Patent ID: 6653652
Filing Date: 2003-11-25
Classification: G01T

Abstract:
A radiation image read-out method, comprising the steps of:i) linearly irradiating stimulating rays, which have been produced by a line light source, onto an area of one surface of a stimulable phosphor sheet, on which a radiation image has been stored, the stimulating rays causing the stimulable phosphor sheet to emit light in proportion to an amount of energy stored thereon during its exposure to radiation, ii) receiving light, which is emitted from the linear area of the one surface of the stimulable phosphor sheet exposed to the linear stimulating rays or from a linear area of the other surface of the stimulable phosphor sheet corresponding to the linear area of the one surface of the stimulable phosphor sheet, with a line sensor comprising a plurality of photoelectric conversion devices, the received light being subjected to photoelectric conversion performed by the line sensor, iii) moving the stimulable phosphor sheet with respect to the line light source and the line sensor and in a direction different from a length direction of the linear area of the stimulable phosphor sheet, and iv) successively reading outputs of the line sensor in accordance with the movement, outputs of the photoelectric conversion devices at respective positions of movement being thereby obtained, wherein the outputs of the line sensor are corrected in accordance with variation in sensitivity among a plurality of pixel regions of the line sensor, which pixel regions are arrayed along the length direction of the linear area of the stimulable phosphor sheet, wherein light having a known light intensity distribution along the length direction of the linear area of the stimulable phosphor sheet is projected onto the line sensor, a correction value is calculated with respect to each of the pixel regions of the line sensor and in accordance with outputs of the pixel regions of the line sensor, which outputs are obtained when the pixel regions of the line sensor receive the projected light, and the output of each of the pixel regions of the line sensor, which output is obtained when each of the pixel regions of the line sensor receives the light emitted by the stimulable phosphor sheet, is corrected in accordance with the thus calculated correction value, wherein correction values, each of which corresponds to one of at least two different levels of incident light intensities upon each of the pixel regions of the line sensor, are calculated, and the output of each of the pixel regions of the line sensor, which output is obtained when each of the pixel regions of the line sensor receives the light emitted by the stimulable phosphor sheet, is corrected in accordance with a level of an incident light intensity of the emitted light and in accordance with the thus calculated correction values, each of which corresponds to one of the at least two different levels of the incident light intensities.