Detection assembly, pet imaging device and method of manufacturing a detection assembly

Abstract

The application provides a detection assembly, a PET imaging device and a manufacturing method of the detection assembly. The detection assembly comprises a photoelectric converter and a light receiver optically coupled with the photoelectric converter. The photoelectric converter comprises a crystal array composed of a plurality of crystal units arranged in an array and a reflection layer. The crystal array has an emitting surface, and the light receiver is adjacent to the emitting surface. The reflection layer covers the outer side of the crystal array except the emitting surface. The photoelectric converter further comprises a first thermal shrinkage part. The first thermal shrinkage part comprises a thermal shrinkage layer arranged around the circumferential side of the crystal array unit. The thermal shrinkage layer is located at the periphery of the reflection layer and can shrink and deform towards the aggregation center of the crystal array and press the reflection layer when the temperature of the thermal shrinkage layer rises, so that the reflection layer is attached to the crystal array. The application overcomes the adverse effects caused by the uneven thickness and unevenness of the glue in the existing structure, reduces the interference with the transmission direction of the photons in the crystal array, and makes the crystal array and the reflection layer attach closely and the reflection layer more flat.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of scanning imaging technology, in particular to a detection assembly, a PET imaging device and a manufacturing method of the detection assembly. BACKGROUND

[0002] Medical imaging devices can be used to observe the biochemical reaction inside the living body, and one of the core devices to achieve this function is a detection assembly used to determine the position of a lesion in the body. Taking a PET scanning system as an example, its working principle is that a ray with high-energy particles is incident into the internal crystal, the crystal is excited to generate photons under the action of the ray, and these photons are detected by a light collector arranged on the light-emitting surface side of the crystal, and then converted into an electrical signal to generate a scanning image. In order to prevent the crystal from being affected by external light and prevent photons from escaping from the crystal, a reflective material is also provided in the detection assembly to cover the surface of the crystal.

[0003] The position of the lesion in the body is determined by determining the position of the event in the crystal of the detection assembly, and the reflective material needs to be fully attached to the surface of the crystal so as not to interfere with the direction of photon transmission, otherwise the change of the transmission trajectory of the photons will cause the positioning error of the event. The existing measure to improve the positioning accuracy of the detection assembly is to use glue to bond the reflective material and the surface of the crystal. Although the bonding method can form a good fit between the reflective material and the crystal, the thickness and unevenness of the glue layer will also affect the direction of photon transmission.

[0004] For a PET scanning system developed for small animals, in order to adapt to the size of the observed animal and improve the detection resolution, the number of crystals in the detection assembly is larger and the size of the crystal is smaller. In this case, the adverse effects of the thickness and unevenness of the glue layer on the direction of photon transmission are further magnified. Therefore, the method of bonding the reflective material and the crystal with glue is not suitable for the detection assembly of the small animal PET scanning system. SUMMARY

[0005] Therefore, the present application provides a detection assembly, which comprises a photoelectric converter and a light receiver optically coupled with the photoelectric converter, the photoelectric converter comprises a reflective layer and a crystal array composed of a plurality of crystal units arranged in an array, and the plurality of crystal units are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the length of each crystal unit; the crystal array has a light-emitting surface, the light receiver is adjacent to the light-emitting surface, and the reflective layer covers the outer side of the crystal array except the light-emitting surface.

[0006] The photoelectric converter further comprises a first heat-shrinkable member, and the first heat-shrinkable member comprises a heat-shrinkable layer arranged around the circumferential side of the crystal array, the heat-shrinkable layer is located at the periphery of the reflective layer, and can shrink and deform towards the aggregation center of the crystal array and press the reflective layer as the temperature of the heat-shrinkable layer rises, so as to make the reflective layer fit with the crystal array.

