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  For any given radiographic examination, the
number of x-rays reaching the image
receptor is directly related to the tube current
and the time that the tube is energized.
 The timer circuit is separate from the other
main circuits.

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 Duration of exposure
 The length of an x-ray exposure is regulated by an exposure
timer.
 The timer controls are located in the x-ray control panel.
 The Timers controls include a timer selector and two exposure
buttons.
 The timer automatically opens the switches and terminates the
exposure at the pre selected time.
 The timer switches are always located in the high voltage
circuits.
 The Filament circuit can’t be used to regulate exposure times.
Why?

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 Cont….
 X-ray exposure timers and switches are separate but
interdependent functions.
 Timers are thinkers and switches are workers
 A timer tells a switch to close or open a circuit and a
switch responds to the best of its ability.
 The three elements or factor considered are:
– a process must be started
– a process must be timed
– a process must be stopped

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 Cont…
 For précis control, the timing must begin as soon as
the process starts and the process must stop as
soon as the selected time has elapsed.
 Q What is the process that must be started and
stopped?
 One way to start and stop current passage is to put
devices in the secondary circuits which will open and
close the circuit. This is called secondary switching
and it involves switching a low current.
 Because of the high voltage, there have been
problems in switching the secondary circuit.

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 Cont….
 Between the input of the main-supply and the
secondary high tension circuit in the primary circuit.
 If the primary circuit is closed, current can pass or
flow in the secondary circuit.
 Current flowing in the secondary circuit can be
stopped and started by switching the primary circuit
and leaving the secondary circuit intact.
 Primary switching involves the switching of high
currents at mains voltage

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 Cont….
 It is importance to realize the following
points.
– If the switching system is slow, a timer which is a
curate for very short intervals is no advantage.
– If x-ray set is low powered, very short exposure
will not be used.
 X-ray set of medium and high powered give
out put which allow short exposure to be
used

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 Switching System

Switching locations
 primary switching
– primary side of high tension transformer
 secondary switching
– between rectifiers & x-ray tube

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 Switching In the primary circuit

Mechanical contactors
 The simplest x-ray switches are
mechanical contactors
– They are usually opened and closed by
electromagnets that are activated the
exposure timer.
– They are always connected to the low voltage
(primary) side of the high voltage circuit and
perform satisfactory with high currents and
longer exposure times.
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 Cont…
– Exposure switching system must function
 quickly and precisely
 Suitable for rapid repetition.

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 Cont…

 Electromagnetic mechanical contactors

require the following properties.
– They must be spring loaded.
– The spring should be strong.
– Period of delay must be as small as possible.
– The copper contacts must be strong not to be
distorted by continual closure.
– The contact pieces must be able to withstand high
temprature
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 Electronic primary switching

 An electronic switch used as the exposure

contact in the primary circuit of x-ray sets are
of two types.
– Thyratron tube (gas filled)
– Solidstate ciruit (silicon controlled-rectifier

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 Thyratron tube
 Is a gas filled triode that functions as an electronic
switch.
 The tube is filled with small inert gas such as argon,
neon or mercury vapors.
 It the three electrodes: an anode, a cathode, and a
grid
 A Heating element boils electron from the cathode.
 The electron cloud around the cathode is repelled by
the 3rd electrode, a grid, with negative potential

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 Cont…

 Its negative potential creates an electrostatic

field that block’s the flow of electrons.
 It does not physically impede their flow.
 It grid is sufficiently negative no current flow
 To start a current flowing through a tube, the
grid must be less negative

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 Cont…

 Thyratrons have the following advantages.

– Thyratrons are suitable for switching very big MA
– An almost instantaneous response time.
– An almost instantaneous recycling time.

