Radiotherapy robot control system and method

Abstract

The invention discloses a robot control system and method for radiotherapy. The robot control system comprises a main controller, and a robot control sub-node, a beam generation and monitoring sub-node, an image acquisition sub-node and a collimator control sub-node which are in communication connection with the main controller, the robot control child node is used for performing control and data interaction on the rotary rack, the treatment bed, the kV image mechanical arm and the MV image mechanical arm; the beam generation and monitoring child node is used for performing control and data interaction on generation and monitoring of beams in the treatment head; the image acquisition child node is used for performing control and data interaction on the kV image acquisition device, the MV image acquisition device and the body surface optical image acquisition device; and the collimator control child node is used for performing control and data interaction on the multi-leaf collimator. According to the invention, all radiotherapy parts are uniformly controlled, so that the robot accelerator is flexibly positioned, and precise radiotherapy is realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of accelerator radiotherapy, and in particular relates to a radiotherapy robot control system and method. Background Art

[0002] Radiotherapy is one of the main treatments for malignant tumors. With the use of many precise radiotherapy technologies in recent years, radiotherapy requires the use of radiotherapy robots. Existing radiotherapy robots are simply module-level integrations of medical linear accelerators and robotic equipment. The coupling between the beam part responsible for treatment and the robot part responsible for movement and positioning is not high, and each performs its own duties, resulting in insufficient radiotherapy accuracy.

[0003] The linear accelerator is a very complex medical device, especially when combined with a robotic device. The actual position of each motion axis during the treatment process must form a close mutual servo relationship with the radiation beam used for treatment. In addition, the multimodal imaging system for image-guided treatment is required. Conventional control systems cannot meet such complex requirements. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention proposes a radiotherapy robot control system and method.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the technical solution of the present invention is as follows:

[0006] In one aspect, the present invention discloses a radiotherapy robot control system, comprising: a main controller and a robot control subnode, a beam generation and monitoring subnode, an image acquisition subnode and a collimator control subnode communicatively connected to the main controller;

[0007] The robot control sub-node is used to control and exchange data with the rotating gantry, treatment bed, kV imaging robot arm, and MV imaging robot arm;

[0008] The beam generation and monitoring subnode is used to control the generation and monitoring of the beam in the treatment head and to exchange data;

[0009] The image acquisition sub-node is used to control and exchange data with the kV image acquisition device, the MV image acquisition device, and the body surface optical image acquisition device;

[0010] The collimator control subnode is used to control the multi-leaf collimator and exchange data.

[0011] Based on the above technical solution, the following improvements can be made:

[0012] As a preferred solution, the robot control sub-node is respectively connected to the rotating frame execution unit, the treatment bed execution unit, the kV imaging manipulator execution unit, and the MV imaging manipulator execution unit;

[0013] The beam generation and monitoring sub-nodes are respectively connected to the beam generation unit and the beam monitoring unit for communication;

[0014] The image acquisition sub-node is respectively connected to the kV image acquisition unit, the MV image acquisition unit, and the body surface optical image acquisition unit;

[0015] The collimator control sub-node is communicatively connected with the multi-leaf collimator execution unit.

[0016] As a preferred solution, the main controller is connected to the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node respectively using a high-speed real-time bus.

[0017] As a preferred solution, each control sub-node is connected to its subordinate units via a communication bus.

[0018] In addition, on the other hand, the present invention further discloses a radiotherapy robot control method, which is used to control any of the above radiotherapy robot control systems, comprising:

[0019] Step S1: Turning on the radiotherapy robot control system;

[0020] Step S2: Perform a power-on self-test to determine whether the power-on self-test passes;

[0021] If passed, continue to step S3;

[0022] Otherwise, shut down for maintenance;

[0023] Step S3: the radiotherapy robot control system enters a standby state, and the accelerator synchronously enters a preheating process;

[0024] Step S4: When the preheating time is reached, receiving the treatment parameters transmitted by the treatment planning system;

[0025] Step S5: Perform a pre-beam self-test process to determine whether the pre-beam self-test has passed;

[0026] If passed, continue to step S6;

[0027] Otherwise, enter the fault handling process, wait for the fault handling to be completed, and re-execute step S3-step S3;

[0028] Step S6: Start the image guidance function to confirm the position of the patient lying on the treatment bed and determine whether the position information is correct;

[0029] If correct, continue to step S7;

[0030] Otherwise, the patient's position is corrected according to the acquired position deviation information, and then step S7 is executed;

[0031] Step S7: Entering the treatment process, the main controller jointly controls the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node until the treatment is completed.

