The use of X-ray imaging is rapidly increasing worldwide due to technological advancements and the enhanced diagnostic capabilities of emerging imaging methods. This study aims to develop a dedicated computational model of a phantom for conducting experimental work on a Cone-Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) X-ray prototype. The phantom is designed using dedicated software, which allows for the modeling of computer objects and the generation of X-ray images under specified geometries. Two versions of the computational phantom were created, each consisting of 10 cylinders. Both phantoms contain Resin Clear, Air, Paraffin, ABS, PMMA, Nylon, PLA, and Cellulose, with the two versions differing in the inclusion of either Polyethylene or CaCO3 materials. Two basic scenarios were tested: (a) imaging based on 36 X-ray projections of the phantom, and (b) imaging based on 72 X-ray projections of the phantom. The projection images, acquired in CBCT mode, were then reconstructed to produce tomographic slices. The visibility of the different materials was evaluated using the contrast-to-noise ratio of the reconstructed objects and comparison of line profiles. As expected, the use of filtered projections and a higher number of projections resulted in better visibility of objects with attenuation coefficients very close to the coefficient of the external cylinder embedding the other cylinders. The developed computational phantom will serve as a template for creating a new physical phantom, which will be used to implement weekly quality control of an X-ray CBCT imaging prototype system.
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