X-ray grid for medical radiography and method of making and using same

• US 4,951,305 A
• Filed: 05/30/1989
• Issued: 08/21/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Moore, William E., Steklenski, David J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Howell, Janice A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): WONG, DON KITSUN
• Application Number:
  US07/358,238
• Time in Patent Office: 448 Days
• Field of Search: 378/154, 378/155, 378/156, 378/19, 378/160, 378/149, 378/34, 378/35, 378/147, 378/145, 378/149, 378/169, 250/505.1, 250/363.1
• US Class Current: 378/147
• CPC Class Codes: G21K 1/02 using diaphragms, collimators

Abstract

A method of making a grid for x-ray radiography including the steps of forming grid patterns of x-ray opaque material on a plurality of sheets of x-ray transparent material, aligning the sheets in a stack, and bonding the sheets together to form a lightweight stacked grid.

Claims

1. An x-ray collimating grid characterized by:

a plurality of grid patterns of x-ray opaque material formed on sheets of flexible x-ray transparent material, arranged in a stack such that the grid patterns are in alignment and spaced apart from one another.

2. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 1, further characterized by said grid pattern spacing increasing geometrically from one sheet to the next.

3. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 1, further characterized by said grid pattern comprising a two-dimensional pattern.

4. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 3, wherein said two-dimensional pattern is a rectangular cross-hatch pattern.

5. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 3, wherein said two-dimensional pattern is an array of circular apertures.

6. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 3, wherein said two-dimensional pattern is an array of concentric circles.

7. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 1, further characterized by said grid being a focused grid.

8. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 7, further characterized by said focused grid having focusing properties in two directions.

9. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 8, further characterized by said two-dimensional focused grid having sheets with patterns of concentric rings.

10. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 8, further characterized by said two-dimensional focused grid having sheets with patterns of rectangular grids.

11. The x-ray collimating grid claimed in claim 8, further characterized by said two-dimensional focused grid having sheets with patterns of arrays of dots.

12. A method of making a grid for x-ray radiography, characterized by the steps of:

a. forming grid patterns of x-ray opaque material on a plurality of sheets of x-ray transparent material;

b. arranging said plurality of sheets in a stack such that said grid patterns are in alignment; and

c. adhering said sheets together in said stack.

13. The method of making a grid for x-ray radiography claimed in claim 12, further characterized by spacing said sheets in geometrically increasing distance from one sheet to the next.

14. The method of making a grid for x-ray radiography claimed in claim 12, wherein said spacing is achieved by said sheets being of geometrically increasing thickness.

15. The method of making a grid for x-ray radiography claimed in claim 13, wherein said spacing is achieved by placing spacer sheets of x-ray transparent material between said sheets having said grid patterns.

16. The method of making a grid claimed in claim 12, wherein said step of forming grid patterns is performed by adhering a sheet of x-ray opaque material onto a sheet of x-ray transparent material, and patterning said x-ray opaque material by photolithography.

17. The method of making a grid claimed in claim 16, wherein said step of forming grid patterns is characterized by printing an x-ray opaque material in a binder on said x-ray transparent material.

18. The method of making a grid claimed in claim 12, wherein said x-ray transparent material is also optically transparent, and wherein said step of arranging said sheets in alignment is characterized by optically aligning said sheets.

19. The method of making a grid claimed in claim 12, wherein said step of arranging sheets in alignment is characterized by mechanically aligning said sheets.

20. An x-ray cassette incorporating an x-ray collimating grid having a plurality of grid patterns of x-ray opaque material formed on sheets of x-ray transparent material, arranged in a stack such that the grid patterns are in alignment and spaced apart from one another.

21. A method for making a medical radiograph including the step of positioning an x-ray collimating grid between the x-ray source and the x-ray sensitive recording medium, characterized by:

said x-ray collimating grid comprising a plurality of grid patterns of x-ray opaque material formed on sheets of flexible x-ray transparent material, arranged in a stack such that the patterns are spaced from one another.

22. The method for making a medical radiograph claimed in claim 21, further characterized by said grid patterns being spaced in geometrically increasing distances from one another.

23. The method of making a medical radiograph claimed in claim 21, further characterized by said x-ray collimating grid being a focused grid.

24. The method of making a medical radiograph claimed in claim 23, further characterized by said focused grid being a two-dimensional focused grid.