Patent ID: 7188998
Filing Date: 2007-03-13
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
1. An imaging apparatus, comprising: a substantially O-shaped gantry ring having a central opening for positioning around an object to be imaged, the gantry ring having an interior cavity extending 360 degrees around the interior of the gantry ring; a rigid rotor housed within, and rotatable 360 degrees around, the interior cavity of the gantry ring; a source of x-ray radiation secured to the rotor at a first position, the source projecting x-ray radiation onto said object from a plurality of different projection angles over a 360 degree rotation of the rotor; a detector system, secured to a rotor at a second position, opposite the source on the gantry ring, and detecting the radiation at each projection angle to acquire object images, the imaging apparatus acquiring a series of object images from user-specified non-contiguous projection planes in rapid succession; and a display that displays each object image as the image is acquired.