An imaging system and method for taking an image of an object. The imaging
system comprises a mechanism that propels the object linearly in a
direction of motion through an imaging region that has a top, bottom,
front, and rear; an x-ray source located below the bottom, aligned with
the front, and emitting an x-ray cone beam to the imaging region; and a
plurality of x-ray detector assemblies, each of the detector assemblies
including a linear row of detectors above and parallel to the top and
perpendicular to the direction of motion, and a linear column of
detectors outside of and parallel to the rear right side and extending at
an angle to the direction of motion, wherein each of the detector
assemblies defines an x-ray fan beam within the x-ray cone beam. A second
system embodiment duplicates the x-ray source/detector assemblage and
rotates the second assemblage by 90.degree. around the object. In the
method, a number of x-ray fan beams are emitted from a single location at
different angles and the object is propelled linearly through the fan
beams. The x-ray intensity of each fan beam passing through a voxel is
read and those x-ray intensities are combined in accordance to standard
laminography practice to generate an image for the voxel. In this way,
images for all voxels are generated and used to produce an image of the
entire object. With the second system embodiment, two sets of voxel
images are generated, which allows views from a full 180.degree. for all
voxels in the object. Applying computer tomography reconstruction
algorithms can produce CT images.