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 Solid-state thyratrons
 They are called thyristor of silicon controlled rectifier.
 They are smaller and do not require a heater.
 Materials used to construct thyristors are:
– N.Type semiconductor
– P.Type semiconductor
 Thyristors are made up of four layers and three
interfaces or barrier layers.
 It is possible to initiate current flow by passing
another current into an intermediate zone called gate

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 Cont…

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 Thyristors in phased switching

 The requirements for phases switching are

that the exposure must start and exposure
must stop only at zero voltage points in the
main cycle of alternation

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 Thyristors in unsynchronized switching

 The technique used to make the exposure

begin with out baiting for the point of zero-
voltage. In the main cycle is called pulsed
commutation.
 The technique used to make the exposure
end without waiting for the point of zero
voltage in the main cycle is called forced
extinction.

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 Switching in the secondary circuit

 Exposure-Switching devices inserted directly

in the high tension circuit must be electronic
and vacuum valve devices.
– Triode value as switches
– Grid controlled x-ray –rube

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 Timing system
 a mechanical or electronic device whose
action is to make or brake the high voltage
across the x-ray tube
 X-ray exposure timers; have developed through
several stages, beginning with simple mechanical
timers and ending with highly sophisticated
automatic electronic timers.
 Choice of timing devices for ray particular task takes
account of the accuracy which is required.
 If it is unnecessary for a timer to be extremely
accurate, then simple device will do.
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 Cont…
 If a high degree of accuracy in needed then, the
timing device must be more complex and also more
expensive.
 A timing device for control of the duration of x-ray
exposure is chosen with regard to the type of x-ray
set.
 With low- powered x-ray set, radiographers will
employ exposure times of which may be over 5.0
second. So the timing system is a simple one.
 With medium and high powered x-ray sets, Exposure
timers are very short.

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 Cont….
 It consists of a mechanical or electronic device
whose action is to make and break the high voltage
across the tube on the primary side of the high
voltage section
 There are five types of timers:
– Mechanical Timers
– Synchronous Timers
– Electronic Timers
– mAs Timers
– Phototimers
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 Mechanical timers ( The simple spring driven)

 The simplest exposure timers are a

mechanical device that functions much like a
spring-driven clock.
 The timer is set by turning a dial to the
appropriate time.
 Turning the dial winds a spring and opens a
mechanical contactor to prepare for the
exposure.

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 Cont…
 When the timer button is pushed, the exposure
begins and the spring drives the dial back to its
starting position terminating the exposure.
 A mechanical timer activates a solenoid in the x-ray
circuit and a solenoid opens and closes a single
mechanical switch.
 Mechanical timers are usually used in lower power
dental and portable units above 0.25 seconds

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 Cont…

 spring mechanisms is wound up.

 operate by clockwork.
 during exposure the spring unwinds and
terminates exposure

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 Cont…

 Very simple device that has a clock

mechanism.
 Operator turns the dial to the desired time.
As it unwinds, the exposure is made.
 Can be used for exposure time longer than
250 milliseconds.
 Very old machine and dental units.

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 Synchronous timers
 It is driven by a small synchronous motor.
 The speed of motor is controlled by the frequency of
the alternating current so it is fairly accurate.
 A motor drives a came that activates an
electromagnet to open and close a single contactor.
 It is accurate at 0.5 sec. They have long recycling
time and can’t be used for rapid serial exposures.

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 Electronic timers
 As the power of x- ray generators increased,
exposure timers become too short to control with
synchronous timers.
 Electronic timers are superior to mechanical and
synchronous timers & they are incorporated in all
modern x-ray machines.
 All electronic timers are operated on the same
principle.
 A length of the x-ray exposure is determined by the
time required to charge a capacitor.

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 Cont…

 Most sophisticated, complicated and most

accurate timer.
 Consists of complex circuit based upon the
time required to charge a capacitor through a
variable resister.
 Depending upon the incoming power
accurate to 1 ms. Most units have this type
timer.

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 Cont…
 Electronic timers have two essential components.
– a resistor
– a capacitor
 They are frequently called resistance-capacitor
circuits.
 The time taken for it to become fully charged
depends on the resistance in the charging circuit. By
varying this resistance the charging time can be
altered.

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 Cont…

 Little resistance implies a short charging and

discharging time.
 Higher resistance makes the charging and
discharging time longer.
 RT selecting a time interval on an electronic
timer is in fact selecting a value of resistance
in a circuit through which to charge or
discharge a capacitor.

