Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 3/04/2026, 12/04/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YE in the US Patent Application Publication Number US 20210011104 A1 in view of Zhang et al. (Hereinafter, “Zhang”) in the US Patent Application Publication Number US 20200341087 A1.
Regarding claim 1, Ye teaches a method for magnetic resonance (MR) imaging (magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and more particularly, methods and systems for performing a measurement on a subject in MRI; Paragraph [0001] Line 1-4), implemented on a computing device [300] in Figure 3 having at least one processor [310] and at least one storage device [320] (As illustrated in FIG. 3, the computing device 300 may include a processor 310, a storage 320, an input/output (I/O) 330, and a communication port 340. The processor 310 may execute computer instructions (e.g., program code) and perform functions of the processing device 120; Paragraph [0058] Line 1-5), the method comprising:
obtaining k-space data collected during an MR scan of a target object [210] in Figure 2 (subject 210 as the target) (The magnetic body 220 may generate a static magnetic field during the scanning of at least a portion of a subject 210; Paragraph [0047] Line 1-3) (In some embodiments, one or more other parameters of the MR pulse sequence 700, such as a VENC value, a parameter relating to a gradient field, etc., may have a constant value during the execution of the first and second acquisitions. Optionally, one or more imaging techniques, such as but not limited to a K-space acquisition technique, a parallel imaging technique, a compressed sensing technique, a K-space data sharing technique, etc., may be utilized during the execution of the MR pulse sequence 700 to accelerate the scanning progress; Paragraph [0082] Line 1-10),
wherein the MR scan [110] is performed by applying an imaging sequence to the target object [210] (The acquisition module 502 may be configured to acquire information relating to the MRI system 100. For example, the acquisition module 502 may acquire scan data of a subject acquired by an MR scanner. The MR scanner may be directed to apply an MR pulse sequence on the subject and detect a plurality of echo signals excited by the MR pulse sequence; Paragraph [0068] Line 1-7),
the imaging sequence includes at least two signal acquisition modules of a same sequence type (For example, the MR pulse sequence may include a first acquisition and a second acquisition. The acquisition module 502 may acquire a first set of echo signals that is detected in the first acquisition and a second echo signals that is detected in the second acquisition; Paragraph [0068] Line 12-17; As shown in FIG. 7, the MR pulse sequence 700 corresponds to a first acquisition and a second acquisition. The first set of echo signals may be excited in the first acquisition and the second set of echo signals may be excited in the second acquisition. Each of the first acquisition and the second acquisition may include a plurality of repetitions. For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first, second, third, and fourth repetitions may have a repetition time TR.sub.1, a repetition time TR.sub.2, a repetition time TR.sub.3, and a repetition time TR.sub.4, respectively; Paragraph [0074] Line 6-18; The repetitions in a single acquisition may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.1 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2, and TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.4. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Paragraph [0075] Line 1-9; For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Therefore at least two acquisition modules of a same sequence type),
different signal acquisition modules of the at least two signal acquisition modules have at least two design characteristics with different characteristic values (In some embodiments, the configuration of the MR pulse sequence 700 may be designed according to actual needs, such as the measurement(s) to be performed on the subject. For example, if a T1 measurement is to be performed, the flip angle α.sub.2 may need to be different from the flip angle α.sub.1. In some embodiments, the flip angle α.sub.2 may be different from the flip angle α.sub.1. A plurality of echo signals may be detected in each repetition in each acquisition. TR.sub.2 of the second repetition may be different from TR.sub.1 of the first repetition, and/or TR.sub.4 of the fourth repetition may be different from TR.sub.3 of the third repetition. At least two of the FM.sub.1, FM.sub.2, FM.sub.3, and FM.sub.4 may be of different types of FM modules. In this way, more data relating to the subject, including data corresponding to different TEs, data corresponding to different flip angles, data corresponding to different FM modules, data corresponding to different TRs, may be acquired during the scan of the subject, which improves an acquisition efficiency without lengthening the scan time. This enables that different measurements of the subject may be performed simultaneously based on a single scan, avoiding unnecessary and repeated scans on the subject; Paragraph [0084] Line 1-22; For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Therefore at least two acquisition modules of a different characteristics type), and
reconstructing an MR image of the target object corresponding to the signal
acquisition module based on the target k-space data set (In some embodiments, the processing device 120 may determine a plurality of signals of the physical point based on the first set and/or the second set. As used herein, a signal of the physical point may convey information about one or more attributes or characteristics of the physical point. For example, the signals of the physical point may be or include image data or K-space data relating to the physical point. In some embodiments, the processing device 120 may reconstruct a plurality of images. Each image may be reconstructed based on an echo signal of the first set or the second set, and include image data (e.g., a pixel having a specific pixel value, a voxel having a specific voxel value) of the physical point. The processing device 120 may then designate the image data of the physical point in the images as the signals of the physical point. Each signal of the physical point may correspond to a set of values in a plurality of signal dimensions of signal acquisition using the MR scanner. A signal dimension of a signal may refer to a parameter that describes an instance under which the signal is determined or acquired using the MR scanner as described in connection with FIG. 2. Exemplary signal dimensions may include a TE, a TR, a coil unit, a repetition, a flip angle, an acquisition, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0092] Line 1-23).
Ye teaches an echo signal and data generated based on the echo signal (e.g., image data or K-space data) (Paragraph [0055] Line 1-3).
