In order to reduce the cost for isolation between a surface coil and a
body coil installed on a magnet assembly side, an RF shield for a surface
coil is disposed between a body coil installed on a magnet assembly side
of an MRI apparatus and a surface coil body not installed on the magnet
assembly side. The reception by the body coil of RF pulses transmitted
from the surface coil body is suppressed by the RF shield for the surface
coil. Since an induced voltage in the body coil drops to a great extent,
a switch provided on the body coil side no longer requires a component
resistant to high voltage and high current. Thus, the apparatus can be
simplified and the cost can be reduced. As a result, the reliability of
the apparatus is improved.