A new real-time ultrasonic imaging system

Present day imaging systems exhibit many problems, such as, low temporal and lateral resolution, operator dependence, high cost and complexity etc. The new system described is an attempt to address these problems by combining the desirable features of a range of techniques including digitally controlled phased-array scanning, wide-band analog processing in multiple channels and acousto-optical image reconstruction with on-line image enhancement techniques. The resulting hybrid system is capable of operating in B-scan, sector scan and focused scan modes in pseudo real-time. Furthermore, this hybrid system is compact and portable and exhibits potential advantages in real-time non-destructive-testing and medical applications