CN111616728A

CN111616728A - X-ray imaging method and system based on surface light source

Info

Publication number: CN111616728A
Application number: CN202010509682.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 杨乐; 冯娟; 张娜
Original assignee: Shanghai United Imaging Healthcare Co Ltd
Current assignee: Shanghai United Imaging Healthcare Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-06-05
Filing date: 2020-06-05
Publication date: 2020-09-04

Abstract

The embodiment of the application discloses an X-ray imaging method and system based on a surface light source. The method comprises the following steps: acquiring an initial image of a target scanning object; determining a target scanning area based on the initial image; and determining an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area.

Description

X-ray imaging method and system based on surface light source

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of X-ray imaging, and more particularly, to a method and system for X-ray imaging using a surface light source.

Background

In X-ray imaging, surface light sources have the advantage of being flexible and allowing more complex shots to be achieved compared to conventional point sources (X-ray sources). Meanwhile, the surface light source technology has structural advantages on controlling the X-ray exposure dose in the imaging process. In order to enable the irradiation range of the X-ray source in the surface light source to cover the target scanning area and reduce the radiation to which the target scanning object (e.g. patient) is exposed, it is necessary to provide a method and a system for disposing the X-ray source in the surface light source.

Disclosure of Invention

An aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an X-ray imaging method based on a surface light source, including: acquiring an initial image of a target scanning object; determining a target scanning area based on the initial image; and determining an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area.

One aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides an X-ray imaging system based on a surface light source, which includes an initial image acquisition module for acquiring an initial image of a target scanning object; the target scanning area determining module is used for determining a target scanning area based on the initial image; and the X-ray source determining module is used for determining an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area.

An aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an X-ray imaging apparatus based on a surface light source, including a processor for performing an X-ray imaging method based on a surface light source.

An aspect of embodiments of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions, and when the computer instructions in the storage medium are read by a computer, the computer performs an X-ray imaging method based on a surface light source.

Drawings

The present application will be further explained by way of exemplary embodiments, which will be described in detail by way of the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are not intended to be limiting, and in these embodiments like numerals are used to indicate like structures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an application scenario of an X-ray imaging system according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an X-ray imaging system according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an arrangement of X-ray sources in a surface light source according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary flow diagram of a method for area source based X-ray imaging according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of a method for determining a target scan area according to some embodiments of the present application; and

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of a method for determining a target scan area according to some embodiments of the present application.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present application more apparent, the present application is described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the present application and are not intended to limit the present application.

On the contrary, this application is intended to cover any alternatives, modifications, equivalents, and alternatives that may be included within the spirit and scope of the application as defined by the appended claims. Furthermore, in the following detailed description of the present application, certain specific details are set forth in order to provide a better understanding of the present application. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present application may be practiced without these specific details.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an application scenario of an X-ray imaging system according to some embodiments of the present application. In some embodiments, the X-ray imaging system 100 may include: processing device 110, controller 120, area light source 130, detector 140, and storage device 150.

In some embodiments, the processing device 110 may acquire data and/or information from other components of the X-ray imaging system 100 and process the acquired data and/or information. For example, the processing device 110 may acquire information of the X-ray sources in the area light source 130 and process it to determine the position of the X-ray source to be exposed, the number of exposures of the X-ray source to be exposed, the exposure parameters of the X-ray source to be exposed, and the like. As another example, the processing device 110 may acquire exposure data from the detector 140 and process the data to obtain a scanned image. As another example, the processing device 110 may obtain information (e.g., age, gender, medical history, obesity, etc.) of the target scan object 160 from the storage device 150. In some embodiments, the processing device 110 may be a single server or a group of servers. The server groups may be centralized or distributed. In some embodiments, the processing device 110 may be local or remote. For example, processing device 110 may access information and/or data from controller 120, probe 140, and/or storage device 150, etc. via a network (not shown). As another example, the processing device 110 may be directly connected to the controller 120, the detector 140, and/or the storage device 150 to access information and/or data. In some embodiments, the processing device 110 may be implemented on a cloud platform. For example, the cloud platform may include a private cloud, a public cloud, a hybrid cloud, a community cloud, a distributed cloud, and the like, or combinations thereof.

