JP3476255B2 - CT device - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention A power supply or a signal is supplied between a rotating side having radiation generating means or radiation detecting means and a non-rotating side having means for supplying power to the radiation generating means. Ring manufacturing method, slip ring and CT
Related to the device. 2. Description of the Related Art An X-ray CT apparatus irradiates a patient with X-rays, detects a difference in X-ray absorptivity of a human body tissue such as an organ, blood, gray matter, etc., and subjects it to computer processing. By doing so, an image of the tomographic plane (slice plane) of the imaging target site is obtained. In such an X-ray CT apparatus, necessary data is collected while integrally rotating an X-ray tube and a detector that are installed opposite to each other with a patient therebetween during imaging, but a continuously rotating X-ray In the case of a CT device, devices (X-ray tube,
Signal transmission and power supply between the detector and the like and the device power supply unit, computer, display unit and the like provided on the non-rotating side are performed via a slip ring and a brush. [0003] Among slip rings used for X-ray CT, a disk type slip ring in which concentric conductive lines are provided on an insulating disk plate has a gantry thickness.
(Depth) can be reduced, there is a merit that the feeling of oppression to the patient is reduced and the technician can easily access the patient. FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a gantry of an X-ray CT having a disk type slip ring, FIG. 9 is a left side view in FIG. 8, FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a housing 11, and FIG.
1 is a sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 10, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the ring in FIG. [0005] In FIGS. 8 and 9, reference numeral 1 denotes an X-ray tube for irradiating a patient with X-rays. The X-ray tube 1 rotates via a bearing 3 with respect to a frame 2 on a non-rotating side (fixed side). It is attached to a rotating casing 4 which is a rotatable housing provided. The frame 2 is composed of an upper frame 2a and a lower frame 2b. A roller guide 5 is provided on the lower frame 2b, and an arc surface 2c abutting on the roller guide 5 is provided on a surface of the upper frame 2a facing the lower frame 2b. The upper frame 2b is formed
b can swing back and forth. The rotary casing 4 is provided with a large pulley (belt wheel) 6, while the lower frame 2b is provided with a motor 7,
The rotary casing 4 is driven to rotate by a belt 9 wound around a small pulley 8 and a large pulley 6 attached to an output shaft of a motor 7. On the rotating casing 4, the X-ray irradiated from the X-ray tube 1 is opposed to the X-ray tube 1.
A detector 10 for detecting a line is provided. Further, the rotating casing 4 is provided with a housing 11 of a slip ring adjacent to the large pulley 6. [0006] The housing 11 is made of an insulating material.
As shown in FIG. 11, a plurality of concentric grooves 11a are formed. Rings 12 having different diameters are provided in each groove 11 a of the housing 11. As shown in FIG. 12, the ring 12 is formed by processing a strip-shaped conductive plate material 14 into an annular shape, welding both ends thereof, and protruding stud bolts 13 on the lower surface. And is fixed to each groove 11 a of the housing 11. The ring 12 is connected to the groove 11 of the housing 11.
The reason for this is that the power supplied to the X-ray tube and the detector is a high voltage, so that the creepage distance is secured and each ring 1
This is to prevent a discharge phenomenon between the two. Returning to FIG. 8, brushes 15 are provided on the non-rotating side frame 2 so as to face the respective rings 12.
Are arranged. The brush 15 includes a brush piece 16 that slides on each ring 12 and brush piece pressing means 17 that presses the brush piece 16 against the ring 12. [0010] By sliding contact between the brush piece 16 of the brush 15 and the ring 12, the equipment (X-ray tube 1, detector 10, etc.) provided on the rotating casing 4 on the fixed side and the frame 2 on the non-rotating side. , A computer power supply unit, a computer, a display unit, etc.). However, in the slip ring having the above structure, the ring 12 is manufactured as a separate part having a different diameter, so that there is a problem that the cost is increased. Further, each ring 12 must be assembled to the housing 11, and there is also a problem that the number of steps is increased. Further, for example, if an electrical component required for electrical processing such as a connector is to be installed in the vicinity of the slip ring, it is necessary to newly provide a board for the electrical component, which is costly. There is a problem that the characteristic is not good. The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a slip ring, a slip ring, and a CT apparatus having a simple structure. Means for Solving the Problems A first method for solving the above problems is described below.
