JP2006189533A - Radiation image reader - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To regulate the position of a cassette with simple constitution. <P>SOLUTION: A positioning device positions the square plate-like or rectangular plate-like cassette 90. It is equipped with a stopper 41 extended in an up-and-down direction, a gripping body 47 provided to contact with/separate from the stopper 41 in a direction crossing with the up-and-down direction, and an elevating/lowering base 31 arranged movably in the up-and-down direction between the stopper 41 and the gripping body 47 and provided with a nearly horizontal upper surface. By making the gripping body 47 approach to the stopper 41 in the direction crossing with the up-and-down direction in a state where the cassette 90 is placed on the upper surface of the elevating/lowering base 31, the cassette 90 is held between the gripping body 47 and the stopper 41, whereby the position of the cassette 90 in a horizontal direction is fixed. By moving the elevating/lowering base 31 in the up-and-down direction in such a state, the position of the cassette 90 in the up-and-down direction is fixed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a radiation image reading apparatus.

  In order to digitize and store and transmit radiation image information generated in a hospital, a radiation image reading apparatus that outputs image information as digital data has been widely used. As a radiation image reading apparatus that outputs such digital data, a radiation image reading apparatus using a stimulable phosphor sheet is well known.

  The photostimulable phosphor sheet can store a part of the radiation energy transmitted through the subject and at the same time accumulate the detected radiation energy inside the photostimulable phosphor sheet. Furthermore, the radiation energy accumulated in the photostimulable phosphor sheet can be extracted as photostimulated light by being excited with a laser beam having a predetermined wavelength. This stimulated light can be extracted as an electrical signal using a photoelectric conversion element such as a photomultiplier.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a radiation image reading apparatus that reads radiation image information from a photostimulable phosphor sheet. The photostimulable phosphor sheet read by this apparatus is used by being housed in a portable thin box-like casing called a cassette. As shown in FIG. 9, the cassette 90 includes a back plate 91 on which a photostimulable phosphor sheet is attached, and a front plate 92 provided so as to cover the photostimulable phosphor sheet.

  The back plate 91 is provided with a lock claw 96 that engages with the front plate 92. The lock claw 96 is interlocked with an open / close lock 93 provided at the center of the short side of the back plate, and is engaged with the front plate 92 (lock ON) and engaged by a push / latch mechanism. The release state (lock OFF) is configured to be switched. The back plate 91 and the front plate 92 are united in the engaged state, and the back plate 91 and the front plate 92 are separable in the disengaged state.

  In the radiation image reading apparatus, the cassette is positioned as follows. As shown in FIG. 10, first, when the cassette 90 is inserted into the insertion port of the apparatus with the side on which the open / close lock 93 is provided down, the cassette 90 is placed on the lifting platform 101. Next, the elevator 101 is lowered and taken into the apparatus. Next, both end portions of the cassette 90 are pressed by the movable guide members 102, 102, and the opening / closing lock 93 is disposed at the position of the lock release mechanism 103 provided at the center of the lifting platform. By operating the lock release mechanism 103 with the cassette fixed in this way, the cassette 90 can be brought into the disengaged state. In the above configuration, even if the cassettes of different sizes can be reliably held and separated, the elevator 101 and the guide members 102 and 102 are appropriately moved.

  On the other hand, in the radiographic image reading apparatus described in Patent Document 1, since a rotation mechanism for rotating the conveying means is provided at the lower part of the apparatus, the position of the cassette reading slot is increased, and a technician or the like can hold it in his hand or sideways. It was necessary to lift the photographed cassette that had been pinched and moved to the height of the insertion slot against gravity, which put a heavy burden on engineers and the like.

  Further, since the reading slot is provided with a support member that supports the cassette inserted obliquely, it takes time to lift the cassette higher than the support member. Furthermore, since the cassette is separated by rotational movement, an installation area of the apparatus and an operation space necessary around the apparatus are also required.

