Patent Document ID: 10073158
Application ID: 14656952
Patent Status: 1

Claim One:
1. A method for selecting an optimization method for optimizing a pulse sequence that operates a magnetic resonance scanner comprising a radiofrequency coil system and a gradient coil system, said pulse sequence comprising a plurality of radiofrequency pulses and gradient pulses that respectively activate said radiofrequency coil system and said gradient coil system in order to acquire magnetic resonance data from a subject in said magnetic resonance scanner, said method comprising: providing said pulse sequence to a computer; in said computer, automatically analyzing said pulse sequence to identify at least one segment thereof that is to be optimized; in said computer, automatically applying a plurality of different optimization methods to said at least one segment and thereby obtaining a plurality of differently optimized forms of said at least one segment, said plurality of optimization methods comprising, a spline generation method, and a method for generating a gradient pulse by replacing a gradient waveform thereof by linear or trapezoidal gradient waveforms; in said computer, for each of said differently optimized forms of said at least one segment, determining a frequency spectrum thereof; in said computer, for each differently optimized form of said at least one segment, automatically determining an overall spectrum by multiplying the determined frequency spectrum of the respective differently optimized form of said at least one segment with a transmission function of said magnetic resonance scanner, thereby producing a plurality of overall spectra; in said computer, applying a predetermined criterion to each overall spectrum in said plurality of overall spectra, and identifying an overall spectrum in said plurality of overall spectra that best satisfies said criterion and selecting an optimization method, as a selected optimization method among said plurality of optimization methods, that produced the overall spectrum that best satisfies said criterion; in said computer, optimizing said pulse sequence so as to include said at least one segment thereof optimized by said selected optimization method, thereby producing an optimized pulse sequence; and in said computer, generating control signals corresponding to said optimized pulse sequence and emitting said control signals from said computer to said magnetic resonance scanner in order to operate the magnetic resonance scanner so as to execute said optimized pulse sequence and thereby acquire said magnetic resonance data from the subject.