Detection of the shape of treatment devices

• US 6,428,547 B1
• Filed: 11/15/2000
• Issued: 08/06/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brainlab AG
• Original Assignee: Brainlab AG
• Inventors: Birkenbach, Rainer, Vilsmeier, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Jeffrey A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Priddy, Michael B.
• Application Number:
  US09/713,358
• Time in Patent Office: 629 Days
• Field of Search: 606/130, 600/424, 600/426
• US Class Current: 606/130
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2055 Optical tracking systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/3983 Reference marker arrangements for use with image guided surgery
• 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 5/06 Devices, other than using radiation, for detecting or locating foreign bodies for removing same A61B17/50 ; determining position of probes within or on the body of the patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/12 Arrangements for detecting or locating foreign bodies
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4405 the apparatus being movable or portable, e.g. handheld or mounted on a trolley
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4441 the rigid structure being a C-arm or U-arm
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/547 involving tracking of position of the device or parts of the device
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/36 Image-producing devices or illumination devices not otherwise provided for

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of detecting the shape of a treatment device (3), in which the treatment device (3) is referenced in a computer-controlled, camera-assisted navigation system by means of a positional marker array (4) attached to the treatment device (3), wherein, by means of at least one radiographic image, projections of the treatment device (3) are detected and, via the position of the positional marker array (4) in the projections, the total outer shape of the treatment device (3) is assigned in the navigation system.

Claims

1. A method of detecting the shape of a treatment device, wherein said treatment device is referenced in a computer-controlled, camera-assisted navigation system by means of a positional marker array attached to said treatment device, wherein projections of said treatment device are detected by means of at least one radiographic image, and the total outer shape of said treatment device is assigned in the navigation system via the position of said positional marker array in said projections.

2. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein assigning said outer shape is achieved by processing radiographic image data and data from said navigation system in a single computer (C) with a single monitor display (S).

3. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein at least two radiographic images of said treatment device are made in different positions.

4. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein a radiographic image is made during which said treatment device is moved to create a radiographic image having a movement sequence showing the positional marker array at a series of individual points in time, said assignment being done from said projections of said treatment device and said positional marker array in the movement sequence or at individual points in time during said movement sequence.

5. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the assignment of said outer shape is done several times in sequence during treatment.

6. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein a system including reflector arrays applied to all devices used in treatment for the radiation of a source of invisible light, in particular a source of infrared radiation, is used as said camera-assisted navigation system.

7. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein a C-bow x-ray unit, in particular a fluoroscope device, is used for producing said radiographic image.

8. A method of referencing treatment devices, in which the shape of several treatment devices is detected by a method as set forth in claim 1.