Parallel computing approach for efficient 3-D X-ray-simulated image reconstruction

Accurate 3-dimensional(3-D)reconstruction technology for nondestructive testing based on digital radiography(DR)is of great importance for alleviating the drawbacks of the existing computed tomography(CT)-based method.The commonly used Monte Carlo simulation method ensures well-performing imaging results for DR.However,for 3-D reconstruction,it is limited by its high time consumption.To solve this problem,this study proposes a parallel computing method to accelerate Monte Carlo simulation for projection images with a parallel interface and a specific DR application.The images are utilized for 3-D reconstruction of the test model.We verify the accuracy of parallel computing for DR and evaluate the performance of two parallel computing modes-multithreaded applications(G4-MT)and message-passing interfaces(G4-MPI)-by assessing parallel speedup and efficiency.This study explores the scalability of the hybrid G4-MPI and G4-MT modes.The results show that the two parallel computing modes can significantly reduce the Monte Carlo simulation time because the parallel speedup increment of Monte Carlo simulations can be considered linear growth,and the parallel efficiency is maintained at a high level.The hybrid mode has strong scalability,as the overall run time of the 180 simulations using 320 threads is 15.35 h with 10 billion particles emitted,and the parallel speedup can be up to 151.36.The 3-D reconstruction of the model is achieved based on the filtered back projection(FBP)algorithm using 180 projection images obtained with the hybrid G4-MPI and G4-MT.The quality of the reconstructed sliced images is satisfactory because the images can reflect the internal structure of the test model.This method is applied to a complex model,and the quality of the reconstructed images is evaluated.

Using on-site liver 3-D reconstruction and volumetric calculations in split liver transplantation

BACKGROUND： Split liver transplantation increases the number of grafts available for transplantation. Pre-recovery assessment of liver graft volume is essential for selecting suitable recipients. The purpose of this study was to determine the ability and feasibility of constructing a 3-D model to aid in surgical planning and to predict graft weight prior to an in situ division of the donor liver. METHODS： Over 11 months, 3-D volumetric reconstruction of 4 deceased donors was performed using Pathfinder Scout liver volumetric software. Demographic, laboratory, operative, perioperative and survival data for these patients along with donor demographic data were collected prospectively and analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS： The average predicted weight of the grafts from the adult donors obtained from an in situ split procedure were 1130 g （930-1458 g） for the extended right lobe donors and 312 g （222-396 g） for left lateral segment grafts. Actual adult graft weight was 92% of the predicted weight for both the extended right grafts and the left lateral segment grafts. The predicted and actual graft weights for the pediatric donors were 176 g and 210 g for the left lateral segment grafts and 308 g and 280 g for the extended right lobe grafts,respectively. All grafts were transplanted except for the right lobe from the pediatric donors due to the small graft weight.CONCLUSIONS： On-site volumetric assessment of donors provides useful information for the planning of an in situ split and for selection of recipients. This information may expand the donor pool to recipients previously felt to be unsuitable due to donor and/or recipient weight.

A 3-D RECONSTRUCTION METHOD BASED ON THE CONSTRAINT OF EPIPOLAR GEOMETRY

This paper combines the least-square method and iteration method to get the fundamental matrix and develops a new evaluation function based on the epipolar geometry. During the iteration, with the evaluation function as a measurment, the points which bring larger noise are deleted, and the points with smaller noise are retained, thus the precision of our method is increased. The experiment results indicate the new method is precise in calculation, stable in performance and resistant to noise.

PC-BASED SURFACE RECONSTRUCTION OF MEDICAL CT IMAGES

It is an active research area to reconstruct 3-D object and display its visible surfacesfrom cross-sectional images. In this paper, the methods of reconstructing 3-D object from medicalCT images and displaying the visible surfaces are discussed. A polygon approximation methodthat forms polygon with the same number of segment points and a fast interpolation method forcross-sectional contours are presented at first. Then the voxel set of a human liver is reconstructed.And then the liver voxel set is displayed using depth and gradient shading methods. The softwareis written in C programming language at a microcomputer image processing system with a PC/ATcomputer as the host and a PC-VISION board as the image processing unit. The result of theprocessing is satisfying.

A new navigation approach of terrain contour matching based on 3-D terrain reconstruction from onboard image sequence

This article presents a passive navigation method of terrain contour matching by reconstructing the 3-D terrain from the image sequence(acquired by the onboard camera).To achieve automation and simultaneity of the image sequence processing for navigation,a correspondence registration method based on control points tracking is proposed which tracks the sparse control points through the whole image sequence and uses them as correspondence in the relation geometry solution.Besides,a key frame selection method based on the images overlapping ratio and intersecting angles is explored,thereafter the requirement for the camera system configuration is provided.The proposed method also includes an optimal local homography estimating algorithm according to the control points,which helps correctly predict points to be matched and their speed corresponding.Consequently,the real-time 3-D terrain of the trajectory thus reconstructed is matched with the referenced terrain map,and the result of which provides navigating information.The digital simulation experiment and the real image based experiment have verified the proposed method.

Three-Dimensional Reconstruction of E.coli SecA at Low Resolution

SecA is the essential component of the signal-peptide dependent translocation pathway in Escherichia coil （E.coh）. The structure and function of SecA must be known to understand the molecular mechanism of preprotein translocation. The high flexibility of SecA causes a dynamic conformational heterogeneity which presents a barrier to the growth of crystals of high diffraction quality. Electron microscopy was used to resolve the macromolecular structure of SecA in solution by negative staining and single particle analysis at a resolution of 2.9 nm. The structure of E. coil SecA is similar to the dimeric form of Bacillus subtilis SecA and is 10 nm × 10 nm × 5 nm in size.

Virtual Temporal Bone Anatomy

Background The Visible Human Project(VHP) initiated by the U.S. National Library of Medicine has drawn much attention and interests from around the world. The Visible Chinese Human(VCH) project has started in China. The current study aims at acquiring a feasible virtual methodology for reconstructing the temporal bone of the Chinese population, which may provide an accurate 3-D model of important temporal bone structures that can be used in teaching and patient care for medical scientists and clinicians. Methods A series of sectional images of the temporal bone were generated from section slices of a female cadaver head. On each sectional image, SOIs (structures of interest) were segmented by carefully defining their contours and filling their areas with certain gray scale values. The processed volume data were then inducted into the 3D Slicer software(developed by the Surgical Planning Lab at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the MIT AI Lab) for resegmentation and generation of a set of tagged images of the SOIs. 3D surface models of SOIs were then reconstructed from these images. Results The temporal bone and structures in the temporal bone, including the tympanic cavity, mastoid cells, sigmoid sinus and internal carotid artery, were successfully reconstructed. The orientation of and spatial relationship among these structures were easily visualized in the reconstructed surface models. Conclusion The 3D Slicer software can be used for 3- dimensional visualization of anatomic structures in the temporal bone, which will greatly facilitate the advance of knowledge and techniques critical for studying and treating disorders involving the temporal bone.

Quality Evaluation of Image Recording Strategies for Limited Angle Tomography

In this paper we propose a new method for evaluating image recording strategies for limited angle tomography. In limited angle tomography exact three-dimensional （3-D） reconstruction is not achievable. With this method a metric for the reachable reconstruction quality by defined X-ray source trajectories is calculated. The result of our method is independent of reconstruction algorithms. Our approach is based on the gradients of the scanned volume and their grade of determinability. Compared to simulated reconstruction accuracy with simultaneous algebraic reconstruction techniques, the method of evaluation shows the same dependencies on X-ray source trajectories. By using the proposed method different source trajectories for a limited angle range are comparable with respect to the reachable reconstruction quality.