Ultrasound imaging system memory architecture

Inventors

Call, Josef R. • Brewer, Kenneth D. • Le, Viet Nam • Ouellette, Matthew • Blake, Mathias

Abstract

A multiple aperture ultrasound imaging system may be configured to store raw, un-beamformed echo data. Stored echo data may be retrieved and re-beamformed using modified parameters in order to enhance the image or to reveal information that was not visible or not discernible in an original image. Raw echo data may also be transmitted over a network and beamformed by a remote device that is not physically proximate to the probe performing imaging. Such systems may allow physicians or other practitioners to manipulate echo data as though they were imaging the patient directly, even without the patient being present. Many unique diagnostic opportunities are made possible by such systems and methods.

Core Innovation

The invention relates to a multiple aperture ultrasound imaging system that transmits an unfocused ping ultrasound pulse with at least one transmit transducer element of a multiple aperture imaging probe to insonify a region of interest, and receives echo signals with at least one receive transducer element. Instead of only producing beamformed outputs in real time, the system stores a raw data set in a raw data memory device. The raw data set includes digital data representative of an identity of the at least one transmit transducer element, a time at which the at least one transmit transducer element sent the unfocused ping ultrasound pulse, and a series of data points representative of magnitudes of echoes from the ultrasound pulse.

Real-time images of the region of interest are generated with a beamforming processor of the multiple aperture imaging probe from the raw data set using real-time image formation parameters. The raw data set is also transmitted to a remote beamforming system separate from the beamforming processor of the multiple aperture imaging probe. The remote beamforming system generates updated images using remote image formation parameters different from the real-time image formation parameters.

The invention further enables updating image formation from the same insonified dataset by changing beamforming parameters used to re-beamform the stored raw, un-beamformed echo data, including speed-of-sound, transducer element location or position data, weighting factors, and coherent and incoherent image layer combining. It also supports changing the image window to enable zoom and panning without losing resolution and producing alternate synchronized views. Extensions described include 3D ping-based volumetric raw data acquisition with seamless arbitrary slice extraction for re-beamforming.

Claims Coverage

The document contains one independent claim directed to a method, and the remaining listed claims are dependent refinements. The independent claim covers local real-time beamforming from stored raw data and remote beamforming from the same raw data set using different image formation parameters, including storage of transmit-element identity and timing with echo magnitudes.

Overall, the claims cover an unfocused ping multiple aperture acquisition that stores raw data including transmit-element identity and transmit time with echo magnitudes, forms real-time images locally using real-time image formation parameters, and forms updated images remotely using different image formation parameters from the transmitted raw data. Dependent features specify differences between updated and real-time images and add coordinate datasets for transmit and receive apertures relative to a common coordinate system.

Stated Advantages

Documented Applications