  The present applicant has filed Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-362827 as a radiographic image reading apparatus that achieves the above-mentioned problems. In the apparatus, the holding means that holds either one of the front plate and the back plate is inserted after the cassette is inserted into the housing with the cassette raised from the insertion opening provided on the upper surface of the device housing, and the front plate and the back plate are separated in the housing. The front plate and the back plate are separated by parallel translation in a direction perpendicular to the plate surface. Then, the photostimulable phosphor sheet is scanned between the front plate and the back plate separated in parallel, thereby enabling miniaturization. This device can suppress the height as compared with the conventional device, and has an excellent effect that an operation of lifting up to the height of the upper surface of the device against the gravity becomes unnecessary when the cassette is inserted.

  In addition, since the cassette can be moved horizontally from the arbitrary direction to the upper part of the apparatus and the cassette can be inserted from the upper surface of the apparatus, a user such as an engineer can stand at an arbitrary position around the apparatus. The degree of freedom of installation of the apparatus and the degree of freedom of the user's work flow line are greatly improved.

Even in the above-described new radiological image reading apparatus, it is preferable that a conventional cassette can be used so that a user such as a hospital does not need a new investment.
JP 2002-156716 A

  By the way, in the conventional configuration, since the cassette is positioned by moving the left and right guide members, the guide member driving means is complicated. Further, when the cassette is tilted and placed on the lifting platform, the lock release mechanism and the cassette are not in close contact with each other, and there is a high possibility that the lock ON / OFF operation of the cassette will not be successful and a trouble will occur.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a radiographic image reading apparatus capable of controlling a height in the height direction and using a conventional cassette, thereby restricting the position of the cassette in the apparatus with a simple configuration and improving the reliability of opening and closing the cassette. To maintain and reduce the probability of trouble.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the invention described in claim 1 is a radiographic image reading apparatus that reads radiographic image information from a photostimulable phosphor sheet stored in a square plate or rectangular plate cassette. A casing having a rectangular insertion slot, a stopper extending in the vertical direction below the insertion slot inside the casing, and being able to contact and separate from the stopper along a direction intersecting the vertical direction And a lifting platform that is provided with a substantially horizontal upper surface and is movable between the stopper and the clamping body in the vertical direction.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cassette is inserted into the radiation image reading apparatus from the upper surface in a state where the cassette is erected, and the inserted cassette is lowered on the lifting platform in the device, and then the cassette is moved to the upper surface of the lifting platform The cassette is sandwiched between the sandwiching body and the stopper by moving the sandwiching body closer to the stopper along the direction intersecting in the vertical direction while being placed on the cassette, and the horizontal position of the cassette is determined. And the position along the up-down direction of a cassette is decided by moving an elevator stand in the up-down direction in the state where the cassette was pinched | interposed between the clamping body and the stopper.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the radiographic image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide extends in the vertical direction inside the housing and is flush with the long side surface of the insertion port. A plate is further provided.

  According to invention of Claim 2, the cassette inserted from the insertion port can be guided to a raising / lowering stand with a guide plate. Also, the cassette placed on the lifting platform is lowered along the guide plate and the cassette is slid to the stopper side along the upper surface of the lifting platform and the guide plate by the sandwiching body, so that the cassette is positioned in the thickness direction. be able to.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the radiological image reading apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein the stopper is provided with a protruding portion that protrudes toward the clamping body or is drawn into the stopper. It is characterized by.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the stopper is provided with a protrusion that protrudes toward the holding body or is pulled into the stopper, the opening / closing lock of the cassette with one side end following the stopper protrudes. The cassette can be operated to switch between the cassette united state and the separated state.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the radiographic image reading apparatus according to the third aspect, the elevating platform is provided so that the lowering stops when the upper and lower central portions of the cassette are positioned at the height of the protruding portion. It is characterized by being.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the upper and lower central portions of the cassette are positioned at the height of the protrusion, the lifting platform stops descending, so that the upper and lower central portions of the cassette are provided at the upper and lower central portions. The opened / closed lock can be reliably operated by the protrusion.