[0007] The detection assembly provided by the application is specially used for a PET scanning system for small animals, and the detection resolution of the detection assembly is improved by arranging a plurality of crystal units with a smaller size into a crystal array;

[0008] Compared with the detection assembly in a conventional PET scanning system, the crystal array and the reflection layer in the application do not need to be fixed by using glue, and the reflection layer is pressed onto the outer surface of the crystal array by setting the first heat-shrinkable member and using the heat-shrinking property of the heat-shrinkable layer, so that the fitting between the crystal array and the reflection layer is more compact and sufficient, and the reflection layer is more flat under the extrusion of the heat-shrinkable layer, which overcomes the adverse effects caused by the thickness and unevenness of the glue in the existing structure and reduces the interference with the transmission direction of the photons in the crystal array.

[0009] Therefore, the detection assembly provided by the application takes into account both the use requirements of PET scanning for small animals and the improvement of the detection and positioning accuracy of the detection assembly.

[0010] In one embodiment, the first heat-shrinkable member further comprises a positioning layer, the positioning layer is arranged on the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface, the heat-shrinkable layer is connected with the positioning layer and forms a sleeve together, and the reflection layer is arranged between the inner wall of the sleeve and the surface of the crystal array except the light-emitting surface.

[0011] In this way, the sleeve formed by the positioning layer and the heat-shrinkable layer can produce heat-shrinking extrusion on all surfaces of the crystal array except the light-emitting surface, and the reflection layer arranged on the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface can also remain flat and fully fitted under the extrusion of the positioning layer, so that the photons can be correctly reflected and transmitted on all interfaces of the crystal array except the light-emitting surface.

[0012] In one embodiment, a cavity is formed in the sleeve, the cavity is used for sleeving the crystal array from the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface, and the spatial shape of the cavity is matched with the three-dimensional shape of the crystal array.

[0013] In this way, the gap between the reflection layer and the crystal array can be eliminated, and the combination and fixation among the sleeve, the reflection layer and the crystal array are more reliable, which can meet the long-term use of the detection assembly.

[0014] In one embodiment, the first heat-shrinkable member comprises at least one heat-shrinkable film, each heat-shrinkable film is bent to form a plurality of connected sheet layers, the plurality of sheet layers comprise a side sheet layer arranged on the circumferential side of the crystal array and a top sheet layer arranged on the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface, the side sheet layer forms the heat-shrinkable layer, and the top sheet layer forms the positioning layer.

[0015] In this way, each piece layer on the heat-shrinkable film can be fully and efficiently utilized, and the use amount of the heat-shrinkable film is saved.

[0016] In one of the embodiments, the heat-shrinkable layer is a one-piece heat-shrinkable film, and the positioning layer is a heat-shrinkable film and is arranged separately from the heat-shrinkable layer.

[0017] In this way, the heat-shrinkable layer is more tightly and firmly wrapped around the crystal array and the reflective layer, and the connection between the crystal unit and the first heat-shrinkable member is more convenient and easy to implement.

[0018] In one of the embodiments, the number of the crystal arrays is multiple and the crystal arrays are arranged in an array manner to form a crystal group; the detection assembly further comprises a second heat-shrinkable member, which is arranged around the circumferential side of the crystal group, can be deformed and shrink towards the aggregation center of the crystal group when the temperature of the second heat-shrinkable member rises, and can press the crystal arrays located at the circumferential periphery of the crystal group.

[0019] In this way, the multiple crystal arrays can be more stably and densely arranged, and the structure of the crystal group is more compact and the integrity is improved; the multiple crystal units are combined into the multiple crystal arrays, and the multiple crystal arrays are combined into the integral crystal group, so that the manufacturing and assembly process of the detection assembly is more orderly, the difficulty is lower, and the yield is higher.

[0020] In one of the embodiments, the light-out surface of each crystal array is located on the same side of the crystal group, and the side forms a light-out area of the crystal group; the detection assembly further comprises a positioning member, which is arranged on the other side of the crystal group opposite to the light-out area, and each side of each crystal array opposite to the light-out area is attached to the positioning member; the shape of the positioning member matches the shape of the side of the crystal group opposite to the light-out area.

