title: Development of a simulator for radiographic image optimization.
abstract: A software package, incorporating two computational patient phantoms, has been developed for optimizing X-ray radiographic imaging. A tomographic phantom, visible photographic Man tomographic phantom (VIP-Man), constructed from Visible Human anatomical color images is used to simulate the scattered portion of an X-ray system using the Electron Gamma Shower National Research Council (EGSnrc) Monte Carlo code. The primary portion of an X-ray image is simulated using the projection ray-tracing method through the Visible Human CT data set. To produce a realistic image, the software simulates quantum noise, blurring effects, lesions, detector absorption efficiency, and other imaging artifacts. The primary and scattered portions of an X-ray chest image are combined to form a final image for future observer studies and image quality analysis. Absorbed doses in organs and tissues of the segmented VIP-Man phantom were also obtained from the Monte Carlo simulations. This paper presents methods of the simulator and preliminary results.
authors.affiliation: Program of Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, USA.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Winslow
authors.forename: X George
authors.initials: XG
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Birsen
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yazici
mesh_terms: D003201:Computers; D006801:Humans; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D011856:Radiographic Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D011857:Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D012984:Software; D014481:United States