NL2004270C2 - Mammography-apparatus. - Google Patents

Mammography-apparatus. Download PDF

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Publication number
NL2004270C2
NL2004270C2 NL2004270A NL2004270A NL2004270C2 NL 2004270 C2 NL2004270 C2 NL 2004270C2 NL 2004270 A NL2004270 A NL 2004270A NL 2004270 A NL2004270 A NL 2004270A NL 2004270 C2 NL2004270 C2 NL 2004270C2
Authority
NL
Netherlands
Prior art keywords
breast
plate
mammography device
ray detector
sensors
Prior art date
Application number
NL2004270A
Other languages
Dutch (nl)
Inventor
Gerhard Johan Prof Dr Heeten
Cornelis Antonius Prof Dr Grimbergen
Original Assignee
Academisch Medisch Ct Bij De Universiteit Van Amsterdam
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Academisch Medisch Ct Bij De Universiteit Van Amsterdam filed Critical Academisch Medisch Ct Bij De Universiteit Van Amsterdam
Priority to NL2004270A priority Critical patent/NL2004270C2/en
Priority to NL2005509A priority patent/NL2005509C2/en
Priority to BR112012020228-6A priority patent/BR112012020228B1/en
Priority to CN201180010199.0A priority patent/CN102781328B/en
Priority to JP2012553830A priority patent/JP5968790B2/en
Priority to CA2787619A priority patent/CA2787619C/en
Priority to PL11704110T priority patent/PL2536336T3/en
Priority to EP11704110.3A priority patent/EP2536336B1/en
Priority to ES11704110.3T priority patent/ES2498241T3/en
Priority to PCT/NL2011/050095 priority patent/WO2011102713A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of NL2004270C2 publication Critical patent/NL2004270C2/en
Priority to US13/565,003 priority patent/US9050009B2/en
Priority to HK13102098.2A priority patent/HK1175087A1/en

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
    • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
    • A61B6/00—Apparatus for radiation diagnosis, e.g. combined with radiation therapy equipment
    • A61B6/04—Positioning of patients; Tiltable beds or the like
    • A61B6/0407—Supports, e.g. tables or beds, for the body or parts of the body
    • A61B6/0414—Supports, e.g. tables or beds, for the body or parts of the body with compression means
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
    • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
    • A61B6/00—Apparatus for radiation diagnosis, e.g. combined with radiation therapy equipment
    • A61B6/50—Clinical applications
    • A61B6/502—Clinical applications involving diagnosis of breast, i.e. mammography
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
    • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
    • A61B6/00—Apparatus for radiation diagnosis, e.g. combined with radiation therapy equipment
    • A61B6/50—Clinical applications
    • A61B6/507—Clinical applications involving determination of haemodynamic parameters, e.g. perfusion CT

Description

Mammography-apparatus
The invention relates to a mammography-apparatus for detecting malignant cells in a breast comprising an x-ray source and an x-ray detector that cooperates with the x-ray source for providing an x-ray image of said breast, and further comprising 5 a paddle for flattening the breast by pressing it against said x-ray detector, wherein at. least one sensor is applied for measuring a parameter that is used for determining the pressure at which the paddle presses the breast, and wherein a control system is provided which controls the actuation of the paddle de-10 pending on the pressure that is applied to the breast. Pressing the breast with the paddle against the x-ray detector serves the purpose of the breast's flattening, which is desirable for getting a proper x-ray image of the breast.
A mammography-apparatus according to the preamble is 15 known from US-B-7,656,993. In this known mammography-apparatus the paddle is shaped according to the curvature of the breast, and the paddle comprises multiple elements that can be individually moved and controlled depending on the pressures measured with several pressure sensors in order to provide the desired 20 pressure to the breast taking due account, of the breast's physical properties.
One of the disadvantages of the known mammography-apparatus is that in order to improve the quality of x-ray imaging it is suggested to apply an uneven distribution of pressures 25 to the breast. The general understanding in the art. requires however that a uniform pressure is applied for flattening of the breast which allows the application of a lesser dose of x-rays and provides better image quality.
A first objective of the invention is therefore to take 30 into account specifically those parameters that are considered relevant for the quality of the x-ray imaging of the breast. Knowing these parameters and taking them into account is considered to improve establishing whether or not malignant cells are present.
35 A further objective of the invention is to improve the known mammography-apparatus in that unnecessary pressurization of the breast during x-ray imaging is avoided.
