Common Issues

Here you will find descriptions of issues commonly encountered during typical scan operations and general guides on how to resolve them. For more specialized troubleshooting guides, go to the Troubleshooting section of the Main Page and click on the topic that best suits the equipment you need help with.

Console

Adding/Deleting Sequences During a Scan

• To stop a sequence that has started: Click the button with the red square on it at the bottom of the screen.
• To start a stopped sequence from the beginning: The sequence you stopped will now be greyed out on the list, as if it had completed and the program is ready to continue on. Right-click the sequence you just stopped and click "Rerun from here" if the scan you stopped was the one that had just started and you intend to run the rest of the card from there. If you are trying to redo a sequence that you stopped several series ago, copy it down by clicking on it and dragging it down to when you would like it to be run.
• To delete an upcoming sequence: Right-click the scan and click "Delete". This will remove it from the card you are currently running, but will not delete it from the exam card as it was designed and intended to be run. As such, if you are pressed for time and need to make a real-time decision to skip sequences, be assured that you can delete them from the currently-running program and the entire original card will still appear the next time you start the study.

Closing a Patient

• Click the "Patient" tab at the top left of the screen and choose "Close Patient". You will need to do this if, for example, you realize the patient has been registered incorrectly and you need to redo it, or you need to end the scan.
• If you are trying to do this while paused between sequences, you may find that the "Close Patient" option is greyed out and you cannot click on it. Start the next sequence and stop it again immediately--the "Close Patient" option should now be available to you. This occurs because the software automatically prepares the next sequence after it finishes the current one, so you cannot close out when the scanner is already primed to continue. Allowing the primed sequence to begin and stopping it tells the system that the user wants the procedure stopped and it is now okay to close out the registered patient.

Peripherals Setup

Task Fails to Trigger

• Exit your task (and ideally its entire host program) completely.
• Unplug the trigger cable.
• If there have been any shenanigans with the button box, re-configure those settings in the controller box now.
• Plug the trigger cable back in and start your task again.
• This restart routine is usually sufficient to fix trigger problems because most of them arise from the task program not communicating with the task computer correctly. Matlab in particular can be finicky about this--unplugging and re-plugging the trigger USB while Matlab is running will cause unreliable behaviors.

USB Connection

• When the USB labeled trigger/button box is plugged into a machine, the 'USB' light on the button box interface should be static; when not plugged into anything, it will flash.
• If you notice that the 'USB' light on the button box is flashing while the USB is plugged into your machine, test the USB on a different machine (like the iMac). Often times the USB port may not be recognizing that there is an input being plugged in, and the machine may need to be restarted.

Screen(s) Fails to Display Task

Assumes standard setup for BOLD screen

• Unplug the HDMI cable from your task computer.
• Make sure that the HDMI Splitter box is turned on (there is a switch on the back left of the unit) and all the cables are plugged into their respective ports (labelled on the box). Move the cables to their correct spots and/or restart the splitter as necessary.
• Make sure your task computer display settings are configured to duplicate (not extend) displays on external monitors.
• Plug the HDMI cable back into your task computer and if it still will not at least mirror your screen on the BOLD screen, unplug the BOLD screen cable from the splitter and plug it directly into your task computer. You will not be able to monitor the task from the external display in the control room, but at least the participant will be able to see the task from the BOLD screen.

Button Box Fails to Respond

• Redo the settings on the controller box as outlined by the instructions taped directly above it. Remember that steps 3 and/or 5 will be different depending on whether you are using the 2-button box, 4-button box, or trackball mouse.
• Make sure the cables in the scanner suite are connected firmly.
• If one or more buttons are still not responding, ask the MR Tech for another box. There are spares in the drawer beneath where the test magnet and thermometer are kept.

Pulse Monitor Doesn't Work

• Most likely, a previous group didn't put it back in the charging port securely enough. If the charge is depleted, you probably won't be able to restore charge quickly enough to use it for your current scan, unfortunately. Replace the monitor in the charging port and make sure you plug it in completely (the little squares at the top will flash green).
• If the charge seems fine, but there nevertheless seems to be no or intermittent signal, check the finger attachment. Make sure it is undamaged and snugly encases the sensor loop inside. If the attachment is ripped or missing, there are new ones in the scanner suite in the labelled drawer with the other physio equipment.

Scanner Suite

Blankets

• If there are no more blankets in the cabinet, spare linens are in the tall cabinet marked "Linens" by the corner desk in the main room. Many other spare supplies will be there, including scrubs and mesh covers, in their respectively labelled cabinets.

Linens Basket

• When the linens basket is full, tie up the bag containing all the used linens and take it out into the main room. Leave it against the wall by the scale and hand sanitizer station adjacent to the sink.

Fans

• There are two small fans that run continuously in the room, one on each side of the scanner. They are turned off for concurrent EEG-fMRI data collection. If you are not running one of those studies and notice that the fans are turned off or out of place, orient them toward the bed and turn them back on.

Scan Failure

Sometimes, when the scanner has been working continuously for a long time, unusual things will happen during your protocol. These issues may include your scan not starting or acquisition stopping mid-scan with strange activity on the bore screen.

In these cases, it may be necessary to reboot the system (and in fact, restarts are conducted regularly outside of operating hours to keep data acquisition running as smoothly as possible). Before restarting the whole system, however, first determine if your issue can be resolved by other methods.

Retry the Failed Series

• Right-click > Rerun From Here on the sequence that acquisition failed on. Start-stop if necessary.
• See "Adding/Deleting a Sequences During a Scan" further above on this page for help with this.

Redo the patient setup

• Close out the subject.
• Redo the prep as if you were just beginning a new scan:
  • Move the bed back to the home position. Unlock and re-lock the coils. Re-navigate the bed to isocenter.
  • Re-register the participant. You can use the same Subject ID if you'd like--everything is timestamped, so the console will allow you to do this. You will just get multiple subdirectories under that ID's folder in the DICOM server, differentiated by timestamp. If you'd rather have the new attempt be saved under an entirely new folder at the Subject ID level, use a different ID.
  • Try running your protocol again.

Restart the scanner

• Open the Staglin Operating Manual on the iMac computer and follow the instructions for Standard Shutdown and Reboot Procedures.
• This will take about 30 minutes from beginning to end, so make a decision appropriate to your participant's and your users' availability.
• Inform CCN personnel even if you have time for the reboot and it completes successfully. They will need to enable certain permissions post-restart (and want to stay up to speed on scanner issues in general).