  According to the present invention, the position of the cassette in the apparatus can be accurately determined with a simple configuration, and the reliability of opening and closing the cassette can be maintained, and the number of moving parts and members can be reduced, thus simplifying the apparatus. , Trouble occurrence probability can be reduced.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, although various technically preferable limitations for implementing the present invention are given to the embodiments described below, the scope of the invention is not limited to the following embodiments and illustrated examples.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the front, left cross-section, and plane of a radiation image reading apparatus 1 to which the present invention is applied. The radiographic image reading apparatus 1 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped casing 2 that is long in the left-right direction, and various members and mechanisms are provided in the casing 2. On the upper surface of the housing 2, a rectangular insertion port 21 having a width slightly wider than the thickness of the cassette 90 is provided in the left-right direction. The cassette 90 can be inserted into the housing 2 through the insertion port 21.

  The cassette 90 will be described with reference to FIG. The cassette 90 is provided in the shape of a hollow rectangular plate. Specifically, the cassette 90 includes a box-shaped back plate 91 whose front side is opened and a box-shaped front plate 92 whose rear side is opened.

  At one end in the longitudinal direction of the back plate 91, an opening / closing lock 93 is provided at a central position in the short direction. A lock claw 96 is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the back plate 91. The lock claw 96 is interlocked with the opening / closing lock 93 and protrudes from the outer peripheral portion of the back plate 91 or is housed (push / latch mechanism) when the opening / closing lock 93 is pressed.

  A stimulable phosphor sheet (not shown) is stuck inside the back plate 91 with the surface facing forward. Further, an iron foil 94 that is attracted by a magnet 53 described later is attached to the back plate 91. Further, a bar code label 95 that is read by the apparatus is attached to the back plate 91.

  The front plate 92 covers the front surface of the back plate 91, and the back plate 91 is fitted from the rear side of the front plate 92. An engagement portion (not shown) with which the lock claw 96 is engaged is provided on the inner peripheral portion of the front plate 92. By operating the opening / closing lock 93, the engaged state and the disengaged state of the front plate 92 and the back plate 91 are switched.

  FIG. 2 is a sectional side view of the apparatus with the cassette 90 inserted therein. A barcode reader 23, a roller 27, a shutter unit 24, and the like are attached to the insertion port 21. The barcode reader 23 is attached to the rear side wall of the insertion slot 21 and reads information such as the size of the cassette 90 from the barcode label 95. The roller 27 is attached to the rear side wall of the insertion port 21 and presses the cassette 90 against the front side wall of the insertion port 21. The shutter unit 24 is attached to the front side wall of the insertion slot 21 and is driven by a shutter motor 25 to open and close the insertion slot 21.

  Below the insertion opening 21 and the shutter unit 24, a positioning device 3 that determines the separation position of the cassette 90 within the housing 2 is provided. The positioning device 3 includes a lift 31, a stopper 41, a sandwiching body 47, and a guide plate 30 that holds these.

  3 and 4 are views showing the positioning device 3. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the front, left side and plane, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the back, left side and plane. The elevator 31, the stopper 41, and the sandwiching body 47 are provided on the back side of the guide plate 30.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the back surface of the guide plate 30 is provided flush with the front side wall surface of the insertion port 21. A linear motion guide 32 extending vertically is attached to the rear surface of the guide plate 30 at the left and right central portions. The lifting platform 31 is attached to the linear motion guide 32 and is slidable in the vertical direction along the linear motion guide 32 while keeping the upper surface horizontal. In addition, pulleys 34 and 35 are attached to the upper and lower portions of the guide plate 30 and a pulley 36 is attached to the lower portion of the guide plate 30 so as to be rotatable about a horizontal axis. An annular endless belt 37 connected to the lifting platform 31 is hung on the pulleys 34, 35, and 36.

