An educational experiment system for simulated CT devices with coherent light

Abstract

AbstractToday, X‐ray computed tomography (CT) devices are used in a wide range of fields including medical and industrial applications. It is not easy for students in engineering fields including electrical and electronic engineering to understand the electrical and image analysis principles of X‐ray CT devices. Also, in teaching facilities that educate radiographic personnel who actually work with this equipment in medical fields, testing and training are usually performed using real X‐ray CT devices. Since these devices are large and have a complex internal structure, students are currently limited with regard to the types of testing and training that they are able to perform. This makes it difficult for medical students to gain a proper understanding of the principles behind X‐ray CT devices. There is consequently a need for a simple educational test system that enables engineering and medical students to understand how X‐ray CT devices work. We report the construction of an educational test system that simulates an X‐ray CT device based on optical heterodyne detection using laser light for simulation experiments, and the construction of a system that is capable of performing image reconstruction experiments using data obtained with this test system. We also report a test system that is capable of acquiring simulated X‐ray CT images. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn, 95(6): 32–40, 2012; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI 10.1002/ecj.11367