Abstract: Method and apparatus for the conversion of sound waves to electromagnetic wave forms, preferably light, whereby sound waves are converted to an electrical signal and processed by a number of filters, the distribution between the filters being a result of the frequency of the sound wave and in which the filters are subsequently connected to their respective color display and where the individual color display's activation is directly proportional to their filter's amount of signal processing and where the color display visualization in a display means is in the form of a single color or a mixture of two or more color displays.

Abstract: An optoacoustic system comprises an optoacoustic transducer including a first array of acoustic transducers and a second array of optical fibers; an acoustic subsystem for controllably exciting at least a first subset of the acoustic transducers to generate acoustic pulses with a prescribed pulse width, and for forming a first image based on return acoustic pulses reflected from a patient; an optical subsystem for controllably generating optical pulses to be transmitted through at least a first subset of the optical fibers toward the patient, and for forming a second image based on light reflected from the patient; and image correlation means for correlating the first and second images. The first and second arrays may take various forms, including the form of an annular array in which the acoustic transducers are arranged coaxially and the optical fibers are disposed around an outer periphery of the first array. The first and second arrays may also take the form of linear arrays.

Abstract: A surveillance system that includes a switcher, a selector and processor for generating a predetermined monitor display based on an operator's inputs. The processor determines a plurality of camera views that have a logical relationship to the view selected by the operator. The monitor displays the selected view and the related views in a format determined either by the operator or the processor. This system allows the operator to easily track a moving target. In addition, a touch screen monitor further facilitates the operator's ability to track a target.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for interpolating image lines from ultrasonically obtained scanlines of an image region. The interpolated lines are preferably formed one-quarter and three-quarters of the distance between each pair of received scanlines by combining weighted samples of the adjacent scanlines in proportion to their distances from the interpolated lines. The received scanlines are preferably formed by a beamformer which samples the received lines at quadrature phases of the scanhead center frequency and filters the samples by combining successive samples of a related phase. The image lines are scan converted by computing a grid of weighted values between each pair of image lines, and using the closest value for each pixel in the ultrasound image.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for remote control of electronic devices includes one or more processing units, a memory system, one or more I/O controllers, controlling various input/output devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, a display device, communications adapters and the like, a bus which connects the processing units, the memory system, and the I/O controllers, one or more transducers adapted to convert electronic signals to wireless communications signals and one or more application programs executable by the processor units for controlling generation and transmission of wireless communications signals for remote control of one or more electronic devices. A typical application is the control of transmission of infrared signals to remotely control consumer electronics equipment.

Abstract: An input apparatus has a selection key for inputting a signal on the basis of an operation, a timer which is reset by an input of a signal from the selection key and which measures a predetermined time period, and a controller for inputting first conditions such as a menu selection on the basis of an input of a signal from the selection key, and for inputting second conditions such as a menu decision on the basis of an output of the timer. The first conditions are input on the basis of an input of a signal from the selection key, so that an operation such as a menu selection is done. When the selection key is not operated for a time period longer than the predetermined time period set in the timer, the second conditions are input, so that an operation such as a menu decision is done.

Abstract: A device and method for producing clinically useful hardcopy or archived records from a real-time imaging system includes a controller which monitors variable settings on the system effecting display monitor images. The controller then compensates the signal sent to the hardcopy recorder or archiving device via gamma curve or Look Up Table (LUT) application and/or directly through recorder brightness and contrast controls.

Abstract: An ultrasound acoustic scan conversion device includes an accumulator, an error correction logic unit, and a walk controller. The error correction logic unit is responsive to the accumulator and contains an error correction circuit. The walk controller is responsive to the accumulator and generates a display memory address and selects increment values for the accumulator. A method of performing scan conversion in an ultrasound system is also provided. The method includes the steps of loading at least one register within an accumulator, producing an acoustic coordinate responsive to the accumulator, producing a natural grid acoustic range value, offsetting the acoustic coordinate to produce a natural grid acoustic range value, addressing the acoustic data memory with an acoustic data memory address responsive to the natural grid range value, generating a display memory address corresponding to the acoustic data memory address, and addressing the display memory with the generated display memory address.