However Ye fails to teach that the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules; and for each signal acquisition module of the at least two signal acquisition modules, determining a target k-space data set based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module and the one or more k-space data sets corresponding to one or more other signal acquisition modules among the at least two signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4), wherein
the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules [301, 302] (The k-space data acquisition device in an embodiment of the present disclosure may include the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 and the data acquisition module 302; Paragraph [0038] Line 1-4; dividing the k space into a plurality of areas from inside to outside, with the order of acquisition being derived from inside to outside, thereby maximizing the use of the fat saturation effect of quick fat saturation pulses, and filling the echo data with the lowest fat signal into the center of the k space so as to form a k-space effect shown in FIG. 2D; Paragraph [0029] Line 12-18); and
for each signal acquisition module of the at least two signal acquisition modules [301, 302] in Figure 3,
determining a target k-space data set (center of the k-space) based on the k-space data set (k-space data from pseudo radial filling mode and parallel imaging) corresponding to the signal acquisition module and the one or more k-space data sets corresponding to one or more other signal acquisition modules among the at least two signal acquisition modules (Further, the case where k-space data is acquired by combing parallel imaging with the pseudo radial order filling is tested in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 8, also in the above test environment, the first and third columns are magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the pseudo middle order filling mode shown in FIG. 2C, and the second and fourth columns are magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the combination of the pseudo radial filling mode and parallel imaging in the embodiment of the present disclosure, that is, magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the pseudo radial order filling mode based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance system; Paragraph [0062] Line 1-14; Claim 1). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to include at least two k-space data sets, because Zhang teaches to includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules and to determine a target k-space data set based on the k-space data set improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 2, Ye teaches MRI method,
wherein the at least two design characteristics include a first design characteristic, and the first design characteristic relates to the type and the count of elements (the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count) included in each signal acquisition module (In some embodiments, the MR pulse sequence may be defined by one or more parameters including, for example, the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count, an inversion time (TI), a count (or number) of acquisitions in the MR pulse sequence, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, an echo train length, an echo spacing, a velocity encoding (VENC) value, etc.; Paragraph [0051] Line 1-11; Exemplary parameters relating to the MR scanner 110 during the scan may include one or more parameters relating to the MR pulse sequence (e.g., a TE, a TR, a TI, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, a velocity encoding value, a repetition, an acquisition) applied during the scan, one or more parameters relating to a gradient field or radiofrequency field (e.g. an RF center frequency, a flip angle) applied during the scan, one or more other imaging parameters (e.g., a count (or number) of RF channels, a coil unit) of the MR scanner 110, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0055] Line 22-35).
Regarding claim 3, Ye teaches MRI method,
wherein the elements include at least one of a pulse, a flip angle, a readout gradient polarity, an echo signal acquisition, or a magnetization preparation strategy (In some embodiments, the MR pulse sequence may be defined by one or more parameters including, for example, the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count, an inversion time (TI), a count (or number) of acquisitions in the MR pulse sequence, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, an echo train length, an echo spacing, a velocity encoding (VENC) value, etc.; Paragraph [0051] Line 1-11; Exemplary parameters relating to the MR scanner 110 during the scan may include one or more parameters relating to the MR pulse sequence (e.g., a TE, a TR, a TI, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, a velocity encoding value, a repetition, an acquisition) applied during the scan, one or more parameters relating to a gradient field or radiofrequency field (e.g. an RF center frequency, a flip angle) applied during the scan, one or more other imaging parameters (e.g., a count (or number) of RF channels, a coil unit) of the MR scanner 110, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0055] Line 22-35).
Regarding claim 4, Ye teaches MRI method,
wherein the at least two design characteristics include a second design characteristic, and the second design characteristic relates to a scanning parameter corresponding to each signal acquisition module (In some embodiments, the MR pulse sequence may be defined by one or more parameters including, for example, the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count, an inversion time (TI), a count (or number) of acquisitions in the MR pulse sequence, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, an echo train length, an echo spacing, a velocity encoding (VENC) value, etc.; Paragraph [0051] Line 1-11; Exemplary parameters relating to the MR scanner 110 during the scan may include one or more parameters relating to the MR pulse sequence (e.g., a TE, a TR, a TI, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, a velocity encoding value, a repetition, an acquisition) applied during the scan, one or more parameters relating to a gradient field or radiofrequency field (e.g. an RF center frequency, a flip angle) applied during the scan, one or more other imaging parameters (e.g., a count (or number) of RF channels, a coil unit) of the MR scanner 110, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0055] Line 22-35).
