Calibration of multiple aperture ultrasound probes
Inventors
Belevich, Artem • Call, Josef R. • RITZI, Bruce R. • Osborn, Nathan W.
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Assignees
Member
MAUI ImagingMAUI Imaging develops ultrasound-based medical imaging solutions designed to overcome the limitations of traditional ultrasound, particularly in visualizing anatomy beyond bone, air, and metal barriers. Founded in 2006, the company has pioneered Computed Echo Tomography (CET) to enable diagnostic imaging in settings where conventional CT or MRI are impractical. With over 160 patents granted and FDA clearance for its K3900 system, MAUI Imaging targets applications in trauma medicine, critical care, neurosurgery, and interventional radiology, aiming to enhance timely diagnostics and interventions in both civilian and military environments.
MAUI Imaging develops ultrasound-based medical imaging solutions designed to overcome the limitations of traditional ultrasound, particularly in visualizing anatomy beyond bone, air, and metal barriers. Founded in 2006, the company has pioneered Computed Echo Tomography (CET) to enable diagnostic imaging in settings where conventional CT or MRI are impractical. With over 160 patents granted and FDA clearance for its K3900 system, MAUI Imaging targets applications in trauma medicine, critical care, neurosurgery, and interventional radiology, aiming to enhance timely diagnostics and interventions in both civilian and military environments.
Publication Number
US-12171621-B2
Publication Date
2024-12-24
Expiration Date
Abstract
The quality of ping-based ultrasound imaging is dependent on the accuracy of information describing the precise acoustic position of transmitting and receiving transducer elements. Improving the quality of transducer element position data can substantially improve the quality of ping-based ultrasound images, particularly those obtained using a multiple aperture ultrasound imaging probe, i.e., a probe with a total aperture greater than any anticipated maximum coherent aperture width. Various systems and methods for calibrating element position data for a probe are described.
Core Innovation
The document describes an ultrasound probe calibration system in which a phantom having a pattern of reflectors is insonified using an ultrasound probe having a plurality of transmit transducer elements and a plurality of receive transducer elements. The system uses transducer element position data describing a position of each transmit and receive transducer element relative to a common coordinate system to support imaging of the phantom reflectors.
The system contains reference data describing the pattern of reflectors of the phantom and an imaging control system containing calibration program code. The calibration program code directs the system to insonify the phantom, store echo data in memory, form complete images of the pattern of reflectors from the received echo data using the transducer element position data, and form combined images by combining the complete images.
From the combined image, the system determines measurement data describing a position of the pattern of reflectors, quantifies an error between the measurement data and the reference data, and iteratively optimizes the transducer element position data based on the quantified error. The iterative optimization includes adjusting the transducer element position data, re-beamforming the stored echo data using adjusted position data, forming a second set of combined images, quantifying a second error, and evaluating whether the adjusted transducer element position data improves the image.
The document further describes that the stored raw echo data can be reused for re-beamforming during iterative optimization, and that calibration can be performed as an offline recalibration without a connected probe. The architecture includes calibration memory storing corrected position data or coefficients relative to factory data, with transmit control, receive subsystems, and a beamformer, and can incorporate phantom configurations such as reflector patterns, holes/ultrasound-absorbing regions, and living tissue phantoms, as well as probe geometries such as multiple arrays and continuous curvilinear array/concave curvature.
Claims Coverage
The document includes two independent claims, each covering an ultrasound probe calibration system that iteratively updates transducer element position data using measurement images derived from stored echo data and a phantom reflector pattern reference.
Reflector-pattern phantom with reference data
A phantom having a pattern of reflectors, and a first memory device containing reference data describing the pattern of reflectors of the phantom.
Common-coordinate transducer element position data
A second memory device containing transducer element position data describing a position of each transmit transducer element and each receive transducer element relative to a common coordinate system.
Spherical wave insonification, complete images, and combined image
The imaging control system directs the system to insonify the phantom with a single spherical wavefront from a first transmit transducer element, receive echo data from two or more receive transducer elements, store echo data, form a first plurality of complete images of the pattern of reflectors, and form a first combined image of the pattern of reflectors by combining the complete images.
Measurement data, error quantification, and iterative transducer position optimization
Determine measurement data describing a position of the pattern of reflectors as indicated by the combined image, quantify an error between the measurement data and the reference data, and iteratively optimize the transducer element position data based on the quantified error.
Re-beamforming stored echo data during iterative optimization
Iteratively optimize by adjusting the transducer element position data, re-beamforming the stored echo data using the adjusted position data to form a second plurality of complete images, forming a second combined image, quantifying a second error, and evaluating whether the adjusted transducer element position data improves the image.
Transmit-element beamforming image formation
In an alternative independent claim, the imaging control system directs the system to insonify the phantom with the transmit transducer elements, receive echo data with the receive transducer elements, store echo data, and form a first image by beamforming the stored echo data using the transducer element position data.
Across the independent claims, the core coverage is the use of a reflector-pattern phantom with reference data and common-coordinate transducer element position data, forming measurement images from stored echo data via beamforming, computing measurement-based reflector positions, quantifying error relative to reference data, and iteratively optimizing transducer element position data by re-beamforming stored echo data until image improvement is evaluated.
Stated Advantages
Documented Applications
No documented applications found
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