Comparison of the performance of the RF cross correlation and doppler autocorrelation technique to estimate the mean velocity of simulated ultrasound signals

In pulsed Doppler systems the received RF (radio frequency) signal is multiplied by a quadrature reference signal and subsequently averaged over a short depth range to obtain a sample of the complex Doppler signal. The mean frequency of the sampled Doppler signal, obtained with the autocorrelation function, reflects the mean velocity of the scatterers moving through the sample volume. An alternative is to evaluate the two-dimensional cross correlation function of a short segment of the RF signals over subsequent lines, giving the mean velocity of the scatterers. Both methods of velocity estimation were applied to computer-generated RF signals with varying RF bandwidth, signal-to-noise ratio, and mean and width of the imposed velocity distribution. The length of the RF signal segment and the number of lines for velocity estimation (package length) affects the accuracy of the velocity estimate. It can be concluded that the cross correlation technique behaves superiorly especially for a low velocity dispersion. Furthermore, the standard deviation of the velocity estimate decreases for an increasing sample volume length and package length, while the performance of the conventional Doppler technique is rather independent of the length of the sample volume. The difference between both techniques decreases for a greater package length or for signals simulating a wide velocity distribution.     

Subsample volume processing of doppler ultrasound signals

Processing of Doppler signals produced by pulsed Doppler systems is based on the assumption that the phase of the received high frequency ultrasound signals changes linearly with depth. However, the random spatial distribution of scatterers is not in accordance with this basic assumption. Consequently, averaging of the demodulated signal over an observation window, covering a few periods of the received signal, does not improve the estimate for the instantaneous quadrature components of the Doppler signal originating from a given depth. Hence, the accuracy of the Doppler velocity estimate is independent of the length of the observation window employed. However, splitting the observation window in subsample volumes, each with a length of one period at the emission frequency, and combining the Doppler signals of the subsample volumes at the last stage of signal processing, i.e., mean Doppler frequency estimation using the autocorrelation technique, results in a considerable reduction of the variance of the velocity estimate. Using a computer simulation of the signal processing involved, it is demonstrated that with subsample volume processing the variance of the velocity estimate attains the same variance as is expected for the RF cross correlation technique.     

Simulation of Doppler ultrasound signals for a laminar, pulsatile, nonuniform flow.

A simulation for Doppler ultrasound quadrature signals from pulsatile, nonuniform flow is presented. It is an extension of an earlier simulation presented by Jones and Giddens (1990a) which was valid for laminar, uniform, steady flow and which included the stochastic characteristics introduced by scattering particles which enter and leave the sample volume at random times. Fourier transform and autoregressive spectral analysis techniques are used to compare the simulated signals to Doppler signals collected from an in vitro flow setup. Power spectra, Doppler frequency estimates and standard deviations of these estimates serve as standards of comparison. Results show that the simulation model generates realistic quadrature signals. The study improves the understanding of the physics of the Doppler process and shows that it can be modeled for complex flow conditions. The input parameters of the simulation are the Doppler instrument parameters and flow characteristics. This allows the simulation to be used for transducer design as well as in the study of the applicability of signal analysis techniques to Doppler ultrasound.     

Estimation of Doppler shift frequency using selected phase information for high frame rate color flow mapping

Purpose We describe a new approach to processing signals used to estimate the Doppler shift frequency in high frame-rate color flow mapping with fewer pulse transmissions. When an ultrasound pulse is transmitted to a large number of scatterers, the echoes from the scatterers overlap and interfere with one another. This interference causes the phase of the received echo signal to fluctuate, thus disturbing the estimated shift in Doppler frequency. The technique proposed here eliminates this disturbed phase information, leaving the remaining information for use in estimating the shift in Doppler frequency. The instantaneous frequency of the echo signal can serve as an index of the influence of interference.Methods To test this technique in vivo we used radio-frequency echo signals from the carotid artery for simulation and evaluated the error of the estimated Doppler shift frequency in several cases.Conclusion Performance was enhanced when the number of pulses transmitted was limited and this technique was used.This article is a translation of the original that was published in Jpn J Med Ultrasonics 2001;28:J15–23     

Comparison of four digital maximum frequency estimators for Doppler ultrasound

The performance of four methods for digitally estimating the maximum frequency waveform from the Doppler ultrasound spectrum, are described. The methods investigated are: a percentile method, D'Alessio's threshold crossing method [D'Alessio T. (1985) "Objective" algorithm for maximum frequency estimation in Doppler spectral analysers. Med. Biol. Engng and Comput. 23, 63-68.], a modified threshold crossing method, and a new hybrid algorithm. Evaluations of the variance and bias were performed using stationary simulated continuous wave (CW) Doppler signals of different bandwidths and signal/noise ratios (SNR) of 9 and 17 dB. Furthermore, a simulated nonstationary Doppler signal, similar to that from a normal internal carotid artery, was also used to compare the various methods. Overall, it was found that the modified threshold method and the new hybrid method have the best performance over a wide range of signal and noise hybrid method have the best performance over a wide range of signal and noise conditions; however, D'Alessio's method also performs well for low SNR's.     