Regarding claim 5, Ye fails to teach an MRI method, wherein the determining a target k-space data set includes: determining a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module and outer k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the signal acquisition module based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module; determining reference k-space data, wherein the reference k-space data includes k-space
data in the k-space outer region collected by the one or more other signal acquisition modules;
updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data; and determining the target k-space data set based on the updated outer k-space data and original k-space data in other regions in k-space collected by the signal acquisition module.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the determining a target k-space data set (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) includes:
determining a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) and outer k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the signal acquisition module based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module (in this step, the k space may be divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse, wherein N is a positive integer; Paragraph [0042] Line 1-5);
determining reference k-space data, wherein the reference k-space data includes k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the one or more other signal acquisition modules; updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data; and determining the target k-space data set based on the updated outer k-space data and original k-space data in other regions in k-space collected by the signal acquisition module (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to determine a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module, because Zhang teaches to determine a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module and outer k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the signal acquisition module based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 6, Ye fails to teach an MRI method, wherein the k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module is determined based on the size of k-space and the quality of k-space data in the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module (The data acquisition module 302 is configured to acquire k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0035] Line 1-3) is determined based on the size of k-space and the quality of k-space data in the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module (It can be seen that, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the order of acquisition in this filling mode always expands outwards from the center, like but not the same as traditional radial scanning, and therefore is called pseudo radial scanning. In real 3D imaging, when the number of phase encoding steps is more than 100, the order of acquisition looks more radial in a PE plan view; Paragraph [0034] Line 1-7; During specific implementation, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8; Therefore. the k-space outer region is determined based on the size of k-space and the quality of k-space data in the k-space data set). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to determine the k-space outer region based on the size of k-space and the quality of k-space data, because Zhang teaches to determine a k-space outer region based on the size of k-space and the quality of k-space data improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]).
Regarding claim 7, Ye fails to teach an MRI method, wherein the one or more other signal acquisition modules include multiple other signal acquisition modules, and the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data includes: for each of the other signal acquisition modules, determining a weight of the other signal acquisition module based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module; and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data and the weight of each of the other signal acquisition modules..
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the one or more other signal acquisition modules include multiple other signal acquisition modules, and the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) includes:
for each of the other signal acquisition modules, determining a weight of the other signal acquisition module based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]);
and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data and the weight of each of the other signal acquisition modules (Claim 6: wherein said acquiring k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space comprises: acquiring, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to update the k-space outer region, because Zhang teaches to determine a weight of the other signal acquisition module based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, improves the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 8, Ye fails to teach an MRI method, wherein the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data includes: for each of the one or more other signal acquisition modules, determining reference outer k-space data based on k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the other signal acquisition module, first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module, and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module; and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference outer k-space data corresponding to the one or more other signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data includes (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8):
for each of the one or more other signal acquisition modules, determining reference outer k-space data based on k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the other signal acquisition module, first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module, and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]);
and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference outer k-space data corresponding to the one or more other signal acquisition modules (Claim 6: wherein said acquiring k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space comprises: acquiring, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to update the k-space outer data, because Zhang teaches to determine reference outer k-space data based on k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the other signal acquisition module, improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, improves the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 9, Ye teaches an MRI method, further comprising:
generating a quantitative parameter map based on the MR images corresponding to the at least two signal acquisition modules (The measurement module 504 in Figure 5 may be configured to perform a measurement on the subject based on scan data of the subject. The measurement performed on the subject may include determining a quantitative parameter of a physical point of the subject, generating a quantitative map of the subject (which includes a value of a quantitative parameter of each physical point of the subject), generating a specific image reflecting a physiological property of the subject, and/or any other measurement that can evaluate a characteristic of the subject; Paragraph [0069] Line 1-10).
Regarding claim 10, Ye fails to teach an MRI method, wherein the one or more other signal acquisition modules include multiple other signal acquisition modules, the determining a target k-space data set of includes: determining, based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of each of the other signal acquisition modules, one or more target signal acquisition modules from the other signal acquisition modules; and determining the target k-space data set based on the k-space data sets of the one or more target signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the one or more other signal acquisition modules include multiple other signal acquisition modules [301, 302] (As shown in FIG. 3, the device may include: an acquisition trajectory determination module 301, a data acquisition module 302, and an image reconstruction module 303; Paragraph [0031] Line 3-6; the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) the determining a target k-space data set of includes:
determining, based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of each of the other signal acquisition modules, one or more target signal acquisition modules from the other signal acquisition modules; and determining the target k-space data set based on the k-space data sets of the one or more target signal acquisition modules (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to update the k-space outer data, because Zhang teaches to determine based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics, improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, improves the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 11, Ye fails to teach a method, the determining one or more target signal acquisition modules from the other signal acquisition modules includes: for each of the other signal acquisition modules, determining a difference between the signal acquisition module and the other signal acquisition module based on the first characteristic values of the signal acquisition module and the second characteristic values of the other signal acquisition module; obtaining a difference threshold; and in response to determining that the difference is less than the difference threshold, designating the other signal acquisition module as one of the one or more target signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
the determining one or more target signal acquisition modules from the other signal acquisition modules [301, 302] (As shown in FIG. 3, the device may include: an acquisition trajectory determination module 301, a data acquisition module 302, and an image reconstruction module 303; Paragraph [0031] Line 3-6) includes:
for each of the other signal acquisition modules, determining a difference between the signal acquisition module and the other signal acquisition module based on the first characteristic values of the signal acquisition module and the second characteristic values of the other signal acquisition module (MRI imaging includes images of various cross sections in a desired direction. A k space is a data space of each cross section, that is, k-space data represents a group of original data that can form an image. For example, after echo data of a k space are acquired by using a three-dimensional fast gradient echo sequence, the echo data are filled into a phase-encoded k space. Then, a desired image can be obtained by performing a Fourier transform on the k-space data; Paragraph [0027] Line 1-9);
obtaining a difference threshold; and in response to determining that the difference is less than the difference threshold, designating the other signal acquisition module as one of the one or more target signal acquisition modules (The inventors of the present disclosure have found through comparison that the image contrasts of reconstructed magnetic resonance images corresponding to different filling directions are different. The image contrast of the reconstructed magnetic resonance image corresponding to the filling order of FIG. 2C is superior to that of the linear filling modes of FIGS. 2A and 2B. Moreover, the inventors have found that the echo data in the center of the k space play a decisive role on the image contrast of a reconstructed magnetic resonance image. Thus, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a novel k-space filling mode, namely pseudo radial filling, which comprises dividing the k space into a plurality of areas from inside to outside, with the order of acquisition being derived from inside to outside, thereby maximizing the use of the fat saturation effect of quick fat saturation pulses, and filling the echo data with the lowest fat signal into the center of the k space so as to form a k-space effect shown in FIG. 2D; Paragraph [0029] Line 1-18). The purpose of doing so is to maximize the use of the fat saturation effect of quick fat saturation pulses, and filling the echo data with the lowest fat signal into the center of the k space so as to form a k-space effect.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to determine a difference between the signal acquisition module and the other signal acquisition module, because Zhang teaches to determine a difference between the signal acquisition module and the other signal acquisition module maximizes the use of the fat saturation effect of quick fat saturation pulses, and filling the echo data with the lowest fat signal into the center of the k space so as to form a k-space effect (Paragraph [0029]).
