Diffraction tomography system and methods

A method for the reconstruction of a three-dimensional object which has diffracted waves of energy propagating through it at at least one view angle on a plane and for at least one planar orientation, comprising the steps of:

• (a) obtaining signals which are a function of at least one of the phase and amplitude of each propagating wave after said wave has interacted with said object;
• (b) preprocessing and separating said obtained signals to obtain sets of preprocessed signals, each set representing the signals obtained from the propagation of an energy wave at a separate view angle;
• (c) converting said sets of preprocessed signals by means of a filtered backpropagation technique into arrays representing the partial reconstruction of the object;
• and
• (d) interpolating each partial reconstruction onto a master array to obtain the two-dimensional reconstruction of a planar projection of the object.

A system for the reconstruction of a three-dimensional object which has diffracted waves of energy propagating through it at at least one view angle on a plane for at at least one planar orientation, comprising:

• (a) means for obtaining signals which are a function of at least one of the phase and amplitude of each propagating wave after said wave has interacted with said object;
• (b) preprocessing and separating means for separating and preprocessing said obtained signals to obtain sets of preprocessed signals, each set representing the signals obtained from the propagation of an energy wave at a separate view angle;
• (c) filter means for converting said sets of preprocessed signals into arrays representing the partial reconstruction of the object by means of a filtered backpropagation technique;
• and
• (d) interpolation means for interpolating each partial reconstruction array onto a master array to obtain the two-dimensional reconstruction of a planar projection of the object.

A method for tomographic reconstruction of a two-dimensional object comprising:

• (a) directing at a view angle one or more waves of energy toward an object being examained;
• (b) detecting as a function of time the one or more fields produced by said one or more waves;
• (c) producing one or more signals which are functions of said one or more detected fields;
• and
• (d) filtering said produced signals according to a filtered backpropagation technique to generate a two-dimensional array representing the partial reconstruction of the object.

A method for tomographic reconstruction of a three-dimensional object comprising:

• (a) directing at a view angle on a plane one or more waves of energy toward an object being examined;
• (b) detecting as a function of time the one or more fields produced by said one or more waves;
• (c) producing one or more signals which are functions of said one or more detected fields;
• (d) preprocessing said produced signals;
• and
• (e) filtering said preprocessed signals according to a filtered backpropagation technique to generate a two-dimensional array representing the partial reconstruction of the object.

A system for tomographic reconstruction of a two-dimensional object comprising:

• (a) one or more sources of waves of energy directed at a view angle at an object;
• (b) one or more detecting means for detecting as a function of time the one or more fields produced by the waves interacting with said object;
• (c) signal producing means for producing signals which are functions of said fields;
• and
• (d) filter means for filtering said produced signals according to a backpropagation technique to generate a two-dimensional array representing the partial reconstruction of the object.

A system for tomographic reconstruction of a three-dimensional object comprising:

• (a) one or more sources of waves of energy directed at a view angle on a plane at an object;
• (b) one or more detecting means for detecting as a function of time the one or more fields produced by the waves interacting with said object;
• (c) signal producing means for producing signals which are functions of said one or more fields;
• (d) preprocessing means for preprocessing said produced signals;
• and
• (e) filter means for filtering said preprocessed signals according to a filtered backpropagation technique to generate a two-dimensional array representing the partial reconstruction of the object.

A method for tomographic reconstruction of a subsurface formation comprising:

• (a) directing one or more waves of energy into said formation, the totality of said waves approximating one or more cylindrical waves of a given phase tilt;
• (b) detecting as a function of time the one or more fields produced by said one or more waves;
• (c) producing one or more signals which are functions of said one or more detected fields;
• and
• (d) filtering said produced signals according to a filtered backpropagation technique to generate a two-dimensional array representing the partial reconstruction of the subsurface formation.

A system for tomographic reconstruction of a subsurface earth formation comprising:

• (a) one or more sources of waves of energy directed at said earth formation, wherein the totality of the waves of said one or more sources approximate one or more cylindrical waves of a given phase tilt;
• (b) one or more detecting means for detecting as a function of time the one or more fields produced by the waves interacting with said earth formation;
• (c) signal producing means for producing signals which are a function of said one or more fields;
• and
• (d) filter means for filtering said produced signals according to a filtered backpropagation technique to generate a two-dimensional array representing the partial reconstruction of the subsurface formation.

A method for the reconstruction of an object which has diffracted at least one wave of energy propagating through it, said wave of energy being selected from a group consisting of sonic or electromagnetic waves, comprising the steps of:

• (a) obtaining signals which are a function of at least one of the phase and amplitude of the diffracted propagating wave after said wave has interacted with said object;
• (b) converting said signals by means of a backpropagation filter into an array representing a partial reconstruction of the object;
• and
• (c) generating a tangible record of said array representing said partial reconstruction of the object.

A system for the reconstruction of an object which has diffracted at least one wave of energy propagating through it, said wave of energy being selected from a group consisting of sonic or electromagnetic waves, comprising:

• (a) means for obtaining signals which are a function of at least one of the phase and amplitude of the diffracted propagating wave after said wave has interacted with said object;
• (b) filter means for converting said signals by means of a backpropagation filter into an array representing a partial reconstruction of the object;
• and
• (c) means for generating a tangible record of said array representing said partial reconstruction of said object.