CN110764034A

CN110764034A - Shimming device and shimming assembly of magnetic resonance imaging device

Info

Publication number: CN110764034A
Application number: CN201810843921.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 彭卫平; 岳振华; 任仲友
Original assignee: Siemens Shenzhen Magnetic Resonance Ltd
Current assignee: Siemens Shenzhen Magnetic Resonance Ltd
Priority date: 2018-07-27
Filing date: 2018-07-27
Publication date: 2020-02-07
Anticipated expiration: 2038-07-27
Also published as: CN110764034B

Abstract

A shimming device of a magnetic resonance imaging device comprises a support part and at least one insertion part. The support portion is formed with a support groove penetrating the support portion in one mounting direction. The insertion portion is arranged on the supporting portion and extends along the installation direction, the insertion portion can be inserted into the installation end face in parallel with the axial direction of the gradient coil and fixed, and the supporting portion can abut against the installation end face to enable the supporting groove to be communicated with the installation hole. The shimming device provided by the invention can avoid the damage caused by the movement of the shimming strips under the action of the changed magnetic force, so that an operator can draw out or insert the shimming strips into the mounting holes under the condition of not lowering the field, and the material cost and the labor cost caused by the operation of lowering the field and raising the field in the shimming process are reduced. The invention also provides a shimming assembly with the shimming device.

Description

Shimming device and shimming assembly of magnetic resonance imaging device

Technical Field

The invention relates to shimming equipment, in particular to a shimming device of a magnetic resonance imaging device, and further provides a shimming assembly with the shimming device.

Background

In order to improve the quality of magnetic resonance imaging, the magnetic field uniformity of the magnetic resonance imaging device needs to be adjusted. The gradient coil of the existing magnetic resonance imaging device is provided with a plurality of shimming strips, each shimming strip can be used for placing shimming pieces, the magnetic field uniformity of the magnetic resonance imaging device can be adjusted by adjusting the number of the shimming pieces carried by each shimming strip, and the process is called as a passive shimming process. In the shimming process, because the shimming sheet has higher magnetic conductivity, in order to ensure safe operation and protect the shimming strips from being damaged under strong magnetic field force when the shimming sheets are installed and removed, the magnetic resonance imaging device needs to be lowered firstly, and then the magnetic resonance imaging device is raised after the shimming strips are adjusted, so that the magnetic field uniformity can be adjusted by repeating the steps for many times. A large amount of liquid helium is consumed in each operation of lowering and raising the magnetic field, and labor cost is wasted.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a shimming device of a magnetic resonance imaging device, which can adjust shimming strips under the condition of not reducing a field in the shimming process, and reduce the material cost and the labor cost in the shimming process.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a shimming assembly of a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, which can adjust the shimming strips without reducing the field during shimming, thereby reducing the material cost and the labor cost during shimming.

The shimming device of the magnetic resonance imaging device comprises a gradient coil, wherein the gradient coil is provided with a mounting end surface along the axial direction of the gradient coil, and a plurality of mounting holes extending along the axial direction of the gradient coil are formed on the mounting end surface. The shimming device comprises a support part and at least one insertion part. The support portion is formed with a support groove penetrating the support portion in one mounting direction. The insertion portion is arranged on the supporting portion and extends along the installation direction, the insertion portion can be inserted into the installation end face in parallel with the axial direction of the gradient coil and fixed, and the supporting portion can abut against the installation end face to enable the supporting groove to be communicated with the installation hole.

The shimming device of the magnetic resonance imaging device provided by the invention can fix the supporting part on the mounting end surface by inserting the gradient coil into the inserting part. The supporting part can abut against the mounting end face to enable the supporting groove to be communicated with the mounting hole. In the shimming process, the shimming strips are drawn out or inserted into the mounting holes through the supporting grooves, the supporting grooves can avoid damage caused by movement of the shimming strips under the action of changing magnetic force, operators can draw out or insert the shimming strips into the mounting holes under the condition of not lowering the field, and material cost and labor cost caused by operation of lowering the field and raising the field in the shimming process are reduced.

In a further exemplary embodiment of the shim device of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, the insert is located on one side of the support slot in a direction perpendicular to the mounting direction.

