This paper describes a unique crossed electrode array for real-time volume ultrasound imaging. By placing orthogonal linear array electrode patterns on the opposite sides of a hemispherically shaped composite transducer substrate, a 2-D array can be fabricated using a small fraction of the elements required for a traditional 2-D array. The performance of the array is investigated using a computer simulation of the radiation pattern. We show that by using a 288-element crossed electrode pattern it is possible to collect large field of view volume images (60 degrees x 60 degrees sector) at real-time frame rates (>20 volume images/s), with image contrast and resolution comparable to what can be obtained using a conventional 128-element linear phased array.
In this paper, we describe the design and performance of a high-speed, signal processing board designed for real-time 3D ultrasound beamforming. The system can generate 100M beamformed voxels per second from the data received from a 288 element array. Our primary scan volume produces an 80x80x246 volume image updated at a rate of 24 volumes per second, with 4 depth transmit focal zones. Preliminary beamforming tests have shown good agreement with modeled simulations. The average amplitude of the pedestal secondary lobe in the radiation pattern was about -72 dB for a point target at f/2. Average single channel noise levels were measured at 400 nV/rtHz at high gain (+43 dB). This corresponds to a single channel signal to noise ratio of 54 dB for a 13.2 MHz bandwidth and results in a system dynamic range of 96 dB. The channel-to-channel isolation was approximately 46 dB.
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