[0032] As a preferred solution, in step S4, the treatment parameters include: one or more of the following: beam type, beam dose, beam start angle and treatment bed position.

[0033] As a preferred solution, in step S6, one or more modality image information of the acquired kV image, MV image, and body surface optical image is used to confirm the patient's positioning information.

[0034] As a preferred solution, in step S7, the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node are uniformly and synchronously controlled using the same synchronization pulse signal.

[0035] As a preferred solution, the synchronous pulse signal is generated by the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, and is synchronously sent to the robot control sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node.

[0036] As a preferred solution, at the start of each synchronization pulse signal, the robot control subnode, the image acquisition subnode, the collimator control subnode, and the beam generation and monitoring subnode all send the status information of their own subnodes to the main controller;

[0037] When the main controller receives this status information, it performs real-time calculations and then sends the command information that the next synchronization pulse node needs to execute to each child node before the next synchronization pulse signal is sent. After receiving the commands they need to execute, each child node transmits them to its own execution unit for execution.

[0038] The present invention discloses a radiotherapy robot control system and method, which has the following beneficial effects:

[0039] First, the present invention uses a main controller, a robot control sub-node, a beam generation and monitoring sub-node, an image acquisition sub-node and a collimator control sub-node to uniformly control each radiotherapy part.

[0040] Second, the present invention adopts bus control technology to facilitate the functional expansion of the future system.

[0041] Third, the present invention utilizes the same synchronization pulse signal to perform unified synchronization control on different sub-nodes, thereby ensuring that the radiotherapy robot control system can perform unified work as a whole.

[0042] Fourthly, the present invention can enable the robot accelerator to be flexibly positioned and perform radiotherapy accurately. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0043] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings required for use in the embodiments are briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show certain embodiments of the present invention and therefore should not be regarded as limiting the scope. For ordinary technicians in this field, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0044] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a radiotherapy robot provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0045] Figure 2 This is a block diagram of a radiotherapy robot control system provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0046] Figure 3 This is a flow chart of a radiotherapy robot control method provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0047] Figure 4 A timing diagram of four sub-nodes provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0048] Among them: 1-fixed frame, 2-rotating frame, 3-treatment head, 4-optical body surface image scanning component, 5-kV imaging robot arm, 6-kV image acquisition device, 7-MV image acquisition device, 8-MV imaging robot arm, 9-six-degree-of-freedom treatment bed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0050] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0051] The expression of “comprising” an element is an “open” expression, which merely means that a corresponding component or step exists, and should not be interpreted as excluding additional components or steps.

[0052] In order to achieve the purpose of the present invention, some embodiments of a radiotherapy robot control system and method include: Figure 1As shown, the radiotherapy robot includes: a fixed frame 1, a rotating frame 2, a treatment head 3, an optical body surface image scanning component 4, a kV image robot 5, a kV image acquisition device 6, a MV image acquisition device 7, a MV image robot 8 and a six-degree-of-freedom treatment bed 9, etc.

[0053] The radiotherapy robot control system includes: a main controller and a robot control subnode, a beam generation and monitoring subnode, an image acquisition subnode and a collimator control subnode which are communicatively connected to the main controller;

[0054] The robot control sub-node is used to control and exchange data with the rotating gantry, treatment bed, kV imaging robot arm, and MV imaging robot arm;

[0055] The beam generation and monitoring subnode is used to control the generation and monitoring of the beam in the treatment head and to exchange data;

[0056] The image acquisition sub-node is used to control and exchange data with the kV image acquisition device, the MV image acquisition device, and the body surface optical image acquisition device;

[0057] The collimator control subnode is used to control the multi-leaf collimator and exchange data.

[0058] Further, if Figure 2 It is shown that the robot control sub-node is respectively connected to the rotating frame execution unit, the treatment bed execution unit, the kV imaging manipulator execution unit, and the MV imaging manipulator execution unit;

[0059] The beam generation and monitoring subnodes are respectively connected to the beam generation unit and the beam monitoring unit for communication;

[0060] The image acquisition sub-node is respectively connected to the kV image acquisition unit, the MV image acquisition unit, and the body surface optical image acquisition unit;

[0061] The collimator control sub-node is communicatively connected with the multi-leaf collimator execution unit.