Regarding claim 12, Ye fails to teach a method, wherein the at least two signal acquisition modules are configured to under-sample different locations in k-space utilizing a same undersampling pattern.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the at least two signal acquisition modules are configured to under-sample different locations in k-space utilizing a same undersampling pattern (The data acquisition module 302 is configured to acquire k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0035] Line 1-3; During specific implementation, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to under-sample different locations in k-space utilizing a same undersampling pattern, because Zhang teaches to under-sample different locations in k-space utilizing a same undersampling pattern improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, improves the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]).
Regarding claim 13, Ye teaches a system (magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and more particularly, methods and systems for performing a measurement on a subject in MRI; Paragraph [0001] Line 1-4), comprising:
at least one storage device [320] storing a set of instructions for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); and
at least one processor [310] configured to communicate with the at least one storage device [320] (As illustrated in FIG. 3, the computing device 300 may include a processor 310, a storage 320, an input/output (I/O) 330, and a communication port 340. The processor 310 may execute computer instructions (e.g., program code) and perform functions of the processing device 120; Paragraph [0058] Line 1-5),
wherein when executing the set of instructions, the at least one processor [320] is configured to direct the system to perform operations including:
obtaining k-space data collected during an MR scan of a target object [210] in Figure 2 (subject 210 as the target) (The magnetic body 220 may generate a static magnetic field during the scanning of at least a portion of a subject 210; Paragraph [0047] Line 1-3) (In some embodiments, one or more other parameters of the MR pulse sequence 700, such as a VENC value, a parameter relating to a gradient field, etc., may have a constant value during the execution of the first and second acquisitions. Optionally, one or more imaging techniques, such as but not limited to a K-space acquisition technique, a parallel imaging technique, a compressed sensing technique, a K-space data sharing technique, etc., may be utilized during the execution of the MR pulse sequence 700 to accelerate the scanning progress; Paragraph [0082] Line 1-10),
wherein the MR scan [110] is performed by applying an imaging sequence to the target object [210] (The acquisition module 502 may be configured to acquire information relating to the MRI system 100. For example, the acquisition module 502 may acquire scan data of a subject acquired by an MR scanner. The MR scanner may be directed to apply an MR pulse sequence on the subject and detect a plurality of echo signals excited by the MR pulse sequence; Paragraph [0068] Line 1-7),
the imaging sequence includes at least two signal acquisition modules of a same sequence type (For example, the MR pulse sequence may include a first acquisition and a second acquisition. The acquisition module 502 may acquire a first set of echo signals that is detected in the first acquisition and a second echo signals that is detected in the second acquisition; Paragraph [0068] Line 12-17; As shown in FIG. 7, the MR pulse sequence 700 corresponds to a first acquisition and a second acquisition. The first set of echo signals may be excited in the first acquisition and the second set of echo signals may be excited in the second acquisition. Each of the first acquisition and the second acquisition may include a plurality of repetitions. For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first, second, third, and fourth repetitions may have a repetition time TR.sub.1, a repetition time TR.sub.2, a repetition time TR.sub.3, and a repetition time TR.sub.4, respectively; Paragraph [0074] Line 6-18; The repetitions in a single acquisition may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.1 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2, and TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.4. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Paragraph [0075] Line 1-9; For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Therefore at least two acquisition modules of a same sequence type),
different signal acquisition modules of the at least two signal acquisition modules have at least two design characteristics with different characteristic values (In some embodiments, the configuration of the MR pulse sequence 700 may be designed according to actual needs, such as the measurement(s) to be performed on the subject. For example, if a T1 measurement is to be performed, the flip angle α.sub.2 may need to be different from the flip angle α.sub.1. In some embodiments, the flip angle α.sub.2 may be different from the flip angle α.sub.1. A plurality of echo signals may be detected in each repetition in each acquisition. TR.sub.2 of the second repetition may be different from TR.sub.1 of the first repetition, and/or TR.sub.4 of the fourth repetition may be different from TR.sub.3 of the third repetition. At least two of the FM.sub.1, FM.sub.2, FM.sub.3, and FM.sub.4 may be of different types of FM modules. In this way, more data relating to the subject, including data corresponding to different TEs, data corresponding to different flip angles, data corresponding to different FM modules, data corresponding to different TRs, may be acquired during the scan of the subject, which improves an acquisition efficiency without lengthening the scan time. This enables that different measurements of the subject may be performed simultaneously based on a single scan, avoiding unnecessary and repeated scans on the subject; Paragraph [0084] Line 1-22; For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Therefore at least two acquisition modules of a different characteristics type), and
reconstructing an MR image of the target object corresponding to the signal
acquisition module based on the target k-space data set (In some embodiments, the processing device 120 may determine a plurality of signals of the physical point based on the first set and/or the second set. As used herein, a signal of the physical point may convey information about one or more attributes or characteristics of the physical point. For example, the signals of the physical point may be or include image data or K-space data relating to the physical point. In some embodiments, the processing device 120 may reconstruct a plurality of images. Each image may be reconstructed based on an echo signal of the first set or the second set, and include image data (e.g., a pixel having a specific pixel value, a voxel having a specific voxel value) of the physical point. The processing device 120 may then designate the image data of the physical point in the images as the signals of the physical point. Each signal of the physical point may correspond to a set of values in a plurality of signal dimensions of signal acquisition using the MR scanner. A signal dimension of a signal may refer to a parameter that describes an instance under which the signal is determined or acquired using the MR scanner as described in connection with FIG. 2. Exemplary signal dimensions may include a TE, a TR, a coil unit, a repetition, a flip angle, an acquisition, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0092] Line 1-23).