In a further exemplary embodiment of the shimming apparatus for a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, the mounting hole includes an insertion hole and a support hole, and the insertion hole and the support hole have two rectangles juxtaposed and communicating in a cross section perpendicular to respective extending directions. The projections of the support groove and the insertion portion in the installation direction are respectively the same as the cross-sectional shapes of the insertion hole and the support hole, and the insertion portion can be inserted into the support hole so that the support groove communicates with the insertion hole.

In another exemplary embodiment of the shimming apparatus of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, at least one fixing through hole penetrating through the support portion along the installation direction is formed on the support portion, the support portion abutting against the installation end face can be fixed on the installation end face by the fixing through hole and a bolt, the fixing through hole is processed, the operation is facilitated by matching with a bolt fixing mode, and the cost is low.

In another exemplary embodiment of the shimming device of the magnetic resonance imaging device, the support part is formed with an operation opening penetrating the support part along the installation direction, and the operation opening is respectively communicated with the support groove and the outer surface of the support part perpendicular to the installation direction. The operation port is convenient for manually operating the shimming strips of the support groove.

In another exemplary embodiment of the shimming device of the magnetic resonance imaging device, the inner surface of the operation opening and the connection between the outer surface of the support part and the inner surface of the operation opening are respectively covered with rubber protection layers. The rubber protective layer can prevent the supporting part from scratching the hand when the shimming strips of the supporting groove are manually operated.

In another exemplary embodiment of the shimming device of the magnetic resonance imaging device, the shimming device further comprises a linear driving device, and the linear driving device can drive the shimming bars to move between the support slots and the mounting holes when the support slots are communicated with the mounting holes. The linear driving device can replace a manually operated shimming bar, so that the operation process is safer, and meanwhile, the labor cost is saved.

In a further exemplary embodiment of the shim device of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, the linear drive comprises a first gas bag, which is arranged in the support groove and can be inflated and push the shim strips located in the support groove out of the mounting openings.

In a further exemplary embodiment of the shim device of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, the linear drive device further comprises a second airbag, which can be arranged in the mounting opening and which can be inflated and can push the shim strips located in the mounting opening out of the mounting opening.

The invention also provides a shimming assembly of the magnetic resonance imaging device, the magnetic resonance imaging device comprises a superconducting magnet and a gradient coil, the gradient coil is provided with an installation end surface along the axial direction, a plurality of installation holes extending along the axial direction of the gradient coil are uniformly formed on the installation end surface around the circle center of the installation end surface, and the gradient coil penetrates through the superconducting magnet. The shimming assembly comprises a fixed frame, a rotating frame and at least one pair of shimming devices. The mount can be fixed to the superconducting magnet or the gradient coil. The rotating frame can be rotatably arranged on the fixing frame in a rotating direction and can move relative to the fixing frame in the rotating direction, and when the fixing frame is fixed on the superconducting magnet or the gradient coil, the rotating direction is overlapped with the axial direction of the superconducting magnet. The pair of shimming devices are symmetrically arranged on the rotating frame relative to the rotating direction, the installation direction of each supporting part is respectively parallel to the rotating direction, and when the fixing frame is fixed on the superconducting magnet or the gradient coil, the rotating frame can move relative to the fixing frame along the rotating direction and drive the shimming devices to respectively insert or extract the gradient coil.

According to the shimming device of the magnetic resonance imaging device, the rotating frame can drive the pair of shimming devices to symmetrically move axially around the gradient coil to select the mounting hole to be operated, and when the shimming device reaches the position of the mounting hole, the pair of shimming devices are simultaneously inserted into the gradient coil, so that an operator can simultaneously operate two shimming strips, and the working efficiency is improved.

The above features, technical features, advantages and implementations of the shimming apparatus and shimming assembly of a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus will be further described in the following detailed description of preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

The following drawings are only schematic illustrations and explanations of the present invention, and do not limit the scope of the present invention.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining an exemplary embodiment of a shimming apparatus.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a use state of an exemplary embodiment of the shimming apparatus.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining another angle of the shimming apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram for explaining an exemplary embodiment of the support portion.

Fig. 5 is a schematic sectional view for explaining an exemplary embodiment of the shimming apparatus.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a shim assembly.

Fig. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view for illustrating the shim assembly shown in fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a shim assembly.

Description of the reference symbols

10 support part

12 support groove

13 fixing through hole

16 operation port

18 rubber protective layer

20 insertion part

30 linear driving device

32 first air bag

34 second air bag

40 fixed mount

42 rotating shaft

50 rotating frame

60 gradient coil

62 mounting end face

63 mounting hole

70 superconducting magnet

80 shim bars.

