Image interpolation for medical imaging
AssigneeEigen, Inc.
InventorsJasjit S. Suri, Dinesh Kumar
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Presented are systems and methods that allow for interpolation of a 3-D volume from arbitrarily oriented 2-D medical images. The interpolation of 3-D volume from arbitrarily oriented 2-D images reduces or eliminates most constraints on image acquisition thereby allowing for, inter alia, freehand manipulation of an image acquisition device (e.g. an ultrasound transducer). Related utilities involve the use of prior information about a specific object of interest to interpolate a surface (e.g., 3-D surface) of the object from limited information obtained from very few 2-D images.
Claims13
A method for use in medical ultrasound imaging, comprising:
- obtaining a first two dimensional ultrasound image of an internal object of interest using a handheld ultrasound device, said first two dimensional ultrasound image having a first image plane and a first three dimensional point of reference obtained from an unconstrained tracker adapted to provide location information in three dimensional space, wherein said first three dimensional point of reference is correlated with said first image plane, and wherein said unconstrained tracker is attached to the handheld ultrasound device;
- obtaining a second two dimensional ultrasound image of the internal object of interest using the handheld ultrasound device, said second two dimensional ultrasound image having a second image plane and second three dimensional point of reference obtained from the unconstrained tracker attached to the handheld ultrasound device, wherein said second three dimensional point of reference is correlated with said second image plane, and wherein said first and second three dimensional points of reference are different and said image planes are non-aligned such that said first and second ultrasound images have arbitrary orientations relative to one another;
- translating pixel information from said first and second two dimensional ultrasound images into a common three dimensional volume;
- and
- interpolating between information associated with translated pixel information of said two dimensional ultrasound images as disposed within said common three dimensional volume to generate a three dimensional image of the object of interest having different resolution in at least first and second regions of said three dimensional image.
A method for use in medical ultrasound imaging, comprising:
- obtaining a plurality of arbitrarily aligned two dimensional ultrasound images using a handheld ultrasound device, wherein said images are of an internal object of interest and at least a portion of the images have non-aligned image planes;
- translating pixel intensity information from each of said two dimensional ultrasound images into a common three dimensional volume;
- applying a deformable shape model based on an average corresponding object of a training set population to said pixel intensity information of said common three dimensional volume;
- deforming a surface of said shape model to match boundaries of said internal object of interest within said two dimensional images, wherein said deformed surface of said shape model defines a three dimensional surface for said object of interest in said three dimensional volume;
- and
- generating, in response to said deforming, a three-dimensional image of the object of interest having different resolution in at least first and second regions of said three dimensional image.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.