[0021] In this way, the positioning member is attached to the multiple crystal arrays, and the side of the positioning member close to the crystal arrays can serve as a common positioning reference of the multiple crystal arrays, so that the shape requirement of the formed crystal group and the arrangement uniformity of the crystal arrays can be ensured, and the relative positions of the crystal arrays in the height direction, i.e., the length direction of the crystal unit, are consistent, and the crystal arrays do not slide or dislocate in the height direction.

[0022] In one of the embodiments, the multiple crystal units are arranged in a row-column matrix along the length direction perpendicular to each crystal unit, and the shape of the crystal array is a cuboid.

[0023] The application further provides a PET imaging device, which comprises a scanning channel and the above-mentioned detection assembly, and the detection assembly is installed on the outer periphery of the scanning channel.

[0024] The application further provides a manufacturing method of a detection assembly for a PET imaging device.

[0025] The plurality of crystal units are aggregated in an array arrangement to form a crystal array;

[0026] A reflective layer is arranged on the outer side of the light-emitting surface of the crystal array;

[0027] A heat-shrinkable layer is arranged on the peripheral side of the crystal array;

[0028] The heat-shrinkable layer is heated;

[0029] The peripheral side of the crystal array is arranged adjacent to the light-emitting surface.

[0030] The manufacturing method of the detection assembly is specifically for a detection assembly of a PET scanning system for small animals, and the detection resolution of the detection assembly is improved by arranging a plurality of crystal units with a larger number and smaller size into a crystal array.

[0031] Compared with the detection assembly in the conventional PET scanning system, the crystal array and the reflective layer are not bonded and fixed by using glue, the first heat-shrinkable member is arranged, and the reflective layer is pressed onto the outer surface of the crystal array by using the heat-shrinking property of the heat-shrinkable layer, so that the bonding between the crystal array and the reflective layer is more compact and sufficient, and the reflective layer is more flat under the extrusion of the heat-shrinkable layer, thereby overcoming the adverse effects caused by the thickness and unevenness of the glue in the existing structure, and reducing the interference with the transmission direction of the photons in the crystal array.

[0032] In one embodiment, the manufacturing method further comprises the following steps:

[0033] The plurality of crystal arrays are aggregated in an array arrangement to form a crystal group;

[0034] The second heat-shrinkable member is arranged on the peripheral side of the crystal group;

[0035] The positioning member is arranged on the other side of the crystal group opposite to the light-emitting area, so that the other side of the crystal group opposite to the light-emitting area is bonded to the positioning member;

[0036] The peripheral side of the crystal group is arranged adjacent to the light-emitting area.

[0037] In this way, the plurality of crystal arrays can be more stably bonded and densely arranged, and the structure of the crystal group is more compact and has improved integrity; the plurality of crystal units are first combined into a plurality of crystal arrays, and the plurality of crystal arrays are then combined into a whole crystal group, so that the manufacturing process of the detection assembly is more orderly, the difficulty is lower, and the yield is higher. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0038] Figure 1 Exploded view of a portion of the detection assembly for one embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Figure 2 Exploded view of a detection assembly for another embodiment of the present application;

[0040] Figure 3 Exploded view of a portion of the detection assembly for one embodiment of the present application; Figure 2 Exploded view of the detection assembly shown in another perspective.

[0041] Reference numerals:

[0042] 100, detection assembly; 10, reflective layer; 20, crystal array; 201, crystal unit; 21, light exit surface; 30, first thermal contraction element; 31, thermal contraction layer; 32, positioning layer; 210, light exit region; 40, second thermal contraction element; 50, positioning element. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, but not all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0044] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs. The terminology used in the description of the application herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include one or more of the items referenced, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. All combinations of the items referenced herein can be used in combination with one another.

