Radiation detecting apparatus, radiographic image capturing system, and radiographic image capturing method

• US 8,334,516 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2010
• Issued: 12/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tsubota, Keiji, Hattori, Masato, Yoshida, Yutaka, Ohta, Yasunori, Nishino, Naoyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Gaworecki, Mark R
• Application Number:
  US12/659,836
• Publication Number:
  US 20100243910A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,001 Days
• Field of Search: 250/336.1, 250/370.01, 250/370.08, 250/370.09, 250/393, 250/395, 250/580, 378/98.8, 378/114, 378/189
• US Class Current: 250/370.08
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4283 characterised by a detector unit being housed in a cassette
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4291 the detector being combined with a grid or grating
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4464 the source unit or the detector unit being mounted to ceiling
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4488 Means for cooling A61B6/045 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/548 Remote control of the apparatus or devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/56 Details of data transmission or power supply, e.g. use of slip rings
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/586 Detection of faults or malfunction of the device
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 42/04 Holders for X-ray films

Abstract

A radiographic image capturing system includes an image capturing apparatus for applying radiation to a subject, a radiation detecting apparatus for detecting radiation transmitted through the subject, a power feeder for supplying electric power contactlessly to a contactless power receiver of the radiation detecting apparatus, a feeding-state determining unit for determining whether power-feeding by the power feeder is being performed or not, and a signal generator for generating an image-capturing inhibition signal for inhibiting radiographic image-capturing by the image capturing apparatus if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed.

Claims

1. A radiation detecting apparatus comprising:

a radiation detector for detecting radiation transmitted through a subject and converting the detected radiation into radiographic image information;

a power supply for supplying electric power to the radiation detector;

a contactless power receiver for receiving electric power supplied contactlessly from an external contactless power feeder and supplying the received electric power to the power supply;

a feeding-state determining unit for determining whether power-feeding by the contactless power feeder is being performed or not; and

an image-capturing operation processing unit for performing a process for invalidating an operation for image-capturing by the radiation at least if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed.

2. A radiation detecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image-capturing operation processing unit generates an image-capturing inhibition signal for inhibiting the image-capturing by the radiation if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed.

3. A radiation detecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image-capturing operation processing unit does not generate an image-capturing permission signal for permitting the image-capturing by the radiation if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed.

4. A radiation detecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image-capturing operation processing unit generates an image-capturing permission signal for permitting the image-capturing by the radiation if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is not performed.

5. A radiographic image capturing system comprising:

a radiation applying apparatus for applying radiation to a subject;

a radiation detecting apparatus including a radiation detector for detecting the radiation transmitted through the subject and converting the detected radiation into radiographic image information, and a power supply for supplying electric power to the radiation detector;

a contactless power feeder disposed in the radiation detecting apparatus, for supplying electric power contactlessly to a contactless power receiver which supplies electric power to the power supply;

a controller for controlling the radiation applying apparatus, the radiation detecting apparatus, and the contactless power feeder;

a feeding-state determining unit for determining whether power-feeding by the contactless power feeder is being performed or not;

an image-capturing operation processing unit for performing a process for invalidating an operation for image-capturing by the radiation at least if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed; and

an image-capturing controller for controlling the radiation applying apparatus based on the process performed by the image-capturing operation processing unit.

6. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 5, wherein the image-capturing operation processing unit generates an image-capturing inhibition signal for inhibiting the image-capturing by the radiation if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed, and

in case that the image-capturing controller receives the image-capturing inhibition signal, the image-capturing controller controls the radiation applying apparatus to inhibit the image-capturing.

7. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 5, wherein the image-capturing operation processing unit does not generate an image-capturing permission signal for permitting the image-capturing by the radiation if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is being performed, and

while the image-capturing controller does not receive the image-capturing permission signal, the image-capturing controller controls the radiation applying apparatus to inhibit the image-capturing.

8. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 5, wherein the image-capturing operation processing unit generates an image-capturing permission signal for permitting the image-capturing by the radiation if the feeding-state determining unit judges that the power-feeding is not performed and

in case that the image-capturing controller receives the image-capturing permission signal, the image-capturing controller controls the radiation applying apparatus to start the image-capturing or to be brought into an image-capturing stand-by state.

9. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 5, wherein the feeding-state determining unit and the image-capturing operation processing unit are provided in at least one of the radiation applying apparatus, the radiation detecting apparatus, the contactless power feeder and the controller.

10. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 5, wherein the image-capturing controller is provided in at least one of the radiation applying apparatus, the radiation detecting apparatus, the contactless power feeder, and the controller.

11. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 6, further comprising a display device for displaying the radiographic image information and indicating the inhibition of the image capturing.

12. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 11, wherein the display device indicates a present charged amount of the battery or a remaining charging time before the charged amount reaches an amount of electric power required for performing the image capturing.

13. A radiographic image capturing system according to claim 11, wherein the display device indicates that there is another radiation detecting apparatus that has already been charged to have the amount of electric power required for performing the image capturing.

14. A method of capturing a radiographic image of a subject by applying radiation to the subject, detecting the radiation with a radiation detector of a radiation detecting apparatus, and converting the detected radiation into radiographic image information with the radiation detector, comprising the steps of:

supplying electric power contactlessly to a power supply of the radiation detecting apparatus; and

inhibiting image-capturing by the radiation while power-feeding is being performed.

15. A method of capturing a radiographic image according to claim 14, further comprising the step of starting the image-capturing after the power-feeding has been finished while the image-capturing is inhibited during the power-feeding.