Ultrasound system imaging of blood flow
AssigneeGE Precision Healthcare LLC
InventorGerald Schröcker
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An ultrasound system includes a transmitter, a receiver, a processor, and a display system. The transmitter emits ultrasonic energy towards a region of interest of a patient. The receiver receives ultrasonic signals reflected from the region of interest. The processor generates image data from the reflected ultrasonic signals, determines a height map according the reflected ultrasonic signals from the region of interest, and generates shaded image data by shading the image data according to the height map, such that regions of the image data that include blood flow are shaded to simulate a 3D effect, wherein the shaded effect includes transparent blood vessels through which the blood flow passes. The display system displays the shaded image data.
Claims18
An ultrasound system comprising:
- a transmitter configured to emit ultrasonic energy towards a region of interest of a patient;
- a receiver configured to receive ultrasonic signals reflected from the region of interest;
- a processor configured to:
- generate image data from the reflected ultrasonic signals;
- determine a height map according the reflected ultrasonic signals from the region of interest;
- and
- generate shaded image data by shading the image data according to the height map, such that regions of the image data that include blood flow are shaded to simulate a 3D effect, wherein the shaded effect includes transparent blood vessels through which the blood flow passes, wherein the transparent blood vessels are simulated by refracting virtual rays at locations of the height map;
- and
- a display system configured to display the shaded image data.
A method of ultrasound imaging, the method comprising:
- emitting, by a transmitter, ultrasonic energy towards a region of interest of a patient;
- receiving, by a receiver, ultrasonic signals reflected from the region of interest;
- generating, by a processor, image data from the reflected ultrasonic signals;
- determining, by the processor, a height map according the reflected ultrasonic signals from the region of interest, and
- generating, by the processor, shaded image data by shading the image data according to the height map, such that regions of the image data that include blood flow are shaded to simulate a 3D effect, wherein the shaded effect includes transparent blood vessels through which the blood flow passes, wherein the transparent blood vessels are simulated by refracting virtual rays at locations of the height map;
- and
- displaying, by a display system, the shaded image data.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.