Detection of tissue harmonic motion induced by ultrasonic radiation force using pulse-echo ultrasound and Kalman filter

A method using pulse echo ultrasound and the Kalman filter is developed for detecting submicron harmonic motion induced by ultrasonic radiation force. The method estimates the amplitude and phase of the motion at desired locations within a tissue region with high sensitivity. The harmonic motion generated by the ultrasound radiation force is expressed as extremely small oscillatory Doppler frequency shifts in the fast time (A-line) of ultrasound echoes, which are difficult to estimate. In slow time (repetitive ultrasound echoes) of the echoes, the motion also is presented as oscillatory phase shifts, from which the amplitude and phase of the harmonic motion can be estimated with the least mean squared error by Kalman filter. This technique can be used to estimate the traveling speed of a harmonic shear wave by tracking its phase changes during propagation. The shear wave propagation speed can be used to solve for the elasticity and viscosity of tissue as reported in our earlier study. Validation and in vitro experiments indicate that the method provides excellent estimations for very small (submicron) harmonic vibrations and has potential for noninvasive and quantitative stiffness measurements of tissues such as artery.     

间隙对两轴液压振动试验系统动力学影响的研究

为了分析间隙对两轴液压振动试验系统动力学响应的影响,建立了间隙副连续碰撞力学模型,将含间隙副的系统模型导入 ADAMS中进行仿真分析,同时,搭建了一套实验系统并进行了简谐异步激振输入下的实验分析。仿真和实验结果表明：在激振器异步且运动副间隙尺寸一定的情况下,两个激振器之间产生了耦合振动效应,其稳态输出加速度响应有明显的波动,同时,随着激振频率和激振幅值的增加,系统峰值加速度响应急剧增加。因此,为了消除间隙副非线性因素的影响,合理设计两轴激振试验系统转动副间隙具有重要意义。     

索端激励对斜拉索风雨致振动性能的影响

实际斜拉索的振动可能是风-雨致振动和参数振动的组合, 索端激励对斜拉索风-雨致振动性能有一定影响。将索端激励转化为作用在斜拉索上的弹性力和惯性力, 建立了斜拉索风-雨致振动和参数振动的组合分析模型, 在讨论了参数振动模型和斜拉索风-雨致振动的特性后, 探讨了索端激励对风-雨致振动振幅、水路运动以及达到最大振幅所需时间的影响。结果表明:在一定的频率范围内, 索端激励的存在会改变斜拉索风-雨致振动幅值和水路运动幅值随时间变化的特性, 并能促进斜拉索风-雨致振动的发生。     

A finite-element method model of soft tissue response to impulsive acoustic radiation force

Several groups are studying acoustic radiation force and its ability to image the mechanical properties of tissue. Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging is one modality using standard diagnostic ultrasound scanners to generate localized, impulsive, acoustic radiation forces in tissue. The dynamic response of tissue is measured via conventional ultrasonic speckle-tracking methods and provides information about the mechanical properties of tissue. A finite-element method (FEM) model has been developed that simulates the dynamic response of tissues, with and without spherical inclusions, to an impulsive acoustic radiation force excitation from a linear array transducer. These FEM models were validated with calibrated phantoms. Shear wave speed, and therefore elasticity, dictates tissue relaxation following ARFI excitation, but Poisson's ratio and density do not significantly alter tissue relaxation rates. Increased acoustic attenuation in tissue increases the relative amount of tissue displacement in the near field compared with the focal depth, but relaxation rates are not altered. Applications of this model include improving image quality, and distilling material and structural information from tissue's dynamic response to ARFI excitation. Future work on these models includes incorporation of viscous material properties and modeling the ultrasonic tracking of displaced scatterers.     

