Australian X-ray technology company Micro-X has been awarded up to $16.4 million by the U.S. Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to develop a lightweight, full-body mobile CT scanner.

Unlike conventional CT scanners, which typically weigh over 4,400 pounds, Micro-X’s proposed system will weigh just 225 kilograms. The technology is based on the company’s Nano Electronic X-ray (NEX) Technology X-ray tubes, which have previously been developed under contracts with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Australia’s Medical Research Future Fund.

“Micro-X continues to go beyond boundaries to challenge the constraints of legacy X-ray and deliver solutions that meet the needs of customers, users and patients,” said Micro-X CEO Kingsley Hall.

The project is part of ARPA-H’s Platform Accelerating Rural Access to Distributed and Integrated Medical Care (PARADIGM) program, which aims to improve healthcare access in underserved regions by deploying advanced medical technology in mobile units. The funding will support development over five years, potentially through to FDA premarket submission.

If successful, the mobile CT will be integrated into a vehicle-mounted platform designed to bring hospital-grade imaging directly to patients in remote areas.

Micro-X, based in Adelaide, Australia, specializes in miniaturized X-ray imaging solutions. The company has an expanding presence in the U.S., with a technical and commercial team in Seattle.

Last year, the company unveiled mobile head CT technology under development for stroke assessments. The Head CT Scanner, designed to be stowed in, and opened up from, the side of the ambulance, will sport 21 mini X-ray carbon nanotubes that are based on Micro-X’s patented Nano Electronic X-ray technology, and will transmit images to stroke clinicians for diagnosis.

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