  On the other hand, a lifting / lowering motor 38 is attached to the front surface of the guide plate 30 and above the guide plate 30. A pulley 39 is attached to the guide plate 30 at the upper part of the lifting motor 38 so as to be rotatable about a horizontal axis. An annular short belt 40 is hung on the power take-off shaft of the elevating motor 38 and the pulley 39. The pulley 39 is directly connected to the pulley 35. The power of the elevating motor 38 is transmitted to the elevating table 31 via the pulleys 34 to 36, the pulley 39 and the endless belts 37 and 40, and elevates the elevating table 31 along the linear guide 32.

  A stopper 41 and ridges 42 and 43 are projected on the right side of the back surface of the guide plate 30. The stopper 41 and the ridges 42 and 43 are formed in a straight ridge shape in the vertical direction, and the left side surfaces of the stopper 41 and the ridges 42 and 43 are formed to be flush with each other.

  The stopper 41 is provided with a lock release pin 44. The lock release pin 44 is driven by a motor 45 and protrudes from the left side surface of the stopper 41 or is pulled to the right and pulled into the stopper 41.

  A linear motion guide 46 extending to the left and right is attached to the right side of the back surface of the guide plate 30. The sandwiching body 47 is attached to the linear motion guide 46 and is slidable in the left-right direction along the linear motion guide 46. On the other hand, a width adjusting motor 48 is attached to the front surface of the guide plate 30 and on the right side thereof. A pulley 49 is attached to the front surface of the guide plate 30 immediately to the left of the width adjusting motor 48, and a pulley 50 is attached to the left end so as to be rotatable about an axis in the front-rear direction. An annular endless belt 51 connected to the sandwiching body 47 is hung on the pulleys 49 and 50. The power of the width adjusting motor 48 is transmitted to the holding body 47 via the pulleys 49 and 50 and the endless belt 51, and moves the holding body 47 in the left-right direction along the linear motion guide 46.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a moving plate 52 is attached behind the guide plate 30. A magnet 53 that attracts the iron foil 94 of the back plate 91 is attached to the front surface of the moving plate 52. A link mechanism, which will be described later, is attached to the rear part of the moving plate 52. The link mechanism connects the moving plate 52 to a frame 70 provided vertically at the rear of the apparatus, and moves the moving plate 52 back and forth between the guide plate 30 and the frame 70. The upper end of the moving plate 52 is engaged with a rail 54 attached in the front-rear direction between the upper end of the frame 70 and the upper end of the guide plate 30, and the moving plate 52 moves along the rail 54.

  Here, the link mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 are views showing the internal structure of the radiation image reading apparatus. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the front, left side, and plane of the structure behind the lifting platform 31, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a back surface, a left side surface, and a plane of a structure on the rear side of a table 31. FIG. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the front, left side, and top surface of the link mechanism in an open state. The link mechanism includes links 61 and 62, rotary shafts 63 and 64, slide shafts 65 and 66, and connection shafts 67 and 68 disposed behind the moving plate 52.

  The upper end of the link 61 is rotatably connected to the upper portion of the frame 70 by a rotating shaft 63, and the lower end of the first link 61 is connected to the lower portion of the moving plate 52 by a sliding shaft 65 so as to be vertically movable.

  The upper end of the link 62 is rotatably connected to the upper portion of the moving plate 52 by a rotating shaft 64, and the lower end of the second link 62 is connected to the lower portion of the frame 70 by a sliding shaft 66 so as to be vertically movable.

  The link 61 and the link 62 are rotatably connected to each other at an intermediate portion by a connecting shaft 67. The central portion of the lower end of the link 62 is connected to the moving body 69 by a connecting shaft 68. The moving body 69 is screwed into a ball screw 71 extending in the vertical direction. The ball screw 71 is attached to the frame 70 so as to be rotatable about its axis.

  A worm wheel 72 is attached to an upper portion of the ball screw 71, and a worm 73 is engaged with the worm wheel 72, and the worm 73 is directly connected to a power take-out shaft of the drive motor 74. By driving the drive motor 74, the moving body 69 moves up and down, and as shown in FIG. 7, the moving plate 52 moves back and forth via the link mechanism.

