Patent ID: 7346385

Claim:
A method for use in conjunction with a C-arm imaging apparatus, for positioning a biopsy needle from a given entry point on a patient to a given target for biopsy, comprising: positioning said C-arm in a desired first position, whereby an image formed with said C-arm in said first position is formed in a first image plane; storing location information of said given target in said first image plane; defining a first arbitrary plane including said given entry point; placing said needle at said given entry point; visually servoing said needle in said first arbitrary plane with respect to said location information in said first image plane to derive a first tree-dimensional (3-D) needle position; defining a second arbitrary plane including said given entry point, different from said first arbitrary plane; placing said needle at said given entry point; visually servoing said needle in said second arbitrary plane with respect to said location information in said image plane to derive a second three-dimensional (3-D) needle position; determining a resulting plane defined by said first and second three-dimensional (3-D) needle positions; placing said needle at a selected point in said resulting plane at an arbitrary orientation; positioning said C-arm in a desired second position, whereby an image formed with said C-arm in said second position is formed in a second image plane; storing location information of said given target in said second image plane; and visually servoing said needle around said entry point in said resulting plane with respect to said location information in said second image plane, whereby said needle is at said entry point and aimed at said target.