Implicit Neural Representations for Speed-of-Sound Estimation in Ultrasound

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Byra, Michal, Jarosik, Piotr, Karwat, Piotr, Klimonda, Ziemowit, Lewandowski, Marcin
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Byra, Michal
Jarosik, Piotr
Karwat, Piotr
Klimonda, Ziemowit
Lewandowski, Marcin
author_facet Byra, Michal
Jarosik, Piotr
Karwat, Piotr
Klimonda, Ziemowit
Lewandowski, Marcin
contents Accurate estimation of the speed-of-sound (SoS) is important for ultrasound (US) image reconstruction techniques and tissue characterization. Various approaches have been proposed to calculate SoS, ranging from tomography-inspired algorithms like CUTE to convolutional networks, and more recently, physics-informed optimization frameworks based on differentiable beamforming. In this work, we utilize implicit neural representations (INRs) for SoS estimation in US. INRs are a type of neural network architecture that encodes continuous functions, such as images or physical quantities, through the weights of a network. Implicit networks may overcome the current limitations of SoS estimation techniques, which mainly arise from the use of non-adaptable and oversimplified physical models of tissue. Moreover, convolutional networks for SoS estimation, usually trained using simulated data, often fail when applied to real tissues due to out-of-distribution and data-shift issues. In contrast, implicit networks do not require extensive training datasets since each implicit network is optimized for an individual data case. This adaptability makes them suitable for processing US data collected from varied tissues and across different imaging protocols. We evaluated the proposed SoS estimation method based on INRs using data collected from a tissue-mimicking phantom containing four cylindrical inclusions, with SoS values ranging from 1480 m/s to 1600 m/s. The inclusions were immersed in a material with an SoS value of 1540 m/s. In experiments, the proposed method achieved strong performance, clearly demonstrating the usefulness of implicit networks for quantitative US applications.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2409_14035
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Implicit Neural Representations for Speed-of-Sound Estimation in Ultrasound
Byra, Michal
Jarosik, Piotr
Karwat, Piotr
Klimonda, Ziemowit
Lewandowski, Marcin
Machine Learning
Medical Physics
Accurate estimation of the speed-of-sound (SoS) is important for ultrasound (US) image reconstruction techniques and tissue characterization. Various approaches have been proposed to calculate SoS, ranging from tomography-inspired algorithms like CUTE to convolutional networks, and more recently, physics-informed optimization frameworks based on differentiable beamforming. In this work, we utilize implicit neural representations (INRs) for SoS estimation in US. INRs are a type of neural network architecture that encodes continuous functions, such as images or physical quantities, through the weights of a network. Implicit networks may overcome the current limitations of SoS estimation techniques, which mainly arise from the use of non-adaptable and oversimplified physical models of tissue. Moreover, convolutional networks for SoS estimation, usually trained using simulated data, often fail when applied to real tissues due to out-of-distribution and data-shift issues. In contrast, implicit networks do not require extensive training datasets since each implicit network is optimized for an individual data case. This adaptability makes them suitable for processing US data collected from varied tissues and across different imaging protocols. We evaluated the proposed SoS estimation method based on INRs using data collected from a tissue-mimicking phantom containing four cylindrical inclusions, with SoS values ranging from 1480 m/s to 1600 m/s. The inclusions were immersed in a material with an SoS value of 1540 m/s. In experiments, the proposed method achieved strong performance, clearly demonstrating the usefulness of implicit networks for quantitative US applications.
title Implicit Neural Representations for Speed-of-Sound Estimation in Ultrasound
topic Machine Learning
Medical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