| Methods and experimental results are described for determination of the region size in an aberrating medium over which a single set of aberration estimates can achieve satisfactory b-scan resolution ( i.e., the isoplanatic patch) using time-shift compensation for aberration correction of ultrasonic transmit and receive beams. Based on twenty percent allowable increases in the -12 dB width of the receive or transmit beam focus using cross-correction compared to self-correction, the isoplanatic patch sizes were found to between 3 and 5 millimeters laterally for a linearly-scanned transducer, and at least 12 millimeters axially for a target distance of 55 millimeters and aberration comparable to human abdominal wall. These sizes depend on the aberration severity, reference site axial position, and allowable resolution degradation with cross-correction.; The lateral isoplanatic patch size of a linearly scanned image can be more than doubled to match that of a beam-steered acquisition using aberration estimate position matching relative to the tissue surface. Further expansion of the lateral isoplanatic patch size by an additional 50 to 100 percent for both scanning methods is also shown through propagation path matched cross-correction mapping of aberration estimates. The specific mapping required to achieve the best propagation path match depends on the axial distribution of the aberrating structures, the focal depth being imaged, and the cross-correction distance. The effectiveness of alternate methods to derive propagation path matching maps with and without a priori knowledge of aberrator spatial distribution are contrasted; and a means to dynamically adjust correction maps to maximize isoplanatic patch sizes is proposed and verified.; Lateral cross-correction mapping and the map changes required for each cross-correction distance can all be implemented with simple shifting of aberration estimates within the transducer aperture. Therefore, use of optimally mapped lateral cross correction within the resulting expanded isoplanatic patch can substantially reduce the implementation complexity of phase aberration correction in a clinical imaging device with little compromise in image resolution enhancement. |
