wherein at least one fiber density frame [20] will vary the number of fibers [12] at least at three distinct test points to provide the fiber density variations.

7. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 6 wherein at least one fiber density frame [20] which varies the number of fibers [12] at least at three distinct test points to provide the fiber density variations is configured to vary the number of fibers [12] by a fixed fiber amount in adjacent test points.

8. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 5 wherein at least one fiber density frame [20] will vary the containment volume of fibers [12] at distinct test points to provide the fiber density variations and control of inter fiber fluid [14].

9. An MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging comprising hollow tubular textile fibers [12], wherein the improvement comprises that each hollow tubular fiber [12] has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, and wherein at least half of the hollow tubular fibers [12] are filled with a fluid [14], wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers [12] are formed in fasciculi [16], wherein at least some fasciculi [16] are combined into tracks [18] that are supported in fixed frames [20] within the phantom [10], and wherein at least one fixed frame [20] is formed as a fiber crossing frame which includes at least three distinct angle fiber [12] crossings across the fiber crossing frame [20].

10. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 9 wherein at least one fiber crossing frame [20] includes a lower tract pathway [22] supporting a lower track [18] within the fixed frame, an upper tract pathway [22] supporting an upper track [18] within the fixed frame [20] which is substantially parallel with the lower track pathway [22] across the fixed frame [20] and an intermediate tract pathway [22] between the upper tract pathway [22] and the lower tract pathway [22] supporting an intermediate track [18] between the upper track [18] and the lower track [18], and wherein the intermediate track [18] crosses the upper and lower tracks [18] at least at three distinct angles, wherein the three distinct angles of the fiber [12] crossings of the fiber crossing frame [20] include 90 degrees, 45 degrees and 30 degrees.

11. An MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging comprising hollow tubular textile fibers [12], wherein the improvement comprises that each hollow tubular fiber [12] has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, and wherein at least half of the hollow tubular fibers [12] are filled with a fluid [14], wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers [12] are formed in fasciculi [16], wherein at least some fasciculi [16] are combined into tracks [18] that are supported in fixed frames [20] within the phantom [10], and wherein at least one fixed frame [20] is formed as a physiologic simulation frame [20] and includes a shell simulating a human cranium, simulated eyes [32] and tracks [18] simulating known physiologic optical neural tracts from the simulated eyes [32], and wherein the tracks [18] simulating known physiologic optical neural tracts from the simulated eyes [32] includes at least one segment that spreads individual fasciculi [16].

12. An MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging comprising hollow tubular textile fibers [12], wherein the improvement comprises that each hollow tubular fiber [12] has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, and wherein at least half of the hollow tubular fibers [12] are filled with a fluid [14], wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers [12] are formed in fasciculi [16], wherein at least some fasciculi [16] are combined into tracks [18] that are supported in fixed frames [20] within the phantom [10], and wherein at least one fixed frame [20] is formed as a routing frame [20] which includes a plurality of distinct track starting locations at one end thereof and a plurality of aligned track ending locations at an opposed end thereof and tracks [18] extending from the starting locations to the ending locations, wherein substantially all of the tracks [18] end in an ending location that is not aligned with the respective track'"'"'s starting location.

13. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 12 wherein at least one routing frame [20] includes tracks [18] of varying fiber densities.

14. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 13 wherein at least one routing frame [20] further includes areas of crossing fibers [12, 27] which are distinct from the tracks [18] extending to the opposed ends of the routing frame [20], and which are areas of distinct crossing fiber complexity.

15. The MRI phantom [10] for calibrated anisotropic imaging according to claim 12 wherein the phantom [10] is configured to be worn by a patient in the MRI and wherein the phantom includes a plurality of alignment targets visible to the MRI.

16. A universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom for calibration and validation for anisotropic and isotropic imaging comprising:

An outer insulating shell configured to be received within an MRI chamber;

An inner shell received within the outer insulating shell;

Fluid conduits adjacent the inner shell for receiving temperature controlling fluid or gas cycling there-through; and

A series of stacked layers of frames containing test points for the MRI phantom, wherein each layer includes at least one fiducial, and further including at least some anisotropic imaging test points in at least one frame and at least one isotropic imaging test point in at least one frame; and

a simulated fat layer surrounding the inner shell, wherein the simulated fat layer is formed of an oil, and wherein the outer insulating shell includes a foam structure sized to fit a particular MRI system.

17. The universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom according to claim 16 wherein at least one frame including at least some anisotropic imaging test points includes hollow tubular textile fibers, wherein each hollow tubular fiber has an outer diameter of less than 50 microns and an inner diameter of less than 20 microns, wherein at least half of the hollow tubular fibers are filled with a fluid.

18. The universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom according to claim 17, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fibers are filled with a fluid, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers are formed in fasciculi, wherein at least some fasciculi are combined into tracks that are supported in the frame which includes a plurality of distinct track starting locations at one end thereof and a plurality of aligned track ending locations at an opposed end thereof and tracks extending from the starting locations to the ending locations, wherein substantially all of the tracks end in an ending location that is not aligned with the respective track'"'"'s starting location.

19. The universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom according to claim 17, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fibers are filled with a fluid, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers are formed in fasciculi, wherein at least some fasciculi are combined into tracks that are supported in the frame which includes multiple angle fiber crossings across the fixed frame, wherein the angle fiber crossings include a plurality of distinct fiber densities.

20. The universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom according to claim 17, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fibers are filled with a fluid, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers are formed in fasciculi, wherein at least some fasciculi are combined into tracks that are supported in at least one a fiber density frame which includes fiber density variations across the fixed frame, whereby the fibers/unit area in the fixed frame are provided at distinct known varied amounts at least three distinct test points across the fixed frame.

21. The universal, modular, temperature controlled MRI phantom according to claim 17, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fibers are filled with a fluid, wherein at least some of the hollow tubular fluid filled textile fibers are formed in fasciculi, wherein at least some fasciculi include interstitial fluid, and wherein hollow tubular fluid and the interstitial fluid is formed of both water and deuterium oxide.