Image analysis – Applications – Biomedical applications
Reexamination Certificate
1998-07-20
2001-07-03
Patel, Jay (Department: 2721)
Image analysis
Applications
Biomedical applications
C378S042000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06256405
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and, particularly, to such an apparatus which can define a region of interest in an image in a desired manner and display the image.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Various image analyzing methods are known. These include an autoradiographic process comprising the steps of introducing a radioactively labeled substance into an organism, using the organism or a part of the tissue of the organism as a specimen, placing the specimen and a radiographic film such as a high sensitivity type X-ray film together in layers for a certain period of time to expose the radiographic film thereto and obtaining locational information on the radioactively labeled substance in the specimen from the resolved pattern of the radiographic film, a fluorescent process using a fluorescent substance as a labelling substance rather than the radioactively labeled substance as in the autoradiographic process, a chemiluminescent process comprising the steps of selectively labeling a fixed high molecular substance such as a protein or a nucleic acid sequence with a labeling substance which generates chemiluminescent emission when it contacts a chemiluminescent substance, contacting the high molecular substance selectively labeled with the labeling substance and the chemiluminescent substance, detecting the chemiluminescent emission in the wavelength of visible light generated by the contact of the chemiluminescent substance and the labeling substance and obtaining information relating to the high molecular substance such as genetic information, a detecting method using an electron microscope comprising the steps of irradiating a metal or nonmetal specimen with an electron beam, detecting a diffraction image, transmission image or the like and effecting elemental analysis, composition analysis of the specimen, structural analysis of the specimen or the like, or irradiating the tissue of an organism with an electron beam and detecting an image of the tissue of the organism, and a radiographic diffraction image detecting process comprising the steps of irradiating a specimen with radiation, detecting a radiographic diffraction image and effecting structural analysis of the specimen or the like.
Conventionally, these methods are carried out by employing a photographic film as a detecting material, recording a radiographic image, a fluorescent image, a chemiluminescent image, an electron microscopic image, a radiographic diffraction image or the like on the photographic film and observing a visual image with the eyes. However, in the case where a photographic film is employed as a detecting material, since a radiographic film has low sensitivity, there is a problem that it takes considerable time for recording an image in the autoradiographic process and the radiographic diffraction image detecting process. Further, in the chemiluminescent process, although it is necessary to employ a highly sensitive film having a high gamma value for detecting very weak chemiluminescent emission, when the highly sensitive film having a high gamma value is employed, it is difficult to expose the film reliably using a straight portion of the characteristic curve. Therefore, the film is often exposed improperly and it is necessary to repeatedly expose the films under various exposure conditions. Moreover, in the detecting process using the electron microscope, since the straight portion of the characteristic curve of a photographic film for an electron microscope is short, it is difficult to determine the proper exposure condition and it is necessary to repeatedly expose the films. Furthermore, in any of the above processes, it is indispensable to chemically develop the films and, therefore, the operations are unavoidably complicated.
In view of the above, there have been proposed an autoradiographic process, a chemiluminescent process, a detecting process using an electron microscope and a radiographic diffraction image detecting process comprising the steps of employing, as a detecting material for the radiation, the visible light, the electron beam or the like, not a photographic film, but a stimulable phosphor which can absorb and store the energy of radiation, visible light, an electron beam or the like upon being irradiated therewith and release a stimulated emission whose amount is proportional to that of the received radiation, the visible light, the electron beam or the like upon being stimulated with an electromagnetic wave having a specific wavelength range, photoelectrically detecting the stimulated emission released from the stimulable phosphor, converting the detection signal to a digital signal, effecting a predetermined image processing on the obtained image data and reproducing an image on displaying means such as a CRT or the like or a photographic film (See for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-60784, Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-60782, Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-3952, U.S. Pat. No. 5,028,793, UK Patent Application 2,246,197 A, Japanese Patent Application Laid open No. 61-51738, Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 61-93538, Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 59-15843 and the like).
According to the detecting processes using the stimulable phosphor, development, which is a chemical processing, becomes unnecessary. In addition, the exposure time can be markedly shortened in the autoradiographic process and the radiographic diffraction image detecting process. Improper exposure becomes rare and the exposing operation becomes easy in the chemiluminescent process and the detecting process using the electron microscope.
Further, since the image is reproduced after the detected signal has been converted to a digital signal, the image can be reproduced in a desired manner by effecting signal processing on image data and it is also possible to effect quantitative analysis using a computer. Use of a stimulable phosphor in these process is therefore advantageous.
Therefore, image forming apparatuses capable of reproducing image data produced by the above described method on a CRT as a visible image have been proposed.
Such image forming apparatuses are generally constituted for comparing properties between desired image areas in an image so as to define a desired image area in an image displayed on displaying means such as a CRT as an area of interest, digitize the amount of light emitted from a stimulable phosphor sheet pixel by pixel in the region of interest and effect quantitative processing by calculating the total value thereof.
For effecting the quantitative processing, the image forming apparatus includes graphic data storing means for storing graphic data consisting of coordinate data of patterns, such as circular pattern, rectangular pattern and the like, used for defining a region of interest in addition to image data storing means for storing image data and is constituted so as to synthesize the image data stored in the image data storing means and the graphic data stored in the graphic data storing means, output the synthesized data to displaying means such as a CRT and reproduce the synthesized data on the CRT or the like as a visible image. In such an image forming apparatus, when an operator uses a mouse to draw a pattern such as a circular pattern, rectangular pattern or the like on an image displayed on the CRT or the like, the image forming apparatus produces graphic data corresponding the drawn pattern such as a circular pattern, rectangular pattern or the like, stores them in the graphic data storing means and quantitatively analyzes the image data within the graphic data using the graphic data and the image data.
However, it is not efficient for the graphic data storing means to store graphic data corresponding to numerous patterns of different shapes and graphic data corresponding to the same patterns of various sizes because this requires use of a memory having an extremely large capacity. Further, even if a memory having an extremely large capacity is used and stores graphic data
Kaneko Takashi
Some Masato
Fuji Photo Film Co. , Ltd.
Patel Jay
Sughrue Mion Zinn Macpeak & Seas, PLLC
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