IP Library Granted Patent US 10,751,550
Granted Patent B2
US 10,751,550 · App. 16/055,507 · Granted Aug 25, 2020

Fast sliding window delivery via a high-speed multileaf collimator

Inventors: Eric Schnarr (McFarland, WI); Robert O'Connell (Madison, WI); Richard Nash (Allison Park, PA); Matthew Orton (Oregon, WI); Jacob Shea (Madison, WI)
Assignee: ACCURAY INCORPORATED
A61N5/1047
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,751,550
App. No.
16/055,507
Granted
Aug 25, 2020
Kind
B2
Abstract

A system for delivering radiation dose, includes a gantry to move about a target to be irradiated and a radiation source mounted to the gantry and directed inward toward the target, The system further includes a collimator mounted to the gantry and in front of the radiation source, the collimator to shape a radiation beam directed at the target, wherein the collimator is to modulate a sub-beam intensity of the radiation beam across a plurality of sub-beams that subdivide a fluence field into a two-dimensional (2D) grid, and wherein a plurality of independent two-dimensional (2D) sub-beam intensity patterns are delivered from a plurality of gantry angles while the gantry moves continuously.

Claims (42)

1. A method of delivering a radiation dose via a radiation treatment system, comprising:

shaping, via a collimator mounted to a gantry of the radiation treatment system, a radiation beam directed at a target;

modulating, by a processing device, a sub-beam intensity of the radiation beam across a plurality of sub-beams that subdivide a fluence field into a two-dimensional (2D) grid; and

delivering a plurality of independent two-dimensional (2D) sub-beam intensity patterns from a plurality of gantry angles while the gantry moves continuously.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising rotating the gantry continuously, wherein the 2D sub-beam intensity pattern for a particular gantry angle is approximated by delivering the intensity pattern over a small arc.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the collimator is a multi-leaf collimator (MLC) comprising a plurality of leaf pairs, wherein a first axis of the 2D sub-beam grid is determined by an index of the leaf pairs along one axis of the MLC, and wherein a second axis of the 2D grid is along a line of travel of the leaf pairs; and

wherein the sub-beam intensity is modulated by independently modulating a rate of travel of front and back leaves in each leaf pair, as each leaf pair moves in a single pass from one end of a corresponding line of travel to another end of the corresponding line or travel.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein each of the plurality of leaf pairs changes direction when delivering the fluence pattern for each subsequent gantry angle.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising constraining a motion of the plurality of leaf pairs used to deliver the 2D fluence pattern from a particular gantry angle to occur in less than a pre-selected time period.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein leaf pair motion for the particular gantry angle that takes less than the pre-selected time period is centered within the pre-selected time period.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein a first leaf in a leaf pair that follows a second leaf in the leaf pair when delivering the intensity pattern from the particular gantry angle does not reach the end of its travel before reversing direction to deliver the intensity pattern for a subsequent gantry angle.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising moving the target axially through a center of the gantry via an axial support, wherein the gantry and axial support move simultaneously during irradiation of the target to perform a helical delivery.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein a helical pitch is greater than 0.5.

10. A system for delivering radiation dose, comprising:

a gantry to move about a target to be irradiated;

a radiation source mounted to the gantry and directed inward toward the target; and

a collimator mounted to the gantry and in front of the radiation source, the collimator to shape a radiation beam directed at the target, wherein the collimator is to modulate a sub-beam intensity of the radiation beam across a plurality of sub-beams that subdivide a fluence field into a two-dimensional (2D) grid, and wherein a plurality of independent two-dimensional (2D) sub-beam intensity patterns are delivered from a plurality of gantry angles while the gantry moves continuously.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the gantry is to rotate continuously and wherein the 2D sub-beam intensity pattern for a particular gantry angle is approximated by delivering the intensity pattern over a small arc.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the collimator is a multi-leaf collimator (MLC) comprising a plurality of leaf pairs, wherein a first axis of the 2D sub-beam grid is determined by an index of the leaf pairs along one axis of the MLC, and wherein a second axis of the 2D grid is along a line of travel of the leaf pairs; and

wherein the sub-beam intensity is modulated by independently modulating a rate of travel of front and back leaves in each leaf pair, as each leaf pair moves in a single pass from one end of a corresponding line of travel to another end of the corresponding line or travel.

