IP Library Granted Patent US 8,655,072
Granted Patent B2
US 8,655,072 · App. 13/497,413 · Granted Feb 18, 2014

Medical image processing apparatus and medical image processing program

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,655,072
App. No.
13/497,413
Granted
Feb 18, 2014
Kind
B2
Abstract

A medical image processing apparatus includes a first extraction part, an adding part, a first specifying part, and a second specifying part. The first extraction part extracts an air region from volume data after receiving volume data representing a region including an organ under observation. The adding part adds pixel values of the pixels in the air region along a predetermined projection direction to generate projection image data representing the distribution of the added value of pixel values. The first specifying part specifies a first characteristic point from the projection image data. The second specifying part specifies, as a second characteristic point, a point on a line passing a first characteristic point in an air region.

Claims (14)

1. A medical image processing apparatus comprising:

a first extraction means that extracts an air region from volume data after receiving volume data representing a region including an organ under observation,

an adding means that adds pixel values of pixels within the air region in the volume data along a predetermined projection direction to generate projection image data representing the distribution of the added value of the pixel values,

a first specifying means that specifies a first characteristic point from the projection image data, and

a second specifying means that specifies, as a second characteristic point, a point on a line passing the first characteristic point in the air region.

2. The medical image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the second specifying means obtains a intersection of the line and the contour of the air region as the second characteristic point.

3. The medical image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first specifying means obtains a pixel with a maximum added value among the pixels of the projection image data as the first characteristic point.

4. The medical image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a second extraction means that extracts the organ under observation from the volume data by a region growing method in which the second characteristic point is the start point.

5. The medical image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a display controlling means that causes a display means to display a medical image based on the volume data by overlapping with a mark that represents the second characteristic point.

6. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a medical image processing program that, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to execute:

a first extraction function that extracts an air region from volume data that represents a region including an organ under observation;

an adding function that adds pixel values of the pixels within the air region in the volume data along a predetermined projection direction to generate projection image data representing the distribution of the added value of the pixel values;

a first specifying function that specifies a first characteristic point from the projection image data; and

a second specifying function that specifies, as a second characteristic point, a point on a line passing the first characteristic point in the air region.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 31, 2016
From: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA
To: TOSHIBA MEDICAL SYSTEMS CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 038891/0693 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 21, 2012
From: KIMOTO, TATSUYA
To: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA; TOSHIBA MEDICAL SYSTEMS CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 027903/0007 →