Patent ID: 6983180

Claim:
A method of generating an artifact score, the method comprising: acquiring imaging data of a subject, the imaging data including a plurality of pixels; partitioning the plurality of pixels into a first set and a second set, wherein the step of partitioning includes the step of generating a mask from the plurality of pixels and wherein the step of generating a mask further comprises the step of identifying a set of pixels within a range of an expected uniform material value; determining an artifact index (AI), wherein the step of determining includes: initializing the first set to a base value; comparing the first set to the second set; squaring each pixel of the second set of pixels; summing the squared pixels; dividing the summation by a mask pixel count to yield a quotient; and modifying the quotient by a scalar, wherein the scalar is determined by statistically correlating trained observers responses to a reconstructed image of the imaging data; and visually conveying the AI.