Patent ID: 7663111

Claim:
Apparatus for imaging a body, comprising: a camera head positioned in a location and configured to detect radiation emitted from regions in the body so as to produce sliced images of radiation intensity emitted from a three dimensional structure of the regions, the camera head comprising: a two-dimensional array of D CdZnTe (CZT) detector elements, wherein D is an integer greater than 1, the array of D detector elements being defined by two orthogonal repetition vectors, the elements being mounted in the camera head and being respectively coupled to D electrodes, each electrode being configured to output signals indicative of intensities of radiation that are incident on a given detector element; and D adjustable collimators disposed respectively, in a collimator array defined by two orthogonal repetition vectors, in registration between the D detector elements and the body so as to define respective regions of the body from which the radiation emitted is incident on the detector elements, each of the adjustable collimators having N dimensional configurations defining different respective volumes of each of the regions, wherein N is an integer greater than 1, wherein each of the collimators is in registration with each of the detector elements so that the emitted radiation from the body traverses the collimators to impinge on the detector elements and wherein for each collimator the respective volumes of each of the regions have a respective common axis of symmetry which is normal to the two orthogonal repetition vectors, wherein each collimator comprises a respective different cavity which is configured to receive liquid opaque to the radiation; and a processor which is configured: to receive DN signals from the D electrodes corresponding to the respective volumes of each collimator while the camera head is in the location and while the respective common axis of symmetry of each collimator is fixed and while the adjustable collimators are in the N different dimensional configurations, to process the signals in order to form a three dimensional image of the body comprising a number of volume elements from which the radiation is emitted, and to produce sliced images of the three dimensional image while the two-dimensional array of CZT detector elements and the respective common axis of symmetry of each collimator are fixed with respect to the body, wherein the number of volume elements is a function of D and N.