Optimal scan plane selection for organ viewing

An ultrasound imaging system comprising:

• a user interface configured to receive an indication of an object to be imaged from a user;
• a controller configured to control a probe for imaging a volume of a subject based on the indication of the object to be imaged, wherein the imaging comprises transmitting and receiving ultrasound signals in accordance with a plurality of scan line patterns;
• and
• one or more processors in communication with the probe, the one or more processors configured to:
• generate a plurality of image data sets from the received ultrasound signals, each image data set of the plurality of image data sets corresponding to one of the plurality of scan line patterns;
• select a target characteristic specific to the object to be imaged from a group of characteristics comprising at least one tangible anatomical feature and at least one visual artifact of ultrasound imaging;
• derive one or more types of data from the plurality of image data sets based on the target characteristic selected;
• assess the plurality of image data sets for the target characteristic specific to the object to be imaged utilizing the one or more types of data specific to the target characteristic;
• identify an image data set of the plurality of image data sets that includes the target characteristic;
• and
• select a scan line pattern of the plurality of scan line patterns which corresponds to the image data set of the plurality of image data sets for subsequent imaging of the volume in accordance with the selected scan line pattern of the plurality of scan line patterns.