Radiographic imaging device and method with stop timing based on dosage detection

• US 9,232,620 B2
• Filed: 12/03/2012
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tajima, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Purinton, Brooke
• Application Number:
  US13/692,542
• Publication Number:
  US 20130148784A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,128 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4283 characterised by a detector unit being housed in a cassette
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/5294 involving using additional data, e.g. patient information, image labeling, acquisition parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/542 involving control of exposure
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/56 Details of data transmission or power supply, e.g. use of slip rings
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/04 and forming images of the material
• CPC Class Codes: H05G 1/42 using arrangements for switching when a predetermined dose of radiation has been applied, e.g. in which the switching instant is determined by measuring the electrical energy supplied to the tube

Abstract

An AEC unit of an electronic cassette sets a dose target value and a short-circuited pixel used for AEC based on a radiographing condition. When a control unit of the electronic cassette detects start of irradiation of X rays, the AEC unit starts integration of a cumulative dose of X rays which are incident to a target region based on a dose detection signal output by the short-circuited pixel. The AEC unit predicts a stop timing at the time point t1, waits until the time point t2 which is a predetermined time earlier than a scheduled stop time, and sends a stop timing notification to an X-ray generation device at the time point t2. When the stop timing notification is received, a X-ray source control device immediately inputs an irradiation stop command so as to stop an operation of an X-ray source.

Claims

1. A radiographic device which is connected to a radiation generation device irradiating a subject with radiation in order to allow communication therebetween and receives the radiation transferred through the subject so as to radiograph a radiological image of the subject, comprising:

an image detection unit that has an imaging region where a plurality of pixels accumulating signal charges corresponding to a dose of the radiation are arranged and detects the radiological image;

a dose detection unit that detects an arrival dose of the radiation arriving at the imaging region;

a stop timing prediction unit that predicts a stop timing for stopping irradiation of the radiation in the radiation generation device based on the arrival dose detected by the dose detection unit and a preset dose target value in order to prevent excess radiation exposure to the subject; and

a communication unit that sends a stop timing notification for notifying the stop timing to the radiation generation device before the stop timing arrives,

wherein the communication unit sends the stop timing notification a predetermined time before the stop timing, the predetermined time being set in consideration of a time lag of communication with the radiation generation device, and

wherein a time lag of the communication is an average time lag derived from multiple measurement points according to a communication path with the radiation generation device.

2. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the stop timing notification includes a scheduled stop time when a cumulative dose which is a cumulative value of the arrival dose is predicted to reach the dose target value.

3. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the stop timing notification includes a remaining time from a reference time point to a time point when a cumulative dose is predicted to reach the dose target value.

4. The radiographic device according to claim 3, wherein the stop timing notification includes a sending time when the communication unit sends the stop timing notification, or an arrival time in the radiation generation device, set in consideration of a time lag of the communication, in addition to the remaining time.

5. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit sends a plurality of stop timing notifications until the stop timing arrives.

6. The radiographic device according to claim 5, wherein the dose detection unit continuously detects a dose until a cumulative dose which is a cumulative value of the arrival dose reaches the dose target value.

7. The radiographic device according to claim 6, wherein the communication unit sends the plurality of stop timing notifications until the cumulative dose reaches the dose target value.

8. The radiographic device according to claim 6, wherein the stop timing prediction unit performs prediction again when the stop timing notification is sent.

9. The radiographic device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a clock circuit that clocks the current time; and

a synchronization unit that synchronizes the clock circuit with a clock circuit of the radiation generation device.

10. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit corrects the predetermined time set in consideration of a time lag of the communication based on the kind of the radiation generation device and a radiographing condition for driving the radiation generation device.

11. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit and the radiation generation device are directly connected to each other without interposing a relay device in a communication path therebetween.

12. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein a communication path between the communication unit and the radiation generation device is entirely or partially wireless.

13. The radiographic device according to claim 12, wherein the communication unit is a wireless communication unit.

14. The radiographic device according to claim 13, wherein the wireless communication unit sends the stop timing notification using a plurality of wireless channels.

15. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the stop timing prediction unit corrects the predetermined time set in consideration of a time lag of the communication based on a time from when the communication unit sends a signal to the radiation generation device until the communication unit receives a response to the signal.

16. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the stop timing notification includes an error flag which is given by a communication device which presents in a communication path between the communication unit and the radiation generation device.

