Earlier this week, I was invited to check out an MRI as it was being dismantled for replacement of the gradient coil. It's rare to see an MRI in this state outside of the factory, so I crutched myself down to the UCSF Neuroimaging Lab to check it out.
The gradient coil itself is a big cylinder of wire that weighs about 3000 pounds. It's an integral part of providing positioning of signals coming from whatever is being scanned (which, in this case, is usually brains.)
Replacing it is not exactly a simple task. The coil had to be rolled along a large metal bar and lined up precisely with the opening of the MRI, as it is seated very tightly. Here's video of the installation:
There were many other interesting pieces of hardware around the lab. Dr. Adam Gazzaley is currently doing a study on the brain and multitasking via video games, and needs to have a rig capable of playing video games in the room with the MRI. As there's a 3 tesla sitting in the middle of the room while the games are being played, this means convention hardware using magnetic materials is right out. This means there's specially built hardware all around, including specially built, heavily shielded LCD monitors using no magnetic materials.
There's more photos of the trip at:
Thanks to Dr. Gazzaley and Dr. Stables for inviting me to the lab and showing me around!