Patent ID: 7560924

Claim:
A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising: a scan section comprising a static magnetic field space in which imaging slice areas each including an imaging target body-moved at a subject are accommodated, said scan section configured to scan the subject in accordance with an imaging sequence for applying RF pulses to the imaging slice areas accommodated in the static magnetic field space to acquire magnetic resonance signals produced from the imaging slice areas as imaging data; an image reconstruction unit configured to execute image reconstruction processing on the imaging data acquired by allowing said scan section to execute the scan in the imaging sequence, thereby reconstructing images of the imaging slice areas; a position calculation unit configured to determine a position where the imaging target is body-moved; and a controller configured to control operations of said scan section and said image reconstruction unit based on the position of the imaging target, which is determined by said position calculation unit, said controller comprises: an imaging sequence condition setting unit configured to set an imaging sequence condition at the time said scan section executes the scan in the imaging sequence, the imaging sequence set to correspond to a slice tracking method for adjusting at least a frequency of each RF pulse applied in the imaging sequence, the imaging sequence based on the position of the imaging target calculated by said position calculation unit, thereby changing the position of said each imaging slice area such that the imaging data are acquired from the body-moved imaging target when the scan section executes the scan in the imaging sequence; and a phase difference calculation unit configured to calculate a phase difference at which phases of the magnetic resonance signals produced in the imaging slice areas change, when the RF pulse subsequent to having been adjusted in frequency so as to correspond to the position of the imaging target by said imaging sequence condition setting unit is transmitted upon execution of the scan in the imaging sequence, wherein said controller is configured to control the operation of said scan section such that said scan section executes the scan in the imaging sequence based on the imaging sequence condition set so as to correspond to the slice tracking method by the imaging sequence condition setting unit, said controller is further configured to control the operation of at least one of said scan section and said image reconstruction unit based on the phase difference calculated by said phase difference calculation unit so as to eliminate the phase difference at which the phases of the magnetic resonance signals produced in the imaging slice areas change, when the RF pulse subsequent to having been adjusted in frequency so as to the slice tracking method is transmitted upon execution of the scan in the imaging sequence.