Affordable CAT scanning machine built with an Arduino

A computed tomography (computed tomography) or computed tomography (axial computed tomography) is a type of medical imaging technique in which multiple "slices" of X-rays are put together to form a pseudo-3D model. CT scanners are the types of medical equipment that are so expensive that the manufacturers don't even bother to post the prices on their websites. Suffice it to say, new CT scanners can cost millions of dollars – not exactly within the budget of many hobbyists. So Pyrotechnical used an Arduino to build their own CT scanner.

Warning: X-ray emitters are potentially dangerous. Don't mess with them if you don't know what you're doing!

Pyrotechnical's CT scanner design relies on imaging X-ray "slices" by rotation, as opposed to a stack of slices like a resin 3D printer. The reason for this is that x-ray images penetrate an entire object and there is no way to capture a true cross section. But by taking X-ray photos of an object from many different angles, it's possible to create what looks like a 3D view. It is even possible to use them to build a 3D model.

The x-ray emitter and screen for this project came from an old mammography machine. After the X-rays pass through the imaged object, they collide with the special screen which emits light. This screen makes it easy to take pictures of the X-ray projection. The Arduino Uno board performs three functions. First, it spins a stepper motor to rotate a turntable on which the scanned object sits. Second, it activates the power supply to the X-ray emitter via a relay. Third, it activates a Bluetooth remote through another relay and that Bluetooth remote tells Pyrotechnical's smartphone to take a picture.

Capturing an X-ray image every eight degrees of rotation yields 45 photos. Converting them to frames in a video results in a pretty cool clip that gives viewers a "3D" x-ray look at the object. With a nifty program similar to photogrammetry software, one can even create a real 3D model from the images, although it is very low resolution.