SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ULTRASOUND HARMONIC IMAGING
First Claim
1. A system, comprising:
- at least one transducer configured to transmit at least one ultrasound pulse into a region of interest (ROI) of a patient, the pulse having at least a first frequency, the pulse propagating through a bodily structure in the ROI;
at least one receiver configured to receive at least one echo signal corresponding to the pulse, the at least one echo signal having the first frequency and at least one harmonic multiple of the first frequency; and
a processor configured to automatically determine, from the at least one harmonic multiple, at least one boundary of the bodily structure.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system includes at least one transducer configured to transmit at least one ultrasound pulse into a region of interest (ROI) of a patient. The pulse has at least a first frequency and propagates through a bodily structure in the ROI. The system further includes at least one receiver configured to receive at least one echo signal corresponding to the pulse. The echo signal includes the first frequency and at least one harmonic multiple of the first frequency. The system further includes a processor configured to automatically determine, from the at least one harmonic multiple, at least one boundary of the bodily structure. In an embodiment, the processor is configured to automatically determine, from the at least one harmonic multiple, an amount of fluid within the bodily structure.
159 Citations
27 Claims
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1. A system, comprising:
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at least one transducer configured to transmit at least one ultrasound pulse into a region of interest (ROI) of a patient, the pulse having at least a first frequency, the pulse propagating through a bodily structure in the ROI; at least one receiver configured to receive at least one echo signal corresponding to the pulse, the at least one echo signal having the first frequency and at least one harmonic multiple of the first frequency; and a processor configured to automatically determine, from the at least one harmonic multiple, at least one boundary of the bodily structure. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A system, comprising:
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at least one transducer configured to transmit at least one ultrasound pulse into a region of interest (ROI) of a patient, the pulse having at least a first frequency, the pulse propagating through a bodily structure in the ROI; at least one receiver configured to receive at least one echo signal corresponding to the pulse, the at least one echo signal having the first frequency and at least one harmonic multiple of the first frequency; and a processor configured to automatically determine, from the at least one harmonic multiple, an amount of fluid within the bodily structure. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for ultrasonic imaging of a region-of-interest within a subject, comprising:
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exposing the region-of-interest with ultrasound energy delivered from an ultrasonic transceiver emitting a fundamental ultrasound frequency acoustically coupled and placed against a first surface location of the subject; collecting ultrasound echoes by the ultrasonic transceiver from structures located in the region-of-interest; discerning a plurality of harmonic frequencies within the ultrasound echoes; selecting a harmonic frequency from the plurality of harmonic frequencies; detecting a structure within the region-of-interest using the selected harmonic frequency; presenting a color-coded image of the structure on a display in proportion to the strength of the signals of the selected harmonic frequency; and determining positional information of the structure in relation to the region-of-interest with regard to the first surface location of the subject. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A system for ultrasonic imaging of a region-of-interest within a subject, comprising:
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an ultrasound transceiver configured to deliver ultrasound pulses having a fundamental frequency to and acquire ultrasound echoes returning from structures within the region-of-interest; a microprocessor device in signal communication with the transceiver; a display in signal communication with the microprocessor device and the transceiver; and a computer readable medium having algorithms configured to detect, analyze, and select an ultrasound harmonic frequency suitable for detecting and presenting the structures in a color-coded image on the display. - View Dependent Claims (22)
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23. A method, comprising:
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transmitting, with at least one transducer, at least one ultrasound pulse into a region of interest (ROI) of a patient, the pulse having at least a first frequency, the pulse propagating through a bodily structure in the ROI; receiving, with at least one receiver, at least one echo signal corresponding to the pulse, the at least one echo signal having the first frequency and at least one harmonic multiple of the first frequency; and automatically determining, from the at least one harmonic multiple, at least one boundary of the bodily structure and an amount of fluid within the bodily structure. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification