The invention generally relates to sonar devices that integrate forward-looking sensors with down-looking echosounders, side scanning sonar, or both. The invention provides a sonar system that includes a forward-looking sonar device that operates in an integrated fashion with one or more other sonar devices so that a boater can have a reliable navigation tool while also using sonar for finding fish and other features on the seafloor. The forward-looking sonar can include a transducer array that takes a three-dimensional acoustic reading of the objects and seafloor ahead. The electronics that process the acoustic data can also process data from down-looking sonar, side-scanning sonar, or both and can integrate the information to present an expansive display in the boat, revealing the contents and the floor of the sea in front of, around, and under the boat.

Techniques are disclosed for systems and methods to provide accurate and compact three dimensional (3D) capable multichannel sonar systems for mobile structures. A 3D capable multichannel sonar system includes a multichannel transducer and associated processing and control electronics and optionally orientation and/or position sensors disposed substantially within the housing of a sonar transducer assembly. The multichannel transducer includes multiple transmission and/or receive channels/transducer elements. The transducer assembly is configured to support and protect the multichannel transducer and associated electronics and sensors, to physically and/or adjustably couple to a mobile structure, and/or to provide a simplified interface to other systems coupled to the mobile structure. Resulting sonar data and/or imagery may be displayed to a user and/or used to adjust a steering actuator, a propulsion system thrust, and/or other operational systems of the mobile structure.

Disclosed herein is a system that includes an ultrasound imaging probe having a first optical fiber integrated therein and a console optically coupled with the ultrasound imaging probe via a first elongate member. The console includes one or more processors and a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon logic, that when executed by the one or more processors, causes operations that can include providing an incident light signal to the first optical fiber via the first elongate member, receiving reflected light signals of different spectral widths of the incident light from the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber, processing the reflected light signals to determine a first three-dimensional (3D) shape extending along a length including at least portions of the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber, and causing rendering of an image of the first 3D shape on a display of the medical system.

Many different types of systems are utilized and tasks are performed in a marine environment. The present invention provides various configurations of castable devices that can be operated and/or controlled for such systems or tasks. One or more castable devices can be integrated with a transducer assembly, such as a phased array, that emits sonar beams and receives sonar returns from the underwater environment. Processing circuitry may receive the sonar returns, process the sonar returns, generate an image, and transmit the image to a display.

A method for providing enhanced sonar images includes ensonifying a target column of water with sonar beams corresponding to pulses of continuous wave (CW) and pulse compression (FM) signals. Received acoustic returns are processed to generate sonar image data corresponding to the CW signals and the FM signals. The CW and FM sonar image data are then displayed contemporaneously such that one sonar image data set overlays another. Techniques are also disclosed to provide situational imagery. A pilot display system includes a user interface, a logic device, and a speed sensor mounted to a mobile structure. The user interface is configured to receive user input and provide user feedback, and the logic device is configured to receive a speed of the mobile structure from the speed sensor, generate corresponding situational image data, and render the situational image data via at least one display of the user interface.

A marine sonar display device comprises a display, a memory element, and a processing element. The processing element is configured to transmit a transmit electronic signal to a frequency steered sonar element that transmits an array of sonar beams into a body of water in a first direction towards the front of the marine vessel forming a first sonar wedge and a second array of sonar beams into a body of water in a second direction directly below the marine vessel forming a second sonar wedge, receive a receive electronic signal from the frequency steered sonar element, generate an array of sonar image slices, identify a gap in an underwater area between the first sonar wedge and the second sonar wedge, and control the display to visually present the array of sonar image slices in near real time and a sonar image slice in the gap.

Methods and apparatus measuring tissue nonlinear shear wave property are disclosed. When tissue shear responses are different to ultrasound radiation forces generated by pulses having different shapes, its nonlinear effect can be used to estimate tissue property at single location without measurements of group velocities or phase velocities. Ultrasound radiation force using a single tone burst pulse is applied to a selected location in a tissue region. The induced shear wave is detected in the region and its spectral distribution is calculated and analyzed. This detection may be repeated with other excitation pulses having different widths or different shapes at the same location. The spectral analysis of the detected shear wave is performed according to a nonlinear shear model for solving nonlinearity and viscoelasticity of the tissue at a single location in a tissue region. The detection location can be at one point at a time for imaging two-dimensional or three-dimensional tissue nonlinearities and shear wave properties. The property includes nonlinear magnitude variations, nonlinear phase variations, nonlinear coefficients, and viscoelasticity. The induced shear wave are detected at multiple locations along the shear propagation directions in the tissue region for calculating different shear group velocities and different shear phase velocities using different excitation pulses, and calculating nonlinearity and viscoelasticity. A difference between certain aspects of this disclosure and the prior art of ultrasound elastography is the utilization of nonlinear responses of the tissue shear property.

A sonar system is provided including a display screen, a transducer assembly including at least one transducer that is configured to emit one or more sonar signals into an underwater environment and receive sonar return data reflected from one or more objects, and a sonar module configured to generate a 3D matrix based on the sonar return data including a plurality of sonar returns that are each defined by a 3D positional value, determine a group of the plurality of sonar returns associated with an object, assign a predetermined icon to the determined group, and generate and display 3D image of the sonar return data. The predetermined icon is positioned within the 3D image at a position that corresponds to the position of the determined group such that the position of the predetermined icon corresponds to the position of the object.

Trolling motor assemblies with an integrated screen and/or user interface are provided herein. For example, the screen is integrated in the main housing or a foot pedal housing of the trolling motor assembly and accessible/visible by a user while the trolling motor is deployed. Such an assembly provides an easy-to-use and compact assembly that provides useful marine features for the user right at the trolling motor, thereby saving space and allowing the user to receive all pertinent information at their current position on the watercraft.

A marine multibeam sonar device comprises a processing element and a transmitter. The processing element generates a plurality of transmit transducer electronic signals and inverts a polarity of a first portion of the transmit transducer electronic signals. The transmitter is in communication with the processing element and includes a plurality of transmit electronic circuits and a plurality of transmit transducers. Each transmit electronic circuit receives and processes one of the transmit transducer electronic signals, wherein a first portion of the circuits re-inverts the polarity of the first portion of the transmit transducer electronic signals. The transmit transducers receive the processed transmit transducer electronic signals from the transmit electronic circuits and generate a sonar beam.