A method for performing shear wave elastography imaging of an observation field in a medium, the method comprising a plurality of shear wave imaging steps (30) to acquire a plurality of sets of shear wave propagation parameters, the method further comprising a reliability indicator determining step (40) during which a reliability indicator of the shear wave elastography imaging of the observation field is determined.

An ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus includes a position detector, and control circuitry. The position detector detects a position in a three-dimensional space of one of an ultrasonic image and an ultrasonic probe. The control circuitry uses a vivisection view defined in a three-dimensional space. The control circuitry associates a structure related to a subject included in the ultrasonic image with a structure included in the vivisection view using a position and orientation in a first three-dimensional coordinate system of the structure related to the subject included in the ultrasonic image and a position and orientation in a second three-dimensional coordinate system of the structure included in the vivisection view.

Performing retrospective dynamic transmit focusing beamforming for ultrasound signals by a) transmitting plural transmit beams, each transmit beam centered at a different position along array, having width or aperture encompassing plural laterally spaced line positions, each transmit beam width or aperture overlapping width or aperture of adjacent transmit beam or more laterally spaced transmit beams; b) receiving echo signals; c) processing echo signals to produce plural receive lines of echo signals at laterally spaced line positions within width or aperture of transmit beam; d) repeating steps b), (c) for additional transmit beams of plural transmitted transmit beams; e) equalizing phase shift variance among receive lines at common line position resulting from transmit beams of different transmit beam positions concurrently with steps c), d); f) combining echo signals of receive lines from different transmit beams spatially related to common line position to produce image data; g) produces an image using image data.

A device and method for imaging, measuring and identifying multiphase fluid flow in wellbores using phased array Doppler ultrasound. The device includes a radially-configured or ring-shaped ultrasound transducer that when deployed in a well in Doppler mode can measure the velocity of radially flowing fluids in the wellbore and generate a 3D image of radial flow in the wellbore, including flowback into the wellbore after fracturing operations, or flow leaving the wellbore during water injection operations. The ring-shaped ultrasound transducer can also simultaneously operate in a B-mode to generate a B-mode image of the wellbore liner upon which the Doppler image can be overlaid. The device may also include a forward facing ultrasound transducer either instead of or in place of the ring-shaped transducer for obtaining information and images on axial flow in the wellbore in Doppler mode, and the location of phase boundaries and phase locations in B-mode.

A method that includes transmitting coded waveforms simultaneously on multiple elements for several frames, constructing a first multi-input, single output (MISO) system from the codes to model transmit-receive paths, solving system and RF data observation by linear model theory, giving an IR set for the medium, and applying the estimates to a secondary MISO system, constructed by analogy to the first, but with pulses convenient for beamforming in the form of a focused set of single-cycle pulses for ideal focused reconstruction.

Improved ultrasound imaging devices and methods of using the devices are provided. An intraluminal imaging device is configured process imaging data obtained using a single imaging sequence in different processing paths to generate B-mode and flow images. For example, an ultrasound imaging system includes an ultrasound imaging device comprising an array of acoustic elements and a processor in communication with the array. The processor activates the array of acoustic elements to acquire ultrasound data using a sequence of transmit-receive pairs, generates a B-mode image using the acquired ultrasound data, forms a plurality of sub-apertures comprising a portion of the transmit-receive pairs, groups the sub-apertures into temporally-spaced ensembles, determines a flow estimate based on a comparison of at least one of sub-apertures within an ensemble, ensembles within an aperture, or different apertures, and outputs a graphical representation of the B-mode image and the flow estimate to a display.

A device and method for imaging, measuring and identifying multiphase fluid flow in wellbores using phased array Doppler ultrasound. The device includes a radially-configured or ring-shaped ultrasound transducer that when deployed in a well in Doppler mode can measure the velocity of radially flowing fluids in the wellbore and generate a 3D image of radial flow in the wellbore, including flowback into the wellbore after fracturing operations, or flow leaving the wellbore during water injection operations. The ring-shaped ultrasound transducer can also simultaneously operate in a B-mode to generate a B-mode image of the wellbore liner upon which the Doppler image can be overlaid. The device may also include a forward facing ultrasound transducer either instead of or in place of the ring-shaped transducer for obtaining information and images on axial flow in the wellbore in Doppler mode, and the location of phase boundaries and phase locations in B-mode.

A method for calculating a reference value of an ultrasonic sensor includes: transmitting a first ultrasonic signal from the ultrasonic sensor toward a first surface of a contact device while an object is positioned on the first surface; generating a plurality of ultrasonic images based on a first ultrasonic echo signal; selecting an ultrasonic image having a highest similarity to a reference image from among the ultrasonic images; storing a first parameter and a second parameter corresponding to a selected ultrasonic image; while the object is not positioned on the first surface, transmitting a second ultrasonic signal based on the first parameter from the ultrasonic sensor toward the first surface; and calculating the reference value of the ultrasonic sensor using the second parameter and a second ultrasonic echo signal.

A multiple aperture ultrasound imaging system may be configured to store raw, un-beamformed echo data. Stored echo data may be retrieved and re-beamformed using modified parameters in order to enhance the image or to reveal information that was not visible or not discernible in an original image. Raw echo data may also be transmitted over a network and beamformed by a remote device that is not physically proximate to the probe performing imaging. Such systems may allow physicians or other practitioners to manipulate echo data as though they were imaging the patient directly, even without the patient being present. Many unique diagnostic opportunities are made possible by such systems and methods.

A method (100) for visualizing a section of a patient's vascular system (155) with an ultrasound image processing system (3) is disclosed. The method comprises receiving (103) ultrasound data generated by an ultrasound probe (10) being displaced across a part of the patients anatomy (150) containing the section of the patients vascular system, said ultrasound data comprising image data and Doppler data; generating (107) ultrasound images (170) from said image data, each ultrasound image corresponding to a subsection of the patients vascular system having a determined location within the patients vascular system and combining (109) said ultrasound images into a map (180) of said section of the patients vascular system; processing (111) the received Doppler data to obtain blood flow characteristics for the section of the patients vascular system; identifying (113) landmarks within the section of the patients vascular system based on the obtained blood flow characteristics; annotating (115) said map with said landmark identifications (181, 183); and generating (117) an output signal comprising said annotated map. Also disclosed are a computer program product and ultrasound image processing system for implementing this method.