Dual-Energy Radiography Technology Obtains Two Images from Same Subject

A new optically charged digital radiology system has been developed for simultaneously capturing two distinct images of the same subject; each with a different X-ray energy spectrum.

IDC (Imaging Dynamics Company, Ltd., Calgary, Canada), a developer of digital radiography systems, announced that it was awarded the patent for a dual energy optically coupled digital radiography system. This is the seventh U.S. patent and one of many patents that have been awarded to IDC in countries around the world for technology innovations in digital radiography.

According to the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, "This invention relates to an optically coupled digital radiography method and apparatus for simultaneously obtaining two distinct images of the same subject, each of which represents a different X-ray energy spectrum. The two images may be combined in various ways such that anatomical features may be separated from one another to provide a clearer view of those features or of underlying structures.”

Robin Winsor, IDC's chief technical officer and inventor stated, "Dual energy imaging allows a doctor to view bone and soft tissue images separately, providing greatly improved diagnostic information. IDC's method of CCD- [charged coupled device]-based dual energy imaging is an advance over other methods because it captures all the necessary data in a single exposure, thereby eliminating patient motion. It does this while still providing the high speed and throughput that makes direct digital the clear choice over cassette based CR [computed radiography] imaging.”

The inventor was issued U.S. Patent No. 7,330,532 on February 12, 2008. The patent has been assigned to Imaging Dynamics Co. Ltd. Calgary. IDC is a medical technology company involved in the fast-growing field of digital radiography (DR) technology. IDC's X-Series of direct capture technology replaces conventional film-based X-rays and provides a cost-effective alternative to cassette based film or computed radiography (CR) systems.

Each IDC DR system provides high-resolution radiographic images in the digital format required for current electronic medical record networks, all without the use of film, environmentally harmful chemicals, cassettes, or expensive imaging plates.


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