Patent ID: 7868884

Claim:
A method for generating a digital image indicative of an internal anatomy of a person, comprising: scanning the internal anatomy of the person at a plurality of positions along an axis to obtain scanning data, wherein the scanning at each position is performed over at least one respiratory cycle of the person; generating a plurality of cross-sectional digital images based on the scanning data; generating first and second cross-sectional digital image groups associated with first and second respiratory states, respectively, of the person, the first cross-sectional digital image group including first and second digital images of the plurality of cross-sectional digital images obtained at first and second positions, respectively, along the axis, when the person has the first respiratory state, the second cross-sectional digital image group including third and fourth digital images of the plurality of cross-sectional digital images obtained at third and fourth positions, respectively, along the axis, when the person has the second respiratory state; generating first and second 3-D digital images utilizing the first and second cross-sectional digital image groups, respectively; and generating a resultant 3-D digital image indicating at least a portion of the internal anatomy of the person utilizing the first and second 3-D digital images; and storing the resultant 3-D digital image in a memory device.