Ye teaches an echo signal and data generated based on the echo signal (e.g., image data or K-space data) (Paragraph [0055] Line 1-3).
However Ye fails to teach that the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules; and for each signal acquisition module of the at least two signal acquisition modules, determining a target k-space data set based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module and the one or more k-space data sets corresponding to one or more other signal acquisition modules among the at least two signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4), wherein
the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules [301, 302] (The k-space data acquisition device in an embodiment of the present disclosure may include the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 and the data acquisition module 302; Paragraph [0038] Line 1-4; dividing the k space into a plurality of areas from inside to outside, with the order of acquisition being derived from inside to outside, thereby maximizing the use of the fat saturation effect of quick fat saturation pulses, and filling the echo data with the lowest fat signal into the center of the k space so as to form a k-space effect shown in FIG. 2D; Paragraph [0029] Line 12-18); and
for each signal acquisition module of the at least two signal acquisition modules [301, 302] in Figure 3,
determining a target k-space data set (center of the k-space) based on the k-space data set (k-space data from pseudo radial filling mode and parallel imaging) corresponding to the signal acquisition module and the one or more k-space data sets corresponding to one or more other signal acquisition modules among the at least two signal acquisition modules (Further, the case where k-space data is acquired by combing parallel imaging with the pseudo radial order filling is tested in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 8, also in the above test environment, the first and third columns are magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the pseudo middle order filling mode shown in FIG. 2C, and the second and fourth columns are magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the combination of the pseudo radial filling mode and parallel imaging in the embodiment of the present disclosure, that is, magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the pseudo radial order filling mode based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance system; Paragraph [0062] Line 1-14; Claim 1). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to include at least two k-space data sets, because Zhang teaches to includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules and to determine a target k-space data set based on the k-space data set improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 14, Ye teaches a system,
wherein the at least two design characteristics include a first design characteristic, and the first design characteristic relates to the type and the count of elements (the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count) included in each signal acquisition module (In some embodiments, the MR pulse sequence may be defined by one or more parameters including, for example, the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count, an inversion time (TI), a count (or number) of acquisitions in the MR pulse sequence, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, an echo train length, an echo spacing, a velocity encoding (VENC) value, etc.; Paragraph [0051] Line 1-11; Exemplary parameters relating to the MR scanner 110 during the scan may include one or more parameters relating to the MR pulse sequence (e.g., a TE, a TR, a TI, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, a velocity encoding value, a repetition, an acquisition) applied during the scan, one or more parameters relating to a gradient field or radiofrequency field (e.g. an RF center frequency, a flip angle) applied during the scan, one or more other imaging parameters (e.g., a count (or number) of RF channels, a coil unit) of the MR scanner 110, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0055] Line 22-35).
Regarding claim 15, Ye teaches a system,
wherein the at least two design characteristics include a second design characteristic, and the second design characteristic relates to a scanning parameter corresponding to each signal acquisition module (In some embodiments, the MR pulse sequence may be defined by one or more parameters including, for example, the type of the MR pulse sequence, a time for applying the MR pulse sequence, a duration of the MR pulse sequence, a flip angle of an excitation pulse in the MR pulse sequence, a count (or number) of RF pulses in the MR pulse sequence, a repetition time (TR), a repetition count, an inversion time (TI), a count (or number) of acquisitions in the MR pulse sequence, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, an echo train length, an echo spacing, a velocity encoding (VENC) value, etc.; Paragraph [0051] Line 1-11; Exemplary parameters relating to the MR scanner 110 during the scan may include one or more parameters relating to the MR pulse sequence (e.g., a TE, a TR, a TI, a b-value, a T1ρ-preparation duration, a T2-preparation duration, a velocity encoding value, a repetition, an acquisition) applied during the scan, one or more parameters relating to a gradient field or radiofrequency field (e.g. an RF center frequency, a flip angle) applied during the scan, one or more other imaging parameters (e.g., a count (or number) of RF channels, a coil unit) of the MR scanner 110, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0055] Line 22-35).
