US Patent 7266176 Workspace optimization for radiation treatment delivery system

An apparatus and method for optimizing a workspace of a radiation treatment delivery system. An optimized treatment plan is generated for delivering a dose of radiation to a volume of interest (“VOI”) in a patient using fewer changes to a treatment plan parameter during delivery of the dose of radiation then available to a radiation treatment delivery system. The optimized treatment plan limits a number of adjustments to the treatment plan parameter during delivery of the dose of radiation. Prior to delivery, the optimized treatment plan is analyzed to determine whether a quality of the optimized treatment plan is acceptable.