COMPUTED RADIOGRAPHY:

Definition: -
Digital way of doing General Radiography with
Conventional X-ray machines except Conventional
Screen/Film and dark room is known as Computed
Radiography.

Principle: -
It is based upon Photostimulated Luminescence in
which the radiographic data is captured from a
conventional X-ray machine and processed the data
digitally to produce crisp and high quality radiographic
images.

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Working:
 The CR Cassette is exposed with transmitted x-rays beam in a similar fashion
as the conventional cassette.
 The latent image is formed in the phosphor layer of the Imaging Plate in the
form of Electrical Charge .
 Then the latent image is made visible on monitor by processing or scanned
and read that exposed imaging plate by a laser scanning device called Image
Reader.
 The output signal from the image reader is fed to an image array processor
where the digital gray – scale image is formed.
 The digital image generated by the image reader is stored temporarily on a
local hard disk which is processed a/c to need and the resulting image can be
displayed either as soft (Video Display) copy on monitor or send it directly to
laser printer that make hard (Film) copies of the digital image.
 The digital image can then be stored on an optical or magnetic disk for long
term archiving or connected to the PACS through DICOM for Tele-radiology.
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 COMPONENTS OF THE C.R. SYSTEM:
1.) General X-ray Equipment: - 3.) Image Reader: -

2.) Image Recorder: - 4.) Image Processor: -

Cassette With Imaging Plate

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5.Laser Printer

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 CASSETTE:
Material: -
• Body: - ABS ( Acrylonitryl butadiene styrene).
• Corners: - PUR (Polyurethane rubber).
• Hinges: - PP (Polypropylene).

Sizes: -
• Same as that of conventional cassette.

Identification: -
• Embedded memory chip.
• Contactless RF identification.

Backscatter Protection:
• 150 μm lead. 7
 THE IMAGING PLATE (IP):
The Imaging Plate (IP) is also known as Computed
Radiography (CR) Plate or Storage Phosphor Screen
(SPS) or Photostimulable Phosphor (PSP) detector to
record the radiographic image in place of the
conventional film/screen cassette.
The imaging plate is housed in a rugged cassette &
appears similar to a screen/film cassette.
It is available in the same sizes as conventional
cassettes.
It is handled in the same manner as a screen/film
cassette.
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Cont…

It is not loaded & unloaded in a dark room. Rather, it is

handled in the manner of a screen/film daylight loader.
A typical IP can store a latent image for a considerable
period of time. However, it will lose about 25% of the
stored signal b/w 10 min. to 8 hrs after an exposure
resulting in the loss of energy through spontaneous
phosphorescence.
It retains the image for 24 hours, but some degradation
may occur with passage of time.
Imaging plate shows a linear response to the intensity
of x-ray exposure over a broad range.
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 CONSTRUCTION OF IMAGING
PLATE (IP):
PROTECTIVE LAYER
Protective layer : - PHOSPHOR LAYER

- Fluorinated Polymer Material ANTI-HALO & REFLECTIVE LAYER

Phosphor Layer: -
- Ba FX: Eu +2, 0.4mm thick. BASE

Anti-halo Layer + Reflecting Layer BACKING LAYER

- Prevent laser light from passing through.
Base:-
- PET- Polyethylene teraphtalate

Backing Layer: -
- Protects the base from damage &
reduces back scatter X-rays.
- 150 μm lead. 10
 THE IMAGING PLATE:
A Protective Layer composed of “Fluorinated Polymer” which
make resistant to the abrasion, damaged & scratches caused
on the IP during storage and transfer.
The Phosphor Layer consist of a family of Photostimulable
Phosphor crystals i.e. BaFX:Eu2+ where X can be any of
halogens i.e. Chlorine (Cl), Bromine (Br) or Iodine (I) or an
arbitary mixture of them.
A typical Phosphor Layer composed of about 85% - BaFBr &
15% - BaFI, activated with a very small quantity of Europium
(Eu) as activator in crystal.
This Europium activation procedure, also called doping,
creates defects in the BaFBr crystals that allow electrons to
trapped more efficiently.
The Reflecting Layer lies b/w phosphor & base layer. which
prevents the reflection of light is also applied.
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Cont…