Detailed Description

In order to more clearly understand the technical features, objects and effects of the present invention, embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference numerals indicate the same or structurally similar but functionally identical elements.

"exemplary" means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration" herein, and any illustration, embodiment, or steps described as "exemplary" herein should not be construed as a preferred or advantageous alternative.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining an exemplary embodiment of a shimming apparatus. Referring to fig. 1, the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus includes a gradient coil 60, the gradient coil 60 has a mounting end surface 62 along an axial direction thereof, the mounting end surface 62 is formed with a plurality of mounting holes 63 extending along the axial direction of the gradient coil 60, the mounting holes 63 are used for placing the shim bars 80, during the shimming process, the shim bars 80 are required to be withdrawn from the mounting holes 63 and adjusted many times, and the gradient coil 60 is inserted after the adjustment to improve the magnetic field uniformity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus. The shim device comprises a support portion 10 and an insert portion 20. The support portion 10 is formed with a support groove 12 penetrating the support portion 10 in one mounting direction. The insertion portion 20 is provided to the support portion 10 and extends in the mounting direction, and the insertion portion 20 can be inserted into the mounting end surface 62 in parallel with the axial direction of the gradient coil 60 and fixed. In the illustrated embodiment, the insertion portion 20 is located on one side of the support groove 12 in the direction perpendicular to the mounting direction, the insertion portion 20 can avoid the extending direction of the support groove 12, the support portion 10 can make the support groove 12 communicate with the mounting hole 63 against the mounting end face 62, a passage for movement of the shim strips 80 is formed, and of course, the cross section of the support groove 12 perpendicular to the extending direction is the same as the shape of the mounting hole 63 in order that the shim strips 80 can be moved smoothly between the support groove 12 and the mounting hole 63.

In an exemplary embodiment, referring to fig. 1 and 2, the projections of the support grooves 12 and the insertion portions 20 in the installation direction are rectangles having the same shape and arranged in parallel to correspond to the installation holes 63 of the gradient coil 60 as shown in the drawing, and the installation holes 63 include an insertion hole and a support hole, the sections of the insertion hole and the support hole perpendicular to the respective extension directions are two rectangles arranged in parallel and connected, and the two connected rectangular holes are very convenient to process. The positions of the support grooves 12 and the insertion parts 20 are opposite to the positions of the insertion holes and the support holes respectively, the projections of the support grooves 12 and the insertion parts 20 along the installation direction are the same as the cross-sectional shapes of the insertion holes and the support holes perpendicular to the extension direction respectively, the insertion parts 20 can be inserted into the support holes close to the circle center in the radial direction of the gradient coil 60 in the installation holes 63, the support grooves 12 are communicated with the insertion holes far away from the circle center in the radial direction of the gradient coil 60 in the installation holes 63, and therefore the shim pieces and the like in the support grooves 12 can be inserted into the insertion holes. However, without being limited thereto, in other exemplary embodiments, the insertion portion 20 and the support groove 12 may be designed in other shapes according to actual circumstances.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a use state of an exemplary embodiment of a shimming apparatus, and referring to fig. 2, in the shimming apparatus of a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus according to the present invention, a support portion 10 can be fixed to a mounting end surface 62 by inserting a gradient coil 60 through an insertion portion 20. The support portion 10 can abut against the mounting end surface 62 to communicate the support groove 12 with the mounting hole 63. In the shimming process, the shimming strips 80 are drawn out or inserted into the mounting holes 63 through the support slots 12, and the support slots 12 can avoid the damage of the shimming strips or operators caused by the movement of the shimming strips 80 under the action of the changed magnetic force, so that the operators can draw out or insert the shimming strips into the gradient coil under the condition of not lowering the field, and the material cost and the labor cost caused by the operation of lowering the field and raising the field in the shimming process are reduced.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining another angle of the shimming apparatus shown in fig. 2. Referring to fig. 3 in conjunction with fig. 2, in the exemplary embodiment, a fixing through hole 13 penetrating the support portion 10 in the mounting direction is formed on the support portion 10, and the support portion 10 abutting against the mounting end surface 62 can be fixed to the mounting end surface 62 by the fixing through hole 13 and a bolt. The bolt may be fixed to the attachment end surface 62, and when the insertion portion 20 is inserted into the attachment end surface 62, the bolt may be simultaneously inserted into the fixing through hole 13, and the support portion 10 may be fixed in the axial direction of the gradient coil 60 by a nut. The fixing through holes 13 can be arranged in a plurality according to actual conditions, the structure is simple, the processing is convenient, the operation is convenient in a bolt fixing mode, and the cost is low.