[0062] The invention discloses a radiotherapy robot control system, which is controlled by a main controller and has four sub-nodes mounted under the main controller.

[0063] Furthermore, the main controller is connected with the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node respectively by a high-speed real-time bus.

[0064] The main controller is connected to the four sub-nodes mounted below with a high-speed real-time bus. A real-time operating system runs in the main controller, which can ensure real-time management of the entire system.

[0065] Furthermore, each control sub-node is connected to its subordinate units via a communication bus, so as to meet the real-time system's needs for real-time acquisition of underlying data and issuance of control commands.

[0066] Due to the use of bus control technology, the control system can expand sub-nodes as needed to meet future functional requirements, and the expanded sub-nodes only need to use the same communication protocol.

[0067] like Figure 3 The embodiment of the present invention further discloses a radiotherapy robot control method, which is used to control the radiotherapy robot control system disclosed in any of the above embodiments, including:

[0068] Step S1: Turning on the radiotherapy robot control system;

[0069] Step S2: Perform a power-on self-test to determine whether the power-on self-test passes;

[0070] If passed, continue to step S3;

[0071] Otherwise, shut down for maintenance;

[0072] Step S3: the radiotherapy robot control system enters a standby state, and the accelerator synchronously enters a preheating process;

[0073] Step S4: When the preheating time is reached, receiving the treatment parameters transmitted by the treatment planning system, the treatment parameters including: one or more of the beam type, beam dose, beam start angle and treatment bed position;

[0074] Step S5: Perform a pre-beam self-check process to determine whether the pre-beam self-check (check of the accelerator dose system) has passed;

[0075] If passed, continue to step S6;

[0076] Otherwise, enter the fault handling process, wait for the fault handling to be completed, and re-execute step S3-step S3;

[0077] Step S6: starting the image guidance function, using one or more modality image information of the acquired kV image, MV image, and body surface optical image to confirm the position of the patient lying on the treatment bed, and judging whether the position information is correct;

[0078] If correct, continue to step S7;

[0079] Otherwise, the patient's position is corrected according to the acquired position deviation information, and then step S7 is executed;

[0080] Step S7: Entering the treatment process, the main controller jointly controls the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node until the treatment is completed.

[0081] During the beam treatment process, the radiotherapy robot control system performs servo control on the entire system. For example, the robot control sub-node, collimator control sub-node and dose generation and monitoring sub-node are servo-controlled to each other. The gantry angle, treatment bed position and real-time position of the multi-leaf collimator must be closely servo-controlled with the current beam dose to ensure the treatment requirements of the treatment plan.

[0082] During the treatment process, if there is no fault or chain reaction, the treatment of a patient can be completed normally. Otherwise, the fault handling link will be entered for processing. After the treatment of a patient is normally completed, the treatment of the next patient will usually continue. At this time, the patient's treatment parameters will be re-entered and the normal treatment process will be started until the treatment of all patients on that day is completed and the system is shut down.

[0083] like Figure 4 As shown, in step S7, the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node are uniformly and synchronously controlled using the same synchronization pulse signal.

[0084] The synchronization pulse signal is generated by the beam generation and monitoring sub-node and synchronously sent to the robot control sub-node, image acquisition sub-node and collimator control sub-node. The synchronization signal generation interval is 1 millisecond.

[0085] At the beginning of each synchronization pulse signal, the robot control subnode, the image acquisition subnode, the collimator control subnode, and the beam generation and monitoring subnode all send the status information of their own subnodes to the main controller;

[0086] When the main controller receives this status information, it performs real-time calculations and then sends the command information that the next synchronization pulse node needs to execute to each child node before the next synchronization pulse signal is sent. After receiving the commands they need to execute, each child node transmits them to its own execution unit for execution.

[0087] The present invention discloses a radiotherapy robot control system and method, which has the following beneficial effects:

[0088] First, the present invention uses a main controller, a robot control sub-node, a beam generation and monitoring sub-node, an image acquisition sub-node and a collimator control sub-node to uniformly control each radiotherapy part.

[0089] Second, the present invention adopts bus control technology to facilitate the functional expansion of the future system.

