• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.62-68
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• 2014

Recently, MRI(magnetic resonance imager) scanner is continually used for medical diagnosis and many biomedical researches. When it operates, however, intense noise is generated. The SPL(sound pressure level) of the noise approaches 130 dB especially in 3 T(Tesla) MRI. Meanwhile, more than 3 T MRI scanners have been developed to get higher-resolution images, so louder noise is expected in the future. The intense noise makes patients feel nervous and uncomfortable. Moreover, it could possibly cause hearing loss to patient in extreme cases. For this reason, some active noise control systems have been researched. One of them used feedback Filtered-X LMS(FXLMS) algorithm which is able to control only narrowband noises and possible to diverge in severe case. In this paper, we determine the property of MRI noise. Using the property, we applied a method of open-loop and adaptive control for reducing MRI noise at target point inside bore. We verified performance of the method with computer simulation and preliminary experiment. The results demonstrate that the method can effectively reduce MRI noise at target point.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.16 no.11
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• pp.699-706
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• 2016

This study aimed to propose the necessity and system establishment of noise reduction facility via evaluating noise level exposed by the radiographer due to MRI scan. Noise measurements were carried out using at S general hospital in Daejeon using 1.5 Tesla MRI (7 exams) and 3.0 Tesla MRI (16 exams), while using SC-804 noise meter. The measurement distance was from the soundproof door of the MRI room to the radiographer which measured 100cm, and the measurement height, the height to the radiographer's ears when working, 100cm. The noise measured for each exam was an average of three measures per exam which observed the noise occurring in each sequence recorded every 20 seconds. As the results, the maximum of noise exposed by the radiographer is 73.3 dB(A), which is MRCP by the 3.0 Tesla device, and also the maximum of average noise is 66.9(3.1) dB(A), which is Myelogram by the 3.0 Tesla device. Average noise by each device is 61.9(4.1) dB(A) by the 3.0 Tesla device and 52.0(3.1) dB(A) by the 1.5 Tesla device, which comes to the result that the 3.0 Tesla MRI device is about 10 dB(A) degree higher(p <0.001). The noise level exposed by the radiographer does not affect auditory acuity, but the level is able to incur a non auditory effect. The reflect sound can be removed by installing curtains in the rear wall of MRI control room in order to reduce the noises, but, first of all, An institutional system is needed in order to prevent noise.

• Proceedings of the KOSOMBE Conference
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• v.1997 no.11
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• pp.550-554
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• 1997

Acoustic or sound noise due to gradient pulsing has been one of the problems in MRI, both in patient scanning as well as in many areas of psychiatric and neuroscience research, such as unctional MRI (fMRI). Our recent observations in MRI or the visual and motor cortex show very different results with sound noise in comparison with the results obtained without sound noise. Although a number of ideas has been suggested in the literature about the possible elimination or reduction of sound noise, progress has been slow due to the basic role of gradient pulsing in MR imaging. Therefore, we report on some typical behavior of sound noise observed from MRI scanners and the analyses of their characteristics. Data are obtained both from a commercial MRI scanner (GE Signa 1.5-T EPI system).

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2004

Purpose : Information about electrical activity inside the brain during fMRl scans is very useful in monitoring physiological function of the patient or locating the spatial position of the activated region in the brain. However, many additional noises appear in the EEG signal acquired during the MRI scan. Gradient induced noise is the biggest one among the noises. In this work, we propose a gradient noise reduction method using the independent component analysis (ICA) method. Materials and Methods : We used a 29-channel MR-compatible EEG measurement system and a 3.0 Tesla MRI system. We measured EEG signals on a subject lying inside the magnet during EPI scans. We selectively removed the gradient noise from the measured EEG signal using the ICA method. We compared the results with the ones obtained with conventional averaging method and PCA method. Results : All the noise reduction methods including the averaging and PCA methods were effective in removing the noise in some extent. However, the proposed ICA method was found to be superior to the other methods. Conclusion : Gradient noise in EEG signals acquired during fMRI scans can be effectively reduced by the ICA method. The noise-reduced EEG signal can be used in fMRI studies of epileptic patients or combinatory studies of fMRI and EEG.

