Mammography system and operating method

US7965812B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Siemens Aktiengesellschaft · DE

Inventors

• Wilhelm Hanke · Bayreuth, DE
• Thomas Mertelmeier · Erlangen, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Jun 26, 2009
• Grant date: Jun 21, 2011
• Expiry date: Sep 8, 2029

Classification

• Technology area (CPC A): Human Necessities
• CPC primary: A61B6/0414
• WIPO field: Medical technology
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A mammography system has an x-ray source, a detector and a compression plate arranged in the beam path between the source and the detector. The x-ray source, the detector and the compression plate are mounted on a vertical column such that they respectively pivot around separate pivot axes. The three pivot axes are spaced apart from one another and oriented substantially parallel to one another and substantially perpendicular to a surface normal of the detector. The x-ray source and the compression plate are held on the vertical column such that they can be displaced in a plane oriented approximately vertical to their pivot axes. The mammography system is operable to obtain two sets of tomosynthesis data respectively with different tube-to-detector distances.