Smart Engines: Controlled tomographic reconstruction technology

The main articles are:

• Computed tomography
• Artificial Intelligence in Medicine

2023: Obtaining a U.S. Patent

On July 6, 2023, Smart Engines announced that it had patented experimental technology in computed tomography in the United States. The development allows you to reduce the dose of radiation when diagnosing patients with COVID and other diseases. Smart Engines intends to integrate the technology into its products and promote them both in Russia and abroad.

The image illustrates the dependence of the quality of the CT image of the lungs on the number of projections: the more projections, the better the image

As reported, tomographic examination using the controlled tomographic reconstruction technology described in US 11,663,757 of May 30, 2023 is fundamentally different from standard CT procedures. If in the classical protocol the number of images and the time of their registration is clearly regulated and cannot be changed after the start of the measurement, then Smart Engines scientists propose to consider tomographic reconstruction as a process with a tracked result.

Artificial intelligence analyzes the results of reconstruction in real time after obtaining the next series of projections and, when the necessary quality of the reconstruction result is achieved, decides to stop scanning. The image illustrates the dependence of the quality of the CT image of the lungs on the number of projections: the more projections, the better the image.

Let's imagine that 360 projections are recorded from the object during tomographic measurement using a standard protocol. We suggest registering five projections first, then, if the image quality is not good enough, another five and so on. The question arises: why register additional projections and spend time on this, if the image quality is already sufficient. told Konstantin Bulatov, one of the authors of the invention, senior researcher programmer - Smart Engines Candidate of Technical Sciences

Smart Engines technology solves several problems at once. On the one hand, it allows you to reduce the dose load - this is important in the context of medicine.

The technology can be applied in any field of medicine where tomographs are used. For example, to build a model in prosthetics, to determine brain neoplasms or injuries, to tomograph the lungs. This technology is especially promising in the process of observing the dynamics of treatment, when a patient is prescribed several CT procedures in a row - with COVID-19 or with bone fusion after a fracture.

{{quote 'author
= told Marina Chukalina, head of the tomography department of Smart Engines, candidate of physical and mathematical sciences' The problem of optimizing the dose when observing the dynamics of the course of coronavirus in a patient or the dynamics of recovery after a previous illness is extremely acute. Since the CT examination in this case is carried out repeatedly and the dose load is summed up, then, of course, I would like to the time of each measurement from the measurement chain the patient received a lower dose.}}

Smart Engines technology solves another important task - it significantly reduces the time of the tomographic experiment. This is important for industrial tomography, since, for example, in nanotomography, the time of the experiment - studying one industrial object - can last tens of hours for July 2023.

{{quote 'author
= Marina Chukalina explained' If one dimension lasts so long - therefore, it is expensive and it is not always advisable to carry it out, because you can find a cheaper way to analyze the internal structure. Application our technology saves time and therefore reduces the cost of a single nanotomographic measurement.}}

The method of controlled tomographic reconstruction patented in the USA was developed by scientists, candidate of technical sciences Konstantin Bulatov, Director General of Smart Engines Candidate of Technical Sciences Vladimir Arlazarov, Head of the Tomography Department Smart Engines Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences Marina Chukalina, technical director, candidate of physical and mathematical sciences Dmitry Nikolaev and candidate of technical sciences Alexei Buzmakov back in 2020 while working on the first version of the Smart Tomo Engine software product.

The SDK can be installed on operated laboratory tomographs to replace standard software or in other hardware and software tomography complexes.

As of July 2023, the Smart Tomo Engine includes three components - a collection of projections and their transfer to the reconstructor, the reconstructor itself and the technology for analyzing results. We are working to include a control unit in the Smart Tomo Engine. It is required to conduct classical experiments in tomography using patented technology. added Vladimir Arlazarov

Smart Engines, which has been developing software for tomographs for more than four years and has invested over 200 million rubles in this area, intends to integrate the technology into its products and promote them both in Russia and abroad.

As of July 2023, the market for CT scans in the world is growing: annually it increases by an average of 7.10%. It was valued at US $41.7 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach US $77.3 billion by 2030. The leader among the regions is North America, which accounts for over 30% of global revenue.

The CT market is expected to grow rapidly due to an increase in the number of projects in medicine and the development of a new market segment - industrial tomography. Vladimir Arlazarov, CEO of Smart Engines Ph.D.

This US patent was the first CT invention obtained by Smart Engines scientists in the States.