The controller 120 may be used to control one or more X-ray sources in the area light source 130. For example, the controller 120 may control the position of the X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source 130 according to information (e.g., type, position, shape, etc.) of the target scanning object 160. For another example, the controller 120 may control the number of X-ray sources to be exposed in the surface light source 130. As another example, the controller 120 can control one or more of the X-ray sources to expose simultaneously.

The detector 140 may receive photons from one or more X-ray sources in the area light source 130 to collect exposure data. For example, the detector 140 may receive photons from a particular X-ray source to acquire exposure data for that X-ray source. As another example, the detector 140 may receive photons from one or more X-ray sources and accumulate them to obtain overall exposure data for the one or more X-ray sources.

The target scan object 160 may include a patient and may also include a particular portion, organ, and/or tissue of the patient. For example, a particular portion may include the head, brain, neck, body, shoulders, arms, chest, heart, stomach, blood vessels, soft tissue, knees, feet, etc., or any combination thereof. One or more X-ray sources in the area light source 130 may scan the target scan object 160 to obtain a scan image of the target scan object 160.

In some embodiments, the area light source 130 may include one or more X-ray sources, such as X-ray source 130-1, X-ray source 130-2. In some embodiments, one or more of the X-ray sources in the area light source 130 may be spaced apart in a line parallel to the receiving surface of the detector 140. In other embodiments, one or more of the X-ray sources may be arranged in an array in a plane parallel to the receiving surface of the detector 140. In some alternative embodiments, the X-ray sources in the surface light source 130 may be arranged on a curved line, a curved surface, or the like. In some embodiments, the exposure areas of one or more X-ray sources in the area light source 130 may overlap or may not overlap and collectively cover the target scanning area in the target scanning object 160, thereby ensuring that the target scanning area of the target scanning object 160 can be irradiated by the X-rays emitted by the one or more X-ray sources.

In some embodiments, the storage device 150 may be used to store information/data related to the X-ray imaging procedure (e.g., an initial image of a target scan object, information of a target scan object, etc.). In some embodiments, the storage device 150 may be used to store relevant information/data for controlling the X-ray source exposure process (e.g., the irradiation region of the X-ray source, the exposure parameters of the X-ray source, etc.). In some embodiments, the storage device 150 may store a correspondence between the X-ray sources and the target scan objects in the surface light source 130. In some embodiments, the storage device 150 may store data and/or instructions for execution by the controller 120, which the controller 120 may execute or use to implement the example methods of this specification. In some embodiments, the storage device may include mass storage, removable storage, volatile read-write memory, read-only memory (ROM), and the like, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, the X-ray imaging system 100 may also include a network (not shown). The network may be a Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), public network, private network, proprietary network, Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), the internet, a virtual network, a metropolitan area network, a telephone network, etc., or a combination of multiple. In some embodiments, the X-ray imaging system 100 may be a fully digital radiography system or a digital tomosynthesis system. In some embodiments, communication between the processing device 110, the controller 120, the area light source 130, the detector 140, and/or the storage device 150 may be achieved through a wired connection, a wireless connection, or a combination of the various.

In the embodiment of the present application, since the regions irradiated by the X-rays emitted by the respective X-ray sources are different, the controller 120 may control exposure of one or more X-ray sources in the surface light source 130 according to specific conditions of the target scanning object 160 (e.g., the position, shape, type, etc. of the target scanning region); the detector 140 may receive photons from different X-ray sources in the area light source 130 and image based thereon. The X-ray imaging system 100 of the present application may be applied to various devices capable of emitting and detecting X-rays, including but not limited to CT, DR, X-ray machines, and the like.

The above description is intended to be illustrative, and not to limit the scope of the disclosure. Many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The features, structures, methods, and other characteristics of the exemplary embodiments described herein may be combined in various ways to obtain additional and/or alternative exemplary embodiments. For example, the storage device 150 may be a data store comprising a cloud computing platform (e.g., public, private, social, and hybrid clouds, etc.). However, such changes and modifications do not depart from the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an X-ray imaging system according to some embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2, the X-ray imaging system 200 may include an initial image acquisition module 210, a target scan area determination module 220, an X-ray source determination module 230, and a control module 240. In some embodiments, the various modules illustrated in FIG. 2 may be implemented by processing device 110.

The initial image acquisition module 210 may be used to acquire an initial image of a target scan object. In some embodiments, the initial image of the target scan object may include, but is not limited to, one or more of an X-ray image, an infrared image, a microwave image, an ultrasound image, a nuclear magnetic resonance image, a nuclear species image, a visible light image, an impedance image, or the like. In some embodiments, the initial image acquisition module 210 may acquire the initial image from an initial image imaging device, a storage device, or the like.

