Improved imaging is provided for structures under test that have propagation direction dependent ultrasound propagation speed or position dependent ultrasound propagation speed due to fibrous, coarse grain or single crystalline material. A set reflection points is selected in the structure under test and ultrasound propagation time delays between the reflection point or points on one hand and the plurality of positions on the other hand that fit an observed time delay of the detected reflections are computed. This may be done by means of an iterative method. In the iterative method a synthetically focused ultrasound beam is realized by summing measurements after compensation for propagation time delay from different transmitting transducers to the reflection points. Time delays to receiving transducers are measured from the arrival time of reflections of this synthetically focused ultrasound beam, and the propagation time delay from different transmitting transducers is iteratively adapted until it matches time delays corresponding to the measured arrival times. Time delays to other points in the structure under test are interpolated between the selected reflection points and used in the computation of an image of reflections within the structure under test.

A dual-mode ultrasound system provides real-time imaging and therapy delivery using the same transducer elements of a transducer array. The system may use a multi-channel driver to drive the elements of the array. The system uses a real-time monitoring and feedback image control of the therapy based on imaging data acquired using the dual-mode ultrasound array (DMUA) of transducer elements. Further, for example, multi-modal coded excitation may be used in both imaging and therapy modes. Still further, for example, adaptive, real-time refocusing for improved imaging and therapy can be achieved using, for example, array directivity vectors obtained from DMUA pulse-echo data.

An intravascular ultrasound imaging system with a catheter having an elongated body having a distal end and an imaging core arranged to be inserted into the elongated body. The imaging core is arranged to transmit ultrasonic energy pulses and to receive reflected ultrasonic energy pulses. The system further includes an imaging engine coupled to the imaging core and arranged to provide the imaging core with energy pulses to cause the imaging core to transmit the ultrasonic energy pulses. The energy pulses are arranged in repeated sequences and the energy pulses of each sequence have varying characteristics. The reflected pulses may be processed to provide a composite image of images resulting from each different characteristic.

An ultrasound apparatus according to the present embodiments includes a receiving unit and a probe controlling unit. The receiving unit receives settings in relation to the aperture of the ultrasound probe and the region of interest of the subject with a contrast agent injected. The probe controlling unit controls the ultrasound probe based on the settings received by the receiving unit in such a manner as to transmit an ultrasound wave from the vibrator arranged in the aperture to the region of interest.

A control unit cyclically sets a first transmission/reception condition for a close range and a second transmission/reception condition for a long range. A synthesizing unit generates an added frame sequence and an edge-enhanced frame sequence from a reception frame sequence, and generates a synthesized frame sequence from the added frame sequence and the edge-enhanced frame sequence. The first transmission/reception condition includes a first transmission frequency and a first transmission depth of focus. The second transmission/reception condition includes a second transmission frequency that is lower than the first transmission frequency and a second transmission depth of focus that is greater than the first transmission depth of focus.

1.sup.st and 2.sup.nd pulsed waves (103, 104) with 1.sup.st and 2.sup.nd center frequencies are transmitted along 1.sup.st and 2.sup.nd transmit beams so that the 1.sup.st and 2.sup.nd pulsed waves overlap at least in an overlap region (Z) to produce nonlinear interaction scattering sources in said region. The scattered signal components from at least the nonlinear interaction scattering sources are picked up by a receiver (102) and processed to suppress other components than said nonlinear interaction scattered signal components, to provide nonlinear interaction measurement or image signals. At least a receive beam is scanned in an azimuth or combined azimuth and elevation direction to produce 2D or 3D images of said nonlinear interaction scattering sources.

A method includes receiving first electrical signals from a first single-element transducer (112.sub.1) and second electrical signals from a second single-element transducer (112.sub.2). The transducers are disposed on a shaft (110), which has a longitudinal axis (200), of an ultrasound imaging probe (102) with transducing sides disposed transverse to and facing away from the longitudinal axis. The transducers are angularly offset from each other on the shaft by a non-zero angle. The transducers are operated at first and second different cutoff frequencies. The shaft concurrently translates and rotates while the transducers receive the first and second ultrasound signals. The method further includes delay and sum beamforming, with first and second beamformers (120.sub.1, 120.sub.2), the first and second electrical signals, respectively via different processing chains (712.sub.1, 712.sub.2), employing an adaptive synthetic aperture technique, producing first and second images. The method further includes combining the first and second images, creating a final image, and displaying the final image.

Nonlinear ultrasound imaging systems and methods are disclose. In one aspect, a nonlinear ultrasound imaging system includes a first transducer configured to transmit a first ultrasound signal along a scan line, a second transducer configured to sweep a second ultrasound signal along the scan line such that the first and second ultrasound signals intersect at a plurality of voxels, and a third transducer configured to receive echoes associated with interactions of the first and second ultrasound signals at the plurality of voxels. The nonlinear ultrasound imaging system further includes a processor configured to generate an ultrasound image based on the echoes.

Techniques for detecting embolic information for a patient. The techniques may include obtaining data identifying an ultrasound signal associated with the patient, identifying a set of candidate embolic regions in the data, identifying a set of embolic regions from among the set of candidate embolic regions, and outputting embolic information corresponding to the set of embolic regions.

An ultrasound system comprising a probe adapted for emitting and receiving ultrasound waves inside a medium, and a processing unit connected to said probe and adapted for processing signals from the probe. The probe is configured so as to behave as a Fresnel lens for focusing the ultrasound waves. The processing unit analyses signals from the probe for sensing the medium at a plurality of focal points.