CTX imaging is an image capture process that integrates the traditional techniques of computed tomography (CT) scanners and X-rays. The system is still in prototype stage and is far from small (at present, it’s still as big as one whole room), but Dr. Elizabeth Brainerd of Brown University, who heads the project, hopes that it will become commercial by the first decade of the 21st century.

Problems with Previous Technology

The two origin technologies of CTX imaging, CT scanner and X-ray, each had their own problems with regards to capturing images. CT scans produce high quality images which can be viewed in three dimensions, at the cost of speed; subjects being observed have to stay still for up to an hour. X-rays use a method called fluoroscopy which takes images in quick succession, but at the cost of quality; images produced by x-rays can be pieced together to create a video, but they’re of much lower quality and are limited to two dimensional views.

New Features of CTX Imaging

CTX imaging is revolutionary in that it combines the features of CT scanners and X-rays without compromising either capture speed or image quality. Image capture starts with a traditional X-ray of the subject being observed. Then, images from the CT scan will be used to create a detailed three dimensional model of the subject’s bone structure. High speed fluoroscopy, an X-ray technique, is applied from two different angles to capture the subject’s bones in motion. Data from both sets of equipment are then processed by imaging software, which combines them into a fully animated footage of the bones in action, which can be viewed in full 3D. Image capture is fast while great resolution is also achieved.

(http://brown.edu)

Dr. Brainerd hopes that the advances brought about by the CTX imaging technology will help the medical and biological field in studying new fields such as certain aspects of skeletal kinematics.

Other Applications of CTX Imaging

CTX imaging technology is also widely used in security applications such as in baggage checks at airports. The authorities have found the ability of CTX equipment to capture detailed 3D video of objects in motion to be useful in their line of work.

Security professionals prefer CTX imaging technology because of its speed (a single CTX imaging machine can process more than five hundred bags in one hour). The latest and most advanced CTX technology imaging device is currently in use in airports.

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