Still a further objective is to enhance the capability 2 of the mammography-apparatus to reliably detect malignant cells in breast tissue.
Still a further objective is to provide an alternative for existing methods employing the known method of mammography, 5 in which pressurization is used to further determine the presence of possibly malignant cells that are detected with the mammography-apparatus .
These and other objectives of the invention which may become apparent from the following disclosure, are at least in 10 part addressed with the features of the mammography-apparatus of the invention as specified in the appended claims.
In a first aspect of the invention the mammography-apparatus has a contact area measuring unit for measuring the contact area between the breast and the paddle. In the mammogra-15 phy apparatus of the invention the paddle is preferably made unitary, that means in one piece, at least without the series of adjacent paddle elements that are individually movable and controllable as in the prior art according to US-B- 7,656,993.
The contact area measuring unit can be used in a dual 20 fashion. In a first embodiment in which the at least one sensor is used to measure the force that is applied to the breast, this force together with the contact area provides the average pressure that is applied to the breast. This average pressure can then be controlled at a pre-established level so as to avoid un-25 necessary and avoidable pain during imaging.
Further, the measured contact area between the breast and the paddle resulting from the breast-compression can be used together with the pre-established force-level, to calculate and apply a specific mean compression pressure independent of the 30 dimensions of the individual breast. Knowing and controlling this specific mean compression pressure leads to a better standardization of the mammography operation, with improved accuracy of screening whilst avoiding unnecessary pain for the persons being screened.
35 The aforesaid applies also if the at least one sensor is used to directly measure the pressure rather than the force that is applied to the breast, which is possible in an advantageous embodiment, which will be discussed hereinafter.
Preferably the contact area measuring unit comprises 40 optical means. It is then possible to measure the contact area between the breast and the paddle without interfering with the 3 x-ray imaging. Suitably then the optical means is a camera, preferably a CCD camera.
The known mammography-apparatus is provided with a processing unit for processing data from the x-ray detector and 5 converting it into an x-ray image of the breast. Preferably this processing unit and the contact area measuring unit are connected to an estimator for determining a ratio between the contact area between the breast and the paddle, and a breast cross-section as derived from the x-ray image of the breast. Also this 10 ratio may provide information that is relevant for establishing the presence of malignant cells.
Preferably the mammography-apparatus has a thickness measuring unit, for measuring the breast thickness whilst said breast is compressed and flattened by the paddle. The breast 15 thickness during compression, which needs not only be steady state information but may also include information regarding the breast thickness at several levels of compression, is a parameter that, -together with the applied force- provides information on the mechanical properties of the breast. By measuring this 20 parameter, nonlinearities in the mechanical properties of the breast tissue that may be an indication of malignant cell growth, can be detected.
Suitably the thickness measuring unit is embodied with means to detect a distance between the paddle and the x-ray de-25 tector, in particular a distance between the region of the paddle that contacts the breast and the x-ray detector. This is a straightforward manner to determine the thickness of the breast that is being flattened between the paddle and the x-ray detector .
30 It is further desirable that the mammography-apparatus has pressure sensors that are distributed in the paddle and/or the x-ray detector so as to register local pressures in the breast. For one thing this provides the possibility that the pressure sensors are connected to the processing unit, which 35 then can correlate said local pressures with the x-ray image of said breast. This local pressure information is indicative for the breast cross-section during its compression, and the combined information of the local pressures with the x-ray image of the breast increases the reliability of detecting the presence 40 of malignant cells.
It is also possible to directly use these pressure sen- 4 sors for controlling the actuation of the paddle depending on the thus measured pressure that is applied to the breast.
The reliability of detecting the presence of malignant cells may be even further enhanced in a preferred embodiment of 5 the mammography-apparatus of the invention, wherein the paddle and/or x-ray detector comprises temperature sensors for registering a temperature distribution of the breast surface whilst it is flattened between the paddle and the x-ray detector. Also the temperature distribution of the breast surface is usable in-10 formation which may be used for determining the breast contact area with the paddle during compression, as well as for detecting the presence of malignant cells per se. The feature that the temperature sensors are provided in the paddle and/or x-ray detector provides the advantage that the sensors are -due to the 15 breast's deformation- closer to the heat producing cells and blood vessels in the breast, and the physical contact of the breast with the paddle and/or x-ray detector improves heat transfer to the temperature sensors, reducing the time needed to reach a steady state situation.