  On the side of the movable range of the moving plate 52, an image reading unit 80 is disposed that is driven in the left-right direction between the guide plate 30 and the frame 70 by the linear motor 81. In the figure, a box of the image reading unit 80 is illustrated, and an optical scanning unit and a sensor unit are attached in the box.

  The optical scanning unit scans the photostimulable phosphor sheet with the laser beam by irradiating the photostimulable phosphor sheet with the laser beam as the excitation light of a predetermined wavelength band in the dot-sequential direction along the vertical direction. Yes, it is composed of a laser diode, a polygon mirror, a motor and the like.

  The sensor unit receives the photostimulated light emitted from the photostimulable phosphor sheet in a vertical line and performs photoelectric conversion. The sensor unit scans the laser beam in the up and down direction with respect to the photostimulable phosphor sheet. A laser beam irradiating device for irradiating, a light guide plate for guiding the stimulated emission light excited by the laser beam, a condenser tube for condensing the stimulated emission light guided by the light guide plate, and condensing by the collector tube And a photoelectric converter that converts the stimulated emission light into an electrical signal. As the photoelectric converter, a photomultiplier tube, a CCD (charge-coupled device), or the like can be used.

  Further, after the radiation energy reading process is performed on the box of the image reading unit 80, erasing light is emitted to the stimulable phosphor sheet in order to release the radiation energy remaining on the stimulable phosphor sheet. An erasing light irradiation unit for irradiation is attached.

  Next, the usage method and operation of the radiation image reading apparatus 1 will be described. In the initial state before the cassette 90 is inserted into the insertion slot 21, the lifting platform 31 is positioned at the uppermost home position within the movable range, and the holding body 47 is the home position farthest from the stopper 41 within the movable range. The moving plate 52 is positioned at a home position (a position before the magnet 53 is pressed against the back plate 91) with a gap slightly larger than the thickness of 90 cassettes between the moving plate 52 and the guide plate 30. 80 is located at a home position outside the movable range of the moving plate 52, and the insertion slot 21 is closed by the shutter 26.

  First, the user inserts the cassette 90 into the insertion port 21 with the back plate 91 facing rearward, with the end on the opening / closing lock 93 side approaching the end on the stopper 41 side of the insertion port 21. When the user releases the cassette 90, the cassette 90 is placed on the shutter 26. At this time, the barcode reader 23 reads the information of the cassette 90 from the barcode label 95 on the back plate. When the barcode label 95 is read by the barcode reader 23, the shutter 26 is opened, and the cassette 90 is dropped by its own weight and placed on the lifting platform 31.

  When the open / close lock 93 is on the holding body 47 side or when the front and back of the cassette 90 are opposite, the barcode reader 23 cannot read the barcode label 95 and the shutter 26 does not open. In this case, the user may simply take the cassette 90 out of the insertion slot 21, correct the orientation of the cassette 90, and insert it again into the insertion slot 21.

  Even if the cassette 90 is correctly oriented, the barcode reader 23 cannot read the barcode label 95 if the end of the cassette 90 on the opening / closing lock 93 side is far away from the end of the insertion port stopper 41 side. . In this case, the user may move the cassette 90 inserted into the insertion port 21 toward the stopper 41.

  Next, when the cassette 90 is lowered together with the elevator platform 31 by the elevator motor 38 and the lower portion of the cassette 90 is positioned between the stopper 41 and the sandwiching body 47, the elevator motor 38 stops.

  Next, the clamping body 47 approaches the stopper 41 by the width adjusting motor 44, the cassette 90 is pushed by the clamping body 47, and the upper surface of the lifting platform 31 slides toward the stopper 41 side. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8, the cassette 90 is sandwiched between the stopper 41 and the sandwiching body 47, and the position of the cassette 90 in the horizontal direction (left-right direction) is accurately positioned by the left side surface of the stopper 41.