Regarding claim 16, Ye fails to teach a system, wherein the determining a target k-space data set includes: determining a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module and outer k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the signal acquisition module based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module; determining reference k-space data, wherein the reference k-space data includes k-space
data in the k-space outer region collected by the one or more other signal acquisition modules;
updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data; and determining the target k-space data set based on the updated outer k-space data and original k-space data in other regions in k-space collected by the signal acquisition module.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the determining a target k-space data set (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) includes:
determining a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) and outer k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the signal acquisition module based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module (in this step, the k space may be divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse, wherein N is a positive integer; Paragraph [0042] Line 1-5);
determining reference k-space data, wherein the reference k-space data includes k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the one or more other signal acquisition modules; updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data; and determining the target k-space data set based on the updated outer k-space data and original k-space data in other regions in k-space collected by the signal acquisition module (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to determine a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module, because Zhang teaches to determine a k-space outer region corresponding to the signal acquisition module and outer k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the signal acquisition module based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 17, Ye fails to teach a system, wherein the one or more other signal acquisition modules include multiple other signal acquisition modules, and the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data includes: for each of the other signal acquisition modules, determining a weight of the other signal acquisition module based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module; and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data and the weight of each of the other signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the one or more other signal acquisition modules include multiple other signal acquisition modules, and the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8) includes:
for each of the other signal acquisition modules, determining a weight of the other signal acquisition module based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]);
and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data and the weight of each of the other signal acquisition modules (Claim 6: wherein said acquiring k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space comprises: acquiring, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to update the k-space outer region, because Zhang teaches to determine a weight of the other signal acquisition module based on first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, improves the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 18, Ye fails to teach a system, wherein the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data includes: for each of the one or more other signal acquisition modules, determining reference outer k-space data based on k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the other signal acquisition module, first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module, and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module; and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference outer k-space data corresponding to the one or more other signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4),
wherein the updating the outer k-space data based on the reference k-space data includes (the data acquisition module 302 may acquire the data based on a fully-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system, or based on an under-sampled magnetic resonance imaging system. For example, the data acquisition module 302 may acquire, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and fill the k space; Paragraph [0036] Line 1-8):
for each of the one or more other signal acquisition modules, determining reference outer k-space data based on k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the other signal acquisition module, first characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the signal acquisition module, and second characteristic values of the at least two design characteristics of the other signal acquisition module (During specific implementation, the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 may be implemented by multiple ways. For example, FIGS. 4A to 4C show one of specific implementation processes. As shown in FIG. 4A, the k space may be first divided into N segments from a center origin in a spiral outward direction according to the number N of excitation pulse trains applied after each fat saturation pulse. For the convenience of understanding, the segments in FIG. 4A are indicated by thick lines. N is a positive integer. Because the space on the paper is limited, for the convenience of expression, the case where N is 12 is taken as an example in this embodiment, and the case where each segment involves 9 acquisitions is taken as an example. For the convenience of description, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the k space in FIG. 4A is further stretched in a spiral direction into a straight line as shown above in FIG. 4B; and due to the limited space on the paper, FIG. 4B only shows 6 complete segments and 1 incomplete segment, but does not show the other 5 segments. “First”, “second”, “third”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of segments from the center to the spiral outside in sequence, and “1”, “2”, “3”, etc. indicate the serial numbers of a group of echo data acquired in sequence after a fat saturation pulse. As shown in FIG. 4B, after the k space is segmented, the acquisition trajectory of echo signals in the k space may be determined according to the order of filling N pieces of echo data acquired sequentially corresponding to the excitation pulse trains after each fat saturation pulse into a corresponding position in each of the N segments in sequence. That is, for 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse, the first piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the lowest fat signal is filled into the first segment, that is, the central area numbered by 1 in FIG. 4C; the second piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the second lowest fat signal is filled into the second segment, that is, the sub-central area numbered by 2 in FIG. 4C; the third piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the third lowest fat signal is filled into the third segment, that is, the outward diffracted area numbered by 3 in FIG. 4C; and so on, until the fourth piece of echo data, that is, the piece of echo data with the highest fat signal is filled into the 12th segment, that is, the outermost area numbered by 12 in FIG. 4C. The 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the second fat saturation pulse are also filled into a position in the 12 segments which is near the positions of the 12 pieces of echo data acquired sequentially after the first fat saturation pulse. And so on, until the k space is fully filled; Paragraph [0033]);
and updating the outer k-space data based on the reference outer k-space data corresponding to the one or more other signal acquisition modules (Claim 6: wherein said acquiring k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space comprises: acquiring, based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance imaging system, the k-space data conforming to the acquisition trajectory and filling the k space). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to update the k-space outer data, because Zhang teaches to determine reference outer k-space data based on k-space data in the k-space outer region collected by the other signal acquisition module, improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, improves the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Regarding claim 19, Ye teaches a system, wherein the operations further include:
generating a quantitative parameter map based on the MR images corresponding to the at least two signal acquisition modules (The measurement module 504 in Figure 5 may be configured to perform a measurement on the subject based on scan data of the subject. The measurement performed on the subject may include determining a quantitative parameter of a physical point of the subject, generating a quantitative map of the subject (which includes a value of a quantitative parameter of each physical point of the subject), generating a specific image reflecting a physiological property of the subject, and/or any other measurement that can evaluate a characteristic of the subject; Paragraph [0069] Line 1-10).
