Patent ID: 6054712
Filing Date: 2000-04-25
Classification: A61B,G01V

Abstract:
A small-angle topography device comprising:a source of penetrating radiation;a collimator that forms scan beams from the penetrating radiation, the collimator being a regular periodic structure consisting of transparent regions alternating with the opaque regions;a facility for scanning an object through the scan beams to obtain a complete projection of the object;a spatial filter positioned behind the object, the spatial filter having a regular periodic structure complementary to that of the collimator so that regions of the spatial filter that correspond to the transparent regions of the collimator are opaque to the penetrating radiation the opaque regions of the spatial filter being disposed to block portions of the scan beams that pass through the object without deflection, transparent regions of the spatial filter being disposed to transmit portions of the scan beams that the object deflects at small angles;a coordinate-sensitive detector positioned to detect radiation that the spatial filter transmits during scanning; anda processing system that uses measurements from the coordinate-sensitive detector during the scanning, to determine a three-dimensional internal structure of the object.