Programmable ultrasound imaging using multimedia technologies: a next-generation ultrasound machine.
High computational and throughput requirements in modern ultrasound machines have restricted their internal design to algorithm-specific hardware with limited programmability. We have architected a programmable ultrasound processing system, Programmable Ultrasound Image Processor (PUIP), to facilitate engineering and clinical ultrasound innovations. Multiple high-performance multimedia processors were used to provide a computing power of 4 billion operations per second. Flexibility was achieved by making our system programmable and multimodal, e.g., B-mode, color flow, cine and Doppler data can be processed. We have successfully designed and implemented the PUIP to fit within an ultrasound machine. It provides a platform for rapid testing of new concepts in ultrasound processing and enables software upgrades for future technologies. Current and future clinical applications include extended fields of view, quantitative measurements, three-dimensional ultrasound reconstruction and visualization, adaptive persistence, speckle reduction, edge enhancement, image segmentation, and motion analysis. The PUIP is a significant step in the evolution of ultrasound machines toward more flexible and generalized systems bridging the gap between many innovative ideas and their clinical use in ultrasound machines.
Kim
Y
Y
Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle 98195-2500, USA. kim@ee.washington.edu
Kim
J H
JH
Basoglu
C
C
Winter
T C
TC
D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D001698:Biomedical Engineering; D003199:Computer Systems; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D019212:Multimedia; D012984:Software; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000295:instrumentation*