(University of Virginia: Charlottesville, Virginia) -- University of Virginia Engineering School Associate Professor William F. Walker and Research Associate Francesco Viola have developed a new tool—an advanced imaging algorithm—that is transforming the way we see things.

Together with graduate student Michael A. Ellis, the biomedical engineering team has created an innovative method of signal processing that can be used with a broad range of imaging and sensing systems, including ultrasound, RADAR, SONAR, telecommunications, and even a few optical imaging systems.

Called the Time-domain Optimized Near-field Estimator (TONE), the algorithm enhances the effectiveness of medical ultrasound imaging, providing medical professionals with dramatically improved image resolution and contrast.

In an ultrasound scanner, computer algorithms use reflected sound waves to create real-time images of the organ or tissue being examined. The images, however, aren’t always clear.

“For almost four decades, beam-forming algorithms have been refined for RADAR and SONAR,” Walker says. “While these algorithms are tremendously powerful, they don’t generally translate well to medical ultrasound imaging.”

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