20 It is envisaged that best results in analyzing the in formation from the temperature distribution in the breast can be obtained when the temperature sensors are connected to the processing means, and that said processing means are arranged to correlate the temperature distribution of the breast with the x-25 ray image.
Most preferably the pressure sensors and/or temperature sensors are transparent for x-rays. In this way the quality of the x-ray image from the breast does not suffer from the application of the pressure sensors and/or temperature sensors.
30 In another embodiment wherein the sensors are not transparent, it is preferred that the paddle and/or the x-ray detector and the pressure sensors and/or temperature sensors provided therein exhibit substantially the same level of absorption for x-rays. The effect on the x-ray imaging is then limited 35 to the need to apply a slightly higher energy level of the x-rays .
In still another embodiment wherein the sensors are not transparent and wherein a processing unit, is applied for providing the x-ray image, it is preferred that the processing unit is 40 arranged to remove the image of the pressure sensors and/or temperature sensors from the x-ray image.
5
The inventors consider that the pressure sensors and/or the temperature sensors preferably include thin film sensors and/or Fiber Bragg grating sensors. As well as being sensitive to strain, the Bragg wavelength of fiber Bragg grating sensors 5 is also sensitive to temperature. The measured strain can be converted to the pressure that is applied to the paddle and/or the x-ray detector.
An advantage of thin film sensors and Fiber Bragg grating sensors is that they are optically transparent and to a 10 large extent translucent for x-rays, and that in as far they do absorb x-rays, the material of the paddle and/or x-ray detector can easily be selected with approximately the same absorption value. If there still remain noticeable images of the fibres in the x-ray image of the breast, these images of the fibers can 15 easily be subtracted from the x-ray image of the breast. The optical transparency of the fiber Bragg grating sensors is beneficial for positioning the breast between the paddle and the detector for the x-ray imaging.
Is further preferred that the Fiber Bragg grating 20 sensors are distributed in the paddle and/or the x-ray detector-in a preselected number so as to provide a resolution of approximately 8x8 pixels, or at least 6x6 pixels. This provides sufficient information which can meaningfully be related to the x-ray image of the breast.
25 The invention will hereinafter be further elucidated with reference to the drawing of a mammography-apparatus in accordance with the invention.
In the drawing: -figure 1 shows schematically the mammography-apparatus 30 of the invention.
With reference to figure 1 the mammography-apparatus of the invention is denoted with reference 1. This mammography-apparatus 1 is used for screening malignant cells 8 in a breast 2. For this purpose the mammography-apparatus 1 comprises an x-35 ray source 3 and an x-ray detector 4 that cooperates with the x-ray source for providing an x-ray image of said breast 2.
The mammography-apparatus 1 further comprises a paddle 5 for flattening the breast 2 by compressing it against said x-ray detector 4. In the embodiment shown the paddle 5 is provided 40 with a force- or torque sensor 20 for measuring a force at which the paddle 5 flattens the breast 2. Further a control system 10, 6 normally forming part of a computer system 19, is provided that receives the measurement signals of the force- or torque sensor 20 via line 11, and controls the actuation of the paddle 5 via a steering line 12 depending on the force that is measured with 5 the sensor 20 and using the results of the contact area measurement which is discussed in the next paragraph.
In controlling the actuation of the paddle 5, the force measured with sensor 20 is first converted to a pressure by taking into account the contact area between the paddle 5 and the 10 breast 2. For this purpose a contact area measuring unit 6 is applied for measuring the contact area between the breast 2 and the paddle 5. The contact area measuring unit 6 comprises optical means such as a camera, preferably a CCD camera. The output of a CCD camera can be directly available in a digital format 15 for control system 10.
The mammography-apparatus of the invention further has a processing unit 17 for processing data from the x-ray detector 4 received through line 21 and converting it into an x-ray image of the breast 2. The processing unit 17 and the contact area 20 measuring unit 6 are connected via respective lines 15, 16 to an estimator 14 in the computer system 19 for determining a ratio between the contact area measured between the breast 2 and the paddle 5, and a breast cross-section as derived from the x-ray image of the breast 2.
25 The mammography-apparatus 1 further has a thickness measuring unit 13 for measuring the breast thickness whilst said breast 2 is flattened by the paddle 5. The thickness measuring unit. 13 is embodied to detect a distance between the region of the paddle 5 that contacts the breast 2, and the x-ray detector 30 4. In the example shown this may be an angle measuring unit con nected to the arm that holds the paddle 5.
