MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING APPARATUS

• US 20150253404A1
• Filed: 02/24/2015
• Published: 09/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2014
• 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: TOMIHA, Sadanori, Okamoto, Kazuya, Akita, Koji, Kasami, Hideo
• Granted Patent: US 10,241,166 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/3415 comprising arrays of sub-coils , i.e. phased-array coils with flexible receiver channels
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/3692 involving signal transmission without using electrically conductive connections, e.g. wireless communication or optical communication of the MR signal or an auxiliary signal other than the MR signal

Abstract

A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to an embodiment includes a wireless communication unit, a radio frequency (RF) coil, and a specifying unit. The wireless communication unit includes an antenna and that transmits and receives a wireless signal through the antenna. The RF coil includes one or more antennas and that receives the wireless signal and to respond to the received wireless signal through the one or more antennas. The specifying unit that specifies the position and the orientation of the RF coil on the basis of a response result indicated by the response from the RF coil.

Claims

1. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising:

a wireless communication unit that includes an antenna and that transmits and receives a wireless signal through the antenna;

a radio frequency (RF) coil that includes one or more antennas and that receives the wireless signal and to respond to the received wireless signal through the one or more antennas; and

a specifying unit that specifies a position and an orientation of the RF coil on a basis of a response result indicated by the response from the RF coil.

2. The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the RF coil includes two or more antennas, and

the specifying unit specifies positions of the two or more antennas included in the RF coil and specifies the position and the orientation of the RF coil on a basis of the specified positions of the antennas.

3. The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the specifying unit further estimates warping of the RF coil, on a basis of the specified positions of the antennas and a positional relationship among the antennas.

4. The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, if the orientation of the RF coil is prescribed in advance, the specifying unit specifies the position and the orientation of the RF coil on a basis of the orientation of the RF coil prescribed in advance and the response result.

5. The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the RF coil includes a predetermined number of coil elements in prescribed positions that are prescribed in advance with respect to the one or more antennas included in the RF coil, and

the specifying unit further specifies positions and orientations of the predetermined number of coil elements, on a basis of the position of the RF coil, the orientation of the RF coil, and the prescribed positions.

6. The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the antenna included in the wireless communication unit that is installed in a position higher than the position of the RF coil.

7. The magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the specifying unit specifies the position of the RF coil by using a response time period or an attenuation amount of the wireless signal.

8. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising:

a wireless communication unit that includes an antenna and that transmits and receives a wireless signal through the antenna;

an RF coil that includes an antenna and that receives the wireless signal and to respond to the received wireless signal through the antenna; and

a specifying unit that specifies a position of the RF coil on a basis of a response result indicated by the response from the RF coil, wherein

the antenna included in the RF coil that performs at least one selected from a reception of a control signal and a transmission of an echo signal, in addition to the receiving of and the responding to the wireless signal.

9. A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising:

a wireless communication unit that includes an antenna and that transmits and receives a wireless signal through the antenna; and

an RF coil that includes a plurality of antennas and that receives the wireless signal and to respond to the received wireless signal through each of the antennas, wherein

positions of the plurality of antennas are specified on a basis of each of response results indicated by responses from the plurality of antennas, and

warping of the RF coil is further estimated on a basis of the specified positions of the antennas and a positional relationship among the antennas.