A system supervisor for safer parallel radiofrequency transmission MRI research

Motivation: Careful attention to safety is required for human research with novel parallel transmission (PTx) MRI technologies, particularly when they may cause harmful interactions with implanted devices. Goal(s): Our goal was to add an additional layer of safety during experiments with a custom PTx research platform. Approach: A system supervisor was created to monitor and react to a variety of amplifier faults and power conditions. Results: Initial tests showed that it could safely disable the PTx system with acceptably short and stable response times. Impact: A system supervisor was developed and tested for parallel transmission MRI research. The presence of such a supervisor may accelerate acceptance of PTx research systems by safety-conscious researchers and reviewers.