[0045] A PET scanning system, i.e. a positron emission computed tomography imaging system, is used to observe the biochemical reactions in a living body, and to achieve this function, a detection assembly composed of a photoelectric converter and a light collector is used. The working principle of the detection assembly is that a ray with high-energy particles is incident into a crystal inside the detection assembly, the crystal is excited to generate photons under the action of the ray, and the photons are detected by the light collector located on the side of the light exit surface of the crystal. Then the light collector converts the photon signal into an electrical signal to generate a scanning image.

[0046] The present application provides a detection assembly 100, which is applied to a PET scanning device for small animals in some embodiments. Compared with a conventional PET scanning system, higher detection resolution is required for observing small animals, and the detection accuracy is also higher.

[0047] The detection assembly 100 comprises a photoelectric converter for coupling with a light receiver, the photoelectric converter comprising a reflecting layer 10 and a crystal array 20 composed of a plurality of crystal units 201 arranged in an array, and the size of the crystal units 201 is smaller than that of a single crystal in a conventional PET scanning system detection assembly 100.

[0048] To meet the detection accuracy requirement of PET scanning for small animals, the cross-sectional size of the crystal units 201 can be 1mm×1mm, and the arrangement of the crystal units 201 in the crystal array 20 can be a 6×6 rectangular array or a 10×10 rectangular array. Of course, the cross-sectional size of the crystal units 201 and / or the arrangement of the crystal units 201 in the crystal array 20 can also be other types, which can be adjusted according to the actual detection accuracy requirement, and will not be further listed here.

[0049] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3 , Figure 1 which is an exploded schematic view of part of the detection assembly 100 in an embodiment of the present application; Figure 2 which is an exploded schematic view of the detection assembly 100 in another embodiment of the present application; Figure 3 which is Figure 2 which is an exploded schematic view of the detection assembly 100 from another perspective. The detection assembly 100 will be described in detail below.

[0050] Each crystal unit 201 in the crystal array 20 is cut into a strip-shaped structure, and a plurality of crystal units 201 are arranged in a row-column matrix and integrated in a body along a direction perpendicular to the length direction of the crystal units 201. The so-called close arrangement means that there is no gap that can be relatively close to each other between any two adjacent crystal units 201.

[0051] In some embodiments, each crystal unit 201 is a cuboid structure, and a plurality of crystal units 201 are arranged into a cuboid-shaped crystal array 20. Of course, in other embodiments, a plurality of crystal units 201 can also be integrated in a body according to other arrangement manners, and do not necessarily form a cuboid-shaped crystal array 20.

[0052] The detection assembly 100 further comprises a light receiver optically coupled with the photoelectric converter, and the crystal array 20 has a light exit surface 21 adjacent to the light collector. The photons generated by the crystal under the excitation of the rays are detected by the light collector through the light exit surface 21, and then converted into an electrical signal by the light collector.

[0053] The present application does not particularly limit the type or number of the light collector, as long as the light collector can sufficiently and without omission collect the photons passing through the light exit surface 21.

[0054] The photoelectric converter further comprises a reflective layer 10 located outside the crystal array 20, which covers the outside of the crystal array 20 except the light-out surface 21. The reflective layer 10 mainly has the following functions: 1) preventing the crystal units 201 from being affected by external light; 2) preventing photons from escaping from the crystal, which can be reflected by the reflective layer 10 to the inside of the crystal units 201 when the photons reach the interface of the crystal. The interface of the crystal is the surface directly contacting the external environment or medium.

[0055] It is worth noting that, since the light collector needs to collect photons, the reflective layer 10 is not arranged on the light-out surface 21 of the crystal array 20, and in order to improve the detection and positioning accuracy of the detection assembly 100, the reflective layer 10 covers the other surfaces of the crystal array 20 except the light-out surface 21.

[0056] The photoelectric converter further comprises a first heat shrinkage member 30. The so-called heat shrinkage refers to the shrinkage deformation of a material with this property under the condition of being heated. The first heat shrinkage member 30 comprises a heat shrinkage layer 31 arranged around the circumferential side of the light-out surface 21, and the heat shrinkage layer 31 is located outside the reflective layer 10, so that the reflective layer 10 is clamped between the crystal array 20 and the heat shrinkage layer 31.