17. The radiographic device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a gain setting unit that sets a gain when the radiological image is read from the image detection unit based on the arrival dose detected by the dose detection unit.

18. The radiographic device according to claim 1, wherein the dose detection unit is provided in the imaging region of the image detection unit.

19. A radiographic system comprising:

a radiation generation device that irradiates a subject with radiation; and

a radiographic device that is connected to the radiation generation device in order to allow communication therebetween and receives the radiation transferred through the subject so as to radiograph a radiological image of the subject,

wherein the radiographic device includes

an image detection unit that includes an imaging region where a plurality of pixels accumulating signal charges corresponding to a dose of the radiation are arranged and detects the radiological image;

a dose detection unit that detects an arrival dose of the radiation arriving at the imaging region;

a stop timing prediction unit that predicts a stop timing for stopping irradiation of the radiation in the radiation generation device based on the arrival dose detected by the dose detection unit and a preset dose target value in order to prevent excess radiation exposure to the subject; and

a communication unit that sends a stop timing notification for notifying the radiation generation device of the stop timing to the radiation generation device before the stop timing arrives,

wherein the communication unit sends the stop timing notification a predetermined time before the stop timing, the predetermined time being set in consideration of a time lag of communication with the radiation generation device,

wherein a time lag of the communication is an average time lag derived from multiple measurement points according to a communication path with the radiation generation device, and

wherein the radiation generation device includes

a radiation source that applies the radiation; and

a radiation source control unit that controls the radiation source,

wherein the radiation source control unit includes

a communication unit that receives the stop timing notification; and

a control unit that stops irradiation by the radiation source based on the stop timing notification.

20. The radiographic system according to claim 19, wherein the stop timing notification includes a scheduled stop time when a cumulative dose which is a cumulative value of the arrival dose is predicted to reach the dose target value, and

wherein the control unit stops the irradiation by the radiation source based on arrival of the scheduled stop time.

21. The radiographic system according to claim 19, wherein the stop timing notification includes a remaining time from a reference time point to a time point when the cumulative dose is predicted to reach the dose target value, and

wherein the control unit stops the irradiation by the radiation source based on the remaining time having elapsed.

22. The radiographic system according to claim 20, wherein the communication unit sends the plurality of stop timing notifications until the stop timing arrives.

23. The radiographic system according to claim 22, wherein the control unit stops the irradiation by the radiation source based on the latest stop timing notification of the plurality of stop timing notifications which have been received.

24. A control method for a radiographic device which is connected to a radiation generation device irradiating a subject with radiation in order to allow communication therebetween and includes an image detection unit provided with an imaging region where a plurality of pixels accumulating signal charges corresponding to a dose of the radiation are arranged and receiving the radiation transferred through the subject so as to detect a radiological image of the subject, comprising:

a dose detection step of detecting an arrival dose of the radiation arriving at the imaging region;

a stop timing prediction step of predicting a stop timing for stopping irradiation of the radiation in the radiation generation device based on the detected arrival dose and a preset dose target value in order to prevent excess radiation exposure to the subject; and

a communication step of sending a stop timing notification for notifying the radiation generation device of the stop timing to the radiation generation device before the stop timing arrives

wherein the communication step sends the stop timing notification a predetermined time before the stop timing, the predetermined time being set in consideration of a time lag of communication with the radiation generation device, and

wherein a time lag of the communication is an average time lag derived from multiple measurement points according to a communication path with the radiation generation device.

25. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium recording thereon a control program for a radiographic device which is connected to a radiation generation device irradiating a subject with radiation in order to allow communication therebetween and includes an image detection unit provided with an imaging region where a plurality of pixels accumulating signal charges corresponding to a dose of the radiation are arranged and receiving the radiation transferred through the subject so as to detect a radiological image of the subject, the control program causing a computer to function as:

a dose detection unit that detects an arrival dose of the radiation arriving at the imaging region;

a stop timing prediction unit that predicts a stop timing for stopping irradiation of the radiation in the radiation generation device based on the arrival dose detected by the dose detection unit and a preset dose target value in order to prevent excess radiation exposure to the subject; and

a communication unit that sends a stop timing notification for notifying the radiation generation device of the stop timing to the radiation generation device before the stop timing arrives,

wherein the communication unit sends the stop timing notification a predetermined time before the stop timing, the predetermined time being set in consideration of a time lag of communication with the radiation generation device, and

wherein a time lag of the communication is an average time lag derived from multiple measurement points according to a communication path with the radiation generation device.