X-ray computed tomographic apparatus and image processing apparatus

0001The present invention relates to an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus and an image processing apparatus which generate tomographic image data based on projection data acquired by scanning a subject by means of X-rays.

0002In recent years, in an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus, with advancement of practical use of volume scan (referred to as a cone beam scan) due to helical scan or multiply arrayed X-ray detectors, a wide range of data has been successfully acquired in a short time. In such a situation, unlike a conventional technique, instead of carrying out scanning in a scan range according to a reconstruction range which has been set in advance, it is believed that there will be an increasing demand for a technique for setting a reconstruction condition or a reconstruction range after scanning to reconstruct an image. Processing for reconstructing an image by setting the reconstruction condition or reconstruction range after scanning is referred to as batch reconstruction processing in order to discriminate processing for speedily reconstructing an image immediately after scanning the reconstruction condition or reconstruction range which has been set in advance. In the batch reconstruction processing, in order to set the reconstruction range, an axial image is displayed together with a scanogram, as shown in FIG. 8. The range in a body axis direction is specified on the scanogram, and the range in two directions orthogonal to the body axis is specified on the axial image.

0003The scanogram is a projection image, and moreover, is low in resolution, and thus, a morphological structure is hardly recognized. Thus, an axial image check is made in order to finally determine the range in the body axis direction. While switching axial images, namely, while moving a slice position of the axial image along the body axis, an operator checks the morphological structure in detail, and finally determines the range in the body axis direction. In this method, operability is very poor, and a large amount of tine interval is required to set the reconstruction range.

0004It is an object of the present invention to improve operability of setting a reconstruction range for batch construction processing in an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus and an image processing apparatus.

0005According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus, comprising: a scanning unit configured to perform scanning in a three-dimensional region of a subject by X-rays; a storing unit configured to store projection data acquired by the scanning; a volume data generating unit configured to generate volume data which corresponds to the three-dimensional region based on the stored projection data; a slice image data generating unit configured to generate slice image data relating to at least three-direction slice planes from the volume data; a displaying unit configured to display the slice image data together with a graphic element which represents a reconstruction range; an operating unit configured to operate the graphic element; and a reconstructing unit configured to reconstruct tomographic image data corresponding to the reconstruction range represented by the graphic element, based on the stored projection data.

0006According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus, comprising: a scanning unit to perform scanning in a three-dimensional region of a subject by means of X-rays; a storing unit to store projection data acquired by the scanning; a displaying unit to display at least three-direction image data which corresponds to the three-dimensional region together with a graphic element representing a reconstruction range; an operating unit to operate the graphic element; and a reconstructing unit to reconstruct tomographic image data which corresponds to the reconstruction range represented by the graphic element, based on the stored projection data.

0007According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus, comprising: a scanning unit to perform scanning in a three-dimensional region of a subject by means of X-rays; a storing unit to store projection data acquired by the scanning; a displaying unit to display a scanogram relating to the subject together with a graphic element representing a reconstruction range; an operating unit to operate the graphic element; and a reconstructing unit to reconstruct tomographic image data which corresponds to the reconstruction range represented by the graphic element, based on the stored projection data.

0008According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: a storing unit to store projection data relating to a three-dimensional region of a subject; a volume data generating unit to generate volume data which corresponds to the three-dimensional region, based on the stored projection data; a slice image data generating unit to generate slice image data relating to at least three-direction slice planes from the volume data; a displaying unit to display the slice image data together with a graphic element representing a reconstruction range; an operating unit to operate the graphic element; and a reconstructing unit to reconstruct tomographic image data which corresponds to the reconstruction range represented by the graphic element, based on the stored projection data.

0009According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: a storing unit to store projection data relating to a three-dimensional region of a subject; a displaying unit to display at least three-direction image data which corresponding to the three-dimensional region together with a graphic element representing a reconstruction range; an operating unit to operate the graphic element; and a reconstructing unit to reconstruct tomographic image data which corresponds to the reconstruction range represented by the graphic element, based on the stored projection data.

0010According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: a storing unit to store projection data relating to a three-dimensional region of a subject; a displaying unit to display a scanogram relating to the subject together with a graphic element representing a reconstruction range; an operating unit to operate the graphic element; and a reconstructing unit to reconstruct tomographic image data which corresponds to the reconstruction range represented by the graphic element, based on the stored projection data.

0011This summary of the invention does not necessarily describe all necessary features so that the invention may also be a sub-combination of these described features.