MP3 compression of Doppler ultrasound signals

The effect of lossy, MP3 compression on spectral parameters derived from Doppler ultrasound (US) signals was investigated. Compression was tested on signals acquired from two sources: 1. phase quadrature and 2. stereo audio directional output. A total of 11, 10-s acquisitions of Doppler US signal were collected from each source at three sites in a flow phantom. Doppler signals were digitized at 44.1 kHz and compressed using four grades of MP3 compression (in kilobits per second, kbps; compression ratios in brackets): 1400 kbps (uncompressed), 128 kbps (11:1), 64 kbps (22:1) and 32 kbps (44:1). Doppler spectra were characterized by peak velocity, mean velocity, spectral width, integrated power and ratio of spectral power between negative and positive velocities. The results suggest that MP3 compression on digital Doppler US signals is feasible at 128 kbps, with a resulting 11:1 compression ratio, without compromising clinically relevant information. Higher compression ratios led to significant differences for both signal sources when compared with the uncompressed signals.     

A simulation of transit time effects in Doppler ultrasound signals

A signal model is proposed which can be used to study frequency extraction techniques for Doppler ultrasound. The signal is based on the physics of the Doppler process and depends on a sliding window used to average a set of independent Gaussian random numbers. This window is related to the shape of the sample volume for the Doppler pulse and depends on the Doppler angle. Simulation results compare favorably with results from flow experiments in terms of the variance of the estimated Doppler shift, the shape of the power spectra and the behavior of the signals with respect to Burg autoregressive power spectra. A potential use of the signal in the study of spectral analysis techniques is presented.     

Modeling of Doppler signal considering sample volume and field distribution

The ultrasound Doppler amplitude spectrum for a single scatterer and the power spectrum for multiple scatterers were calculated in terms of the echo signal from scatterers crossing the sample volume, defined by the transmitted pulse and the diffracted field distribution for cw. The observation time for the Doppler signal is also considered. Statistical parameters such as mean and variance of the Doppler power spectrum are studied as continuous functions of the intersection angle between the beam axis and the flow direction, the pulse length and the viewing position. The derived equations are valid whether the transit time is governed by the pulse length, or beam geometry, or both. It is shown that the Doppler power spectra calculated by the proposed model and by the Doppler signal obtained from field theory are in good agreement. It is also shown that, when the Doppler signal broadening due to the transmitted pulse and beam geometry is constant without regard to the intersection angle, the degree of spread of the velocity distribution can be estimated from the variance of the Doppler power spectrum measured by the Doppler system once the intersection angle is known.     

Doppler ultrasonic investigation of Raynaud's phenomenon: Effect of temperature on blood velocity

We have used spectral analysis of signals from a pulsed, range-gated Doppler ultrasonic instrument to make quantitative measurements of arterial blood flow velocity in the hands of normal subjects and persons with Raynaud's phenomenon. We measured the peak velocity during the cardiac cycle and the time integral of the velocity signal over the cardiac cycle. This latter parameter gives a sensitive indication of the degree of vasoconstriction in response to cold. Our preliminary results, based on findings in 13 subjects, suggest that Doppler ultrasound can differentiate persons with Raynaud's phenomenon from normal subjects.     

Assessment of Doppler velocimetry of the fetal umbilical artery by multigate spectral Doppler scanning and traditional pulsed Doppler ultrasonography plus color flow mapping.

The Doppler signal of blood flow originates from the sonographic scattering from the circulating red blood cells. However, the physics of blood flow is complex as expressed by the Bernoulli equation, and the flow velocity at different positions in the laminar flow of the same vessel is variable. Using multigate spectral Doppler scanning, we recorded multiple Doppler flow signals over a segment of the umbilical artery and compared the results with traditional pulsed Doppler ultrasonography. The intraobserver variations of the pulsatility index, the resistive index, and the systolic-to-diastolic ratio were evaluated in 30 human fetuses between 29 and 42 weeks of gestation. The correlation coefficient was calculated to establish the relationship between the results of multigate spectral Doppler scanning and the traditional pulsed Doppler ultrasonographic method. The Doppler indices of these two measurements are all significantly correlated. However, since a significant difference exists between the Doppler flow measurements of multigate spectral Doppler scanning and the traditional pulsed Doppler ultrasonographic method, the range of measurement agreement for these two methods suggests that this difference should be taken into account in the interpretation of Doppler flow velocity measurements.     

