Patent ID: 8416643

Claim:
A method of processing ultrasound signals received from a plurality of data channels each associated with different transducer elements, said data channels each having a channel identifier corresponding to a particular one of said transducer elements, a fractional delay value of each channel, and an integer delay value, comprising: generating a sorted delay data table having sorted delay data by sorting delay data that includes said channel identifier, said fractional delay value, and said integer delay value, wherein said fractional delay value includes a plurality of different fractional delay values including at least a first and a second fractional delay value, said sorted delay table data clustering together channel groups comprising a first channel group including said data channels that have said first fractional delay value and a second channel group that includes said data channels that have said second fractional delay value; generating control signals based on the sorted delay data that implements data path combining by directing channel data from said first channel group for processing the control signals by a first interpolation filter that provides said first fractional delay value and channel data associated with said second channel group for processing by a second interpolation filter that provides said second fractional delay value, and summing signals output by said first and said second interpolation filter to form a beamformed signal, wherein said plurality of different fractional delay values are given by integer*Tres, wherein Tres is a timing resolution (Tres) for said ultrasound receive beamformed signal and said integer corresponds to integer values from zero to ceil(Ts/Tres)−1, where Ts is a sampling period for digitizing said channel data, wherein ceil (Ts/Tres) is a determination of the greater of Ts or Tres, wherein said beamformed signal at a time sample n for a scan line is calculated using: z ⁡ [ n ] = ∑ k = - ∞ ∞ ⁢ ∑ m = 0 M - 1 ⁢ a m ⁡ [ n ] ⁢ h p ⁡ ( m , n ) ⁡ [ k ] ⁢ x m ⁡ [ n - k - d m ⁡ [ n ] ] Wherein: p(m, n)ε{0, 1 . . . , P−1} P=ceil(T s /T res ) m is a summation over said different transducer elements; k is a summation over a number of interpolation filter coefficients for said first and said second interpolation filter; a m [n] is an apodization factor applied to said channel data associated with an mth data channel at said time sample n; x m [n] is a sensing signal generated by an m th element of said different transducer elements at said time sample n, h p(m,n) [k] is the kth coefficient of a p(m,n) th filter of said first and said second interpolation filter at said time sample n, and d m [n] is an integer delay for said channel data associated with said m th data channel at said time sample n.