JP2697925B2 - Radiation image information recording and reading device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to recording and recording of radiation image information by circulating a stimulable phosphor sheet between an image recording unit, an image reading unit, and an erasing unit.
In a radiation image information recording / reading apparatus that repeatedly performs reading, it is possible to confirm the number of stimulable phosphor sheets loaded in the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus and efficiently perform processing work in the apparatus. And a radiation image information recording and reading apparatus.

[Prior Art] Radiation (X-ray, α-ray, β-ray, γ-ray,
(Electron beam, ultraviolet ray, etc.), a part of the energy of this radiation is accumulated in the phosphor, and then, when the phosphor is irradiated with excitation light such as visible light, the fluorescent light is emitted according to the accumulated energy. The body emits photostimulated luminescence. Phosphors exhibiting such properties are called stimulable phosphors (stimulable phosphors).

Using this stimulable phosphor, radiation image information of a subject such as a human body is temporarily accumulated and recorded on a sheet of the stimulable phosphor,
This is scanned with excitation light to emit stimulating light, and the stimulating light is read photoelectrically to obtain an image signal, and the image signal is processed to obtain a radiation image of a subject having a good diagnosis. Reproduction systems have been proposed (for example, JP-A-55-12429, JP-A-56-11395, and JP-A-55-163472).
Nos. 56-104645 and 55-116340). In this system, the final image may be reproduced as a hard copy or reproduced as a visible image on a CRT. In any case, in such a radiation image information recording / reproducing system, the stimulable phosphor sheet does not record the image information finally, but temporarily stores the image information to give an image to the final recording medium as described above. Therefore, the stimulable phosphor sheet may be used repeatedly, and if used repeatedly, it is very economical.

Further, for example, a mobile station such as an X-ray imaging car is equipped with a radiation image information recording and reading device using a stimulable phosphor sheet, and travels to various places for group examination to take X-ray images. In such a case, it is inconvenient to load a large number of stimulable phosphor sheets on a vehicle, and the number of sheets that can be loaded on a moving vehicle is limited. Therefore, if the stimulable phosphor sheet is mounted on a moving vehicle so that it can be used repeatedly, and the stimulable phosphor sheet is reused in a circulating manner, radiation images of a large number of subjects can be taken by the moving vehicle. Therefore, it is extremely useful in practice. Furthermore, if continuous imaging is performed by this cyclic reuse, the speed of imaging can be increased in a group checkup, and the practical effect is extremely large.

In order to reuse the stimulable phosphor sheet as described above, radiation energy remaining on the stimulable phosphor sheet after the stimulable emission light has been read is determined by, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 56-1139.
No. 2, 56-12599, the residual radiation image may be erased, and the stimulable phosphor sheet may be used again for recording a radiation image.

The present applicant, based on the above viewpoint, a circulating conveyance means for conveying a stimulable phosphor sheet capable of accumulating and recording a radiation image along a predetermined circulating path, and in the circulating path, image information on the sheet Irradiating the sheet with radiation having an image recording unit that accumulates and records radiation image information on the sheet; and an excitation unit that scans the sheet on which the radiation image information is accumulated and recorded in the image recording unit in the circulation path. An excitation light source that emits light, an image reading unit that includes a photoelectric reading unit that obtains an image signal by reading a photostimulated light emitted from a sheet scanned by the excitation light, and the image reading unit that is in the circulation path. Before the image is recorded on the sheet after the image is read by the reading section, the erasing section for emitting the residual radiation energy on the sheet is incorporated in one apparatus before the image is recorded. , The stimulable phosphor sheet,
A radiation image information recording / reading apparatus (hereinafter, referred to as a built-in type apparatus) which circulates between the above-mentioned parts and is repeatedly used has been proposed (JP-A-59-192240).
No., JP-A-60-176032).

Incidentally, the apparatus is usually loaded with a prescribed number of stimulable phosphor sheets, and by successively transporting these stimulable phosphor sheets to the image recording unit, continuous recording becomes possible. It is configured as follows.

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] In this case, if the number or position of the stimulable phosphor sheets loaded in the apparatus is unknown, a problem occurs. For example, even when the number of stimulable phosphor sheets loaded in the apparatus is less than or equal to the specified number, if the apparatus is operated with the specified number of sheets, the transport control of the entire stimulable phosphor sheet can be performed. The situation that disappears occurs. Further, when a power failure or the like occurs during operation, if the position of the stimulable phosphor sheet is unknown when the apparatus is restarted, the stimulable phosphor sheet is transported to an optimal position. Initial setting becomes impossible.

Therefore, the present invention checks the number of stimulable phosphor sheets at the start of the radiation image information recording and reading device,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a radiation image information recording / reading device capable of efficiently performing a processing operation in the device.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The object of the present invention is achieved by the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus shown in FIG.

