| US 7,551,761 B2 | ||
| Method and apparatus for fast automatic centerline extraction for virtual endoscopy | ||
| Bernhard Geiger, Cranbury, N.J. (US); and Jean-Daniel Boissonnat, Mouans-Sartoux (France) | ||
| Assigned to Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., Malvern, Pa. (US) | ||
| Filed on Oct. 21, 2008, as Appl. No. 12/254,945. | ||
| Application 12/254945 is a division of application No. 10/842972, filed on May 11, 2004, granted, now 7,457,444. | ||
| Claims priority of provisional application 60/470579, filed on May 14, 2003. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2009/0041321 A1, Feb. 12, 2009 | ||
| Int. Cl. G06K 9/00 (2006.01); G06T 11/20 (2006.01); G06T 15/00 (2006.01); G06T 17/00 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 382—128 [382/131; 382/154; 382/180; 345/419; 345/420; 345/424; 345/441] | 9 Claims |

| 1. A method for automatic centerline extraction for a virtual endoscopy image of an organ having a boundary wall, comprising:
deriving an endoscopy voxel dataset by using an endoscopy protocol;
starting with an initial voxel in said dataset, labeling voxels neighboring said initial voxel with a first label number of
a series of consecutively increasing label numbers;
labeling voxels neighboring respective ones of said voxels having said first label number with a second label number of said
series;
repeating the foregoing step by labeling with progressively higher label numbers those voxels neighboring voxels numbered
in said foregoing step, until an endpoint is reached with voxels having a highest label number;
starting at a first voxel with said highest label number, searching for a neighboring second voxel with a smaller label number
than said first voxel and storing the location thereof;
starting at said second voxel, searching for a neighboring third voxel with a smaller label number than said second voxel
and storing the location thereof;
repeating the foregoing step until said initial voxel is reached, thereby establishing an initial path through said image
between said initial and said first voxel;
smoothing said initial path to result in an intermediate path, said intermediate path exhibiting plurality of vertices;
centering on a first vertex, a sphere exhibiting a maximal diameter short of contacting said boundary walls;
centering on further vertices, further respective spheres exhibiting respective maximal diameters short of contacting said
boundary wall; and forming a centered path by consecutively joining centers of said spheres;
wherein the above steps is performed by a digital computer.
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