Method and apparatus for transmitting information about a target object between a prescanner and a CT scanner
First Claim
1. A method of screening items to detect target objects therein, comprising:
- a) passing X-rays through an item from a plurality of different angles and with a plurality of energy levels;
b) detecting X-rays that have been attenuated by passing through the item to produce detected values representative of the attenuation of the X-rays by the item;
c) analyzing the detected values to produce a first representation of objects within the item, the objects in the first representation being based at least in part on a ratio of attenuation of x-rays having different energies;
d) performing a computed tomographic reconstruction of at least a portion of the detected values to produce a second representation of one or more objects within the item;
e) forming a third representation of objects in the item by combining the first and second representations, and f) wherein forming the third representation includes altering the first representation by changing the estimate of the atomic number of an object based on the second representation of objects.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method or apparatus for analyzing an object includes an X-ray prescanner that performs a prescan of the object to determine prescan information about the object. Then, a CT scanner performs a CT scan on at least one plane of the object based on the prescan information to determine CT information. In one embodiment, if the CT scan of the object includes or is in the vicinity of metal, then metal artifact correction of a constructed image from the CT scan is performed based on the prescan information. In another embodiment, a processor analyzes the CT information and the prescan information to determine whether to update the prescan information based on the CT information.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A method of screening items to detect target objects therein, comprising:
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a) passing X-rays through an item from a plurality of different angles and with a plurality of energy levels;
b) detecting X-rays that have been attenuated by passing through the item to produce detected values representative of the attenuation of the X-rays by the item;
c) analyzing the detected values to produce a first representation of objects within the item, the objects in the first representation being based at least in part on a ratio of attenuation of x-rays having different energies;
d) performing a computed tomographic reconstruction of at least a portion of the detected values to produce a second representation of one or more objects within the item;
e) forming a third representation of objects in the item by combining the first and second representations, and f) wherein forming the third representation includes altering the first representation by changing the estimate of the atomic number of an object based on the second representation of objects. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A method of screening items to detect target objects therein, comprising:
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a) passing X-rays through an item from a plurality of different angles and with a plurality of energy levels;
b) detecting X-rays that have been attenuated by passing through the item to produce detected values representative of the attenuation of the X-rays by the item;
c) analyzing the detected values to produce a first representation of objects within the item, the objects in the first representation being based at least in part on a ratio of attention of x-rays haying different energies;
d) performing a computed tomographic reconstruction of at least a portion of the detected values to produce a second representation of one or more object within the item;
e) forming a third representation of objects in the item by combining the first and second representations; and
f) wherein forming the third representation includes altering a representation of an object in the first representation based on the second representation indicating that a plurality of overlapping objects are represented as one object in the first representation. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of screening items to detect target objects therein, comprising:
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a) passing X-rays through an item from a plurality of different angles and with a plurality of energy levels;
b) detecting X-rays that have been attenuated by passing through the item to produce detected values representative of the attenuation of the X-rays by the item;
c) analyzing the detected values to produce a first representation of objects within the item, the objects in the first representation being based at least in part on a ratio of attenuation of x-rays having different energies;
d) performing a computed tomographic reconstruction of at least a portion of the detected values to produce a second representation of one or more objects within the item;
e) forming a third representation of objects in the item by combining the first and second representations; and
f) wherein forming a third representation includes altering the effective atomic number and mass associated with objects contained in the first representation based on density of objects contained in the second representation. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
i) forming a plurality of pixels and ii) grouping pixels of similar characteristics and assigning a confidence level to each grouping.
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18. The method of claim 17 wherein assigning a confidence level includes assigning a confidence level based on the compactness of the grouping.
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19. The method of claim 17 wherein assigning a confidence level includes assigning a confidence level bused on the connectiveness of the grouping.
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20. The method of claim 17 wherein assigning a confidence level includes assigning a confidence level based on the gradient of the grouping.
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21. The method of claim 17 wherein assigning a confidence level includes assigning a confidence level based on the histogram spread of the grouping.
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22. A method of screening items to detect target objects therein, comprising:
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a) passing X-rays through an item from a plurality of different angles and with a plurality of energy levels;
b) detecting X-rays that have been attenuated by passing through the item to produce detected values representative of the attenuation of the X-rays by the item;
c) analyzing the detected values to produce a first representation of objects within the item, the first representation being based at least in part on a ratio of attention of x-rays having different energies;
d) performing a computed tomographic reconstruction of at least a portion of the detected values to produce a second representation of one or more objects within the item;
e) indicating an object based at least in part on the first representation and the second representation, wherein the object is indicated when it has an effective atomic number in a predetermined range and a predetermined proximity to another object that has an effective atomic number indicative of metal. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification