Patent ID: 8131341

Claim:
A method for automatically positioning a patient support device of a magnetic resonance apparatus, said magnetic resonance apparatus comprising a plurality of coil devices of different coil types respectively configured to interact with different anatomical regions of a patient, each of said coil devices being operable in at least one of a transmission mode to generate an alternating field for nuclear magnetic resonance excitation of nuclear spins in the patient, and a reception mode to detect a field emanating from the excited nuclear spins, said patient support device comprising a plurality of mounts respectively at different predetermined locations on said patient support device, said plurality of mounts being respectively configured to permit only one of said coil devices of one type to be insertable into each mount, a drive unit that moves the patient support device relative to an examination region of the magnetic resonance apparatus, and a control device that controls the drive unit and the coil devices, said method comprising: with said plurality of coil devices respectively mounted in said plurality of mounts on said patient support device, establishing a communication link between said plurality of coil devices and said control device; via said communication link, transferring coil information from said coil devices to said control device, said coil information comprising a designation of at least the type of each of said coil devices; also providing said control device with prioritization information that designates respective priorities of said coil devices relative to each other for implementing an examination of the patient, including designating one of said plurality of coil devices as having a highest priority; in said control device, automatically determining respective positions of said plurality of coil devices in said magnetic resonance apparatus using only said coil information, said predetermined positions of said plurality of mounts, and a position of the patient support device relative to a center of said examination region; and from said control device, operating said drive unit to position said patient support device within said magnetic resonance apparatus according to said predetermined positions to cause the coil device with the highest priority to be aligned relative to the center of said examination region.