An intelligent exposure control system and method

Abstract

The application discloses an intelligent exposure control system and method, and the method comprises the following steps: continuously shooting the body contour of a patient and extracting contour feature points, and positioning feature center axes; positioning body part feature points according to the feature center axes; performing body part feature point tracking, and triggering X-ray machine exposure when exposure conditions are met. Since newborns have no compliance, limbs move rapidly and irregularly, therefore, the application judges the body contour and limb movement of the newborn by recognizing feature points, and performs exposure when exposure conditions are met. The application innovatively uses non-contact portrait recognition technology, efficiently and stably recognizes the newborn, can effectively control the X-ray photography range, avoids secondary photography caused by the shielding of arms, jaws and the like of the newborn or body distortion and the like, provides a reliable technical basis for obtaining international standard newborn chest images with stable quality, and is convenient for infant chest X-ray photography examination.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of X-ray detection technology, and in particular to an intelligent exposure control system and method. Background Technology

[0002] In neonatal diagnosis and treatment, chest X-rays are not only a crucial diagnostic tool for neonatal diseases with high morbidity and mortality rates, but also the gold standard for head-end positioning after PICC line placement. Therefore, the quality of X-ray images directly impacts the success rate of treating high-risk newborns. When taking a chest X-ray, the infant should have their arms naturally extended, legs flat, no pillow behind their head, and head straight. However, in practice, newborns often cry, become agitated, or move unconsciously, causing their bodies to twist or their arms to obstruct the chest, resulting in unusable images. Insufficient chest X-ray quality necessitates repeat imaging, increasing the infant's radiation dose, the workload of medical staff, wasting medical resources, and potentially delaying treatment. To avoid repeated imaging due to newborn movement, some technicians choose to enlarge the radiation field. However, the gonads and organs of newborns are extremely sensitive to radiation, and such radiation damage is lifelong and irreversible. Therefore, improving the success rate of a single imaging session while minimizing the radiation field becomes paramount.

[0003] Existing technologies for X-ray detection are mostly limited to controlling the detection device itself. For example, invention patent CN104825176B discloses a method, device, and X-ray equipment for X-ray exposure control; invention patent CN109618113B discloses an automatic exposure control method and automatic exposure control component system. These are not effective for neonatal radiography. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a radiographic system that can automatically determine the timing of the imaging. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the problem that existing technologies cannot accurately determine the timing of capturing images during neonatal radiography, this invention provides an intelligent exposure control system and method. By recognizing the newborn's movements, it accurately determines the timing of capturing images, preventing multiple radiographs and reducing physical harm to the newborn.

[0005] The following is the technical solution of the present invention.

[0006] An intelligent exposure control method includes the following steps: continuously photographing the patient's body contour and extracting contour feature points to locate the feature axis; locating body part feature points based on the feature axis; tracking body part feature points; and triggering X-ray machine exposure when exposure conditions are met. The feature axis is determined based on bilaterally symmetrical feature points. Since newborns lack compliance and their limb movements are rapid and irregular, this invention uses feature point recognition to determine the newborn's body contour and limb movements, and initiates exposure when conditions are met.

[0007] Preferably, the extraction process of the contour feature points includes: removing a pre-set background color from the image, and the closed image composed of the remaining colors constitutes the contour; the number of contour feature points to be extracted is set according to the required accuracy. The contour can be identified through image processing, and feature points can be further extracted.

[0008] As an alternative, the extraction process of the contour feature points includes: taking a picture using a thermal imager, and defining the contour range as the closed area in the displayed image where the temperature is above a threshold; then setting the number of contour feature points to be extracted according to the required accuracy. Since a newborn's body temperature is higher than the ambient temperature, the contour can also be identified using thermal imaging.

[0009] As an alternative, the extraction process of the contour feature points includes: setting up a photosensitive array within the flat panel detector of an X-ray machine; defining the contour range as the enclosed area where the received light intensity is below a threshold; and setting the number of contour feature points to be extracted according to the required accuracy. When a newborn lies on the flat panel detector, some of the photosensitive elements are blocked, thus significantly reducing the received light intensity, which allows for the determination of the body contour.