The invention of a slip ring manufacturing method in which power supply or signal transmission / reception is performed between a rotating side provided with radiation generating means or radiation detecting means and a non-rotating side provided with means for supplying power to the radiation generating means, An annular housing that fits into each groove of the housing, and an annular portion that fits into each groove of the housing; A slip ring having a connecting portion for connecting adjacent annular portions, an insulating substrate having a conductive pattern formed on each of the annular portions, and closing the cutout with an insulating fitting member. It is a manufacturing method. According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a slip ring in which power is supplied or a signal is transmitted and received between a rotating side having a radiation generating means or a radiation detecting means and a non-rotating side having a means for supplying power to the radiation generating means. And a slip ring using an insulating substrate on which a plurality of concentric conductive patterns are formed. According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a slip ring in which power is supplied or a signal is transmitted and received between a rotating side having a radiation generating means or a radiation detecting means and a non-rotating side having a means for supplying power to the radiation generating means. A plurality of concentric grooves, an insulative housing in which at least one notch is formed in a wall of the groove, an annular portion that fits into each groove of the housing, and a groove that fits in the notch. A connecting portion that connects adjacent annular portions, each of the annular portions is a slip ring having an insulating substrate on which a conductive pattern is formed, and an insulating fitting member that closes the notch. is there. Here, from the viewpoint of obtaining good electric characteristics and from the viewpoint of cost, a through hole is provided in the housing, and the electric component which is fitted into the through hole and electrically connected to the conductive pattern is insulated. It is desirable to provide it on the substrate. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a slip ring in which power is supplied or a signal is transmitted / received between a rotating side having radiation generating means or radiation detecting means and a non-rotating side having power supplying means for the radiation generating means. An insulating substrate on which a plurality of concentric conductive patterns are formed, an insulating plate fixed to a surface of the insulating substrate opposite to the surface on which the conductive pattern is formed, and fixing of the insulating plate to the insulating substrate A conductive plate fixed to a surface opposite to the surface, the insulating substrate, a housing provided with the insulating plate and the conductive plate, and connection means for mounting the housing to the insulating substrate, the insulating plate and the conductive plate; It is a slip ring having. Here, the connection means includes a bolt provided upright on the surface of the conductive plate opposite to the surface on which the insulating plate is fixed, a hole formed in the housing, through which the bolt is inserted, and a hole in the housing. And a nut which is screwed into a bolt through which the nut is inserted. Further, for positioning the insulating substrate, the insulating plate and the conductive plate, a slot formed on the surface of the conductive plate opposite to the insulating plate fixing surface and extending in the radial direction;
It is desirable that a pin be provided upright on the housing and engage with the elongated hole. In the second to fourth inventions, it is preferable that the conductive pattern is formed by an etching method or a plating method. A fifth invention is a CT apparatus having a slip ring for supplying power or transmitting and receiving signals between a rotating side having radiation generating means or radiation detecting means and a non-rotating side having means for supplying power to the radiation generating means. , The slip ring is a CT apparatus including an insulating substrate on which a plurality of concentric conductive patterns are formed. In the method of manufacturing a slip ring according to the first aspect of the present invention, the use of an insulating substrate on which conductive patterns having different diameters are formed at a time reduces the number of assembling steps and costs. In the slip rings according to the second to fourth aspects of the present invention, since conductive patterns having different diameters are formed at a time, the structure is simplified. In the slip ring according to the third aspect of the present invention, since the electric component can be attached to the insulating substrate, the electric characteristics are good, and it is not necessary to newly provide a substrate, and the cost is reduced. In the slip ring according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the insulating plate and the conductive plate are fixed to the insulating substrate, the rigidity of the insulating substrate is increased as compared with the insulating substrate alone, and the transport and mounting are facilitated. In the CT apparatus according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the configuration is simplified by using an insulating substrate on which conductive patterns having different diameters are formed at once for the slip ring. Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining assembly in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an X-ray CT apparatus provided with the first embodiment, FIG. 4 is a view for explaining the second embodiment. First, a first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 3, the overall configuration will be described. still,
In this figure, the same parts as those in FIG.
