Gain control for ultrasound system

• US 5,257,624 A
• Filed: 10/25/1991
• Issued: 11/02/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Meyer, Andreas M., Fraser, Carolyn E., Prater, David M.
• Primary Examiner(s): JAWORSKI, FRANCIS J
• Application Number:
  US07/782,691
• Time in Patent Office: 739 Days
• Field of Search: 128/660.01, 128/660.04-660.07, 73/631
• US Class Current: 600/437
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52033 Gain control of receivers for seismic signals G01V1/245

Abstract

An operator adjusted lateral gain control (LGC) structure for an ultrasound imaging system, which may already include an operator adjusted time gain compensation (TGC) gain control structure. The LGC structure enables an operator to adjust the gain of one or more scan lines independently of the gain of at least one other scan line, said gain as a result of the LGC control being substantially constant along said one or more scan lines.

Claims

1. In an ultrasonic imaging system which sequentially transmits and receives information via a transducer along each of a plurality of scan lines all of said scan lines defining a region of scan, each of said scan lines having a predetermined displacement from a reference point, an operator adjustable gain control structure which varies the gain of said system as a function of the displacement of at least one of said scan lines comprising

operator adjustment means for generating a gain control command for adjusting the gain of at least one scan line, said at least one scan line being operator selectable at any location within said region of scan;

and

means responsive to said gain control command for adjusting the gain of said system such that the gain associated with a particular scan line as a result of the value of said gain control command is substantially constant as a function of distance from said transducer as measured along said particular scan line, and different from the gain associated with at least one other scan line.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for adjusting gain comprises a variable gain amplifier.

3. A gain control system for use with an ultrasonic imaging system, said system including transmitter, receiver, transducer, and display means, which sequentially transmits and receives information along a plurality of scan lines all of said scan lines defining a region of scan, each of said scan lines having a predetermined displacement from a reference point comprising

operator selected means for generating a plurality of gain control commands, each of said commands corresponding to the gain associated with at least one respective scan line said at least one scan line being operator selectable at any location within the region of scan;

and

means responsive to said commands for adjusting the gain of said system such that the gain associated with each of said respective scan lines as a result of the value of each of said gain control commands is substantially constant as a function of the distance from said transducer as measured along said respective scan line and different from the gain associated with at least one other scan line.

4. In an ultrasound imaging system which includes transducer, transmitter, receiver and display means, which sequentially transmits and receives information along each of a plurality of scan lines in predetermined scan format, all of said scan lines defining a region of scan, each of said scan lines being a unique distance from a reference point, and further includes at least means for generating a plurality of first gain control commands, and operator adjustable gain control system comprising

operator selected means for generating a plurality of second gain control commands, each of said second gain control commands controlling the gain of at least one of a corresponding plurality of scan lines at any location within said region of scan such that the gain of each scan line due to said second gain control command is constant as a function of distance from said transducer along each of scan lines and different from the gain associated with at least one other scan line;

means for combining said plurality of first gain control commands and said plurality of second gain control commands into a plurality of third gain control commands; and

means responsive to said third gain control commands for adjusting the gain of said system.

5. The combination set forth in claim 4 wherein said means for adjusting gain comprises a variable gain amplifier.

6. The combination set forth in claim 4 wherein said means for generating a plurality of first gain control commands is a TGC generator.

7. In an ultrasound imaging system which includes a transmitter, receiver and display, which sequentially transmits and receives information through a transducer along each of a plurality if scan lines in a predetermined scan format all of said scan lines defining a region of scan, each of said scan lines being a unique distance from a reference point, an operator adjustable gain control structure for controlling the gain of a given sector of said scan format, each sector containing a plurality of scan lines, comprising

operator adjustable structure for generating a plurality of gain control commands at any location within said region of scan, each gain control command representing a constant gain for a given scan line as a function of its distance from said transducer within a given sector and different from the gain associated with at least one other scan line

a variable gain amplifier responsive to at least said plurality of gain control commands.

8. The combination set forth in claim 7 wherein said operator adjustable structure comprises a plurality of potentiometers, each potentiometer generating a discrete gain control command.

9. The combination set forth in claim 7 further including means responsive to said gain control commands for varying the gain of each scan line within a given sector such that the gain of a scan line at or near the center of a given sector is greater than the gain of a scan line at or near each end of that sector, the gain of any given scan line being constant as a function of its distance from said transducer.