Biomagnetic analytical system using fiber-optic magnetic sensors
First Claim
1. A biomagnetic analytical system for sensing and indicating minute magnetic fields emanating from the brain or any other tissue region of interest in a subject being diagnosed, said system comprising:
- (a) a magnetic pick-up device having an outer shell contoured to conform generally to the region of interest, said shell being formed of magnetic shielding material to exclude from its inner confines extraneous magnetic fields, whereby the emitted magnetic fields exist within the confines of the shell, and an array of fiber-optic magnetometer sensors which conforms to the contours of the shell, the sensors being mounted within the shell at positions distributed throughout the inner confines thereof, whereby each sensor is related to a site in the region and yields a light beam modulated in accordance with the magnetic field emanating from this site; and
(b) means including an interferometer to compare the modulated light beam yielded by each sensor in the array with a reference light beam to produce an output signal that is a function of the magnetic field emitted at the related site.
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Abstract
A biomagnetic analytical system for sensing and indicating minute magnetic fields emanating from the brain or from any other tissue region of interest in a subject under study. The system includes a magnetic pick-up device constituted by an array of fiber-optic magnetic sensors mounted at positions distributed throughout the inner confines of a magnetic shield configured to conform generally to the head of the subject or whatever other body region is of interest. Each sensor yields a light beam whose phase or other parameter is modulated in accordance with the magnetic field emanating from the related site in the region. The modulated beam from each sensor is compared in an interferometer with a reference light beam to yield an output signal that is a function of the magnetic field being emitted at the related site. The output signals from the interferometer are processed to provide a display or recording exhibiting the pattern or map of magnetic fields resulting from emanations at the multitude of sites encompassed by the region.
96 Citations
8 Claims
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1. A biomagnetic analytical system for sensing and indicating minute magnetic fields emanating from the brain or any other tissue region of interest in a subject being diagnosed, said system comprising:
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(a) a magnetic pick-up device having an outer shell contoured to conform generally to the region of interest, said shell being formed of magnetic shielding material to exclude from its inner confines extraneous magnetic fields, whereby the emitted magnetic fields exist within the confines of the shell, and an array of fiber-optic magnetometer sensors which conforms to the contours of the shell, the sensors being mounted within the shell at positions distributed throughout the inner confines thereof, whereby each sensor is related to a site in the region and yields a light beam modulated in accordance with the magnetic field emanating from this site; and (b) means including an interferometer to compare the modulated light beam yielded by each sensor in the array with a reference light beam to produce an output signal that is a function of the magnetic field emitted at the related site. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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Specification