The random phase transducer: a new technique for incoherent processing-basic principles and theory

It is pointed out that speckle noise can be reduced through the use of incoherent processing techniques. The theoretical limit for the SNR improvement when incoherent processing techniques are used is studied. The study leads to the concept of information grains. A simple technique for incoherent processing that is easy to implement and that allows a good physical understanding of the limitations of incoherent processing of pulse-echo signals is also studied. This technique does not require the division of the receiving aperture into many small coherent subelements, the scanning of the field as in spatial compounding, or the use of low-sensitivity CdS transducers. It involves a single coherent transducer and a moving random phase screen placed in front of it.     

Processing radio frequency ultrasound images: a robust method for local spectral features estimation by a spatially constrained parametric approach

Spectral estimation is a major component in studies aiming at characterizing biological tissues through the analysis of backscattered radio frequency (RF) ultrasonic signals and images. However, conventional spectral estimation techniques yield a well-known trade-off between spatial resolution and variance. The backscattered signals are stochastic by nature, so short-term local analysis results in a high variance of the estimates, which cannot efficiently be reduced through conventional spatial averaging. We address this issue by describing a spectral estimation technique that reduces the variance of the estimates (by smoothing the local estimates in spectrally homogeneous regions) while preserving spectral discontinuities (i.e., the smoothing is not performed across regions with different spectral contents). The proposed approach is set in a Bayesian framework and is based on local autoregressive (AR) estimation, constrained by smoothness priors. These smoothness priors are introduced through a Markov random field in which the associated potential functions are nonquadratic, allowing thereby to preserve discontinuity. The method is validated on simulated RF images and tested on echocardiographic images acquired in vivo. The results are compared to the estimates provided by the conventional Burg technique. These results clearly demonstrate the ability of the proposed approach to improve spectral estimation in terms of variance reduction and discontinuity detection.     

Interpolation of Medical Ultrasound Images From Coherent and Noncoherent Signals

Medical ultrasound imaging instrumentation typically performs image interpolation using the signals acquired after envelope extraction, i.e., noncoherent signals. This operation is completely satisfying when the Nyquist condition for spatial sampling is fulfilled. However, the maximum spatial frequency of a signal increases as a consequence of the envelope extraction, making it more difficult to fulfill the Nyquist condition. For this reason, this paper suggests the interpolation of signals before envelope extraction, i.e., the use of coherent data, and discusses the applicability of this procedure to actual ultrasound scanners. Emphasis is given to the linear-array imaging technique, and the adoption of windowed sinc functions as interpolation kernels with limited support is assessed. Moreover, the authors investigated the situation in which coherent signals are also undersampled, and perfect reconstruction is not at all possible. The investigation was carried out using a numerical study and a simulated imaging test, and it was supported by subjective and objective evaluations. It is concluded that, at a moderate undersampling level, the interpolation of coherent signals allows significantly better performance than the interpolation of noncoherent signals.      

多束部分相干光通过强湍流对光强闪烁的影响

在Rytov方差的基础上,利用Andrews的唯像闪烁模型,推导出部分相干光通过强大气湍流后其对数光强起伏方差的公式,并用此公式对部分相干光通过强湍流后给光强闪烁造成的影响进行了仿真。其结果表明,当光源的相干性变差,即变为部分相干光后,对数光强起伏方差变小;当采用多束部分相干光时,接收面上光强起伏方差得到明显改善,而且光束越多,改善越明显。     

Direction-of-arrival estimation for uncorrelated and coherent signals with fewer sensors

A novel direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation method with fewer sensors is proposed when uncorrelated and coherent signals coexist, and two effective criteria to estimate the number of uncorrelated and coherent signals are also developed. First, the DOA matrix is constructed. Then, the DOAs of uncorrelated signals can be estimated by these proposed criteria and the related eigenvalues of the DOA matrix. Secondly, with the eigenvectors of the DOA matrix, which are related to coherent signals, the coherent signals that belong to the multipath of different far-field sources can be resolved separately using a spatial smoothing technique. Moreover, the DOA estimation accuracy of coherent signals can be further improved by an orthogonal projection technique. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method.     