In the exemplary embodiment, referring to fig. 2 and 3, the support portion 10 is formed with an operation port 16 penetrating the support portion 10 in the mounting direction, and the operation port 16 communicates with the support groove 12 and the outer surface of the support portion 10, respectively, perpendicularly to the mounting direction. When the magnetic force of the magnet on the shim bars 80 is sufficiently small, the handling opening 16 facilitates an operator to manually reach into the support slot 12 to handle the shim bars 80, for example, to push the shim bars 80 into the mounting holes 63. Fig. 4 is a schematic structural view for explaining an exemplary embodiment of the support portion, and referring to fig. 4, in the exemplary embodiment, rubber protection layers 18 are respectively covered on the inner surface of the operation port 16, and where the outer surface of the support portion 10 is connected to the inner surface of the operation port 16. The rubber protective layer protects the hands from being scratched by the support portions when the shimming strips 80 of the support slots 12 are manually operated by an operator.

Fig. 5 is a schematic sectional view for explaining an exemplary embodiment of the shimming apparatus. Referring to fig. 5, in the illustrated embodiment, the shimming apparatus further comprises a linear drive 30, the linear drive 30 being capable of driving the shim bars 80 between the support slots 12 and the mounting holes 63 when the support slots 12 communicate with the mounting holes 63. As shown in fig. 4, the linear drive device 30 comprises a first balloon 32, the first balloon 32 is disposed in the support slot 12, and the first balloon 32 is capable of inflating and pushing the shim strips 80 located in the support slot 12 out of the mounting holes 63. The linear drive device 30 further comprises a second air bag 34, the second air bag 34 can be arranged in the mounting hole 63, and the second air bag 34 can be inflated and can push the shim bars 80 positioned in the mounting hole 63 out of the mounting hole 63. The first and

second balloons

32, 34 can replace the manually operated shim bars 80, making the procedure safer and at the same time saving labour costs. Of course, the linear drive 30 is not limited to an air bag, and may include one or more of a rack and pinion, a chain, or a pneumatically actuated telescoping rod.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a shim assembly. Referring to fig. 6, the gradient coil 60 has a mounting end surface 62 along the axial direction thereof, and a plurality of mounting holes 63 extending along the axial direction of the gradient coil 60 are uniformly formed on the mounting end surface 62 around the center of the mounting end surface 62. The shimming assembly comprises a fixed mount 40, a rotating mount 50 and at least one pair of shimming devices as described above. The fixture 40 can be fixed to the gradient coil 60. Fig. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view for illustrating the shim assembly shown in fig. 6, and referring to fig. 7 in combination with fig. 6, in an exemplary embodiment, the fixing frame 40 includes a rotating shaft 42, the rotating shaft 42 is disposed on the fixing frame 40 along a rotating direction, and the rotating frame 50 is sleeved on the rotating shaft 42 and can rotate around the rotating shaft 42. The rotating frame 50 is also slidable in the axial direction of the rotating shaft 42. When the mount 40 is fixed to the gradient coil 60, the rotational direction coincides with the axial direction of the superconducting magnet 70. The pair of shimming devices are symmetrically arranged on the rotating frame 50 relative to the rotating direction, the installation direction of each support part 10 is parallel to the rotating direction, and when the fixing frame 40 is fixed on the gradient coil 60, the rotating frame 50 can move relative to the fixing frame 40 along the rotating direction to drive the shimming devices to insert or extract the gradient coil 60 respectively.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a shim assembly. In the illustrated embodiment, the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus further includes a superconducting magnet 70, the gradient coil 60 is disposed through the superconducting magnet 70, and the fixing frame 40 of the shimming assembly can be fixed to the superconducting magnet 70. The other structures of the shim assembly are the same as in the exemplary embodiment shown in fig. 6, and thus are not described again.

The rotating frame 50 of the shimming assembly can drive the pair of shimming devices to move symmetrically around the axial direction of the gradient coil 60 to select the installation hole 63 needing to be operated, and when the position of the installation hole 63 is reached, the pair of shimming devices are inserted into the gradient coil 60 at the same time, so that an operator can operate two shimming strips 80 at the same time, and the working efficiency is improved.

