Ultrasound apparatus for three dimensional image reconstruction
US5797845A · kind A · utility
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 4, 1996 |
| Grant date | Aug 25, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 4, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S128/916
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
This invention employs an ultrasound apparatus with a phased transducer having transmit and receive array systems to form an electronically scanned ultrasonic "pencil" beam (25) from crossed flat acoustic beams. The flat transmit beams and flat receive apertures are shaped by the arrays with size of individual elements on the order of the wavelength of a generated carrier frequency in a human body. The separation of array functions in the transmission and reception modes reducess the side lobe level and improves the noise performance. A fast method of acquisition of two dimensional images is described. This method uses a property of a dynamic focused and scanned flat acoustic beam together with the ability to shape flat synthetic receive apertures from digitized and memorized amplitude information. The same fast method of three dimensional image reconstruction is suggested, which uses an unfocused acoustic beam generated by a single transducer element together with the ability to form flat synthetic receive apertures in memory.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.