Continuous-wave bistatic laser Doppler wind sensor

A coherent laser radar has been built by use of a master-oscillator power-amplifier arrangement in which the master oscillator is an external-cavity semiconductor laser and the power amplifier is an erbium-doped fiber amplifier with ~1-W output at a wavelength of 1.55 mum. The beams are routed within single-mode optical fiber, allowing modular construction of the optical layout with standard components. The system employs separate transmit and receive optics (a bistatic configuration) and has sufficient sensitivity for reliable Doppler wind-speed detection in moderate scattering conditions at short range (to as much as ~200 m). The bistatic arrangement leads to a well-defined probe volume formed by the intersection of the transmitted laser beam with the virtual backpropagated local-oscillator beam. This could be advantageous for applications in which the precise localization of wind speed is required (e.g., wind tunnel studies) or in which smoke, low cloud, or solid objects can lead to spurious signals. The confinement of the probe volume also leads to a reduction in the signal power. A theoretical study has been carried out on the reduction in wind signal strength compared with the monostatic arrangement, and the results are compared with experimental observation.     

Ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation of highly scattering materialsusing adaptive filtering and detection

Adaptive filtering and detection has been applied to the problem of detecting ultrasonic echo signals from test targets where the wanted signals are masked by coherent scattering from grain boundaries present in highly scattering materials. The filter is based on the normalized least mean square (LMS) error algorithm, and can be operated with either an independent reference signal or by using the delayed input signal as the reference. Tests made on a collection of 64 ultrasonic A-scans using the same processing parameters show that an up to 10 dB improvement in signal-to-noise ratio can typically be obtained. A cell-averaging constant false alarm rate (CFAR) detector is used to detect the signals automatically. The performance of the method is compared to that of split spectrum processing, both with and without polarity thresholding     

A low-complexity data-dependent beamformer

The classical problem of choosing apodization functions for a beamformer involves a trade-off between main lobe width and side lobe level, i.e., a trade-off between resolution and contrast. To avoid this trade-off, the application of adaptive beamforming, such as minimum variance beamforming, to medical ultrasound imaging has been suggested. This has been an active topic of research in medical ultrasound imaging in the recent years, and several authors have demonstrated significant improvements in image resolution. However, the improvement comes at a considerable cost. Where the complexity of a conventional beamformer is linear with the number of elements [O(M)], the complexity of a minimum variance beamformer is as high as O(M3). In this paper, we have applied a method based on an idea by Vignon and Burcher which is data-adaptive, but selects the apodization function between several predefined windows, giving linear complexity. In the proposed method, we select an apodization function for each depth along a scan line based on the optimality criterion of the minimum variance beamformer. However, unlike the minimum variance beamformer, which has an infinite solution space, we limit the number of possible outcomes to a set of predefined windows. The complexity of the method is then only P times that of the conventional method, where P is the number of predefined windows. The suggested method gives significant improvement in image resolution at a low cost. The method is robust, can handle coherent targets, and is easy to implement. It may also be used as a classifier because the selected window gives information about the object being imaged. We have applied the method to simulated data of wire targets and a cyst phantom, and to experimental RF data from a heart phantom using P = 4 and P = 12. The results show significant improvement in image resolution compared with delay-and-sum.     

Digital generation of multivariate wind field processes

A very efficient procedure for the generation of multivariate wind velocity stochastic processes by wave superposition as well as autoregressive time series is proposed in this paper. The procedure starts by decomposing the wind velocity field into a summation of fully coherent independent vector processes using the frequency dependent eigenvectors of the Power Spectral Density matrix. It is shown that the application of the method allows to show some very interesting physical properties that allow to reduce drastically the computational effort.Moreover, using a standard finite element procedure for approximating the frequency dependent eigenvectors, the generation procedure requires the generation of a limited number of univariate fully coherent processes for describing the entire multivariate velocity processes independently of the number of components of the process.     

Biased Monte Carlo optimization: the basic approach

It is well-known that the Monte Carlo method is very successful in tackling several kinds of system simulations.It often happens that one has to deal with rare events, and the use of a variance reduction technique is almost mandatory, in order to have Monte Carlo efficient applications. The main issue associated with variance reduction techniques is related to the choice of the value of the biasing parameter. Actually, this task is typically left to the experience of the Monte Carlo user, who has to make many attempts before achieving an advantageous biasing.A valuable result is provided: a methodology and a practical rule addressed to establish an a priori guidance for the choice of the optimal value of the biasing parameter. This result, which has been obtained for a single component system, has the notable property of being valid for any multicomponent system.In particular, in this paper, the exponential and the uniform biases of exponentially distributed phenomena are investigated thoroughly.     

