Motorized Table Haptic Feedback for Radiation Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Medical imaging systems face challenges in managing the movement of motorized tables to avoid radiation exposure to patients and equipment collisions, with existing technologies not effectively addressing these issues, particularly in reducing radiation doses and preventing disconnections during movements.
Innovation Solution
A method for moving a motorized table in a medical imaging system that includes a radiation detector and a signal generation mechanism to alert the user when the radiation beam is about to leave a predefined area, offering different usage modes for varying levels of safety and ergonomics, such as haptic feedback, reduced speed, or alarms, to prevent radiation exposure and equipment disconnections.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the motorized table is allowed to move freely, then the ease of operation is improved, but radiation exposure to patients and equipment collisions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements haptic feedback through the master controller that provides force resistance when the table approaches predefined safety boundaries. This feedback mechanism allows the operator to intuitively understand when moving the table would cause radiation exposure or equipment collision, enabling safe operation without restricting mobility.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-defines safe movement areas and establishes virtual boundaries before operation begins. The haptic feedback system applies counteracting force in advance when the table approaches these boundaries, preventing harmful movements before they occur rather than reacting after damage is done.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If haptic feedback is applied to restrict table movement, then radiation exposure and equipment collisions are reduced, but the ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The haptic feedback system dynamically adjusts its resistance based on the table's position and movement direction. The feedback force is applied only when approaching safety boundaries, not during normal operation within safe zones. This dynamic behavior maintains ease of operation while providing necessary restrictions at critical moments.
Solution Approach 2:
The haptic feedback restriction is applied locally only at the boundaries of safe movement areas, not uniformly across all movements. The master controller provides force feedback selectively when the table approaches predefined limits, allowing free movement within safe zones while preventing harmful movements at boundaries.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the movement area is restricted to reduce radiation exposure, then harmful factors are reduced, but the productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-defines optimal imaging areas and safe movement boundaries before the procedure begins. These predefined zones are configured to include all necessary imaging positions, allowing the table to move freely within these optimized boundaries without requiring frequent reconfiguration, thus maintaining productivity while ensuring safety.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for moving a motorized table designed to receive a patient in a medical imaging system comprising a radiation detector capable of detecting a beam of radiation emitted by a radiation source, the method comprising generating a signal that indicates a movement of the motorized table in the plane of the motorized table causing or tending to cause said beam to at least partially or completely leave an area predefined by the user of the medical imaging system.