The Base Layer composed of “Polyethylene

Teraphtalate Resin” over which a layer of
photostimulable phosphor (Europium doped Barium
Fluoro Bromide crystals- BaFBr:Eu+2) is coated.
The next is Backing Layer composed of “Lead” which
prevents the base from damage & reduces back scatter
X-rays.
The last is the Bar-Code Label which contains the
number assigned to the imaging plate.
This Bar-Code provides a mechanism for associating
each imaging plate with Patient identification, Related
examination & Positioning Information.
The imaging plate is flexible and less than 1mm thick.
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LATENT IMAGE FORMATION IN IP:
 To prepare the imaging plate for an x-ray exposure,
the plate is exposed to the intense light to erase any
previous image.
 For X-ray imaging, the IP is placed in a cassette and is
used just like a film/screen cassette with standard
radiographic equipment.
 When exposed to X-ray, the Europium atoms in the
phosphor crystalline lattice are ionized & converted
from Eu2+ - Eu 3+ by librating a Valance Electron:
Eu2+ - X-ray Irradiation - Eu3+ + e-
 These electron are raised to Higher Energy state in
the Conduction Band where they can moved through
out the crystal lattice. 13
Cont…

 The presence of impurities (e.g Bromine) introduce

energy level in the Forbidden Zone called F – centre.
 Once in the Conduction Band, the electron travel freely
until they trapped in the F – centre in the Metastable
State with an energy level slightly below that of
Conduction Band but higher than that of Valance Band.
 The no. of trapped electron is proportional to the amount
of X-ray absorbed locally.
 The trapped electron in the form of metastable state
constitute the Latent Image.
 Due to thermal motion electron will slowly be liberated
from traps, and the Latent Image should there for be read
without too much delay.
 At room temp, the image should, however, be readable
up to 8 hrs. after exposure. 14
 LIFETIME OF THE IP: -
One of the major advantages of CR is that the imaging
plate is reusable and thousands of exposures can be
made on it.However, there are a number of factors
that may affect the lifetime of an imaging plate: -
 The plates are subjected to normal wear and tear
from scratches, scuffs, cracks, and contamination with
dust and dirt, which may interfere with the
production of a good image.
 The establishment of a well organised quality control
program will play an important role in assessing the
clinical quality of the imaging plate. This may easily be
carried out by artefact assessment and uniformity
evaluation across the plate.
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 IMAGING PLATE CLEANER:

Dust and dirt build up on CR phosphor

plates, leading to image artifacts. To
avoid this, plates need cleaning at
regular intervals.

Solvent: Ethanol - 99.7%.

Additives: Catanac SN (Cyastat SN 50)
- 0.3%.
Safety Precautions: -
- Highly flammable.
- Keep container closed.
- Keep away from sources of ignition.
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 IMAGE READER:
The CR image reader is also known
as Analog to Digital Converter (ADC).
Definition: -
It is a device which converts the
Continuous Analog Image of Imaging
Plate into the Digital Image.
Construction: -
It is consists of three parts: -
1. Mechanical Feature.
2. Optical Feature &
3. Computer Control.

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 What Happens to the Plate in the Reader?
1. Cassette is enter the reader.
2. Image plate is removed from cassette
3. Latent image is scanned by laser
4. Image plate is erased with high intensity light.
5. Image plate is returned to cassette and ejected.

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 FUNCTION OR READING PROCESS:
After exposure the cassette is feeded into image reader system.
Where the cassette is opened automatically and the imaging plate
is removed from the cassette inside the reader.
Then the IP is moved along its long axis and scanned sequentially
(Horizontally) by a Monochromatic Infrared Laser Beam of
Helium-Neon (He-Ne) Gas or Solid State Laser of intensity ≈
633nm.
The laser light stimulates the trapped electron moving them up to
the conduction band where they make their exit returning to the
lower energy Valance Band.
This movement involves the transformation of Europium from the
Eu3+ - Eu2+ i.e. Metastable State to Ground State by emission of
energy in the form of light (Blue & Green) having a wavelength
lower than that of the stimulated laser light.

Eu3+ + e- → (Influenced by IR Laser of 633 nm) → Eu2+ + hf (400 nm).

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Cont…

The intensity of the emitted light is proportional to the

amount of x-ray energy absorbed in the PSP – layer.
By using a Optical Filter, that absorbs red light but is
transparent to Blue & Green light
This emitted light is collected using a Light Guide & is
fed to a Photomultiplier Tube where the light is
converted to an Electrical Signal which is amplified to an
Electric Output Signal.
The Electric Output Signal is converted into Digitized
Image Signal by ADC & stored in a computer as a Digital
Matrix.