[0010] Preferably, the process of locating the body part feature points includes: calculating the distance of each contour feature point from the feature axis at different times; the part with the largest change is located as the distal feature point of the hand and foot, including the fingertip feature point and the toe feature point; the part with the largest change in transverse diameter on both sides of the feature axis at the same time is the acromion feature point from the neck to the shoulder; the elbow feature point is identified by the perpendicular line from the midpoint of the line connecting the acromion feature point and the fingertip feature point. By observing the changes of feature points in the time dimension, the torso can be identified; by observing the changes of feature points in the spatial dimension, specific parts, such as the acromion, can be identified.

[0011] Preferably, the exposure conditions include: both the elbow feature point and the fingertip feature point are at a specified distance away from the acromion feature point. The optimal shooting time is when the elbow and palm simultaneously leave the body, and therefore this can be used as the exposure condition.

[0012] The present invention also includes an intelligent exposure control system for the above-described control method, comprising a processing unit, an X-ray machine and a flat panel detector, wherein the end of the X-ray machine's tube suspension device is provided with an exposure device and an imaging device for capturing the patient's body contours.

[0013] Preferably, the end of the X-ray tube suspension rail device is also equipped with a hot air blower. The hot air blower can blow hot air slightly higher than the human body's comfortable temperature, making the newborn's body more inclined to spread out rather than curl up, making it easier to quickly obtain exposure opportunities.

[0014] The substantial effects of this invention include: the innovative use of non-contact facial recognition technology to efficiently and stably identify newborns, effectively controlling the X-ray imaging range, avoiding secondary imaging caused by obstruction by the newborn's arms, chin, or body twisting, providing a reliable technical basis for obtaining stable international standard newborn chest images, and facilitating chest X-ray examinations for infants and young children. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is a system schematic diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] The diagram includes: 1-X-ray machine, 2-planar detector, 3-x-tube hanging rail device, 4-exposure device, 5-hot air blower. Detailed Implementation

[0017] The technical solutions of this application will now be described in conjunction with embodiments. Furthermore, numerous specific details are provided below to better illustrate the invention. Those skilled in the art should understand that the invention can be practiced even without certain specific details. In some instances, methods, means, components, and circuits well-known to those skilled in the art have not been described in detail, in order to highlight the spirit of the invention.

[0018] Example 1:

[0019] like Figure 1 The diagram shows an intelligent exposure control system, which includes a processing unit, an X-ray machine 1, and a flat panel detector 2. The X-ray machine's tube suspension device 3 has an exposure device 4 and an imaging device for capturing the patient's body contours at its end.

[0020] A hot air blower 5 is also installed at the end of the X-ray tube hanging rail device. The hot air blower can blow hot air that is slightly higher than the human body's comfortable temperature, so that the newborn's body tends to be more spread out rather than curled up, making it easier to get exposure opportunities quickly.

[0021] An intelligent exposure control method includes the following steps: continuously photographing the patient's body contour and extracting contour feature points to locate the feature axis; locating body part feature points based on the feature axis; tracking body part feature points; and triggering X-ray machine exposure when exposure conditions are met. The feature axis is determined based on bilaterally symmetrical feature points. Since newborns lack compliance and their limb movements are rapid and irregular, this invention uses feature point recognition to determine the newborn's body contour and limb movements, and initiates exposure when conditions are met.

[0022] The process of extracting contour feature points includes: removing a pre-set background color from the image; the closed image composed of the remaining colors constitutes the contour; and setting the number of contour feature points to be extracted based on the required accuracy. Image processing can then be used to identify the contour and further extract feature points.

[0023] The process of locating feature points of body parts includes: calculating the distance of each contour feature point from the feature axis at different times; identifying the parts with the largest changes as distal feature points of the hands and feet, including fingertips and toes; identifying the acromion feature points from the neck to the shoulder as the parts with the largest changes in transverse diameter on both sides of the feature axis at the same time; and identifying the elbow feature point by drawing a perpendicular line from the midpoint of the line connecting the acromion and fingertips. By observing the changes in feature points over time, the torso can be identified; by observing the changes in feature points in space, specific locations such as the acromion can be identified.