The paddle 5 is preferably provided with a series of pressure sensors 7 for measuring local pressures which may be indicative for the presence of malignant cells. It is desirable 35 that the pressure sensors 7 are distributed in the paddle 5 and preferably also in the x-ray detector 4 so as to register local pressures in the breast 2, and that the processing unit 17 (usually forming part of the computer system 19) is arranged to correlate said local pressures with the x-ray image of said breast 40 2. It is also possible that the pressure sensors 7 are directly employed for controlling the pressure that is applied to the 7 breast 2. In this way a force sensor for measuring the force at which the paddle 5 is applied to the breast 2 may be dispensed with.
Figure 1 further shows that the paddle 5 and/or x-ray 5 detector 4 comprises temperature sensors 18 for registering a temperature distribution of the breast 2 whilst it is pressurized between the paddle 5 and the x-ray detector 4. These temperature sensors 18 for registering a temperature distribution of the breast 2 are preferably measuring during the whole period 10 of compression of the breast 2 by the paddle 5. Preferably the processing unit 17 of the computer system 19 is also arranged to correlate the temperature distribution of the breast 2 with the x-ray image .
The above elucidation of the features of the invention 15 are not intended to limit the appended claims to the specific example that is provided herewith. On the contrary, it is possible that many variations are feasible within the scope of the invention. It is for instance preferred that the pressure sensors 7 and/or temperature sensors 18 are transparent for x-rays. 20 In another embodiment however it is feasible that the paddle 5 and/or the x-ray detector 4 and the pressure sensors 7 and/or temperature sensors 18 provided therein exhibit substantially the same level of absorption for x-rays. In still another embodiment it is feasible that the pressure sensors 7 and/or the 25 temperature sensors 18 are not fully transparent for x-rays, and that the processing unit 17 is arranged to remove the image of the pressure sensors 7 and/or temperature sensors 18 from the x-ray image.

Claims (15)

1. Mammografie-inrichting (1) voor het detecteren van kwaadaardige cellen (8) in een borst (2) omvattende een röntgen-bron (3) en een röntgenstralendetector (4) die samenwerkt met de röntgenbron (3) voor het verschaffen van een röntgenbeeld van 5 genoemde borst (2), en verder omvattende een plaat (5) voor het vlak maken van de borst (2) door deze tegen genoemde röntgenstralendetector (4) te drukken, waarbij ten minste één sensor (7) wordt toegepast voor het meten van een parameter die gebruikt wordt voor het bepalen van de druk met welke de plaat (5) 10 de borst (2) samendrukt, en waarin een regelsysteem (10) is voorzien welke de bediening van de plaat (5) regelt in afhankelijkheid van de druk die wordt uitgeoefend op de borst (2), met het kenmerk, dat deze een contactvlak-meeteenheid (6) heeft voor het meten van het contactoppervlak tussen de borst (2) en de 15 plaat (5).A mammography device (1) for detecting malignant cells (8) in a breast (2) comprising an x-ray source (3) and an x-ray detector (4) cooperating with the x-ray source (3) for providing a X-ray image of said breast (2), and further comprising a plate (5) for flattening the breast (2) by pressing it against said X-ray detector (4), wherein at least one sensor (7) is used for measuring a parameter used to determine the pressure with which the plate (5) 10 compresses the breast (2), and in which a control system (10) is provided which controls the operation of the plate (5) depending on the pressure exerted on the breast (2), characterized in that it has a contact surface measuring unit (6) for measuring the contact surface between the breast (2) and the plate (5). 2. Mammografie-inrichting volgens conclusie 1, met het kenmerk, dat de contactvlak-meeteenheid (6) optische middelen omvat.Mammography device according to claim 1, characterized in that the contact surface measuring unit (6) comprises optical means. 3. Mammografie-inrichting volgens conclusie 2, met het 20 kenmerk, dat de optische middelen gevormd worden door een camera, bij voorkeur een CCD-camera (6).Mammography device according to claim 2, characterized in that the optical means are formed by a camera, preferably a CCD camera (6). 4. