Automatic reduction of interfering elements from an image stream of a moving organ

• US 8,542,900 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2009
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sync-Rx, Ltd. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Sync-Rx, Ltd. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Tolkowsky, David, Cohen, Ran, Steinberg, Alexander, Philipp, Sagiv, Klaiman, Eldad
• Primary Examiner(s): AZARIAN, SEYED H
• Application Number:
  US12/649,960
• Publication Number:
  US 20100171819A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,364 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/103, 382128-132, 382/155, 382/162, 382/168, 382/173, 382/181, 382189-192, 382/232, 382254-258, 382274-275, 382/276, 382/291, 382/305, 382/312, 600/424, 600/513, 378/4, 378/21, 378/95
• US Class Current: 382/130
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12036 partial occlusion
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/1204 temporary occlusion
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12136 Balloons
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/02 by cooling, e.g. cryogenic techniques devices for cooling specific reflex points of the body within cell-life limits A61H39/06
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1492 having a flexible, catheter-like structure, e.g. for heart ablation A61B18/1477 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/24 with a catheter A61B18/26, A61B18/28 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00252 for by-pass connections, i.e. connections from heart chamber to blood vessel or from blood vessel to blood vessel
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00694 with means correcting for movement of or for synchronisation with the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00703 correcting for movement of heart, e.g. ECG-triggered
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/1205 Introduction devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/22044 with a pointed tip
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/22094 for crossing total occlusions, i.e. piercing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/105 Modelling of the patient, e.g. for ligaments or bones
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/107 Visualisation of planned trajectories or target regions
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/254 being adapted depending on the stage of the surgical procedure
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/365 augmented reality, i.e. correlating a live optical image with another image
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/10 Computer-aided planning, simulation or modelling of surgical operations
• 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 34/25 User interfaces for surgical systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0044 for the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7285 : for synchronising or triggering a physiological measurement or image acquisition with a physiological event or waveform, e.g. an ECG signal A61B6/5205, A61B6/541, A61B8/5207, A61B8/543 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7289 : Retrospective gating, i.e. associating measured signals or images with a physiological event after the actual measurement or image acquisition, e.g. by simultaneously recording an additional physiological signal during the measurement or image acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/12 : Arrangements for detecting or locating foreign bodies
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/469 : for selecting a region of interest [ROI]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/481 : involving the use of contrast agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/501 : for diagnosis of the head, e.g. neuroimaging or craniography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/503 : for diagnosis of the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/504 : for diagnosis of blood vessels, e.g. by angiography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/5217 : extracting a diagnostic or physiological parameter from medical diagnostic data
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/5247 : combining images from an ionising-radiation diagnostic technique and a non-ionising radiation diagnostic technique, e.g. X-ray and ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/541 : involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0883 : for diagnosis of the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0891 : for diagnosis of blood vessels
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/543 : involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/958 : Inflatable balloons for placing stents or stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 : Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10121 : Fluoroscopy
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30048 : Heart; Cardiac
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30101 : Blood vessel; Artery; Vein; Vascular
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/00 : Image enhancement or restoration
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 : Biomedical image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0014 : using an image reference approach
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/13 : Edge detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/246 : using feature-based methods, e.g. the tracking of corners or segments
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/62 : of area, perimeter, diameter or volume
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/034 : of medical instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/103 : Static body considered as a whole, e.g. static pedestrian or occupant recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/30 : for calculating health indices; for individual health risk assessment

Abstract

Apparatus and methods are described for imaging a portion of a body of a subject that undergoes a motion cycle. A plurality of image frames of the portion are acquired. The image frames are enhanced with respect to a first given feature of the image frames, by (a) image tracking the image frames with respect to the first given feature, (b) identifying a second given feature in each of the image frames, and (c) in response to the identifying, reducing visibility of the second given feature in the image frames. The image frames that (a) have been image tracked with respect to the first given feature, and (b) have had reduced therein the visibility of the second given feature, are displayed as a stream of image frames. Other embodiments are also described.

