MR-Safe Cartesian Platform for Active Cardiac Shimming: Preliminary Validation

Objective: Implanted Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs) induce a large (100 parts per million) inhomogeneous magnetic field in the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner which cannot be corrected by the scanner's built-in shim coils, leading to significant image artifacts that can make portions of the heart unreadable. To compensate for the field inhomogeneity, an active shim coil capable of countering the field deviation in user-defined regions was designed that must be optimally placed at patient-specific locations. We aim to develop and evaluate an MR-safe robotic solution for automated shim coil positioning. Methods: We designed and fabricated an MR-safe Cartesian platform that holds the shim coil inside the scanner. The platform consists of three lead screw stages actuated by pneumatic motors, achieving decoupled translations of 140 mm in each direction. The platform is made of plastics and fiberglass with the control electronics placed outside the scanner room, ensuring MR safety. Mechanical modeling was derived to provide design specifications. Results: Experiments show that the platform achieves less than 2 mm average motion error and 0.5 mm repeatability in all directions, and reduces the adjustment time from >5 min to a few seconds. Phantom and animal trials were conducted, showing that the proposed system is able to position a heavy shim coil (\mathbf {>3} kg) for improved ICD artifact suppression. Conclusion: This robotic platform provides an effective method for reliable shim coil positioning inside the scanner. Significance: This work contributes to improving cardiac MRI quality that could facilitate accurate diagnosis and treatment planning for patients with implanted ICDs.