13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the system is to constrain a motion of the plurality of leaf pairs used to deliver the 2D fluence pattern from a particular gantry angle to occur in less than a pre-selected time period.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein leaf pair motion for a particular gantry angle that takes less than the pre-selected time period is centered within the pre-selected time period.

15. The system of claim 12 , wherein each of the plurality of leaf pairs changes direction when delivering the fluence pattern for each subsequent gantry angle.

16. The system of claim 15 , wherein a first leaf in a leaf pair that follows a second leaf in the leaf pair when delivering the intensity pattern from a particular gantry angle does not reach the end of its travel before reversing direction to deliver the intensity pattern for a subsequent gantry angle.

17. The system of claim 10 , further comprising an axial support capable of moving the target axially through a center of the gantry, and wherein the gantry and axial support move simultaneously during irradiation of the target to perform a helical delivery.

18. The system of claim 17 , wherein a helical pitch is greater than 0.5.

19. The system of claim 10 , wherein the system is a helical radiation treatment delivery system.

20. The system of claim 10 , wherein the system is a robotic-based LINAC radiation treatment system.

21. The system of claim 10 , wherein the system is gantry-based radiation treatment delivery system.

22. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processing device of a radiation treatment delivery system, cause the processing device to:

shape, via a collimator mounted to a gantry of the radiation treatment system, a radiation beam directed at a target;

modulate, by the processing device, a sub-beam intensity of the radiation beam across a plurality of sub-beams that subdivide a fluence field into a two-dimensional (2D) grid; and

deliver a plurality of independent two-dimensional (2D) sub-beam intensity patterns from a plurality of gantry angles while the gantry moves continuously.

23. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22 , wherein the processing device is further to rotate the gantry continuously, wherein the 2D sub-beam intensity pattern for a particular gantry angle is approximated by delivering the intensity pattern over a small arc.

24. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22 , wherein the collimator is a multi-leaf collimator (MLC) comprising a plurality of leaf pairs, wherein a first axis of the 2D sub-beam grid is determined by an index of the leaf pairs along one axis of the MLC, and wherein a second axis of the 2D grid is along a line of travel of the leaf pairs; and

wherein the sub-beam intensity is modulated by independently modulating a rate of travel of front and back leaves in each leaf pair, as each leaf pair moves in a single pass from one end of a corresponding line of travel to another end of the corresponding line or travel.

25. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 24 , wherein each of the plurality of leaf pairs changes direction when delivering the fluence pattern for each subsequent gantry angle.

26. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22 , wherein the processing device is further to constrain a motion of the plurality of leaf pairs used to deliver the 2D fluence pattern from a particular gantry angle to occur in less than a pre-selected time period.

27. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 26 , wherein leaf pair motion for the particular gantry angle that takes less than the pre-selected time period is centered within the pre-selected time period.

28. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 27 , wherein a first leaf in a leaf pair that follows a second leaf in the leaf pair when delivering the intensity pattern from the particular gantry angle does not reach the end of its travel before reversing direction to deliver the intensity pattern for a subsequent gantry angle.

29. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22 , further comprising moving the target axially through a center of the gantry via an axial support, wherein the gantry and axial support move simultaneously during irradiation of the target to perform a helical delivery.

30. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 29 , wherein a helical pitch is greater than 0.5.

Assignments (5)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Aug 13, 2025
From: ACCURAY INCORPORATED
To: ACCURAY LLC
Reel/Frame 072421/0584 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jun 6, 2025
From: FIRST-CITIZENS BANK & TRUST COMPANY
To: ACCURAY INCORPORATED
Reel/Frame 071638/0034 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 14, 2021
From: ACCURAY INCORPORATED; TOMOTHERAPY INCORPORATED
To: SILICON VALLEY BANK, AS ADMINISTRATIVE AND COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 056247/0001 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 13, 2020
From: O'CONNELL, ROBERT
To: ACCURAY INCORPORATED
Reel/Frame 052651/0705 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 4, 2020
From: SCHNARR, ERIC; NASH, RICHARD; ORTON, MATTHEW; SHEA, JACOB
To: ACCURAY INCORPORATED
Reel/Frame 052560/0711 →
Continuity (1)
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Cited By (1)
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