Medical diagnostic ultrasound system and method

• US 7,678,048 B1
• Filed: 09/14/1999
• Issued: 03/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Knell, Christopher B., Wood, Andrew J., Randall, Kevin S., Urbano, Joseph A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Casler; Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): RAMIREZ, JOHN FERNANDO
• Application Number:
  US09/396,486
• Time in Patent Office: 3,836 Days
• Field of Search: 600/437, 600/443, 600/447, 600453-456, 600/916, 73625-626, 367/7, 367/11, 367103-105
• US Class Current: 600/437
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/33 specially adapted for cooperation with other devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7232 involving compression of the physiological signal, e.g. to extend the signal recording period
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/00 Diagnosis using ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves imaging of objects using sonar G01S15/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/08 Detecting organic movements or changes, e.g. tumours, cysts, swellings A61B8/02 - A61B8/06 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0825 for diagnosis of the breast, e.g. mammography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/14 Echo-tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4411 Device being modular
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4438 Means for identifying the diagnostic device, e.g. barcodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/463 characterised by displaying multiple images or images and diagnostic data on one display composite display in devices for short-range imaging with acoustic waves G01S7/52074
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/488 involving Doppler signals
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8979 Combined Doppler and pulse-echo imaging systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52046 Techniques for image enhancement involving transmitter or receiver image enhancement by image data processing G06T5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52082 involving a modular construction, e.g. a computer with short range imaging equipment modular ultrasonic medical diagnostic devices A61B8/4411
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52095 using multiline receive beamforming

Abstract

A medical diagnostic ultrasound system comprises several subsystems, such as a transmit beamformer, a receive beamformer, a B-mode processor, a Doppler processor and a scan converter. These subsystems are within the ultrasound data processing path for processing ultrasound data. One or more of these subsystems are implemented with one or more re-programmable logic devices. For example, one or two field programmable gate arrays are used is each subsystem to perform most or almost all of the subsystems essential functionality.

Claims

1. A medical diagnostic ultrasound system comprising:

a plurality of subsystems along an ultrasound data processing path including a beamformer subsystem, a Doppler processor subsystem, an RF processor subsystem, and a scan converter subsystem;

wherein one of the subsystems has an essential data processing functionality, the essential data processing functionality including data processing of ultrasound data, the essential data processing functionality of the subsystem largely residing in at least one but less than three reprogrammable logic device components;

wherein for the beamformer subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises filtering, interpolating, demodulating, phasing, apodization, delaying, summing or combinations thereof;

wherein for the Doppler processor subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises clutter filtering, auto-correlation, estimating velocity variance, or energy, or combinations thereof;

wherein for the RF processor subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises detecting an envelope, amplitude or power, log compressing or combinations thereof; and

wherein for the scan converter subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises interpolation.

2. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claim 1, wherein the essential functionality mostly resides in reprogrammable logic device components.

3. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claim 1, wherein the essential functionality substantially resides in reprogrammable logic device components.

4. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claim 1, wherein the essential functionality about entirely resides in reprogrammable logic device components.

5. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claims 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein the subsystem is the scan converter subsystem.

6. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claims 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein the subsystem is the transmit beamformer subsystem.

7. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claims 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein the subsystem is the receive beamformer subsystem.

8. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claims 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein at least two subsystems comprise re-programmable logic devices.

9. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claim 8 wherein the at least two subsystems comprise the transmit beamformer, the receive beamformer, and the scan converter subsystems.

10. The diagnostic ultrasound system subsystem of claims 1, 2, 3, or 4 wherein the diagnostic ultrasound system is portable.

11. The subsystem of claims 1, 2, 3 or 4 wherein the re-programmable logic device comprises a field programmable gate array.

12. The system of claims 1, 2, 3, or 4 further comprising an array of at least 64 elements.

13. The system of claims 1, 2, 3 or 4 further comprising an array from the group consisting of:

linear, curved linear, phased linear, sector and wide view array operatively connected with the system.

14. The system of claim 1 wherein the re-programmable logic device components comprise a single re-programmable logic device in the subsystem.