• Proceedings of the KSMRM Conference
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• 2002.11a
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• pp.96-96
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• 2002

목적： MRI 시스템의 비약적인 발전으로 인하여, 시스템에서 발생되는 noise가 상당히 줄었다. 따라서 시스템에서 발생되는 random noise뿐만 아니라 sampling 과정에서 발생되는 quantization noise도 중요하게 고려하여야 할 요소가 되었다. 특히, MRI 신호의 경우 dynamic range가 크기 때문에 bit 수가 큰 ADC를 이용하여 데이터를 얻어야 한다. 그러나, bit 수가 크고 높은 sampling rate를 갖는 ADC의 경우 가격이 높을 뿐만 아니라, 기존의 장비를 교체해야하는 어려움이 있다. 본 연구는 oversampling과 quantization noise와의 관계를 컴퓨터 시뮬레이션을 통하여 알아보고, MRI영상에서 oversampling을 통하여 quantization noise를 줄임으로써 영상의 질을 개선하고자 한다.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.50-57
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• 1998

MR acoustic sound or noise due to gradient pulsings has been one of the problems in MRI, both in patient scanning as well as in many areas of psychiatric and neuroscience research, such as brain fMRI. Especially in brain fMRI, sound noise is one of the serious noise sources which obscures the small signals obtainable from the subtle changes occurring in oxygenation status in the cortex and blood capillaries. Therfore, we have studied the effects of acoustic or sound noise arising in fMR imaging of the auditory, motor and visual cortices. The results show that the acoustical noise effects on motor and visual responses are opposite. That is, for the motor activity, it shows an increased total motor activation while for the visual stimulation, corresponding(visual) cortical activity has diminished substantially when the subject is exposed to a loud acoustic sound. Although the current observations are preliminary and require more experimental confirmation, it appears that the observed acoustic-noise effects on brain functions, such as in the motor and visual cortices, are new observations and could have significant consequences in data observation and interpretation in future fMRI studies.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering Conference
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• 2014.04a
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• pp.702-703
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• 2014

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.14 no.12
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• pp.6284-6289
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• 2013

With the application of k-space trajectory in a different manner and analyzing the influence of noise and its direction, this study was conducted to obtain high-quality images with minimal influence of noise during an MRI examination for cerebrovascular disease, which has a low signal for imaging. To evaluate influence of the noise of different k-space trajectories, a linear Cartesian coordination trajectory and non-Cartesian coordination trajectory were applied to 38 people who had received a high-resolution MRI examination for the early detection of cerebrovascular disease. As a result, the non-Cartesian coordination trajectory showed a 43.32% lower signal of lumens in the internal carotid artery than a linear Cartesian coordination trajectory, and the noise level was also 50.19% lower in a non-Cartesian coordination trajectory. This result shows that noise occurs less in a non-Cartesian coordination trajectory than a linear Cartesian coordination trajectory, and a non-Cartesian coordination trajectory is more effective in low-signal and low-resolution MRI examination. Therefore, when performing high-resolution MRI examination with a low-signal cerebrovascular system, the use of non-Cartesian coordination k-space trajectory will minimize the influence of noise and provide good images.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.108-115
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• 2003

Purpose : To evaluate the effect of the gradient switching noise on the ECD source localization with the EEG data recorded during the MRI scan. Materials and Methods : We have fabricated a spherical EEG phantom that emulates a human head on which multiple electrodes are attached. Inside the phantom, electric current dipole(ECD) sources are located to evaluate the source localization error. The EEG phantom was placed in the center of the whole-body 3.0 Tesla MRI magnet, and a sinusoidal current was fed to the ECD sources. With an MRI-compatible EEG measurement system, we recorded the multi channel electric potential signals during gradient echo single-shot EPI scans. To evaluate the effect of the gradient switching noise on the ECD source localization, we controlled the gradient noise level by changing the FOV of the EPI scan. With the measured potential signals, we have performed the ECD source localization. Results : The source localization error depends on the gradient switching noise level and the ECD source position. The gradient switching noise has much bigger negative effects on the source localization than the Gaussian noise. We have found that the ECD source localization works reasonably when the gradient switching noise power is smaller than $10\%$ of the EEG signal power. Conclusion : We think that the results of the present study can be used as a guideline to determine the degree of gradient switching noise suppression in EEG when the EEG data are to be used to enhance the performance of fMRI.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SC
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.181-188
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• 2003

In this paper, we introduce a magnetic noise shielding method to reduce the noise effects in permanent magnet based MRI systems. Through FEM electromagnetic analyses, we have shown that the magnetic noise component parallel to the main magnetic field is the major component that makes various artifacts in the images obtained with a permanent magnet based MRI. Based on the FEM analyses, we have developed an active magnetic noise shielding system composed of a magnetic field sensor, compensation coils, and a coil driving system. The shielding system has shown a noise rejection ratio of about 30dB at the frequency below several Hz. We have experimentally verified that the shielding system greatly improves the image quality in a 0.3 Tesla MRI system.