That is, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a stimulable phosphor sheet capable of storing and recording a radiation image,
A circulating conveyance unit that conveys the sheet along a predetermined circulation path, and an image recording unit that stores radiation image information on the sheet by irradiating the sheet with radiation having image information in the circulation path. An excitation light source that emits excitation light for scanning the sheet on which the radiation image information is stored and recorded in the image recording unit, and a photostimulated emission light emitted from the sheet scanned by the excitation light. An image reading unit having a photoelectric reading unit for obtaining an image signal by means of the image reading unit; and an image reading unit which is located in the circulation path and on which the image has been read by the image reading unit. A radiation image information recording / reading device having an erasing section for emitting residual radiation energy of the radiation image information recording / reading device; Storage means for storing the number of body sheets; sheet detection means disposed at a predetermined portion of a circulation path of the radiation image information recording and reading device for detecting the stimulable phosphor sheet; and detection by the sheet detection means Counting means for counting the number of the stimulable phosphor sheets, driving means for driving a transport mechanism for transporting the stimulable phosphor sheet to a predetermined portion, and when starting up the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus. Drive control means for driving and controlling the drive means, the number of stimulable phosphor sheets stored in the storage means, and the stimulable fluorescent light counted by the counting means when the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus is started up. Comparing means for comparing the number of body sheets with the number of stored stimulable phosphor sheets based on the comparison result by the comparing means. Comparison processing means for performing error processing when the number of stimulable phosphor sheets does not match, and performing processing for activating the transfer task of the stimulable phosphor sheet when the numbers match. And

[Operation] In the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus of the present invention, the number of stimulable phosphor sheets loaded in the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus is stored in advance in the storage means, and the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus is started up. At the time of raising, the stimulable phosphor sheet is transported to a predetermined portion by driving the transport mechanism via the drive unit by the drive control unit, the stimulable phosphor sheet is detected by the sheet detection unit, and the counting unit detects the stimulable phosphor sheet. The number of detected stimulable phosphor sheets is counted, and this number is compared with the number stored in the storage means. In this case, the number of the stimulable phosphor sheets can be confirmed by the comparison result by the comparing means,
Further, the position of the stimulable phosphor sheet can be confirmed from the detection result by the sheet detecting means. If the number of sheets does not match at the time of startup based on the above result, the comparison result processing means performs an error process, thereby making it possible to avoid problems in the conveyance process due to a sheet jam or the like in advance. . Further, when the number of sheets is the same, a process for activating the transport task is performed, whereby the efficiency of the process at the time of starting up the apparatus can be improved.

Embodiment Next, a preferred embodiment of a radiation image information recording and reading apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 10 denotes a radiation image information recording / reading device, and the radiation image information recording / reading device 10 includes an image recording unit 12, an image reading unit 14, an erasing unit 14, an imaging standby unit 18, It basically comprises a control unit 20. The image recording unit 12, the image reading unit 14, the erasing unit 16, and the photographing standby unit 18 are connected by a transport system that transports the stimulable phosphor sheet IP.

The image recording unit 12 has an imaging table 21 that protrudes from the front surface of the radiation image information recording and reading device 10 and that can be displaced vertically along the front surface. A link mechanism 26 capable of being displaced in the directions of arrows A and B with the stimulable phosphor sheet IP interposed between the front plate 22 and the rear plate 24 is provided inside the imaging table 21. Further, at the lower end portions of the front plate 22 and the rear plate 24, when the link mechanism 26 is completely displaced in the direction of arrow A, the stimulable phosphor sheet IP is held and released, and the link mechanism 26 is moved in the direction of arrow B. A shutter mechanism for holding the stimulable phosphor sheet IP when displaced is provided.

The image reading unit 14 is connected to the image recording unit 12 via transport systems 28 and 30. The image reading unit 14 scans the stimulable phosphor sheet IP supplied between the two nip rollers 32 and 34 and the stimulable phosphor sheet IP between the nip rollers 32 and 34. The optical unit includes an optical unit for irradiating a laser beam as light, and a condensing unit for reading an image recorded on the stimulable phosphor sheet IP as stimulated emission light by the laser beam.

An erasing unit 16 is provided downstream of the image reading unit 14. The erasing section 16 has an erasing light source 40 such as a halogen lamp. The erasing light from the erasing light source 40 causes the stimulable phosphor sheet IP.
Of the radiation energy remaining in the memory is performed.

A photographing standby unit 18 is provided downstream of the erasing unit 16. The photographing standby unit 18 includes a transport path that is bent by rollers 42 and 44. The transport path has a first standby zone 46, a second standby zone 48, and a third standby zone 50. It is connected to the recording unit 12.