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 Features of electronic timers

 the most sophisticated.

 the most accurate
 it’s circuitry consists of thyratron tube or
thyristor.
 allow wide range of time intervals.
 allow serial exposures.

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 mAs Timers
 Most modern machine are designed to accurately
control the tube current and exposure time.
 Monitors the product of mA and exposure time and
terminates exposure when the desired mAs value is
attained
 Located on the secondary side of the H. voltage
transformer
 The product of mA and time (mAs) determines the
number of x-ray photons emitted and the density on
the film.

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 Automatic timers
 Automatic timers terminate the exposure
after a given amount of radiation has
reached the film.
 RT controlling the electrical factors of x-ray
exposure is not infact controlling the
exposure dose to the film.
 You can control radiations emitted from x-ray
tube but the does which the film receives.

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 Cont…
 An automatic timer over comes the difficulties of
varying absorption in the patient because the
exposure terminated only when the film has received
that does of radiation necessary to give it the
required densities after processing.
 If timers are properly used and is functioning
currently, all radiographs should receive
standardized exposure and be ‘correctly exposed’.

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 Cont…

 Radiography are repeated because of

dissatisfaction of
– faulty or incorrectly used equipments
– poor positioning
– Movement of the patient.
– Over or under exposure.
– Film artifacts.
– Processing errors.

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 Cont…
 Malpositioning and misjudgment on the exposure are
common causes for repeat radiographs.
 Misjudgment may be eliminated by the use of the
automatic control of exposure which is given by
automatic timers.
 If there is high absorption of x-rays in the subject,
there is low intensity of radiation received by the
detector; the exposure time will be extended.

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 Cont….
 Automatic exposure control devices can assist the
RT in producing consistent radiographic images from
patient to patient, regardless of size or presence of
pathology. The advantages of this consistency are
numerous and include: decreased repeat rate;
decreased patient exposure; and increased
department efficiency. The most important benefit
being decreased repeat rate

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 An ionization chamber
 An automatic timer which makes use of
ionization current is being used in equipment
for general diagnostic radiography.
 In such timers the x-ray radiation reaching
the film passes through an ionization
chamber.
 The action of the x-rays is to ionize the air
contained within the chamber.

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 Cont…
 The action of the x-rays is to ionize the air contained
within the chamber.
 The magnitude of the ionization current is
dependence on the intensity of radiation reaching the
ionization chamber.
 So it is possible to set up a circuit in which a small
current varies with the effective intensity of the
radiation reaching a film.
 -Ionization chambers are very thin and are put in
front of the film. So that the dose received by the
chamber and the dose received by the film are
nearly the same.
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 Cont…

 The very small current passed by the

ionization chamber is amplified and can be
used to send a signal to the generator to stop
the exposure.
 Ionization chambers have less absorption
and they monitor the film area.
 They must not be very thick-why?

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 Cont…

 Ionization chamber has a thin aluminum

outer wall and has three detector fields.
 Pushbuttons on the control panel of timer
enable the radiographer to select which of
the three detectors fields is to be used.

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 Photomultiplier tube
 Photo timer is a system which responds to the
intense of a light which reaches it and allows the light
signal to be coupled to a photomultiplier tube w/c can
convert the light signal to an electrical signal.
 It is a vacuum tube with a glass envelope and it
contains several electrodes, the first being a photo
emissive cathode.
 Another electrode is dynodes emit electrons when
bombarded by electrons

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  Exposure contactors can operate
 (I) in the primary circuit of x-ray generator
 Mechanical electromagnetic contactors
 Electronic contactors (Thyristor, solid state)
 (II) In the secondary circuit of generator
 Vacuum triode valves
 Grid control

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 Cont….

 Exposure contractor may be

 Synchronized to the main frequency.
 Not synchronized and so unrelated to the
main frequency.
 Æ Exposure control (Timing) may be done by
 an electronic timer
 an automatic Exposure control

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 Cont…

 An automatic Exposure control may be

 Photo timer with photomultiplier tube
 An ionization type of timer

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