[0057] The first heat shrinkage member 30 can be made of any one of polyethylene (PE) film, polypropylene (PP) film, and ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) film, and of course, other materials with similar properties to the above materials can also be used.

[0058] When the first heat shrinkage member 30 is heated, the heat shrinkage layer 31 can shrink towards the aggregation center of the crystal array 20 with the temperature rising, thereby pressing the reflective layer 10. Finally, the reflective layer 10 is tightly attached to the circumferential side of the crystal array 20 and the side opposite to the light-out surface 21 under the pressing effect of the heat shrinkage layer 31.

[0059] For the convenience of description, the side of the crystal array 20 opposite to the light-out surface 21 will be referred to as the top of the crystal array 20 hereinafter. It should be noted that this is only a substitution, and is not a limitation on the installation angle of the crystal array 20. In actual application, the top of the crystal array 20 is not necessarily higher than the light-out surface 21, and the top of the crystal array 20 does not necessarily appear to be at the top of the cuboid from the perspective of the observer.

[0060] In this embodiment, the circumferential side of the crystal array 20 is the four side wall surfaces located between the light-out surface 21 and the top of the crystal array 20 and arranged adjacent to the light-out surface 21 and the top of the crystal array 20 respectively, and the whole arrangement of the heat shrinkage layer 31 means that the heat shrinkage layer 31 covers the other four side wall surfaces of the crystal array 20 except the top and the light-out surface 21.

[0061] Further, in the embodiment, the aggregation center of the crystal array 20 is the cuboid geometric center of the crystal array 20. The shrinkage of the thermal shrinkage layer 31 towards the geometric center of the crystal array 20 can make the contact between each crystal unit 201 closer, preventing the mutual misalignment or loose gap between the crystal units 201. The advantage of the shrinkage of the thermal shrinkage layer 31 towards the aggregation center of the crystal array 20 is that the relative positions between the crystal units 201 remain unchanged during the shrinkage.

[0062] The first thermal shrinkage member 30 further comprises a positioning layer 32 covering the top of the crystal array 20, the positioning layer 32 is connected with the thermal shrinkage layer 31 and jointly forms a sleeve, and all the reflection layers 10 outside the crystal array 20 also form a sleeve, both of the sleeves have a concave cavity which is conformal to the crystal array 20. Here, conformal means that the spatial shape of the concave cavity matches the three-dimensional shape of the crystal array 20.

[0063] The advantage of such arrangement is that the shrinkage center of the positioning layer 32 and the thermal shrinkage layer 31 coincides with the aggregation center / geometric center of the crystal array 20, which can ensure that each reflection layer 10 can be sufficiently and uniformly pressed and tightly attached to the crystal array 20.

[0064] The sleeve formed by the reflection layers 10 first covers the crystal array 20 from the top of the crystal array 20, and then the sleeve formed by the positioning layer 32 and the thermal shrinkage layer 31 covers the crystal array 20 and the reflection layers 10 from the outside of the top of the crystal array 20, so that all the reflection layers 10 located on the circumferential side and the top of the crystal array 20 are clamped between the crystal array 20 and the first thermal shrinkage member 30.

[0065] The positioning layer 32 and the thermal shrinkage layer 31 are covered on the outside of the crystal array 20 by winding or wrapping. First, the first winding covering method is introduced.

[0066] The thermal shrinkage layer 31 and the positioning layer 32 are two independent structures formed separately. The thermal shrinkage layer 31 is an integral thermal shrinkage film, which is wound around the circumferential side of the crystal array 20, and then the positioning layer 32 is covered on the top of the crystal array 20 after the thermal shrinkage film is wound.

[0067] The advantage of this method is that the winding of the thermal shrinkage layer 31 is convenient, time-saving and easy to operate.

[0068] The second method, i.e., the positioning layer 32 and the thermal shrinkage layer 31 jointly wrap the crystal array 20, is introduced below.

