The system is very useful for vets as it can capture the internal organs of an animal in 30 seconds without going through the hassles that are usually associated with such an operation.

Horses can certainly be big and majestic, which although looks very good, it creates its own share of issues when it comes to equine medicine. They can easily weigh a little close to a ton and be 6 feet tall and when they require the attention of a veterinarian, it can be pretty challenging for the vet, especially if the animal is conscious of his presence.

So as to provide a helping hand in such a scenario, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine has partnered with an imaging outfit company, 4DDI, in order to create free standing CT scans.

Dubbed as the “Equimagine,” the system can gather internal images of the horse, while its still awake and standing on all fours. The images are gathered using a robotic arm.

As per the University, this setup enables a vet to get a look at the internal organs of the animal without the hassles normally associated with such a procedure. Thanks to the setup, vets can now preemptively diagnose stress fractures, such as those typically found in race horses which result in their “catastrophic breakdown” during a race.

The setup can be used for humans too. Children though comparatively much tinier than a horse share a common trait with them since it demands quite a bit of work to get them inside a CT scan tube and not fidget around. Thanks to this technology, CT scans can be done on children in around 30 seconds, and without the need of any anesthesia.

Although currently Equimagine is perfectly capable of capturing traditional still 2D scans as well as 3D imaging upto 16,000 FPS, the ultimate aim of the researchers is to capture the internals of a horse while it is happily trotting on a treadmill.