Marker Image Isolation for Radiation Beam Synchronization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional radiation therapy techniques face challenges in accurately targeting tumors due to normal physiological movement, such as respiration, which can cause positional changes of the tumor during treatment, leading to inadequate radiation coverage and potential damage to healthy tissues.
Innovation Solution
An image processing method and system that uses a camera to capture marker images and identifies the presence of background objects, allowing for precise determination of the marker block's position by isolating marker images and excluding non-marker objects, thereby enabling more accurate synchronization of the radiation beam with the patient's physiological movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a camera system captures images to determine marker block position, then the position can be tracked for radiation beam gating, but background objects in the image may be mistakenly identified as markers leading to incorrect position determination
Solution Approach 1:
The image processing method segments the captured image into multiple regions of interest (ROIs) based on expected marker locations. By dividing the image into specific search areas where markers are anticipated to appear, the system efficiently identifies markers while ignoring background objects outside these predefined regions, thus resolving the contradiction between tracking accuracy and identification reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary image processing step that analyzes image regions to distinguish actual markers from background objects. This intermediary processing layer uses pattern recognition and spatial analysis to verify whether detected objects match expected marker characteristics, preventing false identification while maintaining accurate position tracking
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the radiation beam is shaped to conform exactly to the tumor dimensions, then healthy tissue damage is minimized, but physiological movement causes the tumor to move outside the radiation coverage
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements real-time feedback by continuously capturing marker block position data during radiation therapy and using this information to dynamically adjust the radiation beam gating. The camera system provides ongoing positional feedback, allowing the treatment system to pause beam delivery when the tumor moves outside the target zone and resume when it returns, ensuring complete tumor coverage while maintaining conformal precision to protect healthy tissues
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies dynamic gating control where the radiation beam delivery is made conditional on real-time marker position measurements. Instead of static beam positioning, the system dynamically adjusts beam activation based on the moving tumor's position within the respiratory cycle, creating a dynamic treatment window that adapts to physiological movement while maintaining conformal dose distribution
3Reliability
If physiological gating is implemented to synchronize radiation beam with patient movement, then tumor coverage is improved, but the system complexity increases due to additional sensors and control mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses an intermediary marker block system that simplifies the gating mechanism. Instead of complex direct sensing of tumor position, the marker block serves as an intermediary object attached to the patient's skin that reflects or emits light for camera detection. This intermediary approach converts complex internal tumor position measurement into simple external optical tracking, reducing system complexity while maintaining accurate tumor coverage through physiological gating
Data Source
AI summary
A method, includes: obtaining an image, the image having marker images and a background image; identifying presence of an object in the background image using a processor; and providing a signal for stopping a procedure if the presence of the object is identified. An image processing apparatus, includes: a processor configured for: obtaining an image, the image having marker images and a background image; identifying presence of an object in the background image; and providing a signal for stopping a procedure if the presence of the object is identified. A computer product having a non-transitory medium storing instructions, an execution of which causes an image processing method to be performed, the method includes: obtaining an image, the image having marker images and a background image; identifying presence of an object in the background image; and providing a signal for stopping a procedure if the presence of the object is identified.