0012The invention can be more fully understood from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: <ul id="ul0001" list-style="none" compact="compact"><li>FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;</li><li>FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing from scanning to the completion of zooming reconstruction processing according to the embodiment;</li><li>FIG. 3 is a chart showing an outline of processing in S3 of FIG. 2;</li><li>FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing in S3 of FIG. 2 in detail;</li><li>FIG. 5 is a view showing an example of a display screen in S12 of FIG. 4;</li><li>FIG. 6 is a view showing an example of a display screen in S17 of FIG. 4;</li><li>FIG. 7 is a view showing another example of the display screen in S12 of FIG. 4; and</li><li>FIG. 8 is a chart showing an outline of processing for setting a zooming reconstruction range in a prior art.</li></ul>

0013Hereinafter, a description will be given with respect to a mode for carrying out an image processing apparatus and an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus including the same. As is well known, The X-ray computed tomographic apparatus includes various types, such as a rotate/rotate type in which a unit comprising the X-ray tube and the radiation detector rotates about the subject, and a stationary/rotate type in which a number of detection elements are aligned in a ringshaped array and the X-ray tube alone rotates about the subject, and the invention is applicable to any type. Herein, the currently most popular rotate/rotate type will be described. In addition, the present invention can also be applied not only to a single-tube system equipped with one pair of an X-ray tube and a detecting system but also to a multi-tube system equipped with a plurality, for example, three pairs of X-ray tubes and detecting systems which have recently been developed for practical use. Hereinafter, a description will be given with respect to a single-tube system for the sake of convenience. Further, in order to reconstruct tomographic data for one slice, it is necessary to obtain projection data of about 360° for a full circle of the subject, and projection data of 180° plus a fan angle is needed in the half scan method. The invention is applicable to either reconstruction method. Here, a description will be given assuming that tomographic image for one slice is reconstructed from a set of the former general projection data for about 360°.

0014In addition, volume data is handled here. The volume data is defined as a data set representing a three-dimensional distribution of CT numbers which correspond to a three-dimensional region of the subject. In actuality, the volume data is expressed in a multi-slice format serving as a set encompassing a plurality of slices of tomographic images which serves as a set of a plurality of pixels having CT numbers or in a voxel format serving as a set of a plurality of voxels having CT numbers. A helical scan system or a cone beam scan system is employed as scan for obtaining the volume data. As is well known, the helical scan system is provided as a system of repeating data acquisition while X-ray tubes and X-ray detectors continuously rotate the periphery of the subject and a tabletop having the subject placed thereon moves along its rotary shaft there at a constant speed. The cone beam scan system is provided as a system of acquiring data in a three-dimensional region in a tabletop stop state by employing: an X-ray detector having arrayed therein a number of detecting elements in a slice direction (parallel to the rotary axis), for example, over a width of 30 cm, called plane detectors, two-dimensional arrayed detectors or multi-arrayed detectors; and cone beam X-ray tubes for generating conical X-rays.

0015FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting a configuration of an X-ray computed tomographic apparatus according to the present embodiment. A scan gantry 100 has a circular gantry rotating unit 2 rotatably maintained by a patient couch/gantry mechanism 3. Rotation of the gantry rotating unit 2 by the patent couch/gantry mechanism 3 is controlled by a mechanical control unit 4. The mechanical control unit 4 is under the control of a system control unit 11.

0016An X-ray tube 13 and an X-ray detector 16 are mounted on the gantry rotating unit 2 so as to be opposed to each other by sandwiching a rotation center axis. A subject 30 placed on a patient couch 1 is allocated in the vicinity of the rotation center axis. A high voltage is applied from a high voltage generator 12 to the X-ray tube 13 via a slip ring 15, and a filament current is supplied, thereby generating an X-ray. In order to reshape the X-ray in a predetermined conical shape, an X-ray collimator 14 is mounted on an X-ray radiation window of the X-ray tube 13. The X-ray tube 13 configures an X-ray generating unit 5 together with the high voltage generator 12, the slip ring 15, and the X-ray collimator 14.

0017The X-ray detector 16 has a plurality of detecting elements arranged in one-dimensional or two-dimensional manner for converting the X-rays having transmitted the subject 30 into a charge in number corresponding to its intensity. One or a predetermined number of detecting elements configure(s) one channel which has been electrically isolated. Here, for the sake of convenience, a description will be given assuming that one element configures one channel. A data acquisition system (DAS) 18 is connected to the X-ray detector 16 via switches 17. In the data acquisition system 18, there are provided on a channel by channel basis: an I-V converter for converting a current signal of the X-ray detector 16 into a voltage; an integrator for periodically integrating the voltage signal in synchronism with an X-ray exposure period; an amplifier for amplifying an output signal of the integrator; and an analog/digital converter for converting an output signal of the preamplifier into a digital signal. Data (projection data) outputted from the data acquisition system 18 is sent to an image data generating unit 7 via a non-contact type data transmitting unit 19 utilizing light or magnet. The X-ray detector 16 configures a projection data acquiring unit 6 together with the switches 17, the data acquisition system 18, and the data transmitting unit 19. A projection data acquisition operation of the projection data acquiring unit 6 is under the control of the system control unit 11.

