MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING APPARATUS AND MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING METHOD

• US 20090115794A1
• Filed: 10/29/2008
• Published: 05/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation (Canon Inc.), Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: FUKUTA, Toshio
• Granted Patent: US 7,786,728 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/581
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/4824 using a non-Cartesian trajectory
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/561 by reduction of the scanning time, i.e. fast acquiring systems, e.g. using echo-planar pulse sequences
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/5611 Parallel magnetic resonance imaging, e.g. sensitivity encoding [SENSE], simultaneous acquisition of spatial harmonics [SMASH], unaliasing by Fourier encoding of the overlaps using the temporal dimension [UNFOLD], k-t-broad-use linear acquisition speed-up technique [k-t-BLAST], k-t-SENSE structural details of arrays of sub-coils G01R33/3415
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/5617 using RF refocusing, e.g. RARE
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/56509 due to motion, displacement or flow, e.g. gradient moment nulling G01R33/567 takes precedence

Abstract

A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus includes an acquisition unit, a calculation unit, a recalculation unit, a correction unit and a generating unit. The acquisition unit acquires data from plural slices in an object by rotating a zonary region in frequency space by every repetition time. The calculation unit calculates correction parameters for motion correction. The recalculation unit recalculates at least a part of the correction parameters based on relationship between values of the correction parameters and at least one of real-spatial positions and times at which the data is acquired. The correction unit corrects the data using correction parameters including recalculated correction parameters. The generating unit generates image data based on corrected data.

Claims

1. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising:

a data acquisition unit configured to acquire data based on nuclear magnetic resonance from plural slices in an object by rotating a zonary region formed by plural parallel data acquisition loci in frequency space by every repetition time;

a correction parameter calculation unit configured to calculate correction parameters for motion correction with regard to the object of the data;

a correction parameter recalculation unit configured to recalculate at least a part of the correction parameters based on relationship between values of the correction parameters and at least one of real-spatial positions and times at which the data is acquired;

a data correction unit configured to correct the data using correction parameters including correction parameters recalculated by said correction parameter recalculation unit; and

a image data generating unit configured to generate image data based on data corrected by said data correction unit.

2. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 1,

wherein said correction parameter recalculation unit is configured to calculate an approximate expression representing the relationship to recalculate at least the part of the correction parameters using the approximate expression.

3. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 2,

wherein said correction parameter recalculation unit is configured to calculate the approximate expression by an interpolation using at least a part of the correction parameters before recalculation.

4. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 2,

wherein said correction parameter recalculation unit is configured to calculate the approximate expression by least-square-fitting using at least a part of the correction parameters before recalculation.

5. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 2,

wherein said correction parameter recalculation unit is configured to calculate the approximate expression including at least one of a linear expression having a parameter representing a spatial position at which the data is acquired and a quadratic expression having a parameter representing a time at which the data is acquired as a term

6. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 1,

wherein said correction parameter calculation unit is configured to calculate at least one of translational amounts in a real space due to a translational movement of the object, rotational amounts in the real space due to a rotational movement of the object, phase variation amounts in the frequency space corresponding to the translational amounts in the real space, rotational amounts in the frequency space corresponding to the rotational amounts in the real space, correlation weights used for weighting the data and weights for interpolation coefficients used for recalculation of at least the part of the correction parameters as the correction parameters.

7. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising:

a static magnetic field generation unit configured to apply a static magnetic field to an object;

a gradient magnetic field generation unit configured to apply a gradient magnetic field to the object;

a radio frequency magnetic field generation unit configured to expose a radio frequency magnetic field pulse inducing a nuclear magnetic resonance to nuclear spins in the object;

an echo signal detection unit configured to detect echo signals emitted due to the nuclear magnetic resonance;

a control unit configured to control said gradient magnetic field generation unit, said radio frequency magnetic field generation unit and said echo signal detection unit so as to perform an operation by every repetition time with regard to each of plural blades declining at mutually different angles, the operation being to acquire echo signals for one blade having plural parallel data acquisition loci, in a frequency space in which data of the echo signals is arranged, of which one locus passes an original point in the frequency space within the repetition time;

a calculation unit configured to calculate correction parameters for motion correction of respective pieces of data in plural blades based on correlation information with regard to the plural blades;

a correction unit configured to correct the respective pieces of the data in the plural blades based on the correction parameters; and

an image reconstruction unit configured to relocate data corrected by said correction unit in the frequency space and reconstruct an image with Fourier transformation based on the corrected data.

8. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 7,

wherein said calculation unit is configured to reconstruct the pieces of the data in the plural blades respectively, calculate first correction parameters for the respective blades so as to raise a cross correlation of pieces of reconstructed data respectively corresponding to the plural blades or based on a relationship between reconstructed data corresponding to a reference blade and reconstructed data corresponding to each blade and calculate second correction parameters from the first correction parameters based on information with regard to at least one of real-spatial positions and times at which the pieces of the data in the plural blades are acquired.

9. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 7, further comprising:

a determining unit configured to determine adoption and rejection of data to be relocated in the frequency space based on the correlation information with regard to the plural blades.

10. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus of claim 7, further comprising:

a weighting unit configured to weight the corrected data to be relocated in the frequency space using weight coefficients based on the correlation information with regard to the plural blades.

11. A magnetic resonance imaging method comprising:

acquiring data based on nuclear magnetic resonance from plural slices in an object by rotating a zonary region formed by plural parallel data acquisition loci in frequency space by every repetition time;

calculating correction parameters for motion correction with regard to the object of the data;

recalculating at least a part of the correction parameters based on relationship between values of the correction parameters and at least one of real-spatial positions and times at which the data is acquired;

correcting the data using correction parameters including the recalculated correction parameters; and

generating image data based on the corrected data.

12. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 11,

wherein an approximate expression representing the relationship is calculated to recalculate at least the part of the correction parameters using the approximate expression.

13. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 12,

wherein the approximate expression is calculated by an interpolation using at least a part of the correction parameters before recalculation.

14. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 12,

wherein the approximate expression is calculated by least-square-fitting using at least a part of the correction parameters before recalculation.

15. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 12,

wherein the approximate expression including at least one of a linear expression having a parameter representing a spatial position at which the data is acquired and a quadratic expression having a parameter representing a time at which the data is acquired as a term is calculated.

16. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 11,

wherein at least one of translational amounts in a real space due to a translational movement of the object, rotational amounts in the real space due to a rotational movement of the object, phase variation amounts in the frequency space corresponding to the translational amounts in the real space, rotational amounts in the frequency space corresponding to the rotational amounts in the real space, correlation weights used for weighting the data and weights for interpolation coefficients used for recalculation of at least the part of the correction parameters is calculated as the correction parameters.

17. A magnetic resonance imaging method comprising:

applying a static magnetic field to an object;

applying a gradient magnetic field to the object;

exposing a radio frequency magnetic field pulse inducing a nuclear magnetic resonance to nuclear spins in the object;

detecting echo signals emitted due to the nuclear magnetic resonance;

controlling the gradient magnetic field, the radio frequency magnetic field pulse and detection of the echo signals so as to perform an operation by every repetition time with regard to each of plural blades declining at mutually different angles, the operation being to acquire echo signals for one blade having plural parallel data acquisition loci, in a frequency space in which data of the echo signals is arranged, of which one locus passes an original point in the frequency space within the repetition time;

calculating correction parameters for motion correction of respective pieces of data in plural blades based on correlation information with regard to the plural blades;

correcting the respective pieces of the data in the plural blades based on the correction parameters; and

relocating the corrected data in the frequency space and reconstructing an image with Fourier transformation based on the corrected data.

18. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 17,

wherein the pieces of the data in the plural blades are reconstructed respectively, first correction parameters are calculated for the respective blades so as to raise a cross correlation of pieces of reconstructed data respectively corresponding to the plural blades or based on a relationship between reconstructed data corresponding to a reference blade and reconstructed data corresponding to each blade and second correction parameters are calculated from the first correction parameters based on information with regard to at least one of real-spatial positions and times at which the pieces of the data in the plural blades are acquired.

19. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining adoption and rejection of data to be relocated in the frequency space based on the correlation information with regard to the plural blades.

20. A magnetic resonance imaging method of claim 17, further comprising:

weighting the corrected data to be relocated in the frequency space using weight coefficients based on the correlation information with regard to the plural blades.