High precision phase measurement using adaptive sampling

The conventional phase measurement techniques introduce error in the phase when the input signals are distorted by harmonics. A novel technique, known as adaptive sampling, for high-precision phase measurement is introduced. A digital signal-processing approach is used in this technique. The maximum sampling rate required for this technique is h+2 samples/cycle of the input signals, i.e. (h+2) f sampless, where h, is the highest harmonic present in the signals and f is the fundamental frequency of the signals. This sampling rate is way below the Nyquist sampling rate (more than 2hf samples/s) when h is a large number. In the adaptive sampling technique the sampling rate is started from three samples/cycle and then is gradually increased until the phase is correctly measured. This phase measurement technique has been verified using synthesized signals     

Fast B-flow imaging: a method for improving frame rate in Golay coded B-flow imaging

A technique for Golay coded B-flow imaging, called fast B-flow imaging, has been developed. This technique improves the frame rate of Golay coded B-flow imaging. In this technique, three instead of four input pulses are used to produce each scan line. A standard Golay pulse-pair is used as two of the three inputs, and pulse compression is performed upon receive returning the echoes from stationary (tissue) objects in the image. The third input is a repetition of one of the first two inputs. Upon receive, this pulse is cross correlated with an inverted copy of its input pulse. Addition of the cross-correlated signals produced from the identical input pulses results in the cancellation of the strong tissue echoes, and enables visualization of the weaker/moving blood echoes. Combining a small fraction of the tissue echoes with the weaker blood echoes allows both to be visualized in the same gray scale image. By using three instead of four input pulses, this technique can achieve a frame rate improvement of 33% compared with standard Golay coded B-flow imaging, with some loss in signal-to-noise ratio. The impact of axial and lateral motion on these techniques is examined. A quantitative comparison of both techniques is presented.     

Determining the Actual Time of a Variance Increment or Reduction Using the Moving Range Control Chart

The monitoring of the variance of a process is important because it provides information about process improvement and deterioration. A process improvement is indicated by a reduction in the variance, whereas a process deterioration is shown by an increment in the variance. The R and S charts are widely used in the monitoring of the process variance for subgrouped data. In cases where the production rate is slow and monitoring of the process is required before the time needed to form a subgroup, control charting procedures based on individual measurements have been developed. This article discusses an approach to identify the exact time of a permanent shift in the process variance as a result of process improvement or deterioration using the maximum likelihood estimation techniques.     

Synphase operation of nanosecond relativistic 37-GHz backward-wave oscillators without electrodynamic coupling

The possibility of in-phase excitation of two independent nanosecond-pulsed relativistic 37-GHz backward-wave oscillators (BWOs) with high-current electron beams has been studied. This regime can be achieved using BWO switching with a picosecond precision. It is shown that long-term (up to 100?C200 periods of the field) phase locking in each channel is stably reproduced from pulse to pulse, which ensures coherent summation of the output wave beams at a megawatt power.     

Curve-fitting method for direct quantitation of compounds in complex biological mixtures using 1H NMR: application in metabonomic toxicology studies

A new software tool has been developed that provides automated measurement of signal intensities in NMR spectra of complex mixtures without using data reduction procedures. The algorithm finds best-fit transformations between signals in reference compound spectra and the corresponding signals in analyte spectra. Unlike other algorithms, it is insensitive to variation in chemical shift and can even be used for relative quantitation of compounds whose identities have not yet been established. Additionally, the parameters of the transformation provide information and error metrics that may assist in the streamlining of quality control. The approach presented is general in scope but has been tested by application to peak quantitation in NMR spectra of biofluids. Replicate NMR measurements of solutions of biologically important compounds at various concentrations were made. Further NMR data were collected on urine samples from human, rat, and mouse, which were "spiked" with reference compound solutions at known concentrations. Finally, existing data from an independent toxicology project involving several hundred samples were analyzed, and the consistency of the measurements for metabolites that give multiple NMR signals was assessed. The results of all these tests give confidence that the technique can be used in automated quantitation of compounds in large NMR data sets with minimal operator intervention.     

