A motion compensated ultrasound spatial compounding algorithm

In the development of a three dimensional (3-D) ultrasound scanner to obtain the images of internal soft tissue distribution and external topographic shape of a human leg, the authors use the ultrasound B-scan spatial compounding technique to acquire high resolution cross-sectional images of a residual limb. The 3-D structural information can be used in prosthesis design for below knee amputees and also in sports medicine. In the clinical test of the scanner, the authors found that some of their patients had difficulty in keeping their limb still during the 10 to 12 second scanning time in order to acquire one cross-sectional image. To produce a high resolution cross-sectional compound image, the motion displaced B-scan image data needs to be compensated. This paper reports the authors´ finding on the image feature based motion compensation algorithm to produce a high resolution compound image. Some experimental results using simulated motion as well as real motion data are presented. This project is sponsored by National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), U.S. Department of Education