METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR QUICKLY DETERMINING AN IMAGING REGION IN AN ULTRASONIC IMAGING SYSTEM

• US 20090131794A1
• Filed: 11/20/2008
• Published: 05/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. (Excelsior Union Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. (Excelsior Union Ltd.)
• Inventors: HU, Qinjun, YAO, Bin
• Granted Patent: US 8,152,722 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/443
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 42/06 using ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves

Abstract

A method and apparatus for quickly determining an imaging region associated with the current transmission in an ultrasonic imaging system includes determining a profile of the imaging region to be processed and, in turn, boundaries of that imaging region according to characteristics of the current transmitted sound field and the demand of the imaging mode. The method also includes computing a set of rectangular coordinates of points on the imaging region to be processed according to the determined boundaries.

Claims

1. A method for determining an imaging region in an ultrasonic imaging system, comprising:

transmitting ultrasound energy into an insonified region in a current scan plane, thereby forming a transmitted sound field, and receiving ultrasound echo return signals from the insonified region;

determining a range of a resultant image covered by the transmitted sound field based on energy lines of the transmitted sound field that have energy equal to a threshold;

determining boundaries in a depth direction of the imaging region to be processed within said range according to characteristics of an imaging mode, said boundaries being determined as a function of the threshold and intensity values of echo signals from insonified points in the current scan plane, said boundaries thereby being variable according to each current scan plane; and

geometrically converting for display and displaying a representation of the intensity values originating only between the boundaries.

2. A method for according to claim 1, wherein determining boundaries comprises:

determining formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in a rectangular coordinate system according to angles of the boundaries with respect to the depth direction and polar coordinates of random points on the boundaries, wherein x=r*sin(θ

) and y=r*cos(θ

);

wherein, whether a point P(x,y) on the resultant image is located in the imaging region to be processed is determined according to the following conditions;

if F1(x, y)*F2(x,y)<

=0, the point P(x,y) is in the imaging region to be processed; and

if F1(x, y)*F2(x,y)>

0, the point P(x,y) is out of the imaging region to be processed.

3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

computing in real time a set of rectangular coordinates of all of the points on the imaging region to be processed according to the formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in the depth direction of the imaging region to be processed in the rectangular coordinate system, wherein x and y are integers.

4. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

configuring a lookup table to store a set of rectangular coordinates of all of the points on the imaging region to be processed, which are computed according to the formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in the depth direction of the imaging region to be processed in the rectangular coordinate system, wherein x and y are integers.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the imaging region to be processed is sector-shaped.

6. The method according to claim 2, wherein the imaging region to be processed is rectangular.

7. A method for determining an imaging region in an ultrasonic imaging system, comprising:

determining a range of a resultant image covered by a transmitted sound field based on energy lines of the transmitted sound field that have energy equal to a threshold; and

by considering the energy lines of the transmitted sound field having energy equal to the threshold as boundaries in a depth direction of the imaging region to be processed, determining in the depth direction in a point-by-point manner a rectangular coordinate pair of P1(x,y) and P2(x,y) of corresponding points at the same depth on respective boundaries, wherein the points with the sound field energy larger than the threshold are within the imaging region to be processed.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

configuring a lookup table to store the rectangular coordinate pairs of P1(x,y) and P2(x,y) of corresponding points at the same depth on the respective boundaries.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

after looking up from the lookup table the rectangular coordinate pairs of P1(x,y) and P2(x,y) of corresponding points at the same depth on the respective boundaries, determining a set of rectangular coordinates of all of the points on the imaging region to be processed, where x and y are integers.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein a shape of the imaging region to be processed is such that it is narrow in focusing region, but wide in near and far fields.