The effect of echo contrast agent on Doppler velocity measurements

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of echo contrast agents on spectral Doppler velocity measurements. SH U 508A was administered by IV injection in 15 patients. The transmitral flow velocity was measured at the E- and A-wave peaks before the start and at the peak of the contrast effect. The Doppler velocity was determined from the Doppler video spectral display and from power spectral analysis of the audio Doppler signal. The Doppler signal intensity was also measured. The Doppler signal intensity increased 17.4 +/- 3.5 dB (p < 0.0001) following echo contrast injection. This was associated with a significant increase in the spectral peak velocity as determined from either the video display or audio analysis. (p < 0.0001). The velocity corresponding to the audio power peak frequency (the modal velocity) did not change significantly (p = NS) and was independent of Doppler signal strength.     

Doppler Ultrasound Simulation Model for Pulsatile Flow with Nonaxial Components

A numerical model that can produce pulsed Doppler signals for nonaxial, pulsatile flow is presented. The model takes into account both hemodynamic and acoustic factors that affect the Doppler signal, such that a wide range of flow patterns and arbitrary transducer types can be simulated. The physics of blood flow is modeled by solving the Navier-Stokes equations utilizing a finite element technique, and the acoustic field is modeled using the acoustic impulse response method. The model was validated by comparison to the Womersley theory. The median deviation was 3.45%. Doppler signals from flow through a 50% stenosis were also simulated. The calculated spectra demonstrated the changing flow patterns from jets and vortices. This new computer model can be used to test spectral analysis tools on simulated Doppler signals, whose underlying flow patterns are of clinical importance.     

The Leicester Doppler Phantom—A Digital Electronic Phantom for Ultrasound Pulsed Doppler System Testing

Doppler flow and string phantoms have been used to assess the performance of ultrasound Doppler systems in terms of parameters such as sensitivity, velocity accuracy and sample volume registration. However, because of the nature of their construction, they cannot challenge the accuracy and repeatability of modern digital ultrasound systems or give objective measures of system performance. Electronic Doppler phantoms are able to make use of electronically generated test signals, which may be controlled precisely in terms of frequency, amplitude and timing. The Leicester Electronic Doppler Phantom uses modern digital signal processing methods and field programmable gate array technology to overcome some of the limitations of previously described electronic phantoms. In its present form, it is able to give quantitative graphical assessments of frequency response and range gate characteristics, as well as measures of dynamic range and velocity measurement accuracy. The use of direct acoustic coupling eliminates uncertainties caused by Doppler beam effects, such as intrinsic spectral broadening, but prevents their evaluation. (E-mail: john.gittins@uhl-tr.nhs.uk)     

Improved assessment of intravascular Doppler coronary flow velocity profile

Easy and safe in- vivo flow velocity studies in small coronary arteries have become feasible using a 0.014 ‘ or 0.018 ’ guidewire with an integrated Doppler probe in its tip (FloWire, Cardiometrics). Assessment of the flow velocity profile by the ratio of diastolic to systolic flow velocity (DSVR) is used as a diagnostic parameter. However, DSVR is a coarse quantifier of the flow velocity profile, and is subject to large physiologic variance and depends crucially on the quality of the Doppler signal. The aim of our study was to test parameters derived from statistical time series analysis for monitoring the quality of the instantaneous peak velocity (IPV) signal. Improvement of quantification of changes in quality and shape of flow velocity profiles by these parameters as compared to DSVR was a second goal. We investigated analog-digital converted IPV- signals and video registrations of corresponding greyscale spectra of intracoronary Doppler flow velocity signals. The signals were analyzed by using the autocorrelation function (ACF) in the time domain and a fast Fourier transform (FFT) in the frequency domain (standard time series statistics). The first minimum of autocorrelation function turned out to be very sensitive to signal quality, and Fisher's g of the periodogram was the parameter of choice for shape analysis. In 11 patients with coronary artery disease, pre and post PTCA, the sensitivity of DSVR and signal to noise ratio to changes in shape and quality of the flow velocity signals was compared to that of the new parameters. Nineteen Doppler flow velocity samples of good quality from measurements in nonstenotic vessels and 7 flow velocity tracings with visible artefacts were used to assess the value of these parameters in monitoring signal quality. By comparison with corresponding parameters in use (SNR and DSVR) a significantly improved performance of the new statistical parameters was observed with respect to sensitivity to changes in signal quality and flow profile. In view of these results and because of the short calculation time of these variables they should be used for on-line quality control and analysis of flow velocity profiles.     