[0069] The first heat shrinkable component 30 includes at least one heat shrinkable film, which is bent to form multiple interconnected layers. These layers form the prototype of a sleeve that conforms to the crystal array 20. These layers are then respectively covered on the circumferential sides and top of the crystal array 20. Among them, the layer covering the top of the crystal array 20 forms a positioning layer 32, and the layer covering the circumferential sides of the crystal array 20 forms a heat shrinkable layer 31.

[0070] For example, when there is only one heat shrink film, the heat shrink film has five interconnected layers, and the five layers respectively cover the five surfaces of the crystal array 20 except the light-emitting surface 21; when there are multiple heat shrink films, some / multiple layers of the heat shrink films cover some of the surfaces of the crystal array 20, and other / multiple layers of the heat shrink films cover the remaining surfaces of the crystal array 20.

[0071] The advantage of this method is that it can better save heat shrink film materials and avoid heat shrink film waste.

[0072] Further, if Figures 2 to 2 In this embodiment, the number of crystal arrays 20 is also multiple and they are closely arranged in an array to form a crystal group, and the crystal group is in the shape of a cuboid; Figure 2 and Figure 3 Only the crystal arrays 20 located at the four side edges of the crystal group are shown, and the remaining crystal arrays 20 are omitted. The detection assembly 100 also includes a second heat shrink member 40, which is disposed around the entire circumferential side of the crystal group and also has heat shrinkability.

[0073] When the second heat shrink member 40 is heated, it shrinks and deforms toward the center of the crystal group as its temperature rises, squeezing the multiple crystal arrays 20 that form the crystal group's circumferential periphery. This creates closer contact between the crystal arrays 20, further eliminating the possibility of looseness between the crystal arrays 20.

[0074] Compared to the first heat shrink member 30, the second heat shrink member 40 is thicker, harder and more rigid to meet the mechanical performance requirements for fixing the plurality of crystal arrays 20. Optionally, in this embodiment, the second heat shrink member 40 is prepared by cutting a heat shrink tube.

[0075] The light-emitting surface 21 of each crystal array 20 in a crystal group is located on the same side of the crystal group. Therefore, the same side forms the light-emitting area 210 of the crystal group, and the light collector of each crystal array 20 is arranged on one side of the light-emitting area 210; accordingly, the top of each crystal array 20 in the crystal group is also located on the side of the crystal group opposite to the light-emitting area 210.

[0076] For the convenience of description, the side of the crystal group opposite to the light emitting area 210 is referred to as the top of the crystal group. Similarly, the top of the crystal group is only a kind of substitute name, and is not a limitation of the installation angle of the crystal group. In actual application, the top of the crystal group is not necessarily located at the top of the cuboid crystal group. The positional relationship of each side of the crystal group is that the top of the crystal group is adjacent to the circumferential side of the crystal group, and the light emitting area 210 is adjacent to the circumferential side of the crystal group.

[0077] Further, the detection assembly 100 further comprises a positioning member 50, the shape of the positioning member 50 matches the shape of the top of the crystal group, and the positioning member 50 covers the top of the crystal group. The side of the positioning member 50 facing the crystal group is a plane, which is used as a common positioning reference of all crystal arrays 20 in the crystal group. The top of each crystal array 20 indirectly abuts the plane of the positioning member 50 facing the crystal group.

[0078] In some embodiments, the present application further provides a PET imaging device, which comprises a main frame, a scanning channel arranged on the main frame, and a detection assembly 100 arranged around the scanning channel. In some embodiments, the PET imaging device further comprises a scanning bed for carrying an object to be scanned, wherein the scanning bed is movable and can enter the scanning channel, and the detection assembly 100 is mounted on the outer periphery of the scanning channel.