15. A medical diagnostic ultrasound method for processing with a subsystem, the method comprising the acts of:

(a) processing ultrasound data as an essential data processing functionality of the subsystem, the processing performed by at least one but less than three re-programmable logic device in the subsystem; and

(b) providing the essential data processing functionality of the subsystem largely resident in the reprogrammable logic device components,

wherein for a beamformer subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises filtering, interpolating, demodulating, phasing, apodization, delaying, summing or combinations thereof;

wherein for a Doppler processor subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises clutter filtering auto-correlation, estimating velocity variance, or energy, or combinations thereof;

wherein for a RF processor subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises detecting an envelope, amplitude or power, log compressing or combinations thereof; and

wherein for a scan converter subsystem, the essential data processing functionality comprises interpolation.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein (b) comprises providing the essential functionality mostly resident in reprogrammable logic device components.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein (b) comprises providing the essential functionality substantially resident in reprogrammable logic device components.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein (b) comprises providing the essential functionality about entirely resident in reprogrammable logic device components.

19. The method of claims 15, 16, 17, or 18, wherein (a) comprises scan converting data.

20. The method of claims 15, 16, 17, or 18, wherein (a) comprises generating digital transmit waveforms.

21. The method of claims 15, 16, 17, or 18, wherein (a) comprises delaying and summing.

22. The method of claims 15, 16, 17, or 18, further comprising:

(c) performing (a) and (b) in at least two subsystems in an ultrasound data path of an ultrasound system.

23. The method of claims 15, 16, 17 or 18 further comprising:

(c) re-programming the re-programmable logic device in response to a change in mode.

24. The method of claims 15, 16, 17, or 18 further comprising:

(c) acquiring the data with an array of at least 64 elements.

25. The method of claims 15, 16, 17 or 18 further comprising;

(c) acquiring the data with an array from the group consisting of;

linear, curved linear, phased linear, sector and wide view arrays.

26. The method of claim 15 wherein (b) comprises providing the essential functionality wherein the re-programmable logic device components comprise a single re-programmable logic device in the subsystem.

27. A medical diagnostic ultrasound system for beamformation, the system comprising:

a beamformer comprising at least one re-programmable logic device means operable to generate transmit waveforms, delay ultrasound data or waveforms, apodize across channels or sum ultrasound data; and

a transducer operatively connected with the beamformer.

28. The system of claim 27 wherein the beamformer comprises a transmit beamformer.

29. The system of claim 27 wherein the beamformer comprises a receive beamformer.

30. The system of claim 29 wherein the at least one re-programmable logic device means comprises a memory operable to delay received signals.

31. The system of claim 27 wherein the re-programmable logic device means comprises a field programmable gate array.

32. The system of claim 27 wherein an essential functionality of the beamformer resides in the re-programmable logic device means.

33. The system of claim 27 wherein the transducer comprises an army of at least 64 elements.

34. The system of claim 27 wherein the transducer comprises an array from the group consisting of:

linear, curved linear, phased linear, sector and wide view arrays.

35. The system of claim 27 wherein the at least one re-programmable logic device means comprises a single re-programmable logic device.

36. A medical diagnostic ultrasound method for beamformation, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) beamforming data with at least one re-programmable logic device means; and

(b) transmitting data between the re-programmable logic device means and a transducer.

37. The method of claim 36 wherein (a) comprises generating digital transmit waveforms with the re-programmable logic device means.

38. The method of claim 36 wherein (a) comprises delaying and summing.

39. The system of claim 38 wherein (a) comprises delaying received signals with a memory integrated with the one programmable logic device means.

40. The method of claim 36 wherein (a) comprises processing with a field programmable gate array.

41. The method of claim 36 further comprising:

(c) providing an essential functionality of the beamformer resident in the re-programmable logic device means.

42. The method of claim 36 further comprising:

(c) transmitting acoustic energy wherein the transducer comprises an array of at least 64 elements.

43. The method of claim 36 wherein (b) comprises transmitting data for the transducer comprising an array from the group consisting of:

linear, curved linear, phased linear, sector and wide view arrays.

44. The method of claim 36 wherein (a) comprises beamforming wherein the at least one re-programmable logic device means comprises a single re-programmable logic device.