GANTRY, PARTICLE THERAPY SYSTEM, AND METHOD FOR OPERATING A GANTRY

• US 20090101833A1
• Filed: 10/14/2008
• Published: 04/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Healthcare GMBH (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Kaiser, Werner, Emhofer, Stephan
• Granted Patent: US 7,989,785 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/398
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1087 Ions; Protons
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/10 X-ray therapy; Gamma-ray therapy; Particle-irradiation therapy A61N5/01 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/1081 Rotating beam systems with a specific mechanical construction, e.g. gantries

Abstract

The present embodiments relate to a gantry for the beam guidance of a particle beam with at least one beam guidance element. A carrier device is rotatably mounted in such a way that the particle beam can be directed by a rotation of the carrier device with the beam guidance element from various angles on to an object to be irradiated. At least one moveable actuating element may adjust a spatial position of the beam guidance element.

Claims

1. A gantry for beam guidance of a particle beam, the gantry comprising:

at least one beam guidance element that is operable to guide the particle beam;

a carrier device for the at least one beam guidance element, which is mounted in such a way that the particle beam can be directed by a rotation of the carrier device with the beam guidance element from various angles onto an object to be irradiated, and

at least one moveable actuating element for adjusting a spatial position of the at least one beam guidance element.

2. The gantry as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a control device that controls the at least one moveable actuating element.

3. The gantry as claimed in claim 2, wherein the control device is operable to control the movement of the at least one moveable actuating element relative to an angular position of the gantry.

4. The gantry as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

a measuring device that detects the spatial position of the beam guidance element, wherein the control device controls the movement of the at least one moveable actuating element relative to the spatial position of the beam guidance element detected by the measuring device.

5. The gantry as claimed in claim 1, with a translation and/or a rotation, during the adjustment of the spatial position of the beam guidance element (31), being able to be carried out with the aid of the at least one moveable actuating element (35).

6. The gantry as claimed in claim 1, wherein the beam guidance element is moveable relative to the carrier device by adjustment of the spatial position of the beam guidance element by the at least one moveable actuating element.

7. The gantry as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one moveable actuating element is a hydraulically moveable actuating element.

8. The gantry as claimed in claim 1, wherein the beam guidance element includes a magnet system.

9. The gantry as claimed in claim 1, comprising several moveable actuating elements for adjusting a spatial position of the beam guidance element, the beam guidance element being mounted within the movable actuating elements.

15. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising moving the beam guidance element relative to a carrier device, which holds the beam guidance element, during adjustment of the spatial position of the beam guidance element.

16. The gantry as claimed in claim 5, wherein the translation has 3°

of translatory freedom, and the rotation has 3°

of rotational freedom.

17. The gantry as claimed in claim 8, wherein the magnet system includes a dipole magnet for deflecting the particle beam.

10. A particle therapy system, having

a particle source that generates charged particles,

an accelerator unit that accelerates the charged particles and forms a particle beam,

at least one radiation room for irradiating an object with the particle beam, and

a high-energy beam transport system that guides the charged particle beam to an object to be irradiated, the high-energy beam transport system having a gantry,

wherein the gantry includes a beam guidance element that is operable to guide the particle beam;

a carrier device that is operable to rotate the beam guidance element to one or more angular positions; and

at least one moveable actuating element for adjusting a spatial position of the at least one beam guidance element.

11. A method for operating a gantry of a particle therapy system, the method comprising:

rotating a gantry with at least one beam guidance element to a desired angular position, and

adjusting the spatial position of the at least one beam guidance element using at least one moveable actuating element.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein adjusting includes adjusting the spatial position of the at least one beam guidance element relative to the angular position of the gantry.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising detecting a spatial actual position of the beam guidance element, wherein adjusting includes adjusting the spatial position of the at least one beam guidance element relative to the actual position of the beam guidance element.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein adjusting includes a translation and/or a rotation, the translation and/or the rotation being carried out using the at least one moveable actuating element.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein detecting the spatial actual position of the beam guidance element is performed after rotating the gantry.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the translation has 3°

of translatory freedom, and the rotation has 3°

of rotational freedom.