A Pitch-Matched Transceiver ASIC With Shared Hybrid Beamforming ADC for High-Frame-Rate 3-D Intracardiac Echocardiography

In this article, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) for 3-D, high-frame-rate ultrasound imaging probes is presented. The design is the first to combine element-level, high-voltage (HV) transmitters and analog front-ends, subarray beamforming, and in-probe digitization in a scalable fashion for catheter-based probes. The...

A Pitch-Matched ASIC with Integrated 65V TX and Shared Hybrid Beamforming ADC for Catheter-Based High-Frame-Rate 3D Ultrasound Probes

Intra-cardiac echography (ICE) probes (Fig. 32.2.1) are widely used in electrophysiology for their good procedure guidance and relatively safe application. ASICs are increasingly employed in these miniature probes to enhance signal quality and reduce the number of connections needed in mm-diameter catheters [1]-[5]. 3D visualization in real...

Determining Air Traffic Controller Proficiency: Identifying Objective Measures Using Clustering

Air traffic control (ATC) is a complex and demanding job reserved for highly-trained professionals. Training ATC candidates is challenging as trainees are subjectively assessed by instructors who are biased by their own ways of working. As an effort to determine control expertise objectively, this study employed clustering techniques on an...

High Frame Rate Volumetric Imaging of Microbubbles Using a Sparse Array and Spatial Coherence Beamforming

Volumetric ultrasound imaging of blood flow with microbubbles enables a more complete visualization of the microvasculature. Sparse arrays are ideal candidates to perform volumetric imaging at reduced manufacturing complexity and cable count. However, due to the small number of transducer elements, sparse arrays often come with high clutter...

Unravelling Decision-Making Processes on Location Choices for High-Speed Railway Stations in China: A Comparison of Shenzhen, Lanzhou and Jingmen

Most High-Speed Railway (HSR) station areas in China can be found at the urban periphery or in suburban areas, a phenomenon that has often been criticised. While debate about the influence these location choices have on the economic and sustainable development of cities rages on, little attention has been paid to the decision-making processes...

A modelling based study on the integration of 10 MW_th indirect torrefied biomass gasification, methanol and power production

This work is focused on the process system modelling of an indirectly heated gasifier (10 MW_th) using torrefied wood as feedstock and its integration with methanol and power production using Aspen Plus®. The modelling of the gasification process along with the obtained reaction kinetics were validated with experimental data found...

The Effect of Biomass Pellet Length, Test Conditions and Torrefaction on Mechanical Durability Characteristics According to ISO Standard 17831-1

With the recent increase in biomass pellet consumption, the mechanical degradation of pellets during transport and handling has become more important. ISO standard 17831-1 is an accepted global standard that is commonly used amongst researchers and industries to determine the mechanical durability of pellets. However, the measured mechanical...

Frame-based Programming, Stream-Based Processing for Medical Image Processing Applications

This paper presents and evaluates an approach to deploy image and video processing pipelines that are developed frame-oriented on a hardware platform that is stream-oriented, such as an FPGA. First, this calls for a specialized streaming memory hierarchy and accompanying software framework that transparently moves image segments between...

Visualised Frames: How Sketching Influences Framing Behaviour in Design Teams

Framing is a crucial skill for connecting problem and solution spaces in the creative design process, both for individuals and teams. Frames are implicit in individuals’ cognitive thinking, but the creation of shared frames plays a vital role in collaborative design. Many studies have attempted to describe the framing process, but little is...

Laser-driven resonance of dye-doped oil-coated microbubbles: Experimental study

Photoacoustic (PA) imaging offers several attractive features as a biomedical imaging modality, including excellent spatial resolution and functional information such as tissue oxygenation. A key limitation, however, is the contrast to noise ratio that can be obtained from tissue depths greater than 1-2 mm. Microbubbles coated with an...