Abstract: A method for increasing dynamic range of ultrasound imaging signals uses a barrel shifter. The barrel shifter shifts large bit two's complement input data into a standard size bit two's complement output. The method, then, comprises the steps of reducing a large data bus to a smaller data bus, and dynamically changing the amount of reduction. The bus reduction is achieved using a barrel shifter. Since time gain compensation (TGC), used to compensate for diminishing echo strength, increases with the depth of the signal, the amount of shift is directly related to the TGC value.

Abstract: A scan conversion method is implemented to achieve real-time scan conversion at video rates. Scan conversion tasks include vector point identification processing, distance derivation processing and interpolation processing. An active image area is defined in response to user inputs. For a given set of user adjustments there is a fixed active image area of the display screen. In addition, there is a fixed positional relationship between output pixel locations of the active image and corresponding input vector points of the active image. Whenever the user makes adjustments, these relationships change becoming fixed again until another user-initiated change. Whenever the relationships change, vector identification processing and distance derivation processing is re-done to define these relationships. Interpolation processing is performed each frame only for output pixels within the active image area. The active image area is divided into groups of output pixels.

Abstract: An image transmission system and method automatically reduce the size of digital data signals transmitted from visual sensors. The system and method are completely automated and (a) use a plurality of sensors to detect targets in an area of interest, (b) direct a camera to place a target in the camera's field of view, (c) provide a digitized visual image in which the target is identified in a target box, and (d) automatically compress (or otherwise reduce the size of) a digital signal for nontarget portions of the visual image.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for enhancing the clarity of and the diagnostic information in real-time B-mode and M-mode ultrasound displays including a beamformer for acquiring ultrasound receive signals for each ultrasound scan line of a two-dimensional image and processing the receive signals for each ultrasound scan line into detected and filtered video signals for storage in scan line acquisition memory with programmable dynamically variable non-linear filters for processing the video signals with continuously and automatically varying filter responses over a range of low and high pass responses followed by scan converting and display of the non-linearly processed video signals. The non-linear filters may process video signals in range along each ultrasound scan line or azimuthally along multiple ultrasound scan lines of a two-dimensional B-mode image.

Abstract: A microwave locating system is provided for locating known features and distinguishing between different types of features. The locating system includes a plurality of modulated microwave power sources located on known features and radiating modulated microwave signals having modulated frequencies selected in accordance with the known features. A video detection sensor camera is located remote from the sources for sensing microwave signals within a field of view and providing location signals for each of the sources. The camera includes an array of receiver elements which provide narrow bandwidth filtering so as to identify received signals as one of a plurality of selected modulated frequencies. The locating system further provides an image of the location signals which distinguishes between different selected located features.

Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging system includes a receiver which demodulates the echo signals received by a transducer array and dynamically focuses the baseband echo signals, and a color flow processor which includes an adaptive wall filter in the form of a circular convolution filter that enables a narrow band of wall signals to be removed without loss of data samples. The mean frequency of the resulting filtered baseband echo signals is used to indicate the velocity of flowing reflectors and to control color of the displayed image.

Abstract: Methods for improving the availability of information derived from signals received from an object irradiated with coherent pulses of any form of radiation that exhibits a wave nature are disclosed. A method for reducing speckle derives separate component noncoherent signals from the received signals, and combines these separate noncoherent signals to form improved composite noncoherent signals. Weighting and processing of component signals can be applied as a function of time, frequency, and signal amplitude to optimize speckle reduction in all or a critical part of the signal by compensating for the range and frequency dependence of attenuation and the frequency dependence of scattering phenomena. In a method for enhancing resolution, separate component coherent signals are derived from the received signals, weighted and processed, and combined to form improved composite coherent signals; then noncoherent signals are derived from the improved composite coherent signals.