• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.179-201
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• 2019

Portable low-cost magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems have the potential to enable "point-of-care" and timely MRI diagnosis, and to make this imaging modality available to routine scans and to people in underdeveloped countries and areas. With simplicity, no maintenance, no power consumption, and low cost, permanent magnets/magnet arrays/magnet assemblies are attractive to be used as a source of static magnetic field to realize the portability and to lower the cost for an MRI scanner. However, when taking the canonical Fourier imaging approach and using linear gradient fields, homogeneous fields are required in a scanner, resulting in the facts that either a bulky magnet/magnet array is needed, or the imaging volume is too small to image an organ if the magnet/magnet array is scaled down to a portable size. Recently, with the progress on image reconstruction based on non-linear gradient field, static field patterns without spatial linearity can be used as spatial encoding magnetic fields (SEMs) to encode MRI signals for imaging. As a result, the requirements for the homogeneity of the static field can be relaxed, which allows permanent magnets/magnet arrays with reduced sizes, reduced weight to image a bigger volume covering organs such as a head. It offers opportunities of constructing a truly portable low-cost MRI scanner. For this exciting potential application, permanent magnets/magnet arrays have attracted increased attention recently. A magnet/magnet array is strongly associated with the imaging volume of an MRI scanner, image reconstruction methods, and RF excitation and RF coils, etc. through field patterns and field homogeneity. This paper offers a review of permanent magnets and magnet arrays of different kinds, especially those that can be used for spatial encoding towards the development of a portable and low-cost MRI system. It is aimed to familiarize the readers with relevant knowledge, literature, and the latest updates of the development on permanent magnets and magnet arrays for MRI. Perspectives on and challenges of using a permanent magnet/magnet array to supply a patterned static magnetic field, which does not have spatial linearity nor high field homogeneity, for image reconstruction in a portable setup are discussed.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers B
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• v.50 no.12
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• pp.587-591
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• 2001

This paper describes the general and efficient design method of an axial and a radial shim coils to correct field impurities of various harmonic orders in the imaging volume of Magnetic Resonance Imaging magnet. Shim coils are optimized by BCLSF subroutine of IMSL, which is the well-known commercial package for optimization, aiming at maximizing the magnitude of the desired field component as well as minimizing other field components. In order to evaluate their effect, the developed method was applied to the MRI magnet constructed in KERI.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers B
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.421-430
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• 2000

This paper describes an optimal design method which is applied a weighted least square (WLS) method for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system. An optimal design approach is presented for a homogeneity superconducting magnet with the superconducting active shield especially for a magnetic resonance imaging system. The WLS is used to obtain the optimal configurations using the least amount and minimum volume of conductor, exhibiting the smallest level of field inhomogeneity and resulting in the least level of stray field. The proposed model is used to design a multiple-shield configuration for a 1.5 T MRI magnet. The field homogeneity is required less than 5 gauss stray field contour within 4m axially and 3m radially from origin. The designed magnet with the actively magnetic shielding coil out of main coils is analyzed by FEM and theoretical analysis method, investigated the field homogeneity.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
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• v.15 no.4 s.57
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• pp.89-96
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• 2006

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner is the device to draw an image of conditions and the spread of various tissue in the body. It is used by making the patient into rounded superconductor and using high frequency which cause resonances. It uses superconduction magnet and high frequency that is non-ionizing radiation so can acquire biochemical, physical, and functional information of tissue. It is also very useful because it can scan tomography from many different angles to diagnose disease of a nervous system, the heart, and a skeletal structure. It also has advantages of that there is no risk of radiation exposure and the ability of observation on organizations such as brains, livers and the spinal cord of people. Since these features, the rate of use has been increased accordingly more considerations of the security are required when it plans. The weight of devices and the cover problem of the strong magnetic field which is occurred by magnetic resonance at the time of diagnosis can cause very important structure problems and architectural condition. That also the recent tendency which needs stronger equipment means that planning of the MRI unit should generally aim at purposing of the proximity for the device maintenance and up-grade and of further expansion. However there are not enough studies and data on the magnet resonance imaging in domestic hospitals. According to these reasons, this study has an object of indicating basic data on MRI unit plan standard and alternative proposals.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.32 no.8
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• pp.654-659
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• 2008