[0079] The present application further provides a manufacturing method of the detection assembly 100 for the PET imaging device, which comprises the following steps:

[0080] S10, polymerizing a plurality of crystal units 201 into a crystal array 20 according to an array arrangement mode;

[0081] S20, removing the outer cover of the light emitting surface 21 of the crystal array 20 to form a reflection layer 10;

[0082] S30, arranging a heat shrink layer 31 on the periphery of the reflection layer 10, at least on the circumferential side of the crystal array 20;

[0083] S40, heating treatment of the heat shrink layer 31.

[0084] In step S30, the following steps are further included:

[0085] S31, bending the heat shrink film into a plurality of sheet layers, and covering the circumferential side of the crystal array 20 and the side of the crystal array 20 opposite to the light emitting surface 21 with the plurality of sheet layers, respectively;

[0086] The sheet layer covering the circumferential side of the crystal array 20 is used to form the heat shrink layer 31.

[0087] S32, wrapping the integral heat-shrinkable film around the circumferential side of the crystal array 20 to form the heat-shrinkable layer 31.

[0088] It should be noted that in actual application, the steps S31 and S32 are executed alternatively.

[0089] Further, the manufacturing method of the detection assembly 100 further comprises the following steps:

[0090] S50, aggregating a plurality of crystal arrays 20 into a crystal group according to an array arrangement mode;

[0091] S60, arranging a second heat-shrinkable member 40 around the circumferential side of the crystal group;

[0092] S70, arranging a positioning member 50 on the other side of the crystal group opposite to the light-emitting area 210, so that the other side of the crystal group opposite to the light-emitting area 210 is attached to the positioning member 50.

[0093] The steps S50-S70 are executed after the step S40 is completed.

[0094] The detection assembly 100 provided by the application can be specially used for PET scanning equipment for small animals, and the detection resolution of the detection assembly 100 is improved by arranging a plurality of crystal units 201 with smaller size into a crystal array 20.

[0095] Compared with the detection assembly 100 in the conventional PET scanning system, the crystal array 20 and the reflecting layer 10 in the application do not need to be fixed by using glue, and the reflecting layer 10 is pressed onto the outer surface of the crystal array 20 by arranging the first heat-shrinkable member 30 and using the heat-shrinkable property of the heat-shrinkable layer 31, so that the attachment between the crystal array 20 and the reflecting layer 10 is more compact and sufficient, and the reflecting layer 10 is more flat under the extrusion of the heat-shrinkable layer 31, which overcomes the adverse effects caused by the thickness and unevenness of the glue in the conventional structure, and reduces the interference with the transmission direction of the photons in the crystal array 20.

[0096] Therefore, the detection assembly 100 provided by the application takes into account both the use requirement of PET scanning for small animals and the improvement of the detection and positioning accuracy of the detection assembly 100.

[0097] In addition, the first heat-shrinkable member 30 and the second heat-shrinkable member 40 play a role of fixing the positions of the crystal array 20 formed by a plurality of crystal units 201 and the crystal group formed by a plurality of crystal arrays 20, respectively, which can avoid the looseness between the crystal units 201 or between the crystal arrays 20, and improve the overall structural stability of the crystal array 20 and the crystal group.

[0098] The technical features of the above-described embodiments can be combined in any manner. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above-described embodiments are described, however, as long as the combinations of the technical features do not contradict each other, they should be considered to fall within the scope of the present specification.

[0099] Those skilled in the art should recognize that the above-described embodiments are merely used to illustrate the present application, but not to limit the present application, and any suitable modification and change made to the above-described embodiments within the spirit and principle of the present application should fall within the scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A detection assembly comprising a photoelectric converter and a light receiver optically coupled to the photoelectric converter, the photoelectric converter comprising a reflective layer and a crystal array composed of a plurality of crystal units arranged in an array; the crystal array having a light-emitting surface and a top portion disposed opposite each other, the light receiver being adjacent to the light-emitting surface, the reflective layer covering the outer surface of the crystal array excluding the light-emitting surface, characterized in that: The photoelectric converter further includes a first heat shrink member, the first heat shrink member including a heat shrink layer disposed around the entire circumference of the side portion of the crystal array, the heat shrink layer being located on the periphery of the reflective layer and capable of shrinking and deforming toward the aggregation center of the crystal array as its own temperature rises, thereby squeezing the reflective layer so that the reflective layer and the crystal array are adhered to each other; The circumferential side portion of the crystal array is a side wall surface located between the light emitting surface and the top of the crystal array, and the side wall surface and the light emitting surface are arranged adjacent to each other on different planes, and the side wall surface and the top of the crystal array are arranged adjacent to each other on different planes; The remaining sidewall surfaces of the crystal array except the light-emitting surface and the top are all covered by the heat shrinkable layer.

