MICROPROCESSOR-CONTROLLED LIMITATION SYSTEM FOR A STAND-ALONE FREELY MOVABLE TREATMENT COUCH

Because of the capability of free movement in the treatment room, we r ecently introduced a Hercules treatment couch on one of our linear acc elerators. One of the advantages of this couch is that it allows for a more flexible way of patient setup and that it can be moved entirely out of the way to enable treatment with a hospital bed. A disadvantage , however, is that the couch can hit a wall or a cover of the accelera tor accidentally. A limitation system has been developed to protect bo th the table and the accelerator against such collisions. (C) 1998 Ame rican Association of Physicists in Medicine. [S0094-2405(98)02106-3].