This paper is to suggest a concept design of the permanent magnet type magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) device based on the parameter optimization method. Pulse currents in the gradient coils will introduce the effect of eddy currents in the ferromagnetic material, which will worsen the quality of imaging. In order to equalize the magnetic flux in the MRI device for good imaging, the eddy current effect in the ferromagnetic material must be taken into account. This study attempts to use the design of experiment (DOE) and the response surface method (RSM) for equalizing the magnetic flux of the permanent magnet type MRI device using that the magnetic flux can be calculated directly using a commercial finite element analysis package. As a result, optimal shapes of the pole and the yoke of the PM type MRI device can be obtained. The commercial package, ANSYS, is used for analyzing the magnetic field problem and obtaining the resultant magnetic flux.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 1998.11b
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• pp.597-599
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• 1998

The clinical acceptance of magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) system has been more rapid than that of the other medical image diagnosis system(X-ray, CT, etc) with the advantage of nonhazardous nature, high resolution capability, potential for chemically specified imaging. MRI system is composed of super conducting magnet, gradient fields, rf transceiver, system controller and imaging software technology. In this paper, introducing the principle of magnetic resonance imaging, it proposes the implementation of PC-based MRI system.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 1994.07a
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• pp.192-194
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• 1994

High homogeneity and stability are required in superconducting magnet for Magnetic Resonance Imaging. In this paper, Magnetic Field theories for the design of high homogeneity magnet are introduced and multi-sections solenoid type coils are optimzed to produce highly homogeneous field.

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.30-34
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• 2021

Superconducting magnets have paved the way for opening new horizons in designing an electromagnet of a high field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) device. In the first phase of the superconducting MRI magnet era, low-temperature superconductor (LTS) has played a key role in constructing the main magnet of an MRI device. The highest magnetic resonance (MR) field of 11.7 T was indeed reached using LTS, which is generated by the well-known Iseult project. However, as the limit of current carrying capacity and mechanical robustness under a high field environment is revealed, it is widely believed that commercial LTS wires would be challenging to manufacture a high field (>10 T) MRI magnet. As a result, high-temperature superconductor together with the conducting cooling approach has been spotlighted as a promising alternative to the conventional LTS. In 2020, the Korean government launched a national project to develop an HTS magnet for a high field MRI magnet as an extent of this interest. We have performed a design study of a 7 T 320 mm winding bore HTS MRI magnet, which may be the ultimate goal of this project. Thus, in this paper, design study results are provided. Electromagnetic design and analysis were performed considering the requirements of central magnetic field and spatial field uniformity.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.65-70
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• 2018

The objective of this study was to describe a radiofrequency (RF) coil design for in vivo sodium magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for use in small animals. Accumulating evidence has indicated the importance and potential of sodium imaging with improved magnet strength (> 7T), faster gradient, better hardware, multi-nucleus imaging methods, and optimal coil design for patient and animal studies. Thus, we developed a saddle-shaped sodium volume coil with a diameter/length of 30/30 mm. To evaluate the efficiency of this coil, bench-level measurement was performed. Unloaded Q value, loaded Q value, and ratio of these two values were estimated to be 352.8, 211.18, and 1.67, respectively. Thereafter, in vivo acquisition of sodium images was performed using normal mice (12 weeks old; n = 5) with a two-dimensional gradient echo sequence and minimized echo time to increase spatial resolution of images. Sodium signal-to-noise ratio in mouse kidneys (renal cortex, medulla, and pelvis) was measured. We successfully acquired sodium MR images of the mouse kidney with high spatial resolution (approximately 0.625 mm) through a combination of sodium-proton coils.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SC
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.57-62
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• 2011

This paper proposed a method which is the three types of magnet model for improving field inhomogeneity of superconducting magnet. The length of coil wire was compared for the optimized current pattern using minimum power methods and field inhomogeneity under the specific simulation condition in case of same magnet field strength about each magnet type field inhomogeneity. Length of wire and field inhomogeneity were compared under the same condition(18 target points, 20cm DSV). According to the simulation results, the smaller target points can reduce the wire length but it can not improve the field inhomogeneity. Length of wire and low field inhomogeneity can not improve in same time. However, small DSV and reducing target points can overcome the these problem. And to conclude, if it processes shimming as reducing target points in case of magnet model which is open to space, about the size of same imaging region it needs a lot of current values(or the length of wire) and decreases field homogeneity but it is useful to get small ROI.