• Journal of IKEEE
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.584-590
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• 2021

This paper proposes a removal method of signal interference between ultrasound sensors where ghost signals due to interference are excluded and correct signal is recognized in distance mensurement using ultrasound sensors. The proposed method detects and excludes ghost signals when previous measured distance is compared to current measured distance and the distance difference exceeds a threshold. The threshold is fixed in conventional methods, so ghost signals cannot be correctly excluded when ultrasound sensor or target object move rapidly. On the contrary, to improve accuracy, the threshold is not fixed in the proposed method, and the threshold is adpatively determined based on the relative velocity when ultrasound sensor or target object move. Experiments of distance measurement with ultrasound signal interference are carried out where multiple ultrasound sensors of same type are exploited with maximum interference, and the results show that the proposed method efficiently exclude ghost signals.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.499-504
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• 2011

In this paper, we suggest a method for discretized frequency modulations of ultrasonic signals. A continuous sweep of frequency modulation signals can be modelled with fine levels of discretization. If the ultrasound signals are modulated with monotonically decreasing frequencies, then the cross-correlation between an emitted signal and received signal can be used to identify the distance of multiple target objects. For the discretized frequency synthesis, CF ultrasounds with different frequencies are serially ordered. The auto-correlation test with the signal shows effective results for distance estimation. The discretized frequency syntheses have better distance resolution than CF ultrasound signals and the resolution depends on the number of the combined ultrasound frequencies.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.238-246
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• 2017

High frequency ultrasound imaging typically suffers from low sensitivity due to the small aperture of high frequency transducers and shallow imaging depth due to the frequency-dependent attenuation of ultrasound. These limitations should be overcome to obtain high-frequency, high- resolution ultrasound images. One practical solution to the problems is a high-performance signal receiver capable of detecting a very small signal and amplifying the signal with minimal electronic noise addition. This paper reports a recently developed low-noise, wideband ultrasound receiver for high-frequency, high-resolution ultrasound imaging. The developed receiver has an amplification gain of up to 73 dB and a variable amplification gain range of 48 dB over an operating frequency of 80 MHz. Also, it has an amplification gain flatness of ${\pm}1dB$. Due to these high performances, the developed receiver has a signal-to-noise ratio of at least 8.4 dB and a contrast-to-noise ratio of at least 3.7 dB higher than commercial receivers.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.135-144
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• 2024

Ultrasonography examination has limitations in quantifying hepatic fat quantification. Therefore, this study aimed to experimentally demonstrate whether changes in signal attenuation during ultrasound imaging can be quantified using simulated hepatic phantoms to assess hepatic fat content. Additionally, we aimed to evaluate the potential of ultrasound imaging for diagnosing hepatic fatty liver by analyzing the relationship between hepatic fat content and signal intensity in ultrasound images. In this study, we developed a total of five stimulated hepatic phantoms by homogeneously mixing water and oil. We confirmed the fat content of the phantoms using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound imaging, and measured signal intensity according to distance in ultrasound images to analyze the correlation and mean comparison between fat content and signal intensity. We observed that as the fat content increased, the ultrasound penetration intensity decreased, confirming the potential for quantifying hepatic fat content using ultrasound. Additionally, the analysis of the correlation between the measured fat content using MRI and the signal intensity measured in ultrasound images showed a high correlation. Statistical analysis in our study confirmed that as the fat content increased, the slope representing signal during ultrasound imaging (US-GRE) decreased. In this study, it was statistically confirmed that the US-GRE value of ultrasound images gradually decreases as the fat content increases, and it is believed that US-GRE can serve as a biomarker expressing fatty liver content.