Regarding claim 20, Ye teaches a non-transitory computer readable medium, comprising a set of instructions (magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and more particularly, methods and systems for performing a measurement on a subject in MRI; Paragraph [0001] Line 1-4; Claim 20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including instructions for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) that, when accessed by at least one processor of a system, causes the system to perform a method),
wherein when executed by at least one processor [320], the set of instructions direct the at least one processor [320] to effectuate a method (As illustrated in FIG. 3, the computing device 300 may include a processor 310, a storage 320, an input/output (I/O) 330, and a communication port 340. The processor 310 may execute computer instructions (e.g., program code) and perform functions of the processing device 120; Paragraph [0058] Line 1-5), the method comprising:
obtaining k-space data collected during an MR scan of a target object [210] in Figure 2 (subject 210 as the target) (The magnetic body 220 may generate a static magnetic field during the scanning of at least a portion of a subject 210; Paragraph [0047] Line 1-3) (In some embodiments, one or more other parameters of the MR pulse sequence 700, such as a VENC value, a parameter relating to a gradient field, etc., may have a constant value during the execution of the first and second acquisitions. Optionally, one or more imaging techniques, such as but not limited to a K-space acquisition technique, a parallel imaging technique, a compressed sensing technique, a K-space data sharing technique, etc., may be utilized during the execution of the MR pulse sequence 700 to accelerate the scanning progress; Paragraph [0082] Line 1-10),
wherein the MR scan [110] is performed by applying an imaging sequence to the target object [210] (The acquisition module 502 may be configured to acquire information relating to the MRI system 100. For example, the acquisition module 502 may acquire scan data of a subject acquired by an MR scanner. The MR scanner may be directed to apply an MR pulse sequence on the subject and detect a plurality of echo signals excited by the MR pulse sequence; Paragraph [0068] Line 1-7),
the imaging sequence includes at least two signal acquisition modules of a same sequence type (For example, the MR pulse sequence may include a first acquisition and a second acquisition. The acquisition module 502 may acquire a first set of echo signals that is detected in the first acquisition and a second echo signals that is detected in the second acquisition; Paragraph [0068] Line 12-17; As shown in FIG. 7, the MR pulse sequence 700 corresponds to a first acquisition and a second acquisition. The first set of echo signals may be excited in the first acquisition and the second set of echo signals may be excited in the second acquisition. Each of the first acquisition and the second acquisition may include a plurality of repetitions. For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first, second, third, and fourth repetitions may have a repetition time TR.sub.1, a repetition time TR.sub.2, a repetition time TR.sub.3, and a repetition time TR.sub.4, respectively; Paragraph [0074] Line 6-18; The repetitions in a single acquisition may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.1 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2, and TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.4. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Paragraph [0075] Line 1-9; For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Therefore at least two acquisition modules of a same sequence type),
different signal acquisition modules of the at least two signal acquisition modules have at least two design characteristics with different characteristic values (In some embodiments, the configuration of the MR pulse sequence 700 may be designed according to actual needs, such as the measurement(s) to be performed on the subject. For example, if a T1 measurement is to be performed, the flip angle α.sub.2 may need to be different from the flip angle α.sub.1. In some embodiments, the flip angle α.sub.2 may be different from the flip angle α.sub.1. A plurality of echo signals may be detected in each repetition in each acquisition. TR.sub.2 of the second repetition may be different from TR.sub.1 of the first repetition, and/or TR.sub.4 of the fourth repetition may be different from TR.sub.3 of the third repetition. At least two of the FM.sub.1, FM.sub.2, FM.sub.3, and FM.sub.4 may be of different types of FM modules. In this way, more data relating to the subject, including data corresponding to different TEs, data corresponding to different flip angles, data corresponding to different FM modules, data corresponding to different TRs, may be acquired during the scan of the subject, which improves an acquisition efficiency without lengthening the scan time. This enables that different measurements of the subject may be performed simultaneously based on a single scan, avoiding unnecessary and repeated scans on the subject; Paragraph [0084] Line 1-22; For example, the first acquisition may include at least a first repetition and a second repetition. The second acquisition may include at least a third repetition and a fourth repetition. The first and third repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.3 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.1. The second and fourth repetitions may have a same repetition time or different repetition times, i.e., TR.sub.4 may be equal to or different from TR.sub.2; Therefore at least two acquisition modules of a different characteristics type), and
reconstructing an MR image of the target object corresponding to the signal
acquisition module based on the target k-space data set (In some embodiments, the processing device 120 may determine a plurality of signals of the physical point based on the first set and/or the second set. As used herein, a signal of the physical point may convey information about one or more attributes or characteristics of the physical point. For example, the signals of the physical point may be or include image data or K-space data relating to the physical point. In some embodiments, the processing device 120 may reconstruct a plurality of images. Each image may be reconstructed based on an echo signal of the first set or the second set, and include image data (e.g., a pixel having a specific pixel value, a voxel having a specific voxel value) of the physical point. The processing device 120 may then designate the image data of the physical point in the images as the signals of the physical point. Each signal of the physical point may correspond to a set of values in a plurality of signal dimensions of signal acquisition using the MR scanner. A signal dimension of a signal may refer to a parameter that describes an instance under which the signal is determined or acquired using the MR scanner as described in connection with FIG. 2. Exemplary signal dimensions may include a TE, a TR, a coil unit, a repetition, a flip angle, an acquisition, or the like, or any combination thereof; Paragraph [0092] Line 1-23).