A noncoherent correlation technique and focused beamforming forultrasonic underwater imaging: a comparative analysis

The purpose of this paper is to describe a noncoherent correlation technique for the formation of 3-D acoustic images, mainly for underwater applications. This technique is applied to the envelope of signals received by a 2-D array. The performances of the technique are compared with those of the coherent technique of focused beamforming in terms of angular resolution, depth of field, beam pattern, and accuracy in range determination. Moreover, special attention is given to the modalities for an efficient implementation on a digital computer. The complete absence of grating lobes, for whatever arrangement of the transducers, and the much higher speed of the imaging process, as compared with that of beamforming in the time domain, are the two major advantages of this technique. A reduction in the speckle effect, the possibility of creating a virtual depth of field, the feasibility of using square-law transducers, and the implementation simplicity are additional interesting characteristics. The results of some simulations are reported and compared with those obtained by the beamforming process     

Digital generation of coherent sweep signals

The authors describe a digitally implemented coherent sweep generator, i.e. a sweep generator in which sweep rate, start frequency, and start phase can be specified. By carrying out a digital integration twice, using a counter and an accumulator as integrators, a quadratic phase function of a linear sweep is produced. The desired start frequency and start phase are introduced by presetting the counter and accumulator. The mod (2π) of the quadratic phase function is extracted and used as an address for a sine look-up table whose output is applied to a digital-to-analog converter. The system is capable of producing sweep signals from DC up to the lower megahertz range, and the sweep rate can be verified over several orders of magnitude. By operating several digital sweep generators from the same clock, multiple coherent sweep signals may be produced, or quadrature signals can be produced with two modules. The digital sweep generator has been implemented with transistor-transistor logic (TTL). Generated waveforms are presented     

Arbitrary phasing technique for two-dimensional coherent laser array based on an active segmented mirror

We introduce a novel (to the best of our knowledge) phasing technique for a coherent laser array. We have accomplished arbitrary phasing in the interval 0-π. A seven-channel laser array experiment is built for verification. A custom-made beam arraying structure is designed to arrange beamlets into a two-dimensional hexagonal array. In the phase-locking loop, the wavefront sensing is performed interferometrically. An active segmented mirror is used for phasing, and the control signals are generated by the proportional control algorithm. In experiment, all the beamlets have been properly phased, and the experiment of inertia-free beam steering has been accomplished.     

Stimulus configuration determines the detectability of motion signals in noise

We measured the detectability of moving signal dots in dynamic noise to determine whether local motion signals are preferentially combined along an axis parallel to the direction of motion. Observers were asked to detect a signal composed of three dots moving in a linear trajectory among dynamic noise dots. The signal dots were collinear and equally spaced in a configuration that was either parallel to or perpendicular to their trajectory. The probability of detecting the signal was measured as a function of noise density, over a range of signal dot spacings from 0.5 degrees to 5.0 degrees. At any given noise density, the signal in the parallel configuration was more detectable than that in the perpendicular configuration. Our four observers could tolerate 1.5-2.5 times more noise in the parallel configuration. This improvement is not due merely to temporal summation between consecutive dots in the parallel trajectory. Temporal summation functions measured on our observers indicate that the benefit from spatial coincidence of the dots lasts for no more than 50 ms, whereas the increased detectability of the parallel configuration is observed up to the largest temporal separations tested (210 ms). These results demonstrate that dots arranged parallel to the signal trajectory are more easily detected than those arranged perpendicularly. Moreover, this enhancement points to the existence of visual mechanisms that preferentially organize motion information parallel to the direction of motion.     

A simple scheme for self-focusing of an array

A self-focusing technique and its application to a linear array system are presented in this paper. By application of the technique the system is capable of both sonification and reception focusing. The array is first excited as an unfocused array. Next a cross-correlation technique is used to determine time delays of reception of the largest amplitude backscattered signals at the elements of the array. The original transducer signal is then reemitted with the appropriate time delays to achieve sonification focusing on the scatterer producing the largest signal. This process is repeated in an iterative mode to focus energy on the strongest scatterer. Once insonification focusing has been achieved the last time-delay calculations are used once more for reception focusing, i.e., to correct the signals received by the individual elements for differences in arrival times. A low cost linear array has been constructed to implement the self-focusing technique. Examples demonstrate the capability of the technique to focus on the largest hole of sets of three holes in an aluminum specimen.