Their description is omitted. 100 is where the subject is placed,
It is a table provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction. A cradle 101 is provided on the table 100 so as to be movable in the gantry direction. Next, in FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 31 denotes a housing made of an insulating material and formed with a plurality of concentric grooves 31a partitioned by walls. Housing 3 of this embodiment
No. 1 is composed of four circular housing units 31b having a central angle of 90 ° so that the housing can be replaced in units of housing at the time of replacement and repair for cost reduction. It should be noted that the housing 31 may of course be an integral body, and the central angle of the housing unit 31b is not limited to 90 °, but may be a divisor of 360 ° or a total of 360 °. . Further, one notch 31c is provided in the wall between each groove 31a of each housing unit 31b. 32 is a disk-shaped insulating substrate. The insulating substrate 32 includes an annular portion 32a that fits into each groove 31a of the housing 31, and a connecting portion 32b that fits into each cutout 31c of the housing 31 and connects the adjacent annular portions 32a. A conductive pattern 33 for a power supply line to an X-ray tube, a detector, and the like and a signal line from the detector are formed in each annular portion 32a by an etching method or a plating method. The housing 3 on which the insulating substrate 32 is set
The first notch 31c is fitted with an insulating fitting member 34, and the notch 31c is closed by closing the notch 31c.
To prevent a discharge phenomenon between adjacent conductive patterns 33 caused by the above. In the present embodiment, a vertical groove 31d is formed on each of the upright walls facing each other on both sides of the notch 31c. On the other hand, a fitting member 34 fitted into the notch 31c has
A protrusion 34a that fits into the vertical groove 31d is formed to prevent the fitting member 34 from being detached from the notch 31c. Furthermore, when the vertical groove 31d and the protrusion 34a are not provided, the detachment of the fitting member 34 from the notch 31c can be prevented by a method such as bonding or press fitting. Next, a method of manufacturing the above configuration will be described. (1) The four housing units 31b are positioned using a jig, and the respective housing units 31b are connected to form a housing 31. (2) The insulating substrate 32 on which the conductive pattern 33 is formed is set on the housing 31. (3) The fitting member 34 is fitted into the notch 31c. (4) Attach the completed slip ring to the rotating casing. In the slip ring having the above configuration, since the conductive patterns 33 having different diameters are formed on the insulating substrate 32 at one time by a method such as an etching method or a plating method, the configuration is low-cost and simple. The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. (1) As shown in FIG. 4, each conductive pattern 33 can be easily led to the surface on the opposite side of the insulating substrate 32 through the through hole 40. Therefore, a through hole is provided in the housing 31, and an electric component such as a connector that fits into the through hole of the housing 31 can be directly attached to the surface opposite to the insulating substrate 32. The attachment of such an electric component has good electric characteristics and does not require a separate substrate, so that the cost can be reduced. (2) If there is at least one notch 31c provided in the groove 31a, the annular portions 32a of the insulating substrate 32 are connected.
It is not limited to four. (3) Since the conductive pattern 33 of the slip ring having the above structure is a power supply line for a high-voltage, large-current X-ray tube or a detector, the housing 31 is used to prevent a discharge phenomenon between the conductive patterns. And a conductive pattern 33 is arranged in each groove 31a. However, when all the conductive patterns 33 are low-voltage, low-current lines, such as signal lines, the discharge phenomenon is unlikely to occur, so the grooved housing 31 becomes unnecessary, and the insulating substrate 32 is a flat insulating plate. It is sufficient to attach it to a housing. (4) In the above embodiment, an example was described in which an X-ray tube was used as the radiation generating means. However, other means for generating radiation such as γ-rays or positrons may be used. Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the slip ring of the third embodiment, FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the slip ring assembly in FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is a view for explaining the mounting of the housing and the slip ring in FIG. . The slip ring of the present embodiment is a slip ring for a low-voltage, low-current line such as a signal line. In FIG. 5, reference numeral 50 denotes a disk-shaped housing made of an insulating material. 51 is a slip ring assembly attached to the housing 50. As shown in FIG. 6, the slip ring assembly 51 includes an insulating substrate 52 on which a plurality of concentric conductive patterns 53 for signal lines from a detector are formed by an etching method and a plating method. An insulating plate 54 made of an insulating material (e.g., a polyethylene film) is bonded to a surface opposite to the surface on which the pattern 53 is formed, and a surface of the insulating plate 54 opposite to the bonding surface of the insulating plate 52 with the insulating substrate 52 is provided. Bonded metal conductive plate 55
And more. The attachment of the slip ring assembly 51 and the housing 50 is performed as shown in FIGS.