11. An apparatus for determining an imaging region in an ultrasonic imaging system, comprising:

a unit for transmitting ultrasound energy into an insonified region in a current scan plane, thereby forming a transmitted sound field, and receiving ultrasound echo return signals from the insonified region;

a unit for determining a range of a resultant image covered by the transmitted sound field based on energy lines of the transmitted sound field that have energy equal to a threshold;

a unit for determining boundaries in a depth direction of the imaging region to be processed within said range according to characteristics of an imaging mode, said boundaries being determined as a function of the threshold and intensity values of echo signals from insonified points in the current scan plane, said boundaries thereby being variable according to each current scan plane; and

a unit for geometrically converting for display and displaying a representation of the intensity values originating only between the boundaries.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the unit for determining boundaries comprises:

a unit for determining formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in a rectangular coordinate system according to angles of the boundaries with respect to the depth direction and polar coordinates of random points on the boundaries, wherein x=r*sin(θ

) and y=r*cos(θ

);

wherein, whether a point P(x,y) on the resultant image is located in the imaging region to be processed is determined according to the following conditions;

if F1(x, y)*F2(x,y)<

=0, the point P(x,y) is in the imaging region to be processed; and

if F1(x, y)*F2(x,y)>

0, the point P(x,y) is out of the imaging region to be processed.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising:

a unit for computing in real time set of rectangular coordinates of all of the points on the imaging region to be processed according to the formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in the depth direction of the imaging region to be processed in the rectangular coordinate system, wherein x and y are integers.

14. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein a lookup table is provided in the apparatus, the lookup table being used to store set of rectangular coordinates of all of the points on the imaging region to be processed, which are computed according to the formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in the depth direction of the imaging region to be processed in the rectangular coordinate system, wherein x and y are integers.

15. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the imaging region to be processed is sector-shaped.

16. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the imaging region to be processed is rectangular.

17. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the apparatus is integrated into a beam formation module.

18. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the apparatus is integrated into a signal processing module.

19. An apparatus for quickly determining an imaging region in an ultrasonic imaging system, comprising:

a unit for determining a range of a resultant image covered by a transmitted sound field based on energy lines of the transmitted sound field that have energy equal to a threshold; and

a unit for determining in a depth direction in a point-by-point manner a rectangular coordinate pair of P1(x,y) and P2(x,y) of corresponding points at the same depth on respective boundaries by considering the energy lines of the transmitted sound field having energy equal to the threshold as boundaries in a depth direction of the imaging region to be processed, wherein the points with the sound field energy larger than the threshold are within the imaging region to be processed.

20. The apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising:

a unit for configuring a lookup table to store the rectangular coordinate pairs of P1(x, y) and P2(x,y) of corresponding points at the same depth on the respective boundaries.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, further comprising:

a unit for determining set of rectangular coordinates of all of the points on the imaging region to be processed, where x and y are integers after looking up from the lookup table the rectangular coordinate pairs of P1(x,y) and P2(x,y) of corresponding points at the same depth on the respective boundaries.

22. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein a shape of the imaging region to be processed is such that it is narrow in focusing region, but wide in near and far fields.

23. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the apparatus is integrated into a beam formation module.

24. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the apparatus is integrated into a signal processing module.

25. An apparatus for determining an imaging region in an ultrasonic imaging system, comprising:

means for determining a range of a resultant image covered by a transmitted sound field based on energy lines of the transmitted sound field that have energy equal to a threshold;

means for determining boundaries in a depth direction of the imaging region to be processed within said range according to characteristics of an imaging mode; and

means for determining formulae F1(x,y)=0 and F2(x,y)=0 of the boundaries in a rectangular coordinate system according to angles of the boundaries with respect to the depth direction and polar coordinates of random points on the boundaries, wherein x=r*sin(θ

) and y=r*cos(θ

);

wherein, whether a point P(x,y) on the resultant image is located in the imaging region to be processed is determined according to the following conditions;

if F1(x, y)*F2(x,y)<

=0, the point P(x,y) is in the imaging region to be processed; and

if F1(x, y)*F2(x,y)>

0, the point P(x,y) is out of the imaging region to be processed.