Adaptive control and signal enhancement of an ultrasound display
US6512854B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 7, 1999 |
| Grant date | Jan 28, 2003 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 7, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T2207/30004
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The invention implements a method for adaptively using raw image data (before compression) to produce pixel display values in an ultrasound system in accord with variations in signal-to-noise ratio. Initially, for each subject pixel of an image, a first regional value is derived by taking into account values of a neighborhood of pixels that includes the subject pixel. The first regional value is then compared to a threshold value related to noise and each subject pixel is assigned a classification as a tentative signal pixel if the regional value equals or exceeds the threshold value. Any pixel value not so classified is considered a tentative noise pixel. A second regional value is then derived for each subject pixel by taking into account first regional classifications of a second neighborhood of pixels that includes the subject pixel. If the number of signals classified as signal in the second neighborhood is less than a second threshold, the subject pixel is classified as noise. Otherwise the subject pixel is classified as a signal pixel. The actual values of the subject pixels are then adjusted to improve a display of the ultrasound image and the corresponding audio presentati…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.