Method, apparatus, and recording medium for processing tomographic image
View Patent ↗A method and apparatus for carrying out tomographic image processing that enables lung areas and a mediastinum in a chest tomographic image to be reproduced in one image with appropriate contrast is provided. Image data representing a chest tomographic image are obtained by using a tomography apparatus. Normalization means in a tomographic image processing apparatus normalizes the image data and obtains normalized image data. Compression processing means carries out dynamic range compression processing on the normalized image data to compress a high density range thereof. The image data after the compression processing are subjected to frequency enhancing processing, and the image data after the frequency enhancing processing are then subjected to tone conversion processing. The processed image data obtained in the above manner are reproduced by a reproduction apparatus.
1. A tomographic image processing method for carrying out image processing on image data representing a chest tomographic image, the method comprising the steps of:
carrying out dynamic range compression processing on the image data so as to compress a high density range of the chest tomographic image,
wherein the chest tomographic image includes a low density range that is unaffected by the compression of the high density range; and
carrying out tone conversion processing on the image data which has been processed by frequency enhancing processing.
2. A tomographic image processing method as defined in claim 1 , the method further comprising the step of:
carrying out frequency enhancing processing on the image data having been subjected to the dynamic range compression processing.
3. The tomographic image processing method as defined in claim 2 , wherein the frequency enhancing processing is multiple frequency enhancing processing.
4. The tomographic image processing method as defined in claim 1 , wherein only the high density range is compressed.
5. The tomographic image processing method as defined in claim 1 , wherein a degree of the dynamic range compression processing is changed in accordance with a degree of the tone conversion processing.
6. A tomographic image processing apparatus for carrying out image processing on image data representing a chest tomographic image, the apparatus comprising:
dynamic range compression processing means for carrying out dynamic range compression processing on the image data in order to compress a high density range of the chest tomographic image,
wherein the chest tomographic image includes a low density range that is unaffected by the compression of the high density range;
and means for carrying out tone conversion Processing on the image data which has been processed by frequency enhancing processing.
7. A tomographic image processing apparatus as defined in claim 6 , further comprising:
frequency enhancing processing means for carrying out frequency enhancing processing on the image data that have been subjected to the dynamic range compression processing.
8. The tomographic image processing apparatus as defined in claim 7 , wherein the frequency enhancing processing is multiple frequency enhancing processing.
9. A computer-readable recording medium storing a program to cause a computer to execute a tomographic image processing method for carrying out image processing on image data representing a chest tomographic image, the program comprising the procedure of:
carrying out dynamic range compression processing on the image data so as to compress a high density range of the chest tomographic image,
wherein the chest tomographic image includes a low density range that is unaffected by the compression of the high density range, and
carrying out tone conversion Processing on the image data which has been processed by frequency enhancing processing.
10. A computer-readable recording medium as defined in claim 9 , the program further comprising the procedure of:
carrying out frequency enhancing processing on the image data having been subjected to the dynamic range compression processing.
11. The computer-readable recording medium as defined in claim 10 , wherein the frequency enhancing processing is multiple frequency enhancing processing.