Patent ID: 7280862

Claim:
A method for obtaining a digital image of a heart of a person, comprising: scanning an internal anatomy of a chest region of the person to obtain first scanning data; generating a first plurality of cross-sectional digital images of the heart based on the first scanning data; automatically determining a ventricular blood volume indicated by each of the first plurality of cross-sectional digital images; automatically selecting a second digital image from the first plurality of cross-sectional digital images indicating a largest ventricular blood volume; automatically identifying a left ventricular myocardium in the second digital image and both a first apex position and a first base position of the left ventricular myocardium in the second digital image; automatically generating a first axis extending through the first apex position and the first base position in the second digital image; scanning the internal anatomy of the chest region of the person along the first axis perpendicular to a first plane defined by the second digital image to obtain second scanning data; generating a third digital image of the heart from the second scanning data; automatically identifying the left ventricular myocardium in the third digital image and both a second apex position and a second base position of the left ventricular myocardium in the third digital image; automatically generating a second axis extending through the second apex position and the second base position in the third digital image; scanning the internal anatomy of the chest region of the person along a third plane extending through the second axis and being perpendicular to a second plane defined by the third digital image to obtain third scanning data; and generating a fourth digital image of four chambers of the heart based on the third scanning data.