The stud bolt 60 is erected on the conductive plate 55 of the slip ring assembly 51, and the stud bolt 60 is mounted on the housing 50.
Is formed by drilling a hole 61 through which the hole 61 is inserted, and screwing a nut 62 into a stud bolt 60 inserted through the hole 61. Further, the housing 5 of the slip ring 51
Positioning with respect to 0 is performed by forming a long hole 65 extending in the radial direction in the conductive plate 55 and erecting a pin 65 engaging with the long hole 65 in the housing 50. The conductive plate 55 is connected to the earth on the rotating side. In the slip ring having the above configuration,
Since the conductive patterns 53 having different diameters are formed on the insulating substrate 52 at one time by a method such as an etching method or a plating method, the configuration is simple at low cost. Further, the insulating substrate 32 of the first embodiment was not rigid and was difficult to transport and mount. However, in this embodiment, the slip substrate in which the insulating substrate 52, the insulating plate 54, and the conductive plate 55 are laminated is used. The use of the ring assembly 53 facilitates transportation and installation. The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. In the above embodiment, the insulating plate 54 made of a polyethylene film is provided between the insulating substrate 52 and the conductive plate 55.
It is not always necessary if the insulating substrate 52 can ensure sufficient insulation. Further, in the above embodiment, the pins 66 are provided on the housing 50 side and the elongated holes 65 are provided on the conductive plate 55 side. However, the pins may be provided on the conductive plate plate side and the elongated holes may be provided on the housing side. According to the slip ring manufacturing method of the first invention, the use of the insulating substrate on which the conductive patterns having different diameters are formed at one time reduces the number of assembly steps and the cost. I can do it. According to the slip rings of the second to fourth aspects of the present invention, since conductive patterns having different diameters are formed at one time, the structure is simplified. According to the slip ring of the third aspect, since the electric component can be mounted on the insulating substrate, the electrical characteristics are good, and it is not necessary to newly provide a substrate, and the cost can be reduced. According to the slip ring of the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the insulating plate and the conductive plate are fixed to the insulating substrate, the rigidity is higher than that of the insulating substrate alone, and the transport and the attachment are facilitated. According to the CT apparatus of the fifth aspect, the configuration is simplified by using the insulating substrate on which the conductive patterns having different diameters are formed at one time for the slip ring.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining assembly in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an X-ray CT apparatus provided with the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a second embodiment. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a slip ring according to a third embodiment. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the slip ring assembly in FIG. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating attachment of a housing and a slip ring in FIG. 5; FIG. 8: X-ray C having a disk-type slip ring
FIG. 2 is a sectional configuration diagram of a gantry T. FIG. 9 is a left side view in FIG. FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a housing in FIG. 8; 11 is a sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. FIG. 12 is a configuration perspective view of a ring in FIG. 10; [Description of Signs] 31 Housing 31a Groove 31c Notch 32 Insulating substrate 33 Conductive pattern

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-63-40536 (JP, A) JP-A-5-170105 (JP, A) JP-A-59-9883 (JP, A) 131086 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A61B 6/00-6/14

Claims (1)

(57) Claims 1. A gantry having a rotating part and a non-rotating part, wherein a voltage supplied from the non-rotating part side is supplied via a conductive pattern in a slip ring in the rotating part. While being supplied to the radiation generating means in the rotating part,
In a CT apparatus that outputs a signal detected by a radiation detection unit in the rotating unit to the non-rotating unit side via the conductive pattern, the slip ring has a plurality of concentric grooves, and the slip ring has Has an insulating housing in which one or more cutouts are formed, and a hole into which the wall of the groove of the housing fits, and fits into the groove and the cutout of the housing, and corresponds to the groove when fitted. The conductive pattern is formed in an annular portion, and portions other than the conductive pattern are used to form an insulating substrate that is insulative and an annular wall that has a notch by closing the notch of the housing. By fitting the insulating substrate into the housing and fitting the fitting member into a notch in the housing,
A CT apparatus, wherein the housing, the insulating substrate, and the fitting member are integrated.