  Next, the elevator 31 is lowered by the elevator motor 38, and the cassette 90 is lowered together with the elevator 31 while being guided by the stopper 41 and the sandwiching body 47. At this time, the sandwiching body 47 is slightly separated from the cassette 90 to make the cassette 90 descend smoothly. When the position of the opening / closing lock 93 of the cassette 90 is lowered to the height of the position of the lock release pin 44 of the stopper 41, the lowering of the lifting platform 31 stops. When it is confirmed that the entire cassette 90 is in the housing 2, the shutter 26 is closed by the shutter motor 25.

  Next, the ball screw 71 is rotated by the drive motor 74 and the moving body 69 is raised. As the moving body 69 rises, the link mechanism 60 opens, the moving plate 52 moves forward in a state substantially parallel to the back surface of the housing 2, and the magnet 53 adheres to the iron foil 94 of the back plate 91.

  Next, when the open / close lock 93 is pressed by the lock release pin 44, the engagement between the lock claw 96 and the engagement portion of the cassette 90 is released, and the front plate 92 and the back plate 91 can be separated.

  Next, when the ball screw 71 is rotated reversely by the drive motor 74, the moving body 69 is lowered, the link mechanism 60 is closed, and the moving plate 52 moves backward in a state substantially parallel to the back surface of the housing 2. At this time, the back plate 91 with the iron foil 94 attached to the magnet 53 also moves rearward together with the moving plate 52, and the back plate 91 is separated from the front plate 92.

  When the movable plate 52 reaches the end of the movable range, the photostimulable phosphor sheet is exposed in a state of facing forward. In front of the photostimulable phosphor sheet, the image reading unit 80 is moved left and right by the linear motor 81. While the image reading unit 80 is moving, the photostimulable phosphor sheet is scanned vertically by the laser beam of the optical scanning unit, and the photostimulated emission light emitted from the photostimulable phosphor sheet is received by the sensor unit. The

  When laser light is incident on the photostimulable phosphor sheet, stimulating phosphor light having a light intensity or intensity proportional to the radiation energy accumulated in the photostimulable phosphor sheet is emitted, and the photostimulable phosphor is scanned with the scanning of the optical scanning unit. The stimulated light emitted from the sheet is received and photoelectrically converted by the sensor unit. Thereby, the intensity distribution of the photostimulated luminescent light within the surface of the photostimulable phosphor sheet is acquired as image data, and the radiation image recorded on the photostimulable phosphor sheet becomes image data. The acquired image data is output to an image storage device, an image display device, an image output device, or the like.

  When the scanning of the photostimulable phosphor sheet by the image reading unit 80 is completed, on the return path returning to the home position of the image reading unit 80, the erasing light irradiating unit irradiates the photostimulable phosphor sheet with the erasing light. Radiation energy remaining on the stimulable phosphor sheet is released.

  When the image reading unit 80 arrives at the home position, the moving body 69 is raised by the drive motor 74 and the link mechanism 60 is opened, so that the moving plate 52 moves forward in a state substantially parallel to the back surface of the housing 2. When the moving plate 52 moves forward and the back plate 91 is fitted into the front plate 92, the lock release pin 44 presses the opening / closing lock 93 and engages the lock claw 96 of the cassette 90 with the engaging portion. Next, when the ball screw 71 is rotated reversely by the drive motor 74, the moving plate 52 moves backward and the magnet 53 is peeled off from the back plate 91.

  Next, the shutter 26 is opened by the shutter motor 25. Next, the lifting / lowering base 31 is raised to a position below the home position by the lifting / lowering motor 38, the clamping body 47 is separated by the width adjusting motor 44, and the clamping of the cassette 90 by the clamping body 47 is released. Then, the lifting / lowering table 31 is moved again to the home position by the lifting / lowering motor 38, and a part of the upper side of the cassette 90 is discharged from the insertion port 21. When the user pulls out the cassette 90 from the insertion slot 21, the shutter 26 is closed by the shutter motor 25.

