Beamforming techniques for ultrasound microcalcification detection

Abstract

A medical ultrasound acquisition-data analysis device acquires channel data () via ultrasound received on the channels, uses the acquired channel data to estimate data coherence and derive dominance of an eigen-value of a channel covariance matrix and, based on the estimate and dominance, distinguishes microcalcifications () from background. Microcalcifications may then be made distinguishable visually on screen via highlighting, coloring, annotation, etc. The channel data operable upon by the estimating may have been subject to beamforming delays and may be summed in a beamforming procedure executed in the estimating. In the estimating and deriving, both field point-by-field point, multiple serial transmits () may be used for each field point. In one embodiment results of the estimating and deriving are multiplied point-by-point and submitted to thresholding.