On the effects of reflected waves in transient shear wave elastography

In recent years, novel quantitative techniques have been developed to provide noninvasive and quantitative stiffness images based on shear wave propagation. Using radiation force and ultrafast ultrasound imaging, the supersonic shear imaging technique allows one to remotely generate and follow a transient plane shear wave propagating in vivo in real time. The tissue shear modulus, i.e., its stiffness, can then be estimated from the shear wave local velocity. However, because the local shear wave velocity is estimated using a time-of- flight approach, reflected shear waves can cause artifacts in the estimated shear velocity because the incident and reflected waves propagate in opposite directions. Such effects have been reported in the literature as a potential drawback of elastography techniques based on shear wave speed, particularly in the case of high stiffness contrasts, such as in atherosclerotic plaque or stiff lesions. In this letter, we present our implementation of a simple directional filter, previously used for magnetic resonance elastography, which separates the forward- and backward-propagating waves to solve this problem. Such a directional filter could be applied to many elastography techniques based on the local estimation of shear wave speed propagation, such as acoustic radiation force imaging (ARFI), shearwave dispersion ultrasound vibrometry (SDUV), needle-based elastography, harmonic motion imaging, or crawling waves when the local propagation direction is known and high-resolution spatial and temporal data are acquired.     

Comparison of stress field forming methods for vibro-acoustography

Vibro-acoustography is a method that produces images of the acoustic response of a material to a localized harmonic motion generated by ultrasound radiation force. The low-frequency, oscillatory radiation force (e.g., 10 kHz) is produced by amplitude modulating a single ultrasound beam, or by interfering two beams of slightly different frequencies. Proper beam forming for the stress field of the probing ultrasound is very important because it determines the resolution of the imaging system. Three beam-forming geometries are studied: amplitude modulation, confocal, and x-focal. The amplitude of radiation force on a unit point target is calculated from the ultrasound energy density averaged over a short period of time. The profiles of radiation stress amplitude on the focal plane and on the beam axis are derived. The theory is validated by experiments using a small sphere as a point target. A laser vibrometer is used to measure the velocity of the sphere, which is proportional to the radiation stress exerted on the target as the transducer is scanned over the focal plane or along the beam axis. The measured velocity profiles match the theory. The theory and experimental technique may be useful in future transducer design for vibro-acoustography.     

斜拉索受轴向激励引起的面内参数振动分析

考虑拉索垂直及几何非线性的影响，导出了拉索在轴向激励作用下的非线性振动方程，用谐波平衡法得出了产生参数共振的最小激励幅值，共振时瞬态和稳态的振幅值及拉索内力的变化特性，论述了结构阻尼对参数振动的影响，并对典型斜拉索进行了数值求解，研究结果表明，参数振动的响应特性与Irvine参数，频率匹配，激励幅值，倾斜角度等有关，索内力在瞬态现稳态有较大的变化，索的瞬态内力不容忽视。     

含三次非线性位移的粘性阻尼干摩擦隔振系统振动特性的实验研究

在分析库仑摩擦阻尼双线性滞迟模型的基础上，通过试验建模和参数辨识，得到了无记忆恢复力亦为非线性力的动力学模型。金属橡胶粘性阻尼隔振系统对正弦基础激振的响应计算表明：在相对位移振幅ym较大的情况下，必须考虑无记忆恢复力中位移三次非线性的影响；而在ym较小时，位移三次非线性的影响可以忽略不计。金属橡胶粘性阻尼隔振系统的振动试验表明：粘性阻尼隔振系统的一阶共振频率随激励的逐渐增强而逐渐减小并趋于稳定；其一阶共振放大比随激励的增强先减小后增大，但变化的幅度不大，在激励较小时表现出明显的“软化”非线性动态特性，在较大激励时仍具有较好的隔振缓冲性能，验证了试验建模的结果。研究结果表明，金属橡胶精细结构材料具有很强的阻尼耗能作用，对恶劣环境下各种仪器设备的振动保护非常有利。     