  According to the radiation image reading apparatus 1 that performs such an operation, since the position of the cassette 90 can be surely regulated, the lock release pin 44 attached to the stopper 41 and the cassette 90 come into close contact with each other, and the lock release pin. The cassette 90 can be separated by reliably pressing the open / close lock 93 by the shaft 44.

  In carrying out the present invention, it is assumed that a conventional cassette can be used in order to reduce the burden on the user. However, in the radiographic image reading apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the stopper 41 is unlocked. Since the pin 44 is attached and the lift 31 is moved up and down so that the opening / closing lock 93 faces the lock release pin 44, it is not necessary to use a new cassette according to the apparatus, and the image was taken using the conventional cassette 90. Radiation image information can be read.

  Moreover, in the radiographic image reading apparatus of the present embodiment, the height dimension can be suppressed by inserting the cassette 90 into the radiographic image reading apparatus from the upper surface in a state where the short side of the cassette 90 is upright. The size of the cassette is defined by the JIS standard, and the maximum standard (JL14 × 17) of a general cassette has an external dimension of 383.5 × 459.5 (mm). When a cassette of this standard is read, Even if a typical shutter unit, main body bottom plate structure, anti-vibration structure, etc. are adopted, the height dimension of the apparatus (floor surface to main body upper surface) can be reduced to 750 mm or less. For this reason, especially for a user having an average height (170 cm) or more, the insertion operability of the cassette 90 is greatly improved.

  In addition to the radiographic image reading apparatus of the present embodiment, a common cassette can be used even if a conventional radiographic image reading apparatus is mixed in a hospital or radiology department. Therefore, it is possible to improve the operational efficiency of the whole radiography and improve the cost performance in the hospital and radiology department.

  In the above embodiment, the position of the cassette 90 is regulated by one clamping body 47. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of clamping bodies 47 may be attached. Various modifications and design changes may be made to the shape of the stopper 41 and other specific detailed structures without departing from the gist of the present invention. Further, in the above embodiment, the rectangular cassette 90 is used, but it is needless to say that a square cassette 90 may be used.

2 is a perspective view illustrating a front surface, a left-side cross-section, and a plane of the radiation image reading apparatus 1. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the radiation image reading apparatus 1. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the front surface, the left side surface, and plane of the positioning device 3. It is a perspective view which shows the back surface, left side surface, and plane of the positioning device 3. 2 is a perspective view showing the front, left side, and plane of the internal configuration of the radiation image reading apparatus 1. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a back surface, a left side surface, and an upper surface of the internal configuration of the radiation image reading apparatus 1. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the front surface of the state in which the link mechanism was opened, the left side surface, and the upper surface. It is a schematic diagram which shows the position control of the cassette 90 by this invention. (A) is an exploded perspective view of the cassette 90, and (b) is a rear view of the back plate. It is a schematic diagram which shows the position control of the cassette 90 in the conventional apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Radiographic image reading apparatus 2 Housing | casing 3 Positioning apparatus 21 Insert port 30 Front frame 31 Elevating stand 41 Stopper 44 Unlocking pin 47 Clamping body 90 Cassette

Claims (4)

In a radiographic image reading apparatus that reads radiographic image information from a photostimulable phosphor sheet stored in a square plate or rectangular plate cassette,
A housing having a rectangular insertion port formed on the upper surface;
A stopper extending in the vertical direction inside the housing and below the insertion port;
A sandwiching body provided so as to be able to contact and separate from the stopper along a direction intersecting with the vertical direction;
A radiographic image reading apparatus comprising: a lifting platform provided with a substantially horizontal upper surface and movable vertically between the stopper and the sandwiching body.   The radiation image reading apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a guide plate extending in a vertical direction inside the housing and provided flush with a long side surface of the insertion port.   The radiographic image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is provided with a protruding portion that protrudes toward the sandwiching body or that is pulled into the stopper.   The radiographic image reading apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the elevating platform is provided so that the lowering stops when the upper and lower central portions of the cassette are positioned at the height of the protrusions.

Images