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der voorgaande conclusies, voorzien van een verwerkingseenheid (17) voor het verwerken van data van de röntgenstralendetector (4) en het om- 25 vormen daarvan in een röntgenbeeld van de borst (2), met het kenmerk, dat de verwerkingseenheid (17) en de contactvlak-meeteenheid (6) verbonden zijn met een schatter (14) voor het bepalen van een verhouding tussen genoemd contactoppervlak en een borstdwarsdoorsnede zoals afgeleid van het röntgenbeeld van 30 de borst (2).4. Mammography device as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, provided with a processing unit (17) for processing data from the X-ray detector (4) and converting it into an X-ray image of the breast (2), characterized in that in that the processing unit (17) and the contact surface measuring unit (6) are connected to an estimator (14) for determining a ratio between said contact surface and a chest cross-section as derived from the X-ray image of the breast (2). 5. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der voorgaande conclusies, met het kenmerk, dat deze een diktemeeteenheid (13) heeft voor het meten van de borstdikte terwijl deze borst (2) samengedrukt wordt door de plaat (5).Mammography device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it has a thickness measuring unit (13) for measuring the breast thickness while this breast (2) is compressed by the plate (5). 6. Mammografie-inrichting volgens conclusie 5, met het kenmerk, dat de diktemeeteenheid (13) is uitgevoerd met middelen voor het detecteren van een afstand tussen de plaat (5) en de röntgenstralendetector (4).Mammography device according to claim 5, characterized in that the thickness measuring unit (13) is provided with means for detecting a distance between the plate (5) and the X-ray detector (4). 7. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der voorgaande 40 conclusies, met het kenmerk, dat de plaat (5) eendelig is en dat er druksensoren (7) zijn die verdeeld zijn aangebracht in de plaat (5) en/of de röntgenstralendetector (4) voor het registreren van lokale drukken in de borst (2). - 9 -Mammography device according to one of the preceding 40 claims, characterized in that the plate (5) is one-piece and that there are pressure sensors (7) which are arranged distributed in the plate (5) and / or the X-ray detector (4) for registering local pressures in the chest (2). - 9 - 8. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der conclusies 1-7, met het kenmerk, dat de plaat (5) en/of de röntgenstralendetector (4) temperatuursensoren (18) omvat voor het registreren van een temperatuurverdeling van de borst terwijl deze afgevlakt 5 wordt tussen de plaat (5) en de röntgenstralendetector (4).Mammography device according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the plate (5) and / or the X-ray detector (4) comprises temperature sensors (18) for registering a temperature distribution of the breast while it is flattened between the plate (5) and the X-ray detector (4). 9. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der conclusies 7-8, met het kenmerk, dat de druksensoren (7) en/of de temperatuursensoren (8) verbonden zijn met de verwerkingseenheid (17), en genoemde verwerkingseenheid (17) is ingericht voor het corre- 10 leren van lokale drukken in de borst (2) en/of de temperatuurverdeling van de borst (2), met het röntgenbeeld.Mammography device according to one of claims 7 to 8, characterized in that the pressure sensors (7) and / or the temperature sensors (8) are connected to the processing unit (17), and said processing unit (17) is adapted to correction of local pressures in the breast (2) and / or the temperature distribution of the breast (2), with the X-ray image. 10. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der voorgaande conclusies, met het kenmerk, dat de druksensoren (7) en/of temperatuursensoren (18) transparant voor röntgenstralen zijn.Mammography device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the pressure sensors (7) and / or temperature sensors (18) are transparent to X-rays. 11. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der conclusies 1-9, met het kenmerk, dat de plaat (5) en/of de röntgenstralendetector (4) en de druksensoren (7) en/of de temperatuursensoren (18) die daarin zijn voorzien, in hoofdzaak hetzelfde absorptie-niveau voor röntgenstralen bezitten.Mammography device according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the plate (5) and / or the X-ray detector (4) and the pressure sensors (7) and / or the temperature sensors (18) provided therein, have substantially the same absorption level for x-rays. 12. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der conclusies 1-9, waarin een verwerkingseenheid (17) wordt toegepast voor het verschaffen van het röntgenbeeld, met het kenmerk, dat de druksensoren (7) en/of de temperatuursensoren (18) non-transparant zijn voor röntgenstralen, en dat de verwerkingseenheid (17) is 25 ingericht voor het verwijderen van het beeld van de druksensoren (7) en/of temperatuursensoren (18) uit het röntgenbeeld.Mammography device according to any of claims 1-9, wherein a processing unit (17) is used to provide the X-ray image, characterized in that the pressure sensors (7) and / or the temperature sensors (18) are non-transparent for X-rays, and that the processing unit (17) is adapted to remove the image of the pressure sensors (7) and / or temperature sensors (18) from the X-ray image. 13. Mammografie-inrichting volgens één der conclusies 7-12, met het kenmerk, dat de druksensoren (7) en/of de temperatuursensoren (18) dunne filmsensoren en/of Fiber Bragg grating 30 sensoren omvatten.Mammography device according to any one of claims 7-12, characterized in that the pressure sensors (7) and / or the temperature sensors (18) comprise thin film sensors and / or Fiber Bragg grating sensors. 14. Mammografie-inrichting volgens conclusie 13, met het kenmerk, dat de Fiber Bragg grating sensoren verdeeld zijn aangebracht in de plaat (5) en/of de röntgenstralingsdetector (4) in een vooraf bepaald aantal teneinde te voorzien in een re- 35 solutie van ten minste 6x6 pixels, bij voorkeur ten minste 8 x 8 pixels.Mammography device according to claim 13, characterized in that the Fiber Bragg grating sensors are arranged distributed in the plate (5) and / or the X-ray detector (4) in a predetermined number in order to provide a resolution of at least 6 x 6 pixels, preferably at least 8 x 8 pixels. 15. Mammografie-inrichting (1) voor het detecteren van kwaadaardige cellen (8) in een borst (2) omvattende een röntgen-bron (3) en een röntgenstralendetector (4) die samenwerkt met de 40 röntgenbron (3) voor het verschaffen van een röntgenbeeld van genoemde borst (2), en verder omvattende een plaat (5) voor het vlak maken van de borst (2) door deze te drukken tegen genoemde röntgenstralendetector (4), waarin ten minste één sensor (7) wordt toegepast voor het meten van een parameter die gebruikt 45 wordt voor het bepalen van de druk met welke de plaat (5) de borst (2) samendrukt, en waarin een regelsysteem (10) is voor- - 10 - zien welke de bediening van de plaat (5) regelt in afhankelijkheid van de druk die wordt uitgeoefend op de borst (2), met het kenmerk, dat de plaat (5) ééndelig is en dat voorzien is in druksensoren (7) die verdeeld zijn aangebracht in de plaat (5) 5 en/of de röntgenstralendetector (4) teneinde lokale drukken in de borst (2) te registreren.A mammography device (1) for detecting malignant cells (8) in a breast (2) comprising an x-ray source (3) and an x-ray detector (4) cooperating with the 40 x-ray source (3) for providing an X-ray image of said breast (2), and further comprising a plate (5) for flattening the breast (2) by pressing it against said X-ray detector (4), wherein at least one sensor (7) is used for measuring a parameter used for determining the pressure with which the plate (5) compresses the breast (2), and in which a control system (10) is provided which controls the operation of the plate (5) ) controls in dependence on the pressure exerted on the breast (2), characterized in that the plate (5) is one-piece and that pressure sensors (7) are provided which are distributed in the plate (5) 5 and / or the X-ray detector (4) to record local pressures in the chest (2).
NL2004270A 2010-02-19 2010-02-19 Mammography-apparatus. NL2004270C2 (en)

Priority Applications (12)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
NL2004270A NL2004270C2 (en) 2010-02-19 2010-02-19 Mammography-apparatus.
NL2005509A NL2005509C2 (en) 2010-02-19 2010-10-13 Mammography-apparatus.
CN201180010199.0A CN102781328B (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography-apparatus
JP2012553830A JP5968790B2 (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography equipment
BR112012020228-6A BR112012020228B1 (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 MAMMOGRAPHY APPARATUS AND METHOD OF OPERATION
CA2787619A CA2787619C (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography-apparatus
PL11704110T PL2536336T3 (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography-apparatus
EP11704110.3A EP2536336B1 (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography-apparatus
ES11704110.3T ES2498241T3 (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography apparatus
PCT/NL2011/050095 WO2011102713A1 (en) 2010-02-19 2011-02-10 Mammography-apparatus
US13/565,003 US9050009B2 (en) 2010-02-19 2012-08-02 Mammography-apparatus
HK13102098.2A HK1175087A1 (en) 2010-02-19 2013-02-19 Mammography-apparatus

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
NL2004270A NL2004270C2 (en) 2010-02-19 2010-02-19 Mammography-apparatus.
NL2004270 2010-02-19

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