Support Tray for Portable Digital Radiography Cassette
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing digital radiography (DR) cassettes face challenges in compactly packaging support circuitry for battery power and wireless communication, limiting their portability and flexibility in operation modes, particularly in retrofitting existing x-ray systems.
Innovation Solution
A support tray for the DR cassette that provides a second data connector for engagement with the cassette, a wireless communication circuit for untethered operation, and a battery for powering the communication and cassette electronics, allowing both tethered and untethered configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If wireless communication circuitry and battery power are integrated into the DR cassette, then portability and flexibility are improved, but device complexity and packaging difficulty worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into two segments: the DR cassette containing only the detector and basic electronics, and a separate support tray containing the battery and wireless communication circuitry. This segmentation allows the cassette to remain simple while the tray provides the additional functionality for portable operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The support tray acts as an intermediary device that bridges the gap between the simple DR cassette and the requirements for portable operation. When the tray is attached to the cassette, it provides power and wireless communication capabilities; when detached, the cassette can still function in fixed installations.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the DR cassette is made compact to fit existing x-ray systems, then adaptability to existing systems is improved, but space for support circuitry worsens
Solution Approach 1:
By separating the support circuitry into the external tray, the cassette itself can be reduced to the minimum volume needed for the detector array and essential electronics, allowing it to fit existing ISO-standard x-ray systems while maintaining all functionality when paired with the tray.
3Ease of operation
If battery power and wireless communication are added to enable untethered operation, then portability is improved, but device complexity and power requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adapts its power consumption based on operational mode. In fixed installations, the cassette draws power from the wall outlet with minimal energy use. In portable mode, the battery provides power and wireless transmission activates, increasing energy consumption only when needed for mobility.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C
Figure 2A
AI summary
An apparatus for digital radiography has a cassette adapted to obtain a digital image of a subject in response to incident radiation when receiving source power through an input power connector and adapted to provide the obtained digital image as output from a first data connector. A support tray is adapted to removably seat the cassette and has a second data connector that releasably engages with the first data connector on the cassette when the cassette is seated in the support tray. A wireless communication circuit in the support tray is energizable to transmit the digital image obtained from first data connector of the cassette to a host processor. A battery in the tray provides source power to at least the wireless communication circuit on the support tray circuitry and the input power connector of the seated cassette.