It should be understood that although the present description has been described in terms of various embodiments, not every embodiment includes only a single embodiment, and such description is for clarity purposes only, and those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments described herein may be combined as suitable to form other embodiments, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The above-listed detailed description of a series of embodiments is merely a specific description of possible examples of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, and equivalent embodiments or modifications, such as combinations, divisions or repetitions of features, which do not depart from the technical spirit of the present invention, should be included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. Shimming apparatus for a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus including a gradient coil (60), the gradient coil (60) having a mounting end surface (62) along an axial direction thereof, the mounting end surface (62) being formed with a plurality of mounting holes (63) extending in the axial direction of the gradient coil (60), the shimming apparatus comprising:

a support portion (10) formed with a support groove (12) penetrating the support portion (10) in one mounting direction; and

at least one insertion portion (20) provided to the support portion (10) and extending in the mounting direction, the insertion portion (20) being capable of being inserted into the mounting end surface (62) and fixed in parallel to an axial direction of the gradient coil (60), the support portion (10) being capable of bringing the support groove (12) into communication with the mounting hole (63) against the mounting end surface (62).

2. The shimming apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the insert portion (20) is located on one side of the support slot (12) in a direction perpendicular to the mounting direction.

3. The shimming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the mounting holes (63) include an insertion hole and a support hole, the insertion hole and the support hole having two rectangles juxtaposed and communicating in cross section perpendicular to the respective extending directions, wherein projections of the support grooves (12) and the insertion portions (20) in the mounting direction are respectively identical in cross-sectional shape to the insertion hole and the support hole, and the insertion portions (20) can be inserted into the support holes so that the support grooves (12) communicate with the insertion hole.

4. The shimming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support portion (10) is formed with at least one fixing through-hole (13) penetrating the support portion (10) in the mounting direction, and the support portion (10) abutting against the mounting end face (62) is fixable to the mounting end face (62) by the fixing through-hole (13) and a bolt.

5. The shimming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support portion (10) is formed with an operation port (16) penetrating the support portion (10) in the mounting direction, the operation port (16) communicating with the support groove (12) and an outer surface of the support portion (10) perpendicular to the mounting direction, respectively.

6. The shimming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the inner surface of the operation opening (16) and the connection between the outer surface of the support part (10) and the inner surface of the operation opening (16) are covered with rubber protection layers (18).

7. The shimming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a linear drive (30), wherein the linear drive (30) is capable of driving the shim bars (80) between the support slots (12) and the mounting holes (63) when the support slots (12) communicate with the mounting holes (63).

8. The shimming apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that the linear drive device (30) comprises a first balloon (32), the first balloon (32) being arranged in the support slot (12), the first balloon (32) being capable of inflating and pushing the shim strip (80) located in the support slot (12) out of the mounting hole (63).

9. The shimming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the linear drive device (30) further comprises a second balloon (34), the second balloon (34) being positionable in the mounting hole (63), the second balloon (34) being inflatable and pushing the shim bar (80) located in the mounting hole (63) out of the mounting hole (63).

10. A shim assembly for a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus including a superconducting magnet (70) and a gradient coil (60), the gradient coil (60) having a mounting end surface (62) along an axial direction thereof, the mounting end surface (62) having a plurality of mounting holes (63) formed therein uniformly around a center of the mounting end surface (62) and extending in the axial direction of the gradient coil (60), the gradient coil (60) being inserted into the superconducting magnet (70), the shim assembly comprising:

a mount (40) securable to the superconducting magnet (70) or the gradient coil (60);

a rotating frame (50) which is rotatably arranged on the fixed frame (40) around a rotating direction and can move relative to the fixed frame (40) along the rotating direction, wherein when the fixed frame (40) is fixed on the superconducting magnet (70) or the gradient coil (60), the rotating direction is coincident with the axial direction of the superconducting magnet (70);

at least one pair of the shimming arrangements according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the pair of shimming arrangements being provided on the rotating frame (50) symmetrically with respect to the rotational direction, and the mounting direction of each support (10) being respectively parallel to the rotational direction, the rotating frame (50) being movable with respect to the stationary frame (40) in the rotational direction and driving the shimming arrangements to respectively insert or extract the gradient coils (60) when the stationary frame (40) is fixed to the superconducting magnet (70) or the gradient coils (60).