The target scan area determination module 220 may be used to determine the target scan area. In some embodiments, the target scanning area may be understood as the area of the target scanning object where X-ray image acquisition is desired. In some embodiments, the target scan area determination module 220 may determine the target scan area based on an initial image of the target scan object. For example, the target scanning area determination module 220 may determine a human body area in the initial image as the target scanning area. For another example, the target scanning area determining module 220 may determine the target human body part in the initial image as the target scanning area.

The X-ray source determining module 230 may be configured to determine an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source. In some embodiments, the X-ray source determination module 230 may use all or part of the X-ray sources in the area light source as the X-ray sources to be exposed. In some embodiments, the X-ray source determining module 230 may determine an X-ray source to be exposed in the area light source based on the target scanning area and the irradiation area of each X-ray source in the area light source. In some embodiments, the X-ray source determination module 230 may determine exposure parameters of the X-ray source to be exposed based on information of the object scanning object (e.g., thickness and/or attenuation), information of the object scanning region of the object scanning object (e.g., location, type, shape, etc. of the object scanning region), and/or imaging requirements, among others.

The control module 240 may be used to control the exposure of the X-ray source to be exposed in the area light source. In some embodiments, the control module 240 may control the X-ray sources to be exposed in the area light source to be exposed simultaneously. In some embodiments, the control module 240 may control the exposure of the at least one X-ray source by controlling the controller 120.

It should be understood that the system and its modules shown in FIG. 2 may be implemented in a variety of ways. For example, in some embodiments, the system and its modules may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware. It should be noted that the above description of the X-ray imaging system and its modules is merely for convenience of description and should not limit the present application to the scope of the illustrated embodiments. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, given the teachings of the present system, any combination of modules or sub-system configurations may be used to connect to other modules without departing from such teachings. For example, in some embodiments, the initial image acquisition module 210, the target scan region determination module 220, the X-ray source determination module 230, and the control module 240 disclosed in fig. 2 may be different modules in a system, or one module may implement the functions of two or more of the above modules, for example. For example, the target scanning area determining module 220 and the X-ray source determining module 230 may be two modules, or one acquisition module may have both the target scanning area determining function and the X-ray source determining function. For example, each module may share one memory module, and each module may have its own memory module. Such variations are within the scope of the present application.

Fig. 3 is a schematic arrangement of X-ray sources in a surface light source according to some embodiments of the present application.

The surface light source 300 may include an area X-ray source composed of two or more X-ray sources arranged in a plane (e.g., a matrix). As shown in fig. 3, each circle represents an X-ray source. The surface light source 300 may include 25X-ray sources. The 25X-ray sources are arranged in five rows and five columns. Each row comprises 5X-ray sources and each column comprises 5X-ray sources. In some embodiments, the surface light source 300 may be provided in an array of various shapes, such as a circular array, a square array (as in fig. 3), a triangular array, or the like. In some embodiments, the number of X-ray sources in the surface light source 300 or the number of X-ray sources to be exposed in the surface light source 300 can be set according to the actual imaging needs. For example, when the area to be irradiated is larger, the number of X-ray sources may be increased, and vice versa. In some embodiments, the number of X-ray sources in the surface light source 300 may be set to 3, 5, 8, 10, 25, etc.

In some embodiments, the arrangement density of the X-ray sources in the surface light source 300 may be uniform or non-uniform. In some embodiments, the arrangement density of the X-ray sources in the surface light source 300 may reflect the number of X-ray sources per unit area. For example, the number of area array X-ray sources per unit area may be arranged differently. In some embodiments, the packing density may also reflect the spacing of adjacent X-ray sources. For example, as shown in fig. 3, the spacing between any two adjacent X-ray sources in the area light source 300 is equal.

Fig. 4 illustrates an exemplary flow diagram of a method for X-ray imaging based on a surface light source according to some embodiments of the present application. As shown in fig. 4, the X-ray imaging method 400 may include the following steps.

At step 410, an initial image of the target scan object is acquired. In some embodiments, step 410 may be performed by initial image acquisition module 210.

