Patent ID: 8282553

Claim:
An ultrasonic acoustoelastography system comprising: an ultrasonic transducer system adaptable to provide a first echo signal from a first and second material interface of an element to be measured at a first state of deformation of the element and a second echo signal from the first and second material interface of the element to be measured at a second state of deformation of the element; a signal processing system configured to: (i) evaluate the first echo signal at the first state of deformation of the element to measure a first strain value and a first stiffness value of the element at the first strain value; (ii) evaluate the second echo signal at the second state of deformation of the element to measure a second strain value and a second stiffness value of the element at the second strain value; (iii) compare the measured first and second stiffness values and the measured first and second strain values to determined a change in stiffness as a function of strain; and (iv) output a characterization of the element based on the change of stiffness as a function of strain for the element.