Viscoelastic property measurement in thin tissue constructs using ultrasound

We present a dual-element concave ultrasound transducer system for generating and tracking of localized tissue displacements in thin tissue constructs on rigid substrates. The system is comprised of a highly focused PZT-4 5-MHz acoustic radiation force (ARF) transducer and a confocal 25-MHz polyvinylidene fluoride imaging transducer. This allows for the generation of measurable displacements in tissue samples on rigid substrates with thickness values down to 500 microm. Impulse-like and longer duration sine-modulated ARF pulses are possible with intermittent M-mode data acquisition for displacement tracking. The operations of the ARF and imaging transducers are strictly synchronized using an integrated system for arbitrary waveform generation and data capture with a shared timebase. This allows for virtually jitter-free pulse-echo data well suited for correlation-based speckle tracking. With this technique we could faithfully capture the entire dynamics of the tissue axial deformation at pulse-repetition frequency values up to 10 kHz. Spatio-temporal maps of tissue displacements in response to a variety of modulated ARF beams were produced in tissue-mimicking elastography phantoms on rigid substrates. The frequency response was measured for phantoms with different modulus and thickness values. The frequency response exhibited resonant behavior with the resonance frequency being inversely proportional to the sample thickness. This resonant behavior can be used in obtaining high-contrast imaging using magnitude and phase response to sinusoidally modulated ARF beams. Furthermore, a second order forced harmonic oscillator (FHO) model was shown to capture this resonant behavior. Based on the FHO model, we used the extended Kalman filter (EKF) for tracking the apparent modulus and viscosity of samples subjected to dc and sinusoidally modulated ARF. The results show that the stiffness (apparent modulus) term in the FHO is largely time-invariant and can be estimated robustly using the EKF. On the other hand, the damping (apparent viscosity) is time varying. These findings were confirmed by comparing the magnitude response of the FHO (with parameters obtained using the EKF) with the measured ones for different thin tissue constructs.     

Ultrasonic tracking of acoustic radiation force-induced displacements in homogeneous media

The use of ultrasonic methods to track the tissue deformation generated by acoustic radiation force is subject to jitter and displacement underestimation errors, with displacement underestimation being primarily caused by lateral and elevation shearing within the point spread function (PSF) of the ultrasonic beam. Models have been developed using finite element methods and Field II, a linear acoustic field simulation package, to study the impact of focal configuration, tracking frequency, and material properties on the accuracy of ultrasonically tracking the tissue deformation generated by acoustic radiation force excitations. These models demonstrate that lateral and elevation shearing underneath the PSF of the tracking beam leads to displacement underestimation in the focal zone. Displacement underestimation can be reduced by using tracking beams that are narrower than the spatial extent of the displacement fields. Displacement underestimation and jitter decrease with time after excitation as shear wave propagation away from the region of excitation reduces shearing in the lateral and elevation dimensions. The use of higher tracking frequencies in broadband transducers, along with 2D focusing in the elevation dimension, will reduce jitter and improve displacement tracking accuracy. Relative displacement underestimation remains constant as a function of applied force, whereas jitter increases with applied force. Underdeveloped speckle (SNR < 1.91) leads to greater levels of jitter and peak displacement underestimation. Axial shearing is minimal over the tracking kernel lengths used in acoustic radiation force impulse imaging and thus does not impact displacement tracking.     

Acoustic signatures of submicron contrast agents

Previous studies have revealed that hard-shelled submicron contrast agents exhibit large relative expansions and strong acoustical echoes that can be observed experimentally, and predicted by theoretical simulations. In this paper, we study harmonic imaging and pulse-pair imaging techniques designed to assist in the differentiation of these contrast agents from tissue. For harmonic imaging, we apply a high-sensitivity, narrowband strategy that differentiates the microbubble from tissue based on the generation of strong harmonic echoes. For pulse-pair imaging, we apply high spatial resolution, wideband strategies using phase inversion, which relies on the frequency differences observed in response to phase-inverted pulses, and signal subtraction, which takes advantage of the amplitude differences in response to identical pulses. The bubble-to-phantom signal amplitude ratio in the absence of motion approaches 20 dB using phase inversion and 30 dB using signal subtraction; both techniques are robust for up to 50 microm of simulated motion. With the experience gained in these studies, we hope to advance the development of multi-pulse or shaped-pulse techniques that are optimized for specific clinical applications.     

The emergence of multifrequency force microscopy

In atomic force microscopy a cantilever with a sharp tip attached to it is scanned over the surface of a sample, and information about the surface is extracted by measuring how the deflection of the cantilever - which is caused by interactions between the tip and the surface - varies with position. In the most common form of atomic force microscopy, dynamic force microscopy, the cantilever is made to vibrate at a specific frequency, and the deflection of the tip is measured at this frequency. But the motion of the cantilever is highly nonlinear, and in conventional dynamic force microscopy, information about the sample that is encoded in the deflection at frequencies other than the excitation frequency is irreversibly lost. Multifrequency force microscopy involves the excitation and/or detection of the deflection at two or more frequencies, and it has the potential to overcome limitations in the spatial resolution and acquisition times of conventional force microscopes. Here we review the development of five different modes of multifrequency force microscopy and examine its application in studies of proteins, the imaging of vibrating nanostructures, measurements of ion diffusion and subsurface imaging in cells.     