In some embodiments, the initial image of the target scan object may include, but is not limited to, one or more of an X-ray image, an infrared image, a microwave image, an ultrasound image, a nuclear magnetic resonance image, a nuclear species image, a visible light image, an impedance image, or the like. The initial image of the target scan object may be obtained by any imaging device capable of acquiring an initial image of the target scan object. The imaging devices may include, but are not limited to, X-ray imaging devices (e.g., CT, DR, X-ray machines, etc.), infrared imaging devices, microwave imaging devices, ultrasound imaging devices, nuclear magnetic resonance imaging devices, nuclear species imaging devices, cameras (e.g., digital cameras, analog cameras, depth cameras, 3D scanners, etc.), impedance imaging devices, and the like.

In some embodiments, the initial image of the target scan object may reflect at least the position of the target scan object on the scanning platform (e.g., scanning bed). In some embodiments, the initial image of the target scan object may be an image acquired while the target scan object is in a state to be exposed. For example, the initial image may be an image of a patient to be scanned obtained by means of X-rays, infrared, ultrasound, etc., while the patient lies on a scanning platform.

In some embodiments, an initial image of the target scan object may be obtained by the X-ray imaging system 100. The X-ray imaging system 100 may pre-expose the target scan object with some or all of the X-ray sources in the surface light source 130 to obtain an initial image of the target scan object. For example, the X-ray imaging system 100 can expose the target scanning object through a single X-ray source in the surface light source, and the detector 140 sends the received exposure data to the processing device 110 for processing, so as to obtain an initial image of the target scanning object. For another example, the X-ray imaging system may expose the target scanning object with a single low dose through all the X-ray sources in the surface light source to obtain a low dose pre-exposure image of the target scanning object as an initial image of the target scanning object.

In some embodiments, initial image acquisition module 210 may acquire an initial image from an initial image imaging device. In some embodiments, the initial image of the target scan object may be stored in a storage device (e.g., storage device 150) of the X-ray imaging system 100, and the initial image acquisition module 210 may acquire the initial image of the target scan object from the storage device.

Based on the initial image, a target scan area is determined, step 420. In some embodiments, step 420 may be performed by the target scan area determination module 220.

In some embodiments, the target scanning area may be understood as the area of the target scanning object where X-ray image acquisition is desired. In some embodiments, the target scan area may be all or part of the target scan object.

In some embodiments, the target scan area determination module 220 may determine the target scan area based on an initial image of the target scan object. In some embodiments, the target scanning area determination module 220 may determine human body areas and non-human body areas in the initial image based on the initial image. In some embodiments, the human body region may be understood as a region including only a human body in the initial image, and the non-human body region may be understood as a region excluding the human body region in the initial image, for example, a scanning platform region, an environment region, a background region, and the like in the initial image. In some embodiments, the target scanning area determining module 220 may determine the segmented human body area as the target scanning area. For details of determining the human body region as the target scanning region, refer to fig. 5 and its related description.

In some embodiments, the target scanning area determination module 220 may determine the target human body part in the initial image based on the initial image. In some embodiments, the target body part may be all or part of the target scan object. For example, the target scanning object is a human body (e.g., a patient), and the target human body site may be an abdomen, a chest, a brain, a heart, a lung, a tumor site, or the like of the human body. The target scanning area determination module 220 may determine the target scanning area based on the target human body part. For details regarding the determination of the target scan area based on the target body part, reference may be made to fig. 6 and its associated description.

And 430, determining an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area. In some embodiments, step 430 may be performed by the X-ray source determination module 230.

In some embodiments, the X-ray source determination module 230 may use all or part of the X-ray sources in the area light source as the X-ray sources to be exposed. In some embodiments, the X-ray source determining module 230 may determine an X-ray source to be exposed in the area light source based on the target scanning area and the irradiation area of each X-ray source in the area light source.

In some embodiments, the X-ray source determining module 230 may obtain an irradiation region of each X-ray source in the surface light source based on the system parameters of the surface light source 130. For example, the irradiation region of each X-ray source in the surface light source 130 may be predetermined and stored in a storage device (e.g., the storage device 150, an external storage device, etc.) of the X-ray imaging system 100. The X-ray source determination module 230 may obtain the irradiation region of each X-ray source from a storage device of the X-ray imaging system 100 in a wired or wireless manner. In some alternative embodiments, the irradiation area of each X-ray source in the surface light source can also be obtained experimentally. For example, the X-ray imaging system 100 may control each X-ray source in the surface light source to perform irradiation to obtain an irradiation region of each X-ray source in the surface light source without the target scanning the object.

