Ultrasound research interface

<h2 id="typical-b-mode-receive-processing-chain">Typical B-mode receive processing chain</h2>
<p>A typical digital ultrasound processing chain for B-Mode imaging may look as follows:
</p>
<ul><li>Multiple analog signals are acquired from the ultrasound transducer (the transmitter/receiver applied to the patient)</li>
<li>Analog signals may pass through one or more analog notch filters and a <a href="/facts/Variable-gain_amplifier/FSUqSByl">variable-gain amplifier</a> (VCA)</li>
<li>Multiple <a href="/facts/Analog-to-digital_converter/8YYNsMFg">analog-to-digital converters</a> convert the analog <a href="/facts/Radio_frequency/aWku7h4R">radio frequency</a> (RF) signal to a digital RF signal sampled at a predetermined rate (typical ranges are from 20MHz to 160MHz) and at a predetermined number of bits (typical ranges are from 10 bits to 16 bits)</li>
<li><a href="/facts/Beamforming/4VpeHoGc">Beamforming</a> is applied to individual RF signals by applying time delays and summations as a function of time and transformed into a single RF signal</li>
<li>The RF signal is run through one or more digital FIR or IIR filters to extract the most interesting parts of the signal given the clinical operation</li>
<li>The filtered RF signal runs through an <a href="/facts/Envelope_detector/0sAQ7gmp">envelope detector</a> and is log compressed into a grayscale format</li></ul>
<p>Multiple signals processed in this way are lined up together and interpolated and rasterized into a readable image.
</p>
<h2 id="data-access">Data access</h2>
<p>A URI may provide data access at many different stages of the processing chain, these include:
</p>
<ul><li>Pre-beamformed digital RF data from individual channels</li>
<li>Beamformed RF data</li>
<li>Envelope detected data</li>
<li>Interpolated image data</li></ul>
<p>Where many diagnostic ultrasound devices have <a href="/facts/Medical_ultrasonography/Ju5BFuuV">Doppler</a> imaging modes for measuring blood flow, the URI may also provide access to Doppler related signal data, which can include:
</p>
<ul><li>Demodulated (I/Q) data</li>
<li><a href="/facts/Fast_Fourier_transform/caT7UUCh">FFT</a> spectral data</li>
<li>Autocorrelated velocity color Doppler data</li></ul>
<h2 id="tools">Tools</h2>
<p>A URI may include many different tools for enabling the researcher to make better use of the device and the data captured, some of these tools include:
</p>
<ul><li>Custom <a href="/facts/MATLAB/qPjLISCk">MATLAB</a> programs for reading and processing signal and image data</li>
<li><a href="/facts/Software_Development_Kit/2Hkk6Hbs">Software Development Kits</a> (SDKs) for communicating with the URI, signal processing and other specialized modes of operation available on the URI</li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1"><p>Dickie K, Leung C, Zahiri R, Pelissier L. A flexible research interface for collecting clinical ultrasound images. SPIE Multispectral Image Acquisition. 2009 Oct;7494(02) <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:2"><p>Rohling R, Fung W,  Lajevardi P. PUPIL: Programmable Ultrasound Platform and Interface Library. MICCAI. 2003 Nov;(2879);424-431 <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:3"><p>Shamdasani V, Bae U, Sikdar S, Yoo YM, Karadayi K, Managuli R, Kim Y. Research interface on a programmable ultrasound scanner. Ultrasonics. 2008 Jul;48(03);159-168. <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
</ol>

Ultrasound research interface open-in-new

Ultrasound research interface