Patent ID: 6048312
Filing Date: 2000-04-11
Classification: A61B,G01S,Y10S

Abstract:
A system for three-dimensional imaging of an object volume having a specular ultrasound reflector inserted therein, comprising:an ultrasound linear transducer array for transmitting ultrasound beams and detecting ultrasound echoes reflected from said object volume at a multiplicity of sample volumes in a scan plane;means for controlling said ultrasound linear transducer array to transmit ultrasound beams in a steered direction, said steered direction being such that reflections from said specular ultrasound reflector impinge on said ultrasound linear transducer array;acquisition means coupled to said ultrasound linear transducer array for acquiring acoustic data derived at least in part from ultrasound echoes transmitted in said steered direction and reflected from each one of a multiplicity of scan planes through said object volume;means for storing acoustic data for each of a multiplicity of image frames corresponding to said multiplicity of scan planes;operator interface means for receiving operator inputs;means for defining a data volume from said acoustic data based on operator inputs;first mode means responsive to operator inputs for enabling selection in a first mode of an orientation of said data volume relative to an imaging plane;means for generating first imaging data representing a three-dimensional projection onto said imaging plane by applying a projection transformation to said data volume;a display monitor comprising an array of pixels; andmeans for mapping said first imaging data into a first image frame of pixel intensity values for display on said display monitor in said first mode.