单面碰撞TMD及其桥梁涡激振动控制研究

单面碰撞调谐质量阻尼器(SS-PTMD)是一种新型减振装置,通过惯性力和黏弹性碰撞进行结构减振,针对SS-PTMD动力性能、碰撞力模型与验证、SS-PTMD桥梁节段模型涡振控制等开展了理论与试验研究。根据质量块单边运动受限和碰撞的特点,获得了SS-PTMD的动力特性;开展了钢-黏弹性材料碰撞试验,提出了碰撞力模型,根据试验数据识别了碰撞力模型参数,并验证了碰撞力模型;通过1∶40桥梁节段模型涡激振动风洞试验,发现+7°风攻角下出现了明显的涡激振动,根据简谐力涡激力模型识别了模型气动参数;采用仿真分析评估了SS-PTMD控制桥梁涡激振动的效果,在质量比2%及最大涡振振幅风速条件下的减振效率达到87%;通过风洞试验研究了SS-PTMD涡激振动控制效果,在质量比2%及最大涡振振幅风速条件下的减振效率达到92%;理论分析和试验结果表明,SS-PTMD对桥梁涡激振动具有很好的减振效果。     

海洋波力发电倒置摆系统的非线性振动实验研究

摘要：本文以振动基座上的倒置摆系统为研究对象,对该系统受竖向简谐激励作用时的非线性振动特性进行实验研究,探讨该系统应用于海洋波力发电的技术可行性,为海洋波力开发利用提供依据。实验设计倒置摆转动角位移采集系统,通过测试确定系统的阻尼、固有频率等,为数值模拟提供依据并指导倒置摆系统的振动实验。通过实测振动时域数据得到系统振动频谱及相图,证明该系统存在大阻尼条件下的大周期运动、共振状态下的周期振动和倒置摆稳定吸引域,这表明该模型具有海浪波力能源吸收好,消耗少的特点,同时表明该模型具有高效的动力输出能力．因此,振动基座上倒置摆模型在开发利用海洋波力能源发电中具有十分重要的应用前景。     

Golay-encoded excitation for dual-frequency harmonic detection of ultrasonic contrast agents

Golay-encoded excitation in combination with the third harmonic (3f?) transmit phasing is examined for both signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-tissue ratio (CTR) improvements in harmonic imaging of contrast microbubbles. To produce the cancellation pair of tissue harmonic signal in 3f? transmit phasing, the phase of the bit waveform is properly designed for both the fundamental and the 3f? transmit signals to provide the Golay encoding of the received harmonic responses. Results indicate that the proposed Golay excitation can effectively suppress the tissue harmonic amplitude to increase CTR. Meanwhile, the SNR of the contrast harmonic signal also improves because of the elongated waveform of Golay excitation. Nevertheless, the generation of marked range side-lobes of the bubble region would degrade the achievable SNR improvement and the image contrast, especially when the bit of Golay excitation increases. The range side-lobes could result from the nonlinear resonance of the microbubbles that interferes with the phase modulation of the Golay encoding.     

Analysis of a Lorentz force based vibration exciter using permanent magnets mounted on a piezoelectric stack

This work presents performance analysis of a Lorentz force based non-contact vibration exciter by mounting a couple of permanent magnets on a piezoelectric stack. A conductor is attached to the structure to be excited and is placed midway between unlike poles of a couple of permanent magnets. The permanent magnets are placed on a piezoelectric stack. This stack, because of its nano-positioning capabilities, can impart an accurate and adjustable harmonic vibratory motion to the couple of permanent magnets. The piezoelectric stack, because of its high stiffness remains uncoupled with the dynamics of the structure. Due to the relative motion between the magnets and the conductor, Lorentz force is generated within the conductor. This Lorentz force is responsible for vibration of the structure in a plane parallel to the pole faces of the magnets. This keeps the magnetic field almost independent of the vibration of the structure and the chance of the structure hitting the magnet during large vibration is totally eliminated. If the amplitude of displacement of the stack is kept constant, the non-contact excitation force in this exciter remains proportional to the excitation frequency. Though use of this exciter eliminates mass (apart from that of the conductor attached to the structure) and stiffness coupling, a known damping term gets added to that of the excited structure.     