Claims

1. A method for imaging a portion of a body of a subject that undergoes a motion cycle, the method comprising:

acquiring a plurality of image frames of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body; and

enhancing the image frames with respect to a first given feature of the image frames, by;

image tracking the image frames with respect to the first given feature;

identifying a second given feature in each of the image frames;

in response to the identifying, reducing visibility of the second given feature in the image frames; and

displaying, as a stream of image frames, the image frames that (a) have been image tracked with respect to the first given feature, and (b) have had reduced therein the visibility of the second given feature, wherein as a result of the motion cycle of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body, the first given feature moves by an amount that is different from an amount of movement of the second given feature as a result of the motion cycle of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body, and wherein identifying the second feature comprises identifying the second feature using a filter selected from the group consisting of a spatial filter and a temporal filter.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein reducing the visibility of the second feature comprises reducing the visibility by a reduction factor that is a function of a distance of the second feature from the first feature.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein reducing visibility of the second given feature comprises eliminating visibility of the second given feature.

4. Apparatus for use with a portion of a body of a subject that undergoes a motion cycle, the apparatus comprising:

an image-acquisition device configured to acquire a plurality of image frames of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body;

a display; and

at least one processor configured to enhance the image frames with respect to a first given feature of the image frames, the processor comprising;

image-tracking functionality configured to image track the image frames with respect to the first given feature;

feature-identifying functionality configured to identify a second given feature in each of the image frames;

image-processing functionality configured, in response to the identifying, to reduce visibility of the second given feature in the image frames; and

display-driving functionality configured to drive the display to display, as a stream of image frames, the image frames that (a) have been image tracked with respect to the first given feature, and (b) have had reduced therein the visibility of the second given feature, wherein as a result of the motion cycle of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body, the first given feature moves by an amount that is different from an amount of movement of the second given feature as a result of the motion cycle of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body, and wherein the feature-identifying functionality is configured to identify the second feature using a filter selected from the group consisting of a spatial filter and a temporal filter.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image-processing functionality is configured to reduce visibility of the second given feature by a reduction factor that is a function of a distance of the second feature from the first feature.

6. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image-processing functionality is configured to eliminate visibility of the second given feature.

7. A method for imaging a portion of a body of a subject that undergoes a motion cycle, the method comprising:

acquiring a plurality of image frames of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body;

reducing visibility of a given feature within the image frames by masking the given feature in each of the image frames; and

displaying, as a stream of image frames, the image frames in which the given feature has reduced visibility, wherein;

acquiring the plurality of image frames comprises gating the image frames with respect to a given phase of the motion cycle,

masking the given feature in each of the image frames comprises generating a mask based on an image frame that is gated with respect to the given phase of the motion cycle, and applying the mask to the gated image frames, and

displaying the image frames comprises displaying the gated, masked image frames.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein:

masking the given feature in each of the image frames comprises generating a plurality of masks, respective masks corresponding to given phases of the motion cycle, and

applying the mask to the image frames comprises applying to frames of the image stream that were acquired during respective phases of the motion cycle, a corresponding mask.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein reducing the visibility of the given feature comprises reducing the visibility in each of the image frames by a reduction factor that is a function of a distance of the given feature from a given portion of the image frame.

10. Apparatus for use with a portion of a body of a subject that undergoes a motion cycle, the apparatus comprising:

an image acquisition device configured to acquire a plurality of image frames of the portion of the subject'"'"'s body;

a display; and

at least one processor comprising;

image-receiving functionality configured to receive the image frames into the processor,

and masking functionality that is configured to reduce visibility of a given feature within the image frames by masking the given feature in each of the image frames; and

display-driving functionality configured to drive the display to display, as a stream of image frames, the image frames in which the given feature has reduced visibility, wherein;

the processor comprises gating functionality configured to gate the image frames with respect to a given phase of the motion cycle,

the masking functionality is configured to generate a mask based on an image frame that is gated with respect to the given phase of the motion cycle, and to apply the mask to the gated image frames, and

the display-driving functionality is configured to drive the display to display the gated, masked image frames.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the masking functionality is configured to:

generate a plurality of masks, respective masks corresponding to given phases of the motion cycle, and

apply to frames of the image stream that were acquired during respective phases of the motion cycle, a corresponding mask.

12. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the masking functionality is configured to reduce the visibility of the given feature in each of the image frames by a reduction factor that is a function of a distance of the given feature from a given portion of the image frame.