2. The detection assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that The first heat shrinkable component also includes a positioning layer, which covers the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface. The heat shrinkable layer is connected to the positioning layer and together forms a sleeve; the reflective layer is sandwiched between the inner wall of the sleeve and the surface of the crystal array excluding the light-emitting surface.

3. The detection assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that A concave cavity is formed in the sleeve, and the concave cavity is used for the sleeve to sleeve the crystal array from the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface; the spatial shape of the concave cavity is adapted to the three-dimensional shape of the crystal array.

4. The detection assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that The first heat shrinkable component (30) comprises at least one heat shrinkable film, each of the heat shrinkable films being bent to form a plurality of interconnected sheet layers; The multiple sheet layers include side sheets covering the circumferential side of the crystal array and a top sheet layer covering the side of the crystal array opposite to the light-emitting surface; the side sheets form the heat shrink layer, and the top sheet layer forms the positioning layer.

5. The detection assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that The heat shrinkable layer is an integrated heat shrinkable film, which is wrapped around the circumferential side of the crystal array. The positioning layer is a heat shrinkable film and is provided separately from the heat shrinkable layer.

6. The detection assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that There are multiple crystal arrays, which are arranged in an array to form a crystal group; The detection assembly also includes a second heat shrinkable component, which is arranged around the entire circumferential side of the crystal group. The second heat shrinkable component can shrink and deform toward the aggregation center of the crystal group as its own temperature rises, and squeeze the crystal array located on the circumferential periphery of the crystal group.

7. The detection assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that The light-emitting surface of each crystal array is located on the same side of the crystal group, and the side forms the light-emitting area of ​​the crystal group; The detection assembly also includes a positioning member, which is located on the other side of the crystal group opposite to the light exit area, and one side of each crystal array opposite to the light exit area is fitted with the positioning member; the shape of the positioning member matches the shape of the side of the crystal group opposite to the light exit area.

8. A PET imaging device, characterized in that: The invention comprises a scanning channel and a detection assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the detection assembly is mounted on the outer periphery of the scanning channel.

9. A method for manufacturing a detection assembly for a PET imaging device, characterized in that: The manufacturing method comprises the following steps: Aggregating multiple crystal units in an array arrangement to form a crystal array; A reflective layer is provided on the outer side of the crystal array; A heat shrink layer is provided on the periphery of the reflective layer at least on the entire circumferential side of the crystal array; heating the heat shrinkable layer; The light-emitting surface is arranged opposite to the top of the crystal array, and the circumferential side of the crystal array is located between the light-emitting surface and the top of the crystal array. The circumferential side portion of the crystal array is arranged adjacent to the light-emitting surface at different surfaces, and the circumferential side portion of the crystal array is arranged adjacent to the top of the crystal array at different surfaces.

10. The method for manufacturing a detection assembly according to claim 9, wherein: The manufacturing method further comprises the following steps: Aggregating multiple crystal arrays according to an array arrangement to form a crystal group; A second heat shrink member is provided around the entire circumference of the circumferential side of the crystal group; A positioning member is provided on the other side of the crystal group that is opposite to the light exit area, so that the other side of the crystal group that is opposite to the light exit area is in contact with the positioning member; Wherein, the circumferential side portion of the crystal group is arranged adjacent to the light exit area on a different plane.

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