Apparatus And Method For Detecting Anomalies Within Body

• US 20070203425A1
• Filed: 04/27/2005
• Published: 08/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: University-Industry Cooperation Group of KyungHee University
• Original Assignee: University-Industry Cooperation Group of KyungHee University
• Inventors: Kwon, Oh In, Seo, Jin Keun, Woo, Eung Je
• Application Number:
  US11/568,950
• Publication Number:
  US 20070203425A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/547
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0536 Impedance imaging, e.g. by tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4312 Breast evaluation or disorder diagnosis A61B5/0091 takes precedence

Abstract

Apparatus and method for detecting a lesion, the method including the steps of applying a voltage to an electrode in contact with a part of a body, sensing signals from an examining part of the body by using probe (14) having a plurality of sensing electrodes (143), and calculating a position and a size of a lesion in the body with reference to the signals sensed thus, whereby detecting not only existence of a lesion, but also a position and a size of the lesion.

Claims

1. A method for detecting a lesion comprising the steps of:

applying a voltage to an electrode in contact with a part of a body;

sensing signals from an examining part of the body by using probe having a plurality of sensing electrodes; and

calculating a position and a size of a lesion in the body with reference to the signals sensed thus.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of applying a voltage includes the step of applying two voltages of different frequencies to the electrode in succession.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of sensing signals includes the step of the probe sensing currents flowing through the examining part.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of calculating a position and a size of a lesion includes the step of;

determining a pinpoint of the lesion in a probe plane opposite to a center of the lesion with reference to the sensed signals,

calculating a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, and

calculating a volume of the lesion.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the step of determining a pinpoint includes the steps of;

calculating a difference between an intensity of the sensed signal and a reference intensity for each of the sensing electrodes, and

determining a position of the sensing electrode having a maximum value of the differences as the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane opposite to the center of lesion.

6. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the step of determining a pinpoint includes the steps of;

calculating an intensity difference between a signal of the first frequency and a signal of the second frequency of the sensed signals for each of the sensing electrodes, and

determining a position of the sensing electrode having a maximum value of the differences as the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane opposite to the center of lesion.

7. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the step of calculating a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane includes the step of calculating a distance between the center of the lesion and the-pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane with reference to a distance between the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane and any point in the probe plane, an intensity of the signal sensed at the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, and an intensity of the signal sensed at the any point in the probe plane.

8. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the step of calculating a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane includes the step of calculating a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane with reference to a distance between the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane and any point in the probe plane, an intensity of the signal of the first frequency and an intensity of the signal of the second frequency sensed at the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, and an intensity of the signal of the first frequency and an intensity of the signal of the second frequency sensed at the any point in the probe plane.

9. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the step of calculating a volume of the lesion includes the step of;

calculating a volume of the lesion with reference to an average of intensities of the sensed signals, a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, and an intensity of the signal sensed at the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane.

10. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the step of calculating a volume of the lesion includes the step of;

calculating a volume of the lesion with reference to an average of intensities of the sensed signals of the first frequency, a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, and an intensity of the signal of the first frequency and an intensity of the signal of the second frequency sensed at the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane.

11. An apparatus for detecting a lesion comprising:

an electrode for applying a voltage to a part of a body;

a probe having a plurality of sensing electrodes for sensing signals from an examining part of the body; and

a control unit for determining a position and a size of a lesion in the body with reference to the signals sensed by the sensing electrodes.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the probe includes;

a plate for arranging the sensing electrodes at regular intervals thereon, and

a metal frame around the plate for maintaining the sensing electrodes at a reference voltage.

13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the control unit determines a pinpoint of the lesion in a probe plane opposite to a center of the lesion with reference to the sensed signals, and calculates a distance from the center of the lesion to the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane for determining a position of the lesion.

14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the control unit calculates a difference value between an intensity of each of the sensed signals of the sensing electrodes and a reference intensity, and determines a position of the sensing electrode which has a maximum value of the difference values as the pinpoint in the probe plane opposite to the center of lesion.

15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the control unit calculates a difference value between an intensity of a signal of the first frequency and an intensity of a signal of the second frequency of the sensed signals of the sensing electrodes, and determines a position of the sensing electrode which has a maximum value of the difference values as the pinpoint in the probe plane opposite to the center of lesion.

16. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the control unit calculates a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane with reference to a distance between the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane and any point in the probe plane, the intensity of the signal sensed at the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, and the intensity of the signal sensed at the any point of the lesion in the probe plane.

17. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the control unit calculates a volume of the lesion with reference to an average of the sensed signals, a distance between the center of the lesion and the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, an intensity of the signal sensed at the pinpoint of the lesion in the probe plane, for determining a size of the lesion.

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, further comprising an electrostatic voltage generating unit for providing electrostatic voltages of sinusoidal waves having frequencies different from each other.