Ye teaches an echo signal and data generated based on the echo signal (e.g., image data or K-space data) (Paragraph [0055] Line 1-3).
However Ye fails to teach that the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules; and for each signal acquisition module of the at least two signal acquisition modules, determining a target k-space data set based on the k-space data set corresponding to the signal acquisition module and the one or more k-space data sets corresponding to one or more other signal acquisition modules among the at least two signal acquisition modules.
Zhang teaches a k-space data acquisition device and method, and a magnetic resonance imaging device and method (Paragraph [0001] Line 2-4), wherein
the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules [301, 302] (The k-space data acquisition device in an embodiment of the present disclosure may include the acquisition trajectory determination module 301 and the data acquisition module 302; Paragraph [0038] Line 1-4; dividing the k space into a plurality of areas from inside to outside, with the order of acquisition being derived from inside to outside, thereby maximizing the use of the fat saturation effect of quick fat saturation pulses, and filling the echo data with the lowest fat signal into the center of the k space so as to form a k-space effect shown in FIG. 2D; Paragraph [0029] Line 12-18); and
for each signal acquisition module of the at least two signal acquisition modules [301, 302] in Figure 3,
determining a target k-space data set (center of the k-space) based on the k-space data set (k-space data from pseudo radial filling mode and parallel imaging) corresponding to the signal acquisition module and the one or more k-space data sets corresponding to one or more other signal acquisition modules among the at least two signal acquisition modules (Further, the case where k-space data is acquired by combing parallel imaging with the pseudo radial order filling is tested in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 8, also in the above test environment, the first and third columns are magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the pseudo middle order filling mode shown in FIG. 2C, and the second and fourth columns are magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the combination of the pseudo radial filling mode and parallel imaging in the embodiment of the present disclosure, that is, magnetic resonance images obtained by acquisition of k-space data in the pseudo radial order filling mode based on a parallel imaging magnetic resonance system; Paragraph [0062] Line 1-14; Claim 1). The purpose of doing so is to improve the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast, to provide simple and easier to implement, to realize the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Ye in view of Zhang to include at least two k-space data sets, because Zhang teaches to includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules and to determine a target k-space data set based on the k-space data set improves the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, to improve the image contrast (Paragraph [0063]), provides simple and easier to implement (Paragraph [0064]), realizes the acquisition of k-space data in a pseudo radial filling mode, the echo data with the lowest fat signal are in the central area that can play a key role in image contrast, thereby improving the suppression effect of fat signals without increasing fat saturation pulses, and then improving the image contrast (Paragraph [0015]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
PRAVEEN et al. (US 20140159724 A1) discloses, “IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS, K-SPACE GENERATION METHOD, MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGE APPARATUS, AND CONTROL METHOD OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGE APPARATUS-[0008] An image processing system rapidly and accurately generates a k-space comprising raw data used to generate an accurate magnetic resonance image. [0045] FIG. 1 shows a data processing unit 100 of an image processing apparatus that receives collected raw data, acquires k-space data from the raw data, fills a k-space using the acquired k-space data to generate the k-space, and outputs the k-space. The data processing unit 100 may divide the k-space into a plurality of areas and perform different processes in the respective areas on the acquired k-space data to provide k-space for output. For example, in a case in which the data processing unit 100 selects and acquires k-space data from a plurality of areas, k-space data may be selected and acquired on the premise that at least one of the areas satisfies a predetermined condition. In this case, the data processing unit 100 may further acquire additional information and select and acquire k-space data depending upon whether the additionally acquired information satisfies a predetermined condition or an additionally calculated condition. [0048] An image processing apparatus including the data processing unit 100 is shown in FIG. 2. The image processing apparatus may include a data collection unit 10, a navigator unit 20, the data processing unit 100, and an image processing unit 30. The data collection unit 10 collects information regarding a target region outside or inside an object ob. FIG. 3 shows the data collection unit. The data collection unit 10 collects a signal generated from the target region to collect information regarding the target region and outputs the collected information, i.e. the signal, in the form of raw data after amplifying the collected information or performing analog/digital conversion to the collected information. The data collection unit 10 may output a plurality of signals (signal A to signal C). The output signals are transmitted to the data processing unit 100 as shown in FIG. 2. [0055] FIG. 6 shows the image processing apparatus and FIGS. 2 and 6 show the image processing apparatus in a case in which the data processing unit 100 divides a k-space into two areas, i.e. a first area and a second area, and separately acquires k-space data from the respective areas, i.e. the first area and the second area, to generate the k-space. The data processing unit 100 may include a first area processing unit 110, a second area processing unit 120, and an area combination unit 130. The first area processing unit 110 and the second area processing unit 120 acquire k-space data corresponding to different areas of the k-space from raw data. In addition, the first area processing unit 110 and the second area processing unit 120 may acquire k-space data according to different conditions or different methods-However PRAVEEN does not disclose the imaging sequence includes at least two signal acquisition modules of a same sequence type, different signal acquisition modules of the at least two signal acquisition modules have at least two design characteristics with different characteristic values, and the k-space data includes at least two k-space data sets each of which corresponds to one of the at least two signal acquisition modules.”
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NASIMA MONSUR whose telephone number is (571)272-8497. The examiner can normally be reached 10:00 am-6:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Eman Alkafawi can be reached at (571) 272-4448. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NASIMA MONSUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2858
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