title: Teaching real-time ultrasonic imaging with a 4-channel sonar array, TI C6711 DSK and MATLAB.
abstract: Ultrasonic medical imaging courses often stop at the theory or MATLAB simulation level, since professors find it challenging to give the students the experience of designing a real-time ultrasonic system. Some of the practical problems of working with real-time data from the ultrasonic transducers can be avoided by working at lower frequencies (sonar to low ultrasound) range. To facilitate this, we have created a platform using the ease of MATLAB programming with the real-time processing capability of the low-cost Texas Instruments C6711 DSP starter kit and a 4-channel sonar array. With this platform students can design a B-mode or Color-Mode sonar system in the MATLAB environment. This paper will demonstrate how the platform can be used in the classroom to demonstrate the real-time signal processing stages including beamforming, multi-rate sampling, demodulation, filtering, image processing, echo imaging, and Doppler frequency estimation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering, U.S. Air Force Academy, CO 80840, USA.
authors.forename: George W P
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: York
authors.forename: Thad B
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Welch
authors.forename: Cameron H G
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Wright
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001698:Biomedical Engineering / Q000193:education* / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D003199:Computer Systems; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D003479:Curriculum; D004517:Education, Professional / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D009862:Online Systems; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012984:Software; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D014584:User-Computer Interface