The control unit 20 controls the operation of the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 and includes a console 60 outside the apparatus main body.
Is connected. The console 60 is an input unit 62 for setting conditions and the like for operating the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10.
, A display unit 64, and a power switch 68 for turning on / off the power of the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10. It should be noted that the console 60 can be external to the device 10 and can be remotely operated.

Here, FIG. 3 shows a driving unit for transporting the stimulable phosphor sheet IP to a predetermined portion in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10, and is disposed in proximity to the driving unit.
FIG. 3 schematically shows a main arrangement relationship with a sheet detecting unit for detecting the position of the stimulable phosphor sheet IP. In this case, a motor M12 as a driving means is provided in the first standby zone 46.
And a sensor S12 as a sheet detecting means is provided,
The second standby zone 48 is provided with a motor M13 and a sensor S13, and the third standby zone 50 is provided with a motor M14 and a sensor S14.
Is arranged. Hereinafter, motors and sensors are similarly arranged in other parts. The motor is M or M
, And the sensor will be described below with reference to S or S.

FIG. 4 shows a main configuration of the control unit 20 in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 with respect to the stimulable phosphor sheet checking apparatus according to the present embodiment. That is, the stimulable phosphor sheet confirmation device has a CPU 70 as drive control means for performing drive control of a desired motor M.
Has an interface 72, an external input register 74, a RAM 76,
The motor control register 78 and the floppy disk controller 80 are connected. Note that the CPU 70 also functions as a counting unit and a comparing unit, as described later.

The interface 72 includes a sensor S and a power switch 68
Are connected, and input signals from these are held in the external input register 74 as external input data. The motor control register 80 is a register for holding the driving state data of the motor M.
The drive and stop of the motor M are controlled via 82. The floppy disk controller 80 controls a floppy disk driver 84. In this case, the floppy disk loaded in the floppy disk driver 84 stores the number data of the stimulable phosphor sheets IP loaded in the radiation image information recording / reading device 10, and the number data is the radiation image information recording data. When the reading device 10 starts up, it is loaded into the RAM 76.

The radiation image information recording and reading apparatus according to the present embodiment is basically configured as described above. Next, the operation and effect of the apparatus will be described.

First, the operation of the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 will be schematically described. In this case, four stimulable phosphor sheets IP are loaded in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10, and each stimulable phosphor sheet IP is a photographing position in the image recording unit 12 and a stimulable phosphor sheet IP in the photographing standby unit 18. It is assumed that they are arranged in the first standby zone 46, the second standby zone 48, and the third standby zone 50, respectively.

Therefore, after setting a subject in front of the imaging table 21 in the image recording unit 12, X-rays are emitted from an X-ray source (not shown). The X-rays pass through the subject, and a radiation transmission image is recorded on the stimulable phosphor sheet IP of the image recording unit 12.

After the stimulable phosphor sheet IP on which the image is recorded is transferred in the direction of arrow A under the action of the link mechanism 26, the transfer system 28
The image is conveyed to the image reading unit 14 via and 30.

In the image reading section 14, an optical unit 36 is provided for the stimulable phosphor sheet IP held and transported by the nip rollers 32 and 34.
A laser beam is applied, and the stimulated emission light obtained by this is condensed by the condensing unit 38 and converted into an electric signal.

On the other hand, the stimulable phosphor sheet IP from which the image has been read is conveyed to the erasing section 16, and then the image is erased by the erasing light source 40.

The stimulable phosphor sheet IP from which the image has been erased is conveyed to the first standby zone 46 of the photographing standby section 18 and is put into a standby state for the next photographing. Meanwhile, the first to third standby zones
Other stimulable phosphor sheets IP located at 46, 48 and 50
Are sequentially conveyed to the image recording unit 12 via the conveyance system 51, and are provided for the next photographing. In this case, in the image recording unit 12, the link mechanism 26 is displaced in the direction of arrow B while the stimulable phosphor sheet IP is sandwiched between the front plate 22 and the rear plate 24, and the stimulable phosphor sheet IP is displaced. Set to the shooting position.

By the way, in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10, during operation, for example, when a power failure or the like occurs and the operation of the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 is interrupted, the stimulable phosphor sheet being transported is The IP remains stopped at the position at the time of the power failure. In this case, in the stimulable phosphor sheet checking device of the present embodiment, when the radiation image information recording / reading device 10 is restarted, the position and the number of the stimulable phosphor sheets IP can be checked. Based on this, the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 can be initialized to an optimal state.

The operation of the stimulable phosphor sheet checking device according to the present embodiment will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

When the operator turns on the power switch 68, the CPU 70 firstly reads out the prescribed number data of the stimulable phosphor sheets IP to be loaded into the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 from the floppy disk loaded in the floppy disk drive 84. Read and load to RAM76 (STP1).

