Originally, all X-ray images were recorded on film and real-time visualization was not possible. In 1988, a system that utilizes C-arm type of X-ray fluoroscopy was developed and has become an essential technique during bronchoscopy. The factors for analog and digital imaging are basically the same. A sensor converts X-rays into a medium, followed by conversion of the image signal from analog to digital (a–d) format and transfer into a computer.

Imaging plates (IPs) enable efficient imaging recording. In the 1990s, image intensifier digital radiography (IIDR) system and flat panel detector (FPD) system, in which a conventionally produced image is digitalized (Figs. 2.2 and 2.3), were invented for fluoroscopy and fluorography. However, questions on the substantial advantages of digital processing still remain.