The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique
The phenomenon of acoustic shadowing on ultrasonography is characterized by an echo signal void behind structures that strongly absorb or reflect ultrasonic energy. In medical ultrasonography, once the ultrasound energy is shielded, acoustic shadowing makes it difficult to create an image, leading t...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/18/9297 |
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| author | Kuo-Yuan Huang Chih-Hsiung Chang Young-Fo Chang Jia-Wei Liu Jer-Wei Chang |
| author_facet | Kuo-Yuan Huang Chih-Hsiung Chang Young-Fo Chang Jia-Wei Liu Jer-Wei Chang |
| author_sort | Kuo-Yuan Huang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The phenomenon of acoustic shadowing on ultrasonography is characterized by an echo signal void behind structures that strongly absorb or reflect ultrasonic energy. In medical ultrasonography, once the ultrasound energy is shielded, acoustic shadowing makes it difficult to create an image, leading to misinterpretations and obscure diagnoses. Hence, instead of dealing with the defocused problem encountered in an ultrasound scan (US), this current research focuses on revealing the existence of an acoustically shadowed target (or a potential lesion) using a well-known restoration algorithm, i.e., the synthetic aperture focusing technique (SAFT). To demonstrate the effects of an acoustic shadow on an ultrasound scan (US), a forward model study is carried out. In laboratory manipulations, a purposely designed physical model is created and then scanned using B-mode and pitch/catch arrangements to carry out shadowed and shadow-free scans in a water tank. Thereafter, making use of a delay-and-sum (DAS) operation, the echo signals are processed by the synthetic aperture focusing technique (SAFT) to perform image restoration. The results of the restoration process show that the SAFT algorithm performs well with respect to directional shadowing. Once the target or lesion is positioned in a total anechoic zone, or even in a multi-channel scan, it will fail. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:48:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a73164462eb2454494eb76bad0954666 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:48:14Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-a73164462eb2454494eb76bad09546662023-11-23T14:56:15ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172022-09-011218929710.3390/app12189297The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing TechniqueKuo-Yuan Huang0Chih-Hsiung Chang1Young-Fo Chang2Jia-Wei Liu3Jer-Wei Chang4Department of Orthopedics, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70403, TaiwanDepartment of Biomechatronic Engineering, Research Center for Automation, National Chiayi University, Chiayi 60004, TaiwanInstitute of Seismology, National Chung Cheng University, Chiayi 62102, TaiwanGreen Energy and Environment Research Laboratories, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Hsinchu 31040, TaiwanDepartment of Computer Science and Information Engineering, National Chiayi University, Chiayi 60004, TaiwanThe phenomenon of acoustic shadowing on ultrasonography is characterized by an echo signal void behind structures that strongly absorb or reflect ultrasonic energy. In medical ultrasonography, once the ultrasound energy is shielded, acoustic shadowing makes it difficult to create an image, leading to misinterpretations and obscure diagnoses. Hence, instead of dealing with the defocused problem encountered in an ultrasound scan (US), this current research focuses on revealing the existence of an acoustically shadowed target (or a potential lesion) using a well-known restoration algorithm, i.e., the synthetic aperture focusing technique (SAFT). To demonstrate the effects of an acoustic shadow on an ultrasound scan (US), a forward model study is carried out. In laboratory manipulations, a purposely designed physical model is created and then scanned using B-mode and pitch/catch arrangements to carry out shadowed and shadow-free scans in a water tank. Thereafter, making use of a delay-and-sum (DAS) operation, the echo signals are processed by the synthetic aperture focusing technique (SAFT) to perform image restoration. The results of the restoration process show that the SAFT algorithm performs well with respect to directional shadowing. Once the target or lesion is positioned in a total anechoic zone, or even in a multi-channel scan, it will fail.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/18/9297ultrasoundacoustic shadowimage restorationSAFT |
| spellingShingle | Kuo-Yuan Huang Chih-Hsiung Chang Young-Fo Chang Jia-Wei Liu Jer-Wei Chang The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique Applied Sciences ultrasound acoustic shadow image restoration SAFT |
| title | The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique |
| title_full | The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique |
| title_fullStr | The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique |
| title_short | The Feasibility of Shadowed Image Restoration Using the Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique |
| title_sort | feasibility of shadowed image restoration using the synthetic aperture focusing technique |
| topic | ultrasound acoustic shadow image restoration SAFT |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/18/9297 |
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