利用非线性表面波评价材料疲劳损伤

采用非线性Rayleigh表面波检测方法,实现了不同疲劳阶段下钢试样拉伸和腐蚀疲劳损伤的测试与评价;基于楔块\换能器激发与接收声波方式,搭建非线性Rayleigh波检测系统,测量了不同激励水平下基波幅值平方与二次谐波幅值间的线性关系以及Rayleigh表面波二次谐波的累积效应;分别在拉伸载荷和腐蚀疲劳载荷下,采集非线性时域信号并进行频谱分析,测量声学非线性系数在不同疲劳阶段下变化趋势,并分析不同疲劳载荷对钢试样声学非线性系数的影响。实验结果表明:超声非线性系数与疲劳周期数呈单调递增关系,可以用声学非线性系数来表征材料的表面疲劳损伤程度;相比较周期性拉伸疲劳损伤,腐蚀疲劳试样的声学非线性系数会增大,是由于腐蚀环境会加重实验中钢试样的疲劳损伤程度。研究成果可为疲劳损伤无损检测与评价提供一定的指导意义。     

Monitored steady-state excitation and recovery (MSSER) radiation force imaging using viscoelastic models

Acoustic radiation force imaging methods distinguish tissue structure and composition by monitoring tissue responses to applied radiation force excitations. Although these responses are a complex, multidimensional function of the geometric and viscoelastic nature of tissue, simplified discrete biomechanical models offer meaningful insight to the physical phenomena that govern induced tissue motion. Applying Voigt and standard linear viscoelastic tissue models, we present a new radiation force technique - monitored steady-state excitation and recovery (MSSER) imaging - that tracks both steady-state displacement during prolonged force application and transient response following force cessation to estimate tissue mechanical properties such as elasticity and viscosity. In concert with shear wave elasticity imaging (SWEI) estimates for Young's modulus, MSSER methods are useful for estimating tissue mechanical properties independent of the applied force magnitude. We test our methods in gelatin phantoms and excised pig muscle, with confirmation through mechanical property measurement. Our results measured 10.6 kPa, 14.7 kPa, and 17.1 kPa (gelatin) and 122.4 kPa (pig muscle) with less than 10% error. This work demonstrates the feasibility of MSSER imaging and merits further efforts to incorporate relevant mechanical tissue models into the development of novel radiation force imaging techniques.     

Estimates of echo correlation and measurement bias in acoustic radiation force impulse imaging

Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging is a novel imaging modality in which pulses from a diagnostic ultrasound scanner are used to displace tissue and track its motion. The region displaced has lateral and elevational dimensions of similar scale to the ultrasound beams used to track the motion. Therefore, there is a range of tissue displacements present within the tracking beam, leading to decorrelation of the echo signal. Expressions are derived for the expected value of the displacement estimate and the cross-correlation at the expected displacement. Numerical simulations confirm the analytical model.     

滚动碰撞式调制质量阻尼器力学模型及参数分析

滚动碰撞式调制质量阻尼器(PTRMD)由调谐质量阻尼器及颗粒阻尼器发展而来,其在土木工程减振控制领域中的研究仍处于初步分析与探索阶段,阻尼器自身参数及外部激励条件对其减振性能的影响尚不明确。在考虑颗粒与主体结构碰撞和摩擦效应的基础上,建立PTRMD力学模型,并将颗粒和结构的振动过程划分为非碰撞过程、碰撞过程及黏滞振动过程;建立PTRMD-单自由度结构运动微分方程并分别对其进行求解;基于数值仿真分析方法,分别对碰撞间隙比、颗粒运动频率比、滚动摩擦因数、碰撞恢复系数、颗粒质量与简谐激励强度及频率等参数对PTRMD减振性能的影响进行研究。结果表明:颗粒运动频率比较小时,PTRMD减振效果随碰撞间隙比的增加而基本成线性增加,且受激励幅值的影响较小;当颗粒运动频率比较大时,其减振效果随碰撞间距比的增加先增大后减小,且受激励幅值影响较大。