Particle Therapy System Intensity Feedback Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current particle therapy systems face challenges with fluctuating particle beam intensities, leading to prolonged irradiation times and uneven dose delivery, especially due to resonance extraction methods, which result in high variability and inefficiency in treating tumors with both small and large radiation doses.
Innovation Solution
A particle therapy system that automatically detects and adjusts particle beam intensity using real-time feedback from detectors, employing a PID controller to achieve a desired intensity profile with steep rise and fall, allowing for flexible dose settings and reduced irradiation times without additional detectors, and utilizing a knock-out exciter for precise intensity control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If resonance extraction method is used to generate particle beam, then particle beam can be produced, but particle beam intensity fluctuates significantly with large variations over time
Solution Approach 1:
A feedback control system is implemented that continuously measures the actual particle beam intensity and compares it to a target intensity value. The system automatically adjusts the knock-out exciter parameters in real-time to correct deviations, thereby stabilizing the particle beam intensity despite fluctuations inherent in the resonance extraction method.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically changes operational parameters of the knock-out exciter (such as RF power, phase, and frequency) based on measured beam intensity. By adjusting these parameters in response to real-time conditions, the system maintains stable particle beam intensity while using resonance extraction.
2Manufacturing precision
If minimum time per grid point is required for irradiation, then dose accuracy is maintained, but maximum beam intensity is limited and irradiation time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the particle beam intensity to match the specific dose requirements of each grid point. By using real-time feedback control, the beam intensity can be optimized for each location, allowing faster irradiation of high-dose areas while maintaining appropriate exposure times for low-dose areas, thereby improving overall productivity without sacrificing dose accuracy.
3Quantity of substance
If beam extraction is performed with large fluctuations, then particle beam can be extracted from accelerator, but dose delivery becomes uneven across different grid points
Solution Approach 1:
The feedback control system measures actual beam intensity at each grid point and automatically adjusts the knock-out exciter parameters to compensate for fluctuations. This ensures that despite variations in beam extraction, the delivered dose remains uniform and accurate across all grid points.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary measurement of beam intensity before irradiation of each grid point and pre-adjusts the beam parameters accordingly. This anticipatory adjustment ensures that dose delivery uniformity is maintained even when extraction fluctuations occur.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach significantly reduces irradiation times, enables more precise and homogeneous dose delivery, increases patient throughput, and simplifies maintenance by identifying potential issues early, thus improving the operational efficiency and effectiveness of the particle therapy system.
Implementation Method 1
The beam generation device (102) is designed to generate a particle beam from at least a portion of the irradiation particles (120) from the particle generation device (101)
Implementation Method 2
a detection device (103-105) for automatically measuring a particle beam intensity of the discharged particle beam (102)
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5
AI summary
The method involves producing and accelerating radiation particles via a particle generation device (101). A particle stream is produced from a portion of produced radiation particles. A particle stream intensity is detected in an automatic manner, and multiple raster points with the particle stream are sequentially radiated according to a pre-determined radiation plan. The plan of the points is assigned to a reference value for the particle stream intensity. The intensity is automatically influenced in dependent upon the detected intensity and a reference value of the points to be radiated. Independent claims are also included for the following: (1) a particle therapy system that comprises a particle generation device (2) a computer program product for operating the particle therapy system (3) an electronic readable data carrier for operating the particle therapy system.