SPATIALLY-LOCALIZED OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY IMAGING

• US 20120197112A1
• Filed: 01/30/2012
• Published: 08/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: BioTex Incorporated
• Original Assignee: BioTex Incorporated
• Inventors: McNichols, Roger J.
• Application Number:
  US13/361,946
• Publication Number:
  US 20120197112A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/425
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/303 for the vagina, i.e. vaginoscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2051 Electromagnetic tracking systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/3735 Optical coherence tomography [OCT]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/20 Surgical navigation systems; Devices for tracking or guiding surgical instruments, e.g. for frameless stereotaxis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0066 Optical coherence imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/066 Superposing sensor position on an image of the patient, e.g. obtained by ultrasound or x-ray imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4318 Evaluation of the lower reproductive system A61B5/4343 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6847 mounted on an invasive device

Abstract

This invention generally relates to devices and methods for optical coherence tomography (OCT), and also to devices and methods for spatially-localized OCT imaging. In one aspect, a spatially-localized OCT imaging system may include an OCT probe, a spatially-resolvable positioning device, a tracking system, and a data acquisition system. Some or all of the components may also be linked and/or otherwise combined.

Claims

1. A system for resolving optical coherence tomography (OCT) measurements comprising:

an OCT probe;

a spatially-resolvable probe in fixed relation to said OCT probe; and

a tracking system in communication with said spatially-resolvable probe;

wherein said tracking system tracks the location of said spatially-resolvable probe and correlates data gathered by said OCT probe with said location of said spatially-resolvable probe.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said OCT probe and said spatially-resolvable probe are integrated.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said OCT probe comprises a 2D OCT probe.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said OCT probe comprises a 3D OCT probe.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said spatially-resolvable probe comprises a magnetic field sensing probe.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein said tracking system comprises a magnetic field positioning system.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said tracking system comprises a temporal tracking system for correlating time, a position of said OCT probe and data acquired by said OCT probe.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said OCT probe is selected from the group consisting of cervical probes, intravascular probes, cardiac probes and gastrointestinal probes.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said spatially-resolvable probe is resolvable in six degrees of freedom.

10. A method for generating 3D OCT data comprising:

scanning a 3D target space with a 2D OCT probe to generate 2D data, said 2D OCT probe being in fixed relation to a spatially-resolvable probe;

tracking the location of said spatially-resolvable probe during said scanning; and

constructing a 3D dataset by assigning said 2D data to a 3D space by utilizing said location of said spatially-resolvable probe.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said scanning is performed manually.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising temporally correlating the location of said spatially-resolvable probe to said 2D data.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said scanning is performed manually by a user filling in a volume representation on a graphical interface.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising generating a 3D graphical representation of said target space using said 3D dataset.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising resolving the direction of scanning of said 2D OCT probe.

16. A method for generating 3D OCT data comprising:

scanning a 3D target space with a 3D OCT probe to generate 3D data, said 3D OCT probe being in fixed relation to a spatially-resolvable probe;

tracking the location of said spatially-resolvable probe during said scanning; and

constructing a 3D dataset by assigning said 3D data to a 3D space by utilizing said location of said spatially-resolvable probe.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said scanning is performed manually.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising temporally correlating the location of said spatially-resolvable probe to said 3D data.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein said scanning is performed manually by a user filling in a volume representation on a graphical interface.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising generating a 3D graphical representation of said target space using said 3D dataset.