Backscatter data collection technique for ultrasound
First Claim
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1. An ultrasound apparatus for obtaining a two-dimensional backscatter image comprising:
- transducer means for transmitting ultrasound into and receiving ultrasound from an object to be studied, said transducer means having a fundamental frequency;
pulse means coupled to said transducer means for driving said transducer means to emit narrowband ultrasonic waves, said waves having a bandwidth sufficiently narrow to obtain said image without range gating; and
processing means coupled to said transducer means for calculating independent measurements of the backscatter intensity for a plurality of target areas in said object directly from echo waves received by said transducer means.
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Abstract
A rapid, non-invasive realtime modality for detecting differential backscatter in ultrasound is achieved using narrowband interrogating frequencies to maximize signal-to-noise ratio and to minimize location errors. Additional improvement in signal-to-noise ratio and separation of tissue populations are achieved by cyclically alternating through a fixed number of predetermined burst lengths and by employing multiple narrowband bursts of differing fundamental frequencies.
24 Citations
13 Claims
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1. An ultrasound apparatus for obtaining a two-dimensional backscatter image comprising:
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transducer means for transmitting ultrasound into and receiving ultrasound from an object to be studied, said transducer means having a fundamental frequency; pulse means coupled to said transducer means for driving said transducer means to emit narrowband ultrasonic waves, said waves having a bandwidth sufficiently narrow to obtain said image without range gating; and processing means coupled to said transducer means for calculating independent measurements of the backscatter intensity for a plurality of target areas in said object directly from echo waves received by said transducer means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. An ultrasound apparatus for measuring intrinsic acoustic parameters comprising:
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transducer means for transmitting ultrasound into and receiving ultrasound from an object to be studied; pulser means coupled to said transducer means for driving said transducer means to emit ultrasonic bursts having variable lengths corresponding to predetermined numbers of cycles of the fundamental frequency of each respective burst; and processing means coupled to said transducer means for calculating ultrasound parameters for a plurality of target areas in said object, a respective parameter value corresponding to each target area being based on a plurality of measurements obtained from each target area with different burst lengths. - View Dependent Claims (9)
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10. A method for performing ultrasonic measurement of an object, comprising the steps of:
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insonifying said object with narrowband ultrasonic energy having a 10 dB bandwidth in the range of less than about 20 percent relative to the fundamental frequency of said ultrasonic energy; selecting a plurality of target volumes in said object for measurement; and detecting the backscatter intensity for each respective target volume. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12)
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13. A method for ultrasonic examination of an object comprising the steps of:
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obtaining a backscatter intensity measurement N from a target area at a first fundamental frequency f1 ; obtaining a backscatter intensity measurement N from said target area at a second fundamental frequency f2 ; finding a solution for at least one of the factors W1 and W2 according to the equations
space="preserve" listing-type="equation">W.sub.1 =N(f.sub.1)D-N(f.sub.2)B and
space="preserve" listing-type="equation">W.sub.2 =N(f.sub.2)A-N(f.sub.1)Cwhere A, B, C, and D are predetermined constants; and assigning a factor value to said target area.
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Specification