[0090] Third, the present invention utilizes the same synchronization pulse signal to perform unified synchronization control on different sub-nodes, thereby ensuring that the radiotherapy robot control system can perform unified work as a whole.

[0091] Fourthly, the present invention can enable the robot accelerator to be flexibly positioned and perform radiotherapy accurately.

[0092] The above shows and describes the basic principles and main features of the present invention and the advantages of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The above embodiments and descriptions are only for illustrating the principles of the present invention. Without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, the present invention may have various changes and improvements, which shall fall within the scope of the present invention to be protected. The scope of protection of the present invention is defined by the attached claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A radiotherapy robot control system, characterized in that: include: A main controller and a robot control subnode, a beam generation and monitoring subnode, an image acquisition subnode and a collimator control subnode that are communicatively connected to the main controller; The robot control subnode is used to control and exchange data with the rotating rack, treatment bed, kV imaging robot arm, and MV imaging robot arm; The beam generation and monitoring subnode is used to control the generation and monitoring of the beam in the treatment head and to exchange data; The image acquisition sub-node is used to control and exchange data with the kV image acquisition device, the MV image acquisition device, and the body surface optical image acquisition device; The collimator control sub-node is used to control the multi-leaf collimator and perform data exchange.

2. The radiotherapy robot control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The robot control sub-node is respectively connected to the rotating frame execution unit, the treatment bed execution unit, the kV imaging mechanical arm execution unit, and the MV imaging mechanical arm execution unit; The beam generation and monitoring sub-nodes are respectively connected to the beam generation unit and the beam monitoring unit for communication; The image acquisition sub-node is respectively connected to the kV image acquisition unit, the MV image acquisition unit, and the body surface optical image acquisition unit; The collimator control sub-node is communicatively connected with the multi-leaf collimator execution unit.

3. The radiotherapy robot control system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The main controller is connected with the robot control subnode, the beam generation and monitoring subnode, the image acquisition subnode and the collimator control subnode respectively by using a high-speed real-time bus.

4. The radiotherapy robot control system according to claim 3, characterized in that: Each control sub-node is connected to its subordinate units via a communication bus.

5. A radiotherapy robot control method, characterized in that: A radiotherapy robot control system for controlling any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising: Step S1: Turning on the radiotherapy robot control system; Step S2: Perform a power-on self-test to determine whether the power-on self-test passes; If passed, continue to step S3; Otherwise, shut down for maintenance; Step S3: the radiotherapy robot control system enters a standby state, and the accelerator synchronously enters a preheating process; Step S4: When the preheating time is reached, receiving the treatment parameters transmitted by the treatment planning system; Step S5: Perform a pre-beam self-test process to determine whether the pre-beam self-test has passed; If passed, continue to step S6; Otherwise, enter the fault handling process, wait for the fault handling to be completed, and re-execute step S3-step S3; Step S6: Start the image guidance function to confirm the position of the patient lying on the treatment bed and determine whether the position information is correct; If correct, continue to step S7; Otherwise, the patient's position is corrected according to the acquired position deviation information, and then step S7 is executed; Step S7: Entering the treatment process, the main controller jointly controls the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node until the treatment is completed.

6. The radiotherapy robot control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: In step S4, the treatment parameters include: one or more of the following: beam type, beam dose, beam start angle, and treatment bed position.

7. The radiotherapy robot control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: In step S6, the patient's positioning information is confirmed using one or more modality image information of the acquired kV image, MV image, and body surface optical image.

8. The radiotherapy robot control method according to claims 5-7, characterized in that: In step S7, the robot control sub-node, the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node are uniformly and synchronously controlled by using the same synchronization pulse signal.

9. The radiotherapy robot control method according to claim 8, characterized in that: The synchronous pulse signal is generated by the beam generation and monitoring sub-node, and is synchronously sent to the robot control sub-node, the image acquisition sub-node and the collimator control sub-node.

10. The radiotherapy robot control system according to claim 9, characterized in that: At the start time of each synchronization pulse signal, the robot control subnode, image acquisition subnode, collimator control subnode, beam generation and monitoring subnode all send the status information of their own subnodes to the main controller; When the main controller receives these status information, it performs real-time calculations, and then sends the command information that the next synchronization pulse node needs to execute to each child node before the next synchronization pulse signal is sent. After receiving the commands that need to be executed, each child node transmits them to its own execution unit for execution.

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