The wall signal removal in Doppler ultrasound systems based on recursive PCA

In Doppler ultrasound (US) systems, a high-pass filter is usually employed to remove the wall component from the blood flow signal. However, this will lead to the loss of information from the low velocity flow. In this paper, an algorithm based on the principal components analysis (PCA) is proposed, in which singular value decomposition (SVD) is used to extract the main component from the mixed signals. Furthermore, the recursive process is incorporated into the PCA method to improve the performance of wall signal removal. This approach and the traditional high-pass filtering one are, respectively, applied to analyze the computer-simulated in vitro and in vivo Doppler US signals. With the proposed method, the wall signal can be removed while a large portion of low-velocity blood signal remains. Comparison experiments show that this novel approach can satisfy the requirements of Doppler US system and is practicable under a broad range of measurement conditions. Because this algorithm is based on real data, it is currently applied to unidirectional signals.     

Wide band SAR sub-band splitting and inter-band coherence measurements

Range resolution of SAR images is determined by transmitted radar signal bandwidth. Most recent SAR sensors use wide band signals in order to achieve metric range resolution, whereas metric azimuth resolution can be achieved in spotlight mode. As an example, ENVISAT ASAR sensor uses a 15-MHz bandwidth chirp whereas TerraSAR-X spotlight mode uses signals having a 150-MHz bandwidth leading to a potentially 10 times higher resolution. One can also take advantage of wide band to split the full band into sub-bands and generate several lower resolution images from a single acquisition, each being centred on slightly different frequencies. These sub-images can then be used in a classical interferometric process to measure inter-band coherence of a given scene. This inter-band coherence reveals scatterers keeping a stable-phase behaviour along with frequency shift. A simple coherence model derived from Zebker model for randomly distributed surface scatterers is proposed. Examples are presented, showing that scatterers can have a behaviour that deviates from the model, leading to a new information channel.     

An efficient algorithm to remove low frequency Doppler signals in digital Doppler systems.

In color flow imaging, a high flow map rate in combination with a reasonable width of the map and good velocity resolution is essential to properly appreciate the time-dependent phenomena. The velocity resolution depends on the length of the signal segment considered in combination with the settling time of the high pass filter used to eliminate transients and low frequency artifacts. The latter can be reduced by appropriate processing. This paper presents an algorithm to suppress low frequency Doppler signals effectively and efficiently, while all the data points within the segment considered contribute equally to the average Doppler frequency computed. The algorithm is applied to computer generated Doppler signals to evaluate their time and frequency behavior. It is concluded that the proposed scheme functions adequately under various signal conditions.     

Spectral and color Doppler sonographic applications of a new test object with adjustable moving target spacing.

A new test object has been developed with the aim of covering a wide range of Doppler quality assurance requirements, with particular emphasis on color Doppler imaging (both velocity and power modes). The test object consists of a rotating string-loop, which provides the single velocity source required for velocity calibration. The loop geometry provides two targets with adjustable spacing, which move in opposite directions within the same scan plane, and the string material offers a number of desirable properties (absence of knot artifacts, small diameter, uniform backscatter as a function of Doppler angle, and low attenuation). Representative results are included to demonstrate applications of the test object in the assessment of velocity accuracy, intrinsic spectral broadening, spatial resolution, and sensitivity, as well as to discuss quality assurance and performance issues in the context of spectral and color Doppler sonography.     

A versatile test-object for the calibration of ultrasonic Doppler flow instruments

Versatility in test-objects for ultrasonic Doppler units is desirable. The test-object described comprises a thin-walled plastic tube embedded in tissue-mimicking material. Blood is simulated using a mixture of water and glycerol with sephadex particles to act as scatterers. The test-object is suitable for use with a wide range of Doppler units which employ pulsed and continuous ultrasound in the frequency range 1 to 10 MHz. Calibration of several types of Doppler and imaging duplex systems has been performed for flow velocities up to 100 cm/s through a 10 mm tube. Above this velocity, for this tube dimension, turbulence occurs prevents the accurate measurement of flow velocity. The versatility of the test-object is further enhanced by the feasibility of manufacturing vessels of different shape and size. Slow flow through the tissue equivalent material may also be detected.