Radio-frequency coil arrangement

• US 7,598,740 B2
• Filed: 11/21/2007
• Issued: 10/06/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens Healthcare GMBH (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Fischer, Hubertus, Heid, Oliver, Hergt, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Shrivastv; Brij B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vargas; Dixomara
• Application Number:
  US11/943,808
• Publication Number:
  US 20080129296A1
• Time in Patent Office: 685 Days
• Field of Search: 324300-322, 600410-435, 333219-233, 343723-730
• US Class Current: 324/318
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34007 Manufacture of RF coils, e.g. using printed circuit board technology; additional hardware for providing mechanical support to the RF coil assembly or to part thereof, e.g. a support for moving the coil assembly relative to the remainder of the MR system
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34084 implantable coils or coils being geometrically adaptable to the sample, e.g. flexible coils or coils comprising mutually movable parts
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/3415 comprising arrays of sub-coils , i.e. phased-array coils with flexible receiver channels
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/3664 Switching for purposes other than coil coupling or decoupling, e.g. switching between a phased array mode and a quadrature mode, switching between surface coil modes of different geometrical shapes, switching from a whole body reception coil to a local reception coil or switching for automatic coil selection in moving table MR or for changing the field-of-view G01R33/3671 takes precedence

Abstract

A radio-frequency coil arrangement has a number of conductor traces forming basic coils and with capacitors interconnected in the conductor traces. Conductor traces of various basic coils intersect at node points. At least one switching arrangement for selective, reversible connection of the conductor traces to form different coil geometries is provided at least some of the node points.

Claims

1. A radio-frequency coil arrangement comprising:

a plurality of conductor traces forming a plurality of basic radio-frequency coils with capacitors interconnected in said conductor traces, respective conductor traces of respective different ones of said basic coils intersecting at node points, and each basic radio-frequency coil exhibiting a basic coil configuration; and

at least some of said node points being switchable node points comprising at least one switching arrangement operable to selectively, reversibly connect or disconnect the conductor traces at that switchable node point to cause the respective basic radio-frequency coils having said conductor traces at said switchable mode to point to deviate from said basic configuration to allow selective, reversible formation of a plurality of different coil geometries.

2. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said conductor traces have a configuration giving said basic coils a substantially rectangular configuration as said basic coil configuration.

3. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said conductor traces have a configuration giving said basic coils substantially circular configuration as said basic coil configuration.

4. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein each switching arrangement is a switching arrangement selected from the group consisting of electrostatic relays, semiconductor switches, and galvanic switches.

5. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein each switchable node point comprises a switching arrangement comprising six switches.

6. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 comprising a control device connected to each switching arrangement that operates the respective switching arrangements to make and reverse said connections of the conductor traces.

7. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 6 wherein said control device comprises a bus system.

8. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 6 wherein said control device comprises conductors that transmit control signals to respective switching arrangements.

9. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 8 wherein said control device uses at least some of said conductor traces as a return conductor for said control signals.

10. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 6 wherein said control device transmits said control signals via the conductor traces to the respective switching arrangements.

11. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 6 wherein said control device selects among a plurality of preset coil geometries and selectively operates said switching arrangements to produce a selected one of said preset coil geometries at a time.

12. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 6 wherein said control device individually operates said switching arrangements.

13. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein at least some of said capacitors are capacitance diodes.

14. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 comprising a surface on which said conductor traces are arranged, said surface being selected from the group consisting of circuit boards and flexible plastic sheets.

15. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said conductor traces forming said basic coils are configured to form a magnetic resonance coil arrangement selected from the group consisting of whole-body coil arrangements and local coil arrangements.

16. A radio-frequency coil arrangement as claimed in claim 1 comprising a patient bed configured to move into and out of a magnetic resonance apparatus, on which said plurality of conductor traces forming said basic coils are arranged.

17. A magnetic resonance apparatus comprising:

a magnetic resonance data acquisition unit configured to interact with a subject to acquire magnetic resonance data therefrom; and

a radio-frequency coil arrangement that participates in the acquisition of said magnetic resonance data, said radio-frequency coil arrangement comprising a plurality of conductor traces forming a plurality of basic radio-frequency coils with capacitors interconnected in said conductor traces, respective conductor traces of respective different ones of said basic coils intersecting at node points, and each basic radio-frequency coil exhibiting a basic coil configuration, and at least some of said node points being switchable node points comprising at least one switching arrangement operable to selectively, reversibly connect or disconnect the conductor traces at that switchable node point to cause the respective basic radio-frequency coils having said conductor traces at said switchable mode to point to deviate from said basic configuration to allow selective, reversible formation of a plurality of different coil geometries.