Patent · US Expired

Imaging probe

US6940070B2 · kind B2 · utility

33Cited by
2References
22Claims
0Family size

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateOct 24, 2002
Grant dateSep 6, 2005
Priority date
Expiry dateNov 14, 2022

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
  • CPC primaryA61B6/508
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

The design of a compact, handheld, solid-state and high-sensitivity imaging probe and a micro imager system is reported. These instruments can be used as a dedicated tool for detecting and locating sentinel lymph nodes and also for detecting and imaging radioactive material. The reported device will use solid state pixel detectors and custom low-noise frontend/readout integrated circuits. The detector will be designed to have excellent image quality and high spatial resolution. The imaging probes have two different embodiments, which are comprised of a pixelated detector array and a highly integrated readout system, which uses a custom multi-channel mixed signal integrated circuit. The instrument usually includes a collimator in front of the detector array so that the incident photons can be imaged. The data is transferred to an intelligent display system. A hyperspectral image can also be produced and displayed. These devices are designed to be portable for easy use.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.