General Electric Company

Kretztechnik Ag

Erwin Fosodeder

Helmut Brandl

Reinhold Bruestle

Daniel John Buckton

Gerald Schroecker

Peter Falkensammer

Franz Wiesauer

Andreas Kremsl

Thomas Huepf

Manfred Aichhorn

David Puehringer

Artur Gritzky

Various embodiments include a system and method that enhance the visualization of selected individual images from a real-time scan. The method can include acquiring ultrasound image data at an ultrasound system. The method may include processing the acquired ultrasound image data according to cine sequence processing parameters to generate a cine sequence. The cine sequence includes a plurality of frames, each of the frames having a first resolution. The method can include receiving a trigger. The method may include processing the acquired ultrasound image data according to still image processing parameters in response to the trigger to generate a still image. The still image has a second resolution that is higher than the first resolution.

Method and system for enhanced visualization of individual images in a real-time scan

An imaging system and method acquire first ultrasound image data of a body at a first acquisition quality level, display one or more two-dimensional images of the body using the image data at the first acquisition quality level, and create second ultrasound image data at a reduced, second acquisition quality level. The second ultrasound image data is created from the first ultrasound image data that was acquired at the first acquisition quality level. The system and method also display a rendered multi-dimensional image of the body using the second ultrasound image data at the reduced, second acquisition quality level.

Imaging system and method providing scalable resolution in multi-dimensional image data

Various embodiments include a system and method that provide support for acquiring secondary ultrasound image snapshots with primary real-time ultrasound image data. The method can include acquiring first image data at an ultrasound system in a primary acquisition mode based on primary acquisition mode imaging parameters. The method may include receiving a trigger to switch from the primary acquisition mode to a secondary acquisition mode. The method can include acquiring second image data at the ultrasound system in a secondary acquisition mode based on secondary acquisition mode imaging parameters in response to the trigger. The method may include displaying a replay cine sequence that includes the first image data and the second image data. The replay cine sequence can include a tag identifying the second image data in the replay cine sequence.

Method and system for snapshot support for real-time ultrasound

Various embodiments include a system and method that enhance performance of an ultrasound system by dynamically changing an impedance of a transmit/receive switch. The system can include a transmit/receive switch and a low noise amplifier. The transmit/receive switch may be configured to switch between a transmit phase and a receive phase of an ultrasound scan. The transmit/receive switch may provide a receive signal communicated from an ultrasound transducer to a low noise amplifier when in the receive phase. An impedance of the transmit/receive switch may be dynamically adjusted by changing a resistance of the transmit/receive switch while the transmit/receive switch is in the receive phase. The low noise amplifier may be configured to amplify the receive signal. In various embodiments, a gain of the low noise amplifier is independent of the resistance of the transmit/receive switch.

Method and system for dynamically changing an impedance of a transmit/receive switch

Techniques for imaging adjusting a cine-loop are described herein. A cine-loop may be generated, and it may be identified whether the cine-loop has a stitching artifact. The cine-loop may be played, and the length of the cine-loop may be adjusted while the cine-loop is playing until the stitching artifact is substantially removed.

Cine-loop adjustment

The invention describes a procedure for the examination of objects by the means of ultrasound waves whereby a volume-of-interest is scanned by a 3D-ultrasound-probe by moving a transmitter/receiver beam in a scan plane within selectable limits. This B-mode scan plane is also simultaneously moved in a direction across to this scan plane. The transmitting of sound pulses and acquiring the echo-signals is done more or less continuously during the movement in B-plane and across to it The echo-signals are stored in a volume memory on addresses which correspond to the spatial position of the echo-generating structure inside the object. These stored data-sets are evaluated by a 3D-processor and are represented on at least one display unit by different algorithms with selectable parameters. Important is that the acquisition and the representation is done continuously.

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Zipf, Austria

Erwin Fosodeder