[0024] Exposure conditions include: both the elbow and fingertip feature points must be at a specified distance from the acromion feature point. The optimal shooting time is when the elbow and palm simultaneously leave the body, and this can be used as the exposure condition.

[0025] Example 2:

[0026] This embodiment is largely the same as Embodiment 1, except that the extraction process of contour feature points includes: using a thermal imager to capture images, the closed image with a temperature higher than a threshold in the displayed image is the contour range, and the number of contour feature points to be extracted is set according to the required accuracy. Since the body temperature of a newborn is higher than the ambient temperature, the contour can also be identified by thermal imaging.

[0027] Example 3:

[0028] This embodiment is largely the same as Embodiment 1, except that the extraction process of contour feature points includes: setting a photosensitive array inside the flat panel detector of the X-ray machine; defining the contour range as the enclosed area where the received light intensity is below a threshold; and setting the number of contour feature points to be extracted according to the required accuracy. After the newborn lies on the flat panel detector, the photosensitive devices in some areas are blocked, thus significantly reducing the received light intensity, which allows for the determination of the body contour.

[0029] The substantive effects of the above embodiments include: the innovative use of non-contact facial recognition technology to efficiently and stably identify newborns, effectively control the X-ray imaging range, avoid secondary imaging caused by obstruction by the newborn's arms or chin or body twisting, provide a reliable technical basis for obtaining stable international standard newborn chest images, and facilitate chest X-ray examinations of infants and young children.

[0030] In the embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed structures and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the structural embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For instance, the division of modules or units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another structure, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, or indirect coupling or communication connection between structures or units, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0031] Furthermore, in the embodiments of this application, the functional units can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0032] If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, in essence, or the parts that contribute to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solutions, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a device (which may be a microcontroller, chip, etc.) or processor to execute all or part of the steps of the methods of the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0033] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A smart exposure control method for newborns, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: The patient's body contour is continuously photographed and contour feature points are extracted to locate the feature axis. The process of extracting contour feature points includes: using a thermal imager to take pictures, and the closed image with a temperature higher than the threshold in the displayed image is the contour range. The number of contour feature points to be extracted is set according to the required accuracy. Locate the feature points of the body parts based on the feature axis; Hot air is blown out by a hot air blower to track feature points of body parts. When the exposure conditions are met, the X-ray machine is triggered to expose the body. The exposure conditions include: when the elbow feature point and the fingertip feature point are both far away from the acromion feature point to a specified distance.

2. The intelligent exposure control method for newborns according to claim 1, characterized in that, The process of extracting contour feature points includes: removing the pre-set background color from the image, and the closed image composed of the remaining colors is the contour; and setting the number of contour feature points to be extracted according to the required accuracy.

3. The intelligent exposure control method for newborns according to claim 1, characterized in that, The process of extracting contour feature points includes: setting up a photosensitive device array inside the flat panel detector of the X-ray machine; defining the contour range as the closed area where the light intensity is below a threshold; and setting the number of contour feature points to be extracted according to the required accuracy.

4. A smart exposure control method for newborns according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The process of locating the feature points of the body parts includes: calculating the distance of each contour feature point from the feature axis at different times, and locating the part with the largest change as the distal feature point of the hand and foot, including the fingertip feature point and the toe feature point; the part with the largest change in transverse diameter on both sides of the feature axis at the same time is the acromion feature point from the neck to the shoulder; and identifying the elbow feature point based on the perpendicular line from the midpoint of the line connecting the acromion feature point and the fingertip feature point.

5. An intelligent exposure control system for newborns, used in the control method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The device includes a processing unit, an X-ray machine, and a flat panel detector. The X-ray machine has an exposure device and an imaging device for capturing the patient's body contours at the end of the X-ray tube suspension device. The X-ray tube suspension device also has a hot air blower at the end of the X-ray tube suspension device.

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