Next, the CPU 70 outputs a drive command signal to the motor control register 78 to drive the motor M that transports the stimulable phosphor sheet IP. In this case, the motor M starts driving via the driver 82 based on the driving command signal, and the stimulable phosphor sheet IP in the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus 10 starts moving (STP2). The reason for performing such an operation control is, for example, in FIG. 3, when the stimulable phosphor sheet IP is stopped between the sensors S11 and S12 in FIG. Is driven to convey to the position of the sensor S12, thereby confirming the existence of the stimulable phosphor sheet IP.

After driving the motor M for a predetermined time in STP2, the CPU 70 reads the data of the external input register 74 (STP3).
In this case, a flag is set in the external input register 74 when each sensor S detects the stimulable phosphor sheet IP. Therefore, the CPU 70 counts the number of the flags, and obtains the number of the stimulable phosphor sheets IP actually loaded in the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus 10 (STP4).

Next, the CPU 70 stores the stimulable phosphor sheet stored in the RAM 76.
The specified number data of IP is compared with the value counted in STP4 (STP5), and when the value is equal to the specified number data, a transfer task according to the number of stimulable phosphor sheets IP is started. I do. Based on the position information of the stimulable phosphor sheet IP detected by the sensor S, the stimulable phosphor sheet
Move the IP to the next available area (STP6). On the other hand, if the value is different from the specified sheet number data, an error is displayed on the display unit 64 (STP7), and then the operation is terminated.

Note that, as described above, the sensor S detects the location where the stimulable phosphor sheet IP exists, but also detects the empty area where the stimulable phosphor sheet IP does not exist. Therefore, by previously transporting the stimulable phosphor sheet IP to the empty area, an efficient image processing operation in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus 10 can be performed.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, when the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus is started up, the stimulable phosphor sheet is moved using the driving unit, and the stimulable phosphor sheet is used as a sensor. , The number of stimulable phosphor sheets loaded in the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus can be confirmed. Further, the position of the stimulable phosphor sheet can also be detected by the sheet detecting means. Therefore, based on such information, it is confirmed whether or not the specified number of stimulable phosphor sheets are present in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus by comparing the specified number of data with the detected number of data. If they do not match, an error process is performed, thereby making it possible to avoid in advance the trouble of the transport process due to a sheet jam or the like. Also,
If the number of sheets matches, a process for activating the transport task is performed, and if the stimulable phosphor sheet is transported to a predetermined position in advance, smooth image processing can be performed during operation. Is obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram corresponding to claims, FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a radiation image information recording / reading apparatus to which the stimulable phosphor sheet confirmation device according to the present invention is applied, and FIG. 3 is radiation image information shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the arrangement of a sensor and a motor in a recording / reading apparatus. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a stimulable phosphor sheet confirmation device according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is an operation of the stimulable phosphor sheet confirmation device according to the present invention. It is a flowchart. 10 radiation image information recording and reading device 12 image recording unit 14 image reading unit 16 image erasing unit 18 photographing standby unit 20 control unit 60 console 64 display unit 68 Power switch, 70 CPU 84 FDD, IP stimulable phosphor sheet M Motor, S Sensor

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A circulating conveyance means for conveying a stimulable phosphor sheet capable of accumulating and recording a radiation image along a predetermined circulating path, and irradiating radiation having image information to the sheet in the circulating path. By doing so, an image recording unit that accumulates and records radiation image information on the sheet, and an excitation light source that emits excitation light in the circulation path that scans the sheet on which the radiation image information is accumulated and recorded in the image recording unit And an image reading unit having photoelectric reading means for reading a stimulating light emitted from a sheet scanned by the excitation light to obtain an image signal; and in the circulation path, the image reading unit performs image reading. A radiation image information recording and reading apparatus having an erasing unit for releasing residual radiation energy on the sheet prior to the image recording on the sheet after the image is recorded. Storage means for storing the number of stimulable phosphor sheets loaded in the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus; and a stimulable phosphor disposed at a predetermined portion of a circulation path of the radiation image information recording and reading apparatus. Sheet detecting means for detecting a sheet, counting means for counting the number of stimulable phosphor sheets detected by the sheet detecting means, and a transport mechanism for transporting the stimulable phosphor sheet to a predetermined portion is driven. A driving unit; a driving control unit for driving and controlling the driving unit when the radiation image information recording / reading apparatus is started up; a number of stimulable phosphor sheets stored in the storage unit; Comparing means for comparing the number of stimulable phosphor sheets counted by the counting means at the start-up of the apparatus; If the number of stored stimulable phosphor sheets and the counted number of stimulable phosphor sheets do not match, error processing is performed.If they match, the task of transporting the stimulable phosphor sheet is performed. A radiographic image information recording and reading apparatus, comprising: a comparison result processing unit that performs a process for starting the radiographic image information.