0018The image data generating unit 7 has: a projection data storing unit 20 for storing the projection data outputted from the projection data acquiring unit 6; a reconstruction processing unit 21; a reconstruction processing control unit 23; a volume data storing unit 22; and an MPR processing unit 24. The reconstruction processing unit 21 are selectively equipped with a cone beam reconstruction technique, a multi-slice reconstruction technique, and a zooming reconstruction technique. As is well known, the cone beam reconstruction technique is provided as processing for applying reverse projection to an oblique ray according to a cone angle with respect to a voxel set. In addition, the zooming reconstruction technique is also provided as processing for reconstructing a high resolution image (image having high spatial resolution) by limiting a reconstruction range to a portion of the scan range.

0019The reconstruction processing unit 21 generates volume data under the control according to the reconstruction condition established by the reconstruction processing control unit 23 based on the projection data stored in the projection data storing unit 20. The volume data is generated by interpolating in a slice direction the tomographic image data on the typically reconstructed multi-slices. The reconstruction conditions include a reconstruction technique, a reconstruction range, a reconstruction function, a full reconstruction/half reconstruction, a reconstruction slice thickness, a viewing direction, the number of stacks, and the presence or absence of a filter. The reconstruction conditions are set via an input device 10, and are supplied from the system control unit 11 to the reconstruction processing control unit 23.

0020Volume data is stored in the volume data storing unit 22. The MPR processing unit 24 generates tomographic image data on an arbitrary slice by MPR processing (slice conversion processing) from the volume data stored in the volume data storing unit 22.

0021A GUI screen generating unit 26 is provided to generate a graphical user interface screen (GUI screen) including tomographic image data together with a variety of operating buttons according to a variety of steps such as a scan planning step and a reconstruction condition setting step of the batch reconstruction processing such as zooming reconstruction. The generated GUI screen is scan-converted by a converting unit 27, and the scan-converted screen contents are displayed on a monitor 28.

0022As shown in FIG. 2, for the whole operating procedures according to the present embodiment, first, a three-dimensional region of the subject 30 is scanned by a helical scan system or a volume scan system (cone beam scan system) in accordance with the scan condition set during scan planning (S1). In this manner, a set of projection data relating to the three-dimensional region is acquired, and the acquired set of the data is stored in the projection data storing unit 20. After scanning has terminated, the volume data serving as a CT number distribution in the three-dimensional region is immediately reconstructed in accordance with the cone beam reconstruction technique or multi-slice reconstruction technique based on the stored set of the projection data (S2). The volume data is stored in the volume data storing unit 22. Typically, the volume data reconstruction condition is initially set according to a region to be imaged.

0023Following S2, for example, when zooming reconstruction processing is instructed to be executed as batch processing under a reconstruction condition which is different from the reconstruction condition for an immediate reconstruction processing set during scan planning, the system control unit 10 starts up an expert system for the zooming reconstruction processing. Under the expert system, a series of the flow of zooming reconstruction processing includes: a zooming reconstruction condition setting step (S3), a zooming reconstruction processing step (S4), and a step of displaying a zooming reconstructed tomographic image having a high resolution which are sequentially executed.

0024In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, in order to set a reconstruction condition, for example, a zooming reconstruction range, orthogonal three-axis images such as an axial image, a sagittal image, and a coronal image; and a tilt image (oblique image) are generated and displayed as required. Moreover, so-called image switching for arbitrarily moving the slice position of each image can be carried out. In this manner, three-dimensional information can be easily seen so that a wide zooming reconstruction range can be set precisely, finely, and speedily.

0025FIG. 4 shows processing procedures for setting a zooming reconstruction range in S3 of FIG. 2. When zooming reconstruction processing is requested as batch processing via the input device 10, the system control unit 11 instructs the MPR processing unit 24 to initially generate an axial image, a sagittal image, and a coronal image as three-direction slice images orthogonal to each other at the center of the three-dimensional region from the volume data which corresponds to the three-dimensional region of the subject 30. An image of a slice plane generated (reconstructed) from the volume data is referred to as a "slice image", and an image of a slice plane reconstructed from projection data is referred to as a "tomographic image" in order to easily discriminate both of them. In accordance with an instruction from the system control unit 11, the MPR processing unit 24 generates a slice image relating to a three-direction slice plane from the volume data (S1). The slice images relating to different three-direction slice planes are typically provided as an axial image, a sagittal image, and a coronal image which are orthogonal to each other at the center of the three-dimensional region. The slice images each have a 512 x 512 pixel size, for example.

