Prior art

The USPTO website provides tools for patent searches, including Patent Public Search which allows searching by keywords, inventor, or publication number.

Here's an analysis of the prior art cited in US patent 11369322, focusing on potential anticipation under 35 U.S.C. § 102. Please note that a full anticipation analysis would require a detailed claim-by-claim comparison and expert legal opinion. The descriptions below highlight aspects that could potentially anticipate elements of the independent claims (1, 19, and 20).

Most Relevant Prior Art for US11369322:

The independent claims of US11369322 generally describe a method, computer-readable medium, and system for retrospective internal gating by:

1. Acquiring image data over time (t1...tn) from a moving object.
2. Extracting information from arrays (e.g., voxels) within this data.
3. Generating a time-varying object motion function from this extracted information.
4. Determining motion phase information from the motion function.
5. Generating a motion-corrected image using the phase information and acquired data.

The most relevant prior art would demonstrate these core steps, particularly the internal, software-based derivation of motion from image data itself for gating, as opposed to external hardware.

Here's a breakdown of the cited patents that appear most relevant to the core concepts of US11369322:

• US7359535B2 (Systems and methods for retrospective internal gating)

  • Full Citation: US7359535B2, "Systems and methods for retrospective internal gating", filed June 20, 2003, issued April 15, 2008.
  • Brief Description: This patent describes methods and systems for retrospective internal gating using time-varying data from an imaging system. It involves acquiring time-varying image data, deriving an internal gating signal from this data (e.g., from individual voxels or regions of interest), and then using this signal to sort or reconstruct images to reduce motion artifacts. The description explicitly mentions generating a "gating function" based on time-activity curves of voxels.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent appears highly relevant as it describes "retrospective internal gating" and explicitly mentions deriving a gating signal from "time-activity information of individual voxels" to create a "gating function," which aligns closely with the "time varying object motion function" and "phase information" in claims 1, 19, and 20 of US11369322. The concept of using internal image data for gating, rather than external hardware, is central to both.

• US20050123183A1 (Data driven motion correction for nuclear imaging)

  • Full Citation: US20050123183A1, "Data driven motion correction for nuclear imaging", filed September 2, 2003, published June 9, 2005.
  • Brief Description: This application details a method for motion correction in nuclear imaging (like PET) where motion information is extracted directly from the acquired emission data. It describes identifying pixels (or voxels) that exhibit cyclical variations corresponding to physiological motion (e.g., respiration) and using these variations to derive a motion curve for gating.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This application is highly relevant as it focuses on "data driven motion correction" in nuclear imaging by extracting cyclical motion signals from individual pixels/voxels to create a motion curve for gating. This directly addresses the acquisition of image data, extraction of information from arrays, generation of a motion function, and subsequent image correction, as described in claims 1, 19, and 20 of US11369322.

• US7574249B2 (Device-less gating of physiological movement for improved image detection)

  • Full Citation: US7574249B2, "Device-less gating of physiological movement for improved image detection", filed February 8, 2005, issued August 11, 2009.
  • Brief Description: This patent discloses a method and system for generating a physiological movement gating signal without external devices. It involves acquiring medical image data over time, identifying areas in the data that exhibit physiological motion, generating a motion curve from these areas, and using the motion curve to gate the image data.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): The emphasis on "device-less gating" and deriving a "motion curve" directly from medical image data to correct for physiological movement (like respiration) aligns very closely with the claimed invention of US11369322 (claims 1, 19, and 20).

• US20080253636A1 (Respiratory motion extraction from tomographic projection and image data)

  • Full Citation: US20080253636A1, "Respiratory motion extraction from tomographic projection and image data", filed April 11, 2007, published October 16, 2008.
  • Brief Description: This application describes techniques for extracting respiratory motion from tomographic projection data or reconstructed image data. It includes analyzing changes in image features or signal intensities over time to derive a respiratory motion signal, which can then be used for gating or motion correction.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This reference explicitly addresses "respiratory motion extraction" from image data, which is a key component of generating the "time varying object motion function" and "phase information" in US11369322 (claims 1, 19, and 20). The focus on internal data for motion detection makes it highly relevant.

Other relevant citations, but potentially less direct anticipation of the core "internal gating" aspect:

While the patents below also address motion correction or gating, they may differ in their specific approach to deriving the motion information internally from image data in the same manner as US11369322, or they might focus on different aspects of imaging or correction.

• US6144874A (Respiratory gating method for MR imaging)

  • Full Citation: US6144874A, "Respiratory gating method for MR imaging", filed October 15, 1998, issued November 7, 2000.
  • Brief Description: This patent describes a method for respiratory gating in MRI using a navigator echo to detect respiratory motion.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This discusses respiratory gating, but the method for detecting motion (navigator echo) is different from the voxel-based signal fluctuation analysis of US11369322.

• US6298260B1 (Respiration responsive gating means and apparatus and methods using the same)

  • Full Citation: US6298260B1, "Respiration responsive gating means and apparatus and methods using the same", filed February 25, 1998, issued October 2, 2001.
  • Brief Description: This patent describes an apparatus for respiration-responsive gating using a sensor that detects movement of the chest or abdomen.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This relies on an external sensor for gating, which is explicitly contrasted by the internal, software-derived gating of US11369322.

• US6501981B1 (Apparatus and method for compensating for respiratory and patient motions during treatment)

  • Full Citation: US6501981B1, "Apparatus and method for compensating for respiratory and patient motions during treatment", filed March 16, 1999, issued December 31, 2002.
  • Brief Description: This patent focuses on compensating for motion during radiation treatment, often involving tracking markers or external respiratory monitors.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): Similar to US6298260B1, this patent appears to rely on external means for motion compensation rather than the internal data-driven approach of US11369322.

• US6539074B1 (Reconstruction of multislice tomographic images from four-dimensional data)

  • Full Citation: US6539074B1, "Reconstruction of multislice tomographic images from four-dimensional data", filed August 25, 2000, issued March 25, 2003.
  • Brief Description: This patent describes methods for reconstructing 4D (3D + time) tomographic images, which inherently deal with time-varying data but may not specifically detail the derivation of a motion function from voxel fluctuations for gating in the same way.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): While dealing with 4D data, the specific mechanism for deriving the "time varying object motion function" from internal image data for gating as claimed in US11369322 might not be fully present.

• US7756307B2 (Method of, and software for, conducting motion correction for a tomographic scanner)

  • Full Citation: US7756307B2, "Method of, and software for, conducting motion correction for a tomographic scanner", filed October 17, 2003, issued July 13, 2010.
  • Brief Description: This patent describes software-based motion correction for tomographic scanners, which is broad and could encompass various techniques.
  • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): The broad nature of "software for motion correction" means a detailed comparison would be needed to see if the specific steps of deriving the motion function from individual array fluctuations for retrospective gating are disclosed.

This analysis provides an initial assessment of the most relevant prior art. A definitive statement on anticipation would require a more in-depth legal analysis.