Rotational X-ray inspection system and method
A system for inspecting an object includes a turntable on which the object may be placed. The turntable rotates the object about a first rotation axis. The system also includes an X-ray source to generate an X-ray beam in a plane to intersect with the object. The system also includes an X-ray detector that can detect at least a portion of the X-ray beam transmitted through the object during rotation and generate image data based on the detected X-ray beam. Also included is a controller that can: generate an image of the object based on the image data; determine, based on a suspect item identified in the image of the object, a second rotation axis at an angle from the first axis; cause a tilt of the turntable so that it is perpendicular to the second axis; and initiate a subsequent rotation of the object about the second axis.
1. A system for inspecting an object, comprising:
a turntable configured to have the object placed thereon and to rotate the object about a first rotation axis;
an X-ray source configured to generate an X-ray beam in a plane to intersect with the object;
an X-ray detector configured to detect at least a portion of the X-ray beam transmitted through the object during rotation and generate image data based on the detected X-ray beam; and
a controller configured to:
generate an image of the object based on the image data;
determine, based on a suspect item identified in the image of the object, a second rotation axis at an angle from the first rotation axis;
cause a tilt mechanism to tilt the turntable to be perpendicular to the second rotation axis; and
initiate a subsequent rotation of the object about the second rotation axis.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the X-ray beam is a fan beam.
3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the X-ray detector includes a segmented detector array configured to detect the transmitted portion of the X-ray beam.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the X-ray beam is a sweeping pencil beam.
5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the X-ray detector includes a non-segmented monolithic detector configured to detect the transmitted portion of the X-ray beam.
6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the turntable is configured to rotate the object through at least 180 degrees.
7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the X-ray beam in the plane is in a substantially vertical plane, the X-ray source is a first X-ray source, the X-ray beam is a first X-ray beam, and the X-ray detector is a first X-ray detector, and further comprising:
a second X-ray source configured to generate a second X-ray beam in a plane substantially orthogonal to the substantially vertical plane; and
a second X-ray detector configured to detect at least a portion of the second X-ray beam transmitted through the object during rotation.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the turntable is further configured to translate the object vertically as the second X-ray source generates a second X-ray beam.
9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to determine the angle of the second rotation axis based on a target angle to obtain a side view of the suspect item within the object.
10. The system of claim 1 , further comprising at least one backscatter detector configured to detect scattered radiation from the X-ray beam.
11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the turntable is substantially transparent to X-rays.
12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to translate the turntable along a substantially vertical direction.
13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the transmitted X-rays from the X-ray beam are detected during both rotation and translation of the object.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the controller is further configured to reconstruct contents of the object via at least one Computerized Tomography (CT) algorithm.
15. The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
identify a suspect region of the image; and
confine a subsequent scan of the object to a subset of the object including the suspect region.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the controller is further configured to identify the suspect region based on a backscatter image of the object.
17. The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to generate the image of the object by mapping the image data onto rectilinear coordinates.
18. A system for inspecting an object, the system comprising:
a turntable configured to receive placement of the object thereon;
a support coupled to the turntable and configured to rotate the object on the turntable, about a substantially vertical axis, to perform first and second rotational X-ray scans of the object; and
an X-ray source configured to generate an X-ray beam to intersect the object during the first and second rotational X-ray scans for X-ray inspection of the object,
wherein the turntable is further configured to rotate the object, between the first and second rotational X-ray scans, about an offset rotation axis that is offset at an angle from the substantially vertical axis.
19. The system of claim 18 , further comprising an X-ray detector configured to detect a portion of the X-ray beam that is transmitted through the object during the first and second rotational X-ray scans and to generate image data based on the detected portion of the X-ray beam.
20. The system of claim 19 , further comprising a controller configured to generate an image of the object based on the image data.
21. The system of claim 20 , wherein the controller is further configured, responsive to
identification of a suspect item in the image of the object,
to cause the turntable to rotate the object and to
initiate the second rotational X-ray scan.
22. The system of claim 20 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
identify, based on the image of the object, a suspect region of the object; and
confine the second rotational X-ray scan to inspect a subset of the object including the suspect region.
23. The system of claim 22 , wherein the controller is further configured to identify the suspect region based further on a backscatter image of the object.
24. The system of claim 18 , wherein the X-ray beam is in a substantially vertical plane.
25. The system of claim 18 , wherein the support is a support plate.
26. The system of claim 18 , wherein the X-ray beam is a fan beam.
27. The system of claim 18 , wherein the X-ray beam is a sweeping pencil beam.
28. The system of claim 18 , wherein the support is configured to rotate the object on the turntable through at least 180 degrees.
29. A method for inspecting an object, the method comprising:
rotating, about a substantially vertical axis, using a support, a turntable having the object placed thereon to perform first and second rotational X-ray scans of the object;
generating an X-ray beam to intersect the object during the first and second rotational X-ray scans for X-ray inspection of the object; and
rotating the object, between the first and second rotational X-ray scans, about an offset rotation axis that is offset at an angle from the substantially vertical axis.