Radiation deep dose measuring apparatus and corpuscular beam detector

• US 6,066,851 A
• Filed: 11/19/1997
• Issued: 05/23/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Madono, Kunio, Teratani, Eisaku, Ikegami, Kazunori, Nishizawa, Hiroshi, Senoo, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hannaher, Constantine
• Assistant Examiner(s): GAGLIARDI, ALBERT J
• Application Number:
  US08/974,552
• Time in Patent Office: 916 Days
• Field of Search: 250/363.01, 250/367, 250/368
• US Class Current: 250/367
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/02 Dosimeters G01T1/15 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/169 Exploration, location of contaminated surface areas
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/20 with scintillation detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/204 the detector being a liquid

Abstract

A radiation deep dose measuring apparatus. A corpuscular beam detector of scintillation fibers bundled together into a block is adjusted in position to have a width similar to the radiation range of corpuscular beams; a driving apparatus rotates the corpuscular beam detector and an image receiver together around a center corresponding to a radial axis of the beams; the image receiver captures the image of scintillation light emanating from the corpuscular beam detector; an image signal processing apparatus processes the image signal to produce the distribution of radiation doses as a function of depth; and a displaying apparatus displays the result. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus allows rapid measurement of radiation doses in three-dimensional space.

Claims

1. A radiation deep dose measuring apparatus comprising:

a two-dimensional corpuscular beam detector including an array of scintillators, each scintillator having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissue and emitting light when exposed to a corpuscular beam, for forming a two-dimensional optical image representing a two-dimensional radiation dosage distribution of the corpuscular beam;

an image receiver detecting the two-dimensional optical image emitted by said array of scintillators of said corpuscular beam detector and, in response, producing electrical signals representing the two-dimensional image;

measuring means for measuring the radiation dosage distribution of the corpuscular beam in a two-dimensional plane corresponding to a surface of said corpuscular beam detector, based on the electrical signals representing the two-dimensional image produced by said image receiver; and

moving means for moving said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver together as a unit, relative to the corpuscular beam, for determining a three-dimensional radiation dosage distribution of the corpuscular beam.

2. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said moving means rotates said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver by at least 180°

about a center corresponding to an extension of a radial axis of the corpuscular beam passing through a center of the said corpuscular beam detector.

3. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said moving means rotates said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver by 360°

about a center corresponding to an extension of a radial axis of the corpuscular beam, said corpuscular beam detector being positioned at one side of the radial axis.

4. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said moving means moves said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver together in parallel to at least one of a width and a thickness of said corpuscular beam detector.

5. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said moving means moves said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver together parallel to the corpuscular beam.

6. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 including a reflecting member for reflecting light from said corpuscular beam detector onto said image receiver, thereby reducing separation between said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver.

7. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein at least one of said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver includes position adjustment means for adjusting separation of said corpuscular beam detector and said image receiver.

8. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said corpuscular beam detector has radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues, and each of said scintillators includes a bundle of scintillation fibers.

9. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said corpuscular beam detector comprises a main block including said array of scintillators sandwiched between transparent blocks having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues.

10. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein the corpuscular beam detector comprises:

a main block of a material having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues and reflecting light, said block including a plurality of holes, each of said scintillators comprising a liquid scintillator having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues and filling a corresponding one of the holes; and

a transparent material having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues covering the holes.

11. The corpuscular beam detector as described in claim 10 wherein said main block is located between transparent blocks having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues.

12. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 10 wherein said main block includes, on one side, a transparent block having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues and, on another side, a reflective block having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues and reflecting light.

13. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 10 wherein said main block includes a plurality of block units in a grid pattern.

14. The radiation deep dose measuring apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein said corpuscular beam detector comprises a main block of a material having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues and reflecting light, said block including a plurality of holes, and each of said scintillators comprises a plurality of scintillation fibers having radiation absorbing properties similar to biological tissues and disposed in a corresponding one of the holes.