0026The GUI screen generating unit 26 generates a CUI screen including: the axial image (XY plane), sagittal image (XZ plane), and coronal image (YZ plane) generated in S11, as shown in FIG. 5, under the control of the system control unit 11 together with graphic elements (called marks) R1, R2, and R3 representing a zooming reconstruction range; inter section lines, ISL1, ISL2, and ISL3 representing a slice position mutually; a frame SR representing a scan range having projection data acquired therein; and a reconstruction condition in the lower right column of the screen. On the GUI screen, as shown in FIG. 7, a scanogram imaged during scan planning may be displayed together with the marks R2 and R3.

0027The GUI screen includes scan conditions (upper left column) and icon sets (lower left column). The icon sets include: a "raw data selection" button for selectively instructing which scanning is carried out to acquire raw data (or projection data) and how batch processing (zooming reconstruction processing) is carried out by using the acquired data; an "oblique display" button for instructing generation and display of a slice image (oblique image) of a slice plane which is oblique along any of at least X axis, Y, axis, and Z axis corresponding to an inter section line ISL4; an Inter Section display" button for selectively instructing display/non-display of the inter section lines ISL1 to 4; a "range reset" button for resetting a zooming reconstruction range; and a "reconstruction execution" button for starting execution of reconstruction. The generated GUI screen is displayed on the monitor 28.

0028In order to set the zooming reconstruction range, a slice plane of each of the axial image, sagittal image, and coronal image can be moved by moving each of the corresponding inter section lines ISL3, ISL2, and ISL1 (S13). Movement of the inter section lines ISL3, ISL2, and ISL1 is carried out by an alternate operation between a mouse whirl rotating operation included in the input device 10 and a drag and drop of the inter section lines ISL3, ISL2, and ISL1. In the case of the mouse whirl rotating operation, whirling is rotationally operated in a state in which a pointer is allocated on an image targeted to be moved.

0029When any one of the inter section lines is moved, the slice image according to the slice plane passing through the inter section line ISL1, ISL2, or ISL3 after moved is generated from the volume data, and the generated image is switched and displayed (S4). When the "oblique display" button is clicked (S15), the slice image of the oblique slice plane according to the position and direction of the oblique inter section line ISL4 arbitrarily specified on the axial image, sagittal image, or coronal image is generated from the volume data (S16). As shown in FIG. 6, the above slice image is switched and displayed in the lower right column from the reconstruction conditions (S17).

0030While operating the mouse to move the slice position of each of the axial image, sagittal image, and coronal image and display an oblique slice image at an arbitrary position and in an arbitrary direction, an operator checks a region of interest for zooming reconstruction on the slice image and zooms, reduces, rotates, and moves the marks R1, R2, and R3 which represent the zooming reconstruction range so as to properly include the region of interest for the zooming reconstruction (S18). Under the control of the system control unit 11, the marks R1, R2, an R3 are zoomed, reduced, rotated, and moved in association with each other.

0031In addition, the operator operates the mouse to arbitrarily set the reconstruction conditions for the zooming reconstruction processing, including: a reconstruction function of the zooming reconstruction range, selection of full reconstruction/half reconstruction, reconstruction slice thickness, a viewing direction, the number of stacks, and the presence or absence of filter (S19). The reconstruction conditions for the zooming reconstruction processing are not affected by a limitation of the volume data reconstruction condition. The reconstruction conditions for the zooming reconstruction processing may be identical to the volume data reconstruction conditions or may be partially or entirely different therefrom.

0032When the zooming reconstruction range and the associated reconstruction conditions are set, the set zooming reconstruction range and reconstruction conditions are transmitted from the system control unit 11 to the reconstruction processing control unit 23 in response to a click of the "reconstruction execution" button (S21). The reconstruction processing control unit 23 controls the reconstruction processing unit 20 so that the tomographic image data corresponding to the transmitted zooming reconstruction range and reconstruction conditions is reconstructed from the projection data stored in the projection data storing unit 20. The zooming reconstructed tomographic image has a 512 x 512 pixel size equal to a slice image, for example.

0033In the foregoing, although the tomographic image has been reconstructed by limiting it to the zooming reconstruction range, the whole scan range is reconstructed in accordance with specific items such as a reconstruction function included in the reconstruction conditions of S21, thereby generating volume data, so that a tomographic image in the zooming reconstruction range may be generated from the volume data by means of MPR.