NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - The human heart won't stop beating for an X-ray, so capturing the nuances in the inner workings of a living heart presents a challenge.

Believing high-speed resolution to be the answer to getting better medical images, the German corporation Siemens has developed what it calls the world's fastest full-body CT scanner: the Somatom Definition.

The tube-shaped machine uses two rotating X-ray systems to capture detailed images of the skeleton, circulatory system and organs within seconds, and Siemens (up $0.54 to $89.79, Research) hopes the machine will give it an edge against its chief competitor, GE Health (up $0.24 to $33.49, Research), and other competitors Philips Electronics (up $0.29 to $33.14, Research) and Toshiba Corp.

"We do believe that we have a substantial competitive edge with this system for a few years," said Dr. Bernd Ohnesorge, vice president of Siemens Medical Solutions Computed Tomography. "We don't believe right now there is any viable competition."

Ohnesorge said the Somatom produces the industry's highest resolution images at 80 milliseconds: "faster than a beating heart so it can freeze the cardio motion." Ohnesorge said speed is a crucial factor in capturing cardiovascular images involving fast or irregular heart beats.

The Somatom Definition was approved by the FDA last year and retails for about $3 million. In October, 2005, the first machine went online at the University of Erlangen in the company's hometown of Nuremberg. The first U.S. machine will debut at the Mayo Clinic in March, 2006, said Ohnesorge, followed by additional scanners at New York University, the University of California, Los Angeles, and the Cleveland Clinic.

Analysts acknowledged that the Somatom Definition is cutting edge technology, but said it won't make much of a difference in sales to Siemens, a huge company that totaled $97.3 billion in 2005 sales, with $9 billion in its medical solutions division.

"In terms of technology, it's definitely a rather important step forward," said Goetz Fischbeck, analyst for DZ Bank. "It takes imaging and medical devices to a new level. The resolution that it gives to you and the chances of collecting this data in such a short time gives you the opportunity to monitor the tissue of the heart as it's moving."

Fischbeck said the new device would help Siemens maintain a strong margin of profitability and give it a competitive edge with GE in the $2 billion industry for medical imagery. But Siemens is so big that "no single product will make a tremendous impact by itself," said Fischbeck.

"Is [the Somatom Definition scanner] going to make a difference on the share price? I don't think so," said Fischbeck.

Robert Gallecker, analyst for Bayerische Landesback, praised Siemens for concentrating on areas "they are able to manage and do well" like medical equipment, industrial automation and gas turbines, rather than the mobile phone division, where the company lost money.

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To read about medical imaging from Novartis, click here.