• IEMEK Journal of Embedded Systems and Applications
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.135-141
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• 2016

Indoor zone-based services have continuously become popular by increased prevalence of smartphones. Bluetooth and ultrasound can be used for zone detection. However, bluetooth does not guarantee precise zone detection if the signal degrades due to the obstacles. Ultrasound can be easily forged by recording sound on the smartphone. For that reason, zone detection based on ultrasound has a security hole. To remedy each limitation, we propose an advanced zone detection method, that combines bluetooth and ultrasound. An authentication server issues a one-time password to the user over bluetooth. The user generates an ultrasound signal that encodes the password. In this manner, the proposed method ensures secure and accurate zone detection.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.521-537
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• 2000

Ultrasonic imaging is the most widely used modality among modern imaging device for medical diagnosis and the system performance has been improved dramatically since early 90's due to the rapid advances in DSP performance and VLSI technology that made it possible to employ more sophisticated algorithms. This paper describes "main stream" digital signal processing functions along with the associated implementation considerations in modern medical ultrasound imaging systems. Topics covered include signal processing methods for resolution improvement, ultrasound imaging system architectures, roles and necessity of the applications of DSP and VLSI technology in the development of the medical ultrasound imaging systems, and array signal processing techniques for ultrasound focusing.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
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• 2005.11a
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• pp.399-402
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• 2005

For efficient and accurate diagnosis of ultrasound images, the time gain compensation (TGC) and dynamic range (DR) control of the ultrasound echo signal are important. TGC is for compensating the attenuation of the ultrasound echo signal along the depth, and DR is used to control the image contrast. In this paper, we propose an algorithm for finding the optimized values of TGC and DR automatically. For TGC, the degree of compensation is determined along the depth based on the effective attenuation estimation of ultrasound signal. For DR optimization, we introduce a novel cost function on the basis of the characteristics of ultrasound image, which provides the minimum value at the optimal DR. Experiments have been performed by applying the proposed algorithm to a real US imaging system. The results show that the algorithm automatically can determine the values of TGC and DR in realtime so that the subjective quality of the corresponding US image may be good enough for diagnosis.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.215-221
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• 2005

It is required to evaluate nondestructively depth of surface-breaking cracks in structures. In this paper, the self-compensated technique by laser-based ultrasound is used to measure the depth of surface-breaking defect. Optical generation of ultrasound produces a well defined pulse with reliable frequency content. It is broad banded and suitable for measurement of attenuation and scattering over a wide frequency range. The self-calibrated signal transmission data of surface wave shows good sensitivity as a practical tool far assessment of surface-breaking defect depth. It is suggested that the relationship between the signal transmission and crack depth can be used to predict the surface-breaking crack depths in structures.

• Proceedings of the KOSOMBE Conference
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• v.1985 no.06
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• pp.15-19
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• 1985

This study deals with a kind of signal processing, Kalman filtering techniques, which are applied to ultrasound signal to improve resolution capability. The main advantage of Kalman filter algorithm for the analysis of reflected ultrasound signal is its recursive structure which can be easily adapted to time-varing system. In state-space description of the system, the 6th order system produces the best spectral approximation to the source pulse. As a result of spectrum analysis, 6th order estimator for two closely spaced (0.5mm) reflectors enhance resolution by 4dB - 10dB. By using this result, the possibility to detect even minute tumor is found.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.28-37
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• 2013

This study examined differences in the activity of upper limb muscles according to how an ultrasound head is gripped. Twenty-two adult males were participated in the study. Each participant was asked to apply ultrasound treatment on to a lump of pork meat by two different ultrasound head grip patterns: spherical and cylindrical grips. Muscle activity was measured in the extensor carpi radialis longus (ECRL), flexor carpi ulnaris (FCU), and pronator teres (PT), triceps brachii (TB), middle deltoid (MD), and upper trapezius (UT) muscles. There were no significant differences in the EMG signals of any muscle according to the ultrasound head grip pattern (p>.05). There were significant differences in the EMG signal of each type of muscle (p<.05). The EMG signal of UT was the lowest and that of TB was lower than ECRL and FCU. There were interactions between ECRL and FCU, between ECRL and PT, between FCU and ECRL, and between FCU and MD. The EMG signal of ECRL using the cylindrical head was low and that of FCU with the cylindrical head was high, while the opposite was the case with the spherical head ($p_{adj}$ <.05/15). The results of this study indicate that the wrist muscles worked actively when the participants applied ultrasound therapy using both spherical and cylindrical heads. A spherical head might induce imbalanced muscle activity among the wrist muscles, leading to deviation of the wrist joint. Therefore, the cylindrical head is recommended for ultrasound therapy because it produced a constant, repeated force.