In some embodiments, the X-ray source determination module 230 may determine all X-ray sources having an exposure area coinciding with the target scanning area as the X-ray sources to be exposed. In this case, the X-ray source, which does not overlap the irradiation region and the target scanning region, will not be exposed, thereby preventing unnecessary radiation from being applied to the patient while ensuring the imaging effect.

In some embodiments, the X-ray source determination module 230 may use one or more X-ray sources with a minimum number of combinations of irradiation regions that cover the target scanning area as the X-ray source to be exposed. For example, according to the irradiation area of each X-ray source in the surface light source, the X-ray source determining module 230 may determine all X-ray source combinations whose irradiation areas can cover the target scanning area. On the basis, the X-ray source determining module 230 may select the X-ray source combination with the least number of X-ray sources as the X-ray source to be exposed. By taking one or more X-ray sources with the minimum number, which can cover the target scanning area, of the irradiation areas as the X-ray sources to be exposed, unnecessary radiation to a patient caused by irradiation of redundant X-ray sources can be effectively reduced.

Alternatively, the X-ray source determination module 230 may determine the exposure parameters of the X-ray source to be exposed based on information (e.g., thickness and/or attenuation) of the object scanned object, information (e.g., location, type, shape, etc. of the object scanned area) of the object scanned object, and/or imaging requirements, etc. In some embodiments, the exposure parameters of the X-ray source may include, but are not limited to, one or more combinations of exposure dose, exposure intensity, exposure time, tube voltage/tube current, etc. of the X-ray source. For example, for a target scan object with a large attenuation or a target scan object with a thick area, the exposure dose, the exposure intensity and/or the exposure time may be increased appropriately to improve the sharpness of the captured image. For another example, the target scanning object may be irradiated by two or more X-ray sources in the area light source at the same time, and the exposure dose of the X-ray source to be exposed may be calculated by comprehensively considering the thickness and/or attenuation (absolute thickness and/or attenuation, relative thickness and/or relative attenuation, etc.) of the target scanning object in the overlapping region. As another example, the exposure dose may be increased accordingly for areas of the target scan subject requiring high-definition imaging. In some embodiments, the exposure parameters of the X-ray source to be exposed in the area light source may be predetermined and stored in a storage device (e.g., storage device 150, an external storage device, etc.) of the X-ray imaging system 100 according to the type of the target scanning area. The X-ray source determination module 230 may obtain the exposure parameters of the X-ray source to be exposed from a storage device of the X-ray imaging system 100.

Step 440, controlling the exposure of the X-ray source to be exposed. In some embodiments, step 440 may be performed by control module 240. For example, the control module 240 may control the exposure of the X-ray source to be exposed through the controller 120.

In some embodiments, the control module 240 may control the X-ray sources to be exposed in the area light source to be exposed simultaneously. In other embodiments, the control module 240 may control the duration of the exposure time of at least one X-ray source to be exposed in the area light source to be less than a predetermined time threshold. For example, when the group A X-ray sources perform exposure, the time difference from the beginning of exposure of the first X-ray source to the completion of exposure of the last X-ray source to be exposed is less than the set time threshold. The time threshold may be a specified short period of time (e.g., 5ms, 10ms, 30ms, etc.). The time threshold may also be different for different target scanning objects, for example, when the target scanning object is a heart of a patient, the beat of the heart is likely to cause an artifact, and the time threshold may be smaller than the phase transition time of the heart. In some embodiments, the control module 240 may control the exposure of the X-ray source to be exposed according to the exposure parameters of the X-ray source to be exposed. Further, the detector 140 may receive photons emitted by an exposed X-ray source (e.g., a particular X-ray source, one or more X-ray sources) to acquire X-ray source exposure data. Based on the exposure data of the X-ray source, the processing device 110 may obtain a scan image of the target scan area.

It should be noted that the above description relating to flowchart 400 is for purposes of example and illustration only and is not intended to limit the scope of applicability of the present application. Various modifications and changes to flowchart 400 may occur to those skilled in the art upon review of the present application. However, such modifications and variations are intended to be within the scope of the present application. For example, step 440 may be omitted, i.e., process 400 may be used only to determine the X-ray source to be exposed in the area light source. As another example, the process 400 may also include an image processing step for processing the acquired scan image of the target scan object.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of a method for determining a target scan area according to some embodiments of the present application. As shown in fig. 5, a method 500 of determining an X-ray source to be exposed in a surface light source may include the following steps.

At step 510, an initial image of the target scan object is acquired. In some embodiments, step 510 may be performed by initial image acquisition module 210. Details regarding the acquisition of the initial image of the target scan object are similar to those in step 410 of the present application and will not be described herein.

Based on the initial image, a human body region and a non-human body region in the initial image are determined, step 520. In some embodiments, step 520 may be performed by the target scan area determination module 220.

In some embodiments, the initial image may include a human body region and/or a non-human body region (e.g., a scanning platform region, an environmental region, a background region, etc.). The target scan region determination module 220 may determine human body regions and non-human body regions in the initial image based on the initial image. For example, the target scan region determination module 220 may determine human body regions and non-human body regions in the initial image using an image segmentation method. Exemplary image segmentation methods include, but are not limited to, threshold-based segmentation algorithms, edge-based segmentation algorithms, region-based segmentation algorithms, cluster-based algorithms, wavelet transform-based segmentation algorithms, mathematical morphology-based segmentation algorithms, artificial neural network-based segmentation algorithms, and the like, or any combination thereof.

Step 530, determining the human body region as a target scanning region. In some embodiments, step 530 may be performed by the target scan area determination module 220. In some embodiments, the target scanning area determining module 220 may determine the segmented human body area as the target scanning area.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of a method for determining a target scan area according to some embodiments of the present application. As shown in fig. 6, a method 600 of determining an X-ray source to be exposed in a surface light source may include the following steps.

At step 610, an initial image of the target scan object is acquired. In some embodiments, step 610 may be performed by initial image acquisition module 210. The details of obtaining the initial image of the target scan object are similar to step 410 in this application and will not be described herein.

And step 620, identifying the target human body part in the initial image based on the initial image. In some embodiments, step 620 may be performed by the target scan area determination module 220.

In some embodiments, the target scanning area determination module 220 may identify the target human body part in the initial image based on the initial image. The target body part may be a part of a target scan subject. For example, the target scanning object is a human body (e.g., a patient), and the target human body site may be an abdomen, a chest, a brain, a heart, a lung, a tumor site, or the like of the human body. In some embodiments, the target scan area determination module 220 may identify the target human body part using a recognition algorithm. Exemplary recognition algorithms include, but are not limited to, the R-CNN algorithm, the fastRCNN algorithm, the SSD algorithm, the YOLO algorithm, the RetinaNet algorithm, and the like, or combinations thereof.

Step 630, determining a target scanning area based on the target human body part. In some embodiments, step 630 may be performed by target scan area determination module 220.

In some embodiments, the target scanning area determination module 220 may determine the target scanning area based on the target human body part. In some embodiments, the target scan area may be an area in which the target human body part is located or an area containing the target human body part. For example, the target body part may be an elbow joint part of the patient. In this case, the target scanning area determining module 220 may determine the elbow joint part as the target scanning area, or determine a certain area (e.g., an area formed by one or several X-ray sources in the surface light source) including the elbow joint part as the target scanning area.

The beneficial effects that may be brought by the embodiments of the present application include, but are not limited to: (1) the targeted X-ray source exposure can be carried out based on the target scanning area, and unnecessary radiation on a patient is reduced; (2) according to the target scanning area, on the premise of meeting the imaging requirement, the number of exposed X-ray sources is further controlled, and unnecessary radiation to a patient caused by irradiation of redundant X-ray sources is further reduced. It is to be noted that different embodiments may produce different advantages, and in different embodiments, any one or combination of the above advantages may be produced, or any other advantages may be obtained.

Having thus described the basic concept, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the foregoing detailed disclosure is to be considered merely illustrative and not restrictive of the broad application. Various modifications, improvements and adaptations to the present application may occur to those skilled in the art, although not explicitly described herein. Such modifications, improvements and adaptations are proposed in the present application and thus fall within the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments of the present application.

Also, this application uses specific language to describe embodiments of the application. Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," and/or "some embodiments" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with at least one embodiment of the present application is included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Therefore, it is emphasized and should be appreciated that two or more references to "an embodiment" or "one embodiment" or "an alternative embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, some features, structures, or characteristics of one or more embodiments of the present application may be combined as appropriate.

Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that aspects of the present application may be illustrated and described in terms of several patentable species or situations, including any new and useful combination of processes, machines, manufacture, or materials, or any new and useful improvement thereon. Accordingly, various aspects of the present application may be embodied entirely in hardware, entirely in software (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or in a combination of hardware and software. The above hardware or software may be referred to as "data block," module, "" engine, "" unit, "" component, "or" system. Furthermore, aspects of the present application may be represented as a computer product, including computer readable program code, embodied in one or more computer readable media.

The computer storage medium may comprise a propagated data signal with the computer program code embodied therewith, for example, on baseband or as part of a carrier wave. The propagated signal may take any of a variety of forms, including electromagnetic, optical, etc., or any suitable combination. A computer storage medium may be any computer-readable medium that can communicate, propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. Program code located on a computer storage medium may be propagated over any suitable medium, including radio, cable, fiber optic cable, RF, or the like, or any combination of the preceding.

Computer program code required for the operation of various portions of the present application may be written in any one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, Scala, Smalltalk, Eiffel, JADE, Emerald, C + +, C #, VB.NET, Python, and the like, a conventional programming language such as C, Visual Basic, Fortran 2003, Perl, COBOL 2002, PHP, ABAP, a dynamic programming language such as Python, Ruby, and Groovy, or other programming languages, and the like. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any network format, such as a Local Area Network (LAN) or a Wide Area Network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet), or in a cloud computing environment, or as a service, such as a software as a service (SaaS).

Additionally, the order in which elements and sequences of the processes described herein are processed, the use of alphanumeric characters, or the use of other designations, is not intended to limit the order of the processes and methods described herein, unless explicitly claimed. While various presently contemplated embodiments of the invention have been discussed in the foregoing disclosure by way of example, it is to be understood that such detail is solely for that purpose and that the appended claims are not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, are intended to cover all modifications and equivalent arrangements that are within the spirit and scope of the embodiments herein. For example, although the system components described above may be implemented by hardware devices, they may also be implemented by software-only solutions, such as installing the described system on an existing server or mobile device.

Similarly, it should be noted that in the preceding description of embodiments of the application, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure aiding in the understanding of one or more of the embodiments. This method of disclosure, however, is not intended to require more features than are expressly recited in the claims. Indeed, the embodiments may be characterized as having less than all of the features of a single embodiment disclosed above.

Claims

1. An X-ray imaging method based on a surface light source is characterized by comprising the following steps:

acquiring an initial image of a target scanning object;

determining a target scanning area based on the initial image;

and determining an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the initial image of the target scanning object comprises at least one of an X-ray image, an infrared image, a microwave image, an ultrasound image, a nuclear magnetic resonance image, a nuclear species image, a visible light image, or an impedance image.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the acquiring an initial image of a target scan object comprises:

and pre-exposing the target scanning object by using part or all of the X-ray sources of the surface light source to acquire the initial image of the target scanning object.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a target scan area based on the initial image comprises:

determining a human body region and a non-human body region in the initial image based on the initial image;

and determining the human body region as the target scanning region.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a target scan area based on the initial image comprises:

identifying a target human body part in the initial image based on the initial image;

determining the target scanning area based on the target human body part.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining an X-ray source to be exposed in a surface light source based on the target scanning area comprises:

and determining the X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area and the irradiation area of each X-ray source in the surface light source.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the X-ray source to be exposed is one or more X-ray sources with a minimum number of irradiation regions that can cover the target scanning area.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

and controlling the X-ray source to be exposed to obtain a scanning image of the target scanning area.

9. An X-ray imaging system based on a surface light source, comprising: the system comprises an initial image acquisition module, a target scanning area determination module and an X-ray source determination module;

the initial image acquisition module is used for acquiring an initial image of a target scanning object;

the target scanning area determining module is used for determining a target scanning area based on the initial image;

the X-ray source determining module is used for determining an X-ray source to be exposed in the surface light source based on the target scanning area.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a control module for controlling the exposure of the X-ray source to be exposed to obtain a scan image of the target scan area.

11. An X-ray imaging device based on a surface light source, comprising a processor, wherein the processor is used for executing the X-ray imaging method based on the surface light source of any one of claims 1-8.

12. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions, which when read by a computer, cause the computer to execute the method for X-ray imaging based on a surface light source according to any one of claims 1 to 8.