A recursive scheme for improvement of the lateral resolution in B-scan ultrasonography

회귀방법에 의한 초음파 진단기의 측면해상도 개선에 관한 연구

The objective of this paper is to present a digital method for improving the lateral resolution of the B-scan images in the medical applications of ultrasound. The method is based upon a mathematical model of the lateral blurring caused by the finite beam width of the transducers. This model provides a simple method of applying a recursive scheme for image restoration with fast computation time. The point spread function (P.S.F.) can be measured by the reflective signals after scanning the small pins located along the depth of interest. From the measured P.S.F., one can compute the coefficient matrices of the inverse discrete-time dynamic state variable equation of the blurring process. Then, a recursive scheme for deblurring is applied to the recorded B-scan to improve the lateral resolution. One major advantage of the present recursive scheme over the transform method is in its applicability for the space-variant imaging, such as in the case of the rotational movement of transducer.