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Cont…

The Digitized Image Signal is processed by computer &

converted into again in Electric Output Signal by DAC
which is displayed on the monitor.
The whole read out process for a 14” X 17” imaging plate
takes about 30 – 40 sec. thus, a maximum workload of 90
– 120 imaging plates per hrs. is theoretically possible.
But, practically CR system can read only 65 – 70 IP/hrs
accepting mixed cassette size & the time from cassette
exposure to image presentation can be less than 90 sec.
Therefore one reader can serve several radiographic
rooms and the data input is stored on an easy image
workstation.
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Cont…

Erasing Process: -

It is necessary to reuse the imaging plate again.

Because residual Latent Image electrons are still trapped
on higher energy level after readout.
If residual latent image remained, ghosting could appear
on subsequent use of the IP in the next exam.
This energy is erased after the readout process using a
high intensity white light from a bank of specially
designed Fluorescent Lamps source that flushes the
traps without reintroducing electron from the ground
energy level.

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 WORKSTATION:
Here Radiographic Technologist can be processed the
digital image in a variety of ways depending upon the
clinical application & the final image can be recorded as
a hard copy through Multi Format Camera or Laser
Imager. In the form of analog image.
Here digital data is stored on the hard disk of a work
station from where it can be processed, viewed, printed
through or distributed via a local network to peripheral
stations.
The work station provides a DICOM compliant output
which maybe directed to a laser Printer for hard copies,
or networked to other viewing stations or archived in
PACS for Teleradiology.
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 ADVANTAGES OF C.R. SYSTEM:

No special equipment is required.

No handling of Processing Chemicals.
Fewer Repeat examinations should be needed due to
exposure factors because of the wide exposure Latitude.
The CR system are cassette based, they can easily be
integrated into existing radiographic devices are highly
mobile so all types of Radiographic Examination i.e. Mobile,
Portable (Bedside), Trauma, Dental Radiography are possible
with the C.R. system.

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Cont…

If a single Imaging Plate shows defects, it can easily be

replaced by the radiographer himself with no need for
specialized equipment or service person.
The image displayed on the monitor can be
manipulated in a variety of ways: contrast
enhancement, edge enhancement, black/white
reversal, zooming & panning etc (i.e Post Processing).
The process of storing the images does not require
separate rooms and is relatively easier.
Cost effective route to digital radiography.
The acquired image can be transferred to many
monitors, different places for viewing to large no. of
person.
Increased capability for consultation made possible by
electronic transmission of digital images through PACS
& Teleradiology (i.e. networking system).
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 LIMITATIONS OF THE C.R. SYSTEM:

The technique is Time & Labor Intensive like FSR.

Speed Class of 100-200 is similar to that of Medium Speed FSR
system so that radiation dose required is same or more than FSR.

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 INNOVATIONS & NEWER
APPLICATIONS IN CR:

Some of the draw backs of CR system , namely:

- Cassettes Handling.
- Long Read Out Time of PSP Plates.
- Poor Resolution
have been addressed by newer innovations &
technological advances.

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 AUTOMATED CR SYSTEM WITH FAST
READOUT:
CR system efficiency has been recently improved by
reducing the readout time & by removing the step of
cassette handling.
Automated CR system achieve this by line – scan
lasers & photodiode detectors that reduce the
readout time of a PSP plate to less than 10s.
In these system there is no cassette handling, leading
to totally automatic image data acquisition.

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 NEWER PHOSPHORS FOR IP :
Commercially available IP have unstructured phosphor
like Rubidium Chloride (RbCl) or BaFX:Eu
These are scanned in a faster pattern.

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 MOBILE CR SYSTEM:
Bedside radiography of critically ill patients with conventional CR
involves physical transport of the cassettes to the CR reader,
often located far away.
The situation gets worse as the no. of ‘portable ‘ films increase.
To save Labor, Time & Improve Workflow, portable compact CR
system have been introduced in late 2007, with FugiFilm (FCR
Carbon XL CR Reader) & Carestream Health Inc (Pointof –
CAreCR-ITX 560) machines.
These system basically have a mobile X-ray unit with an
integrated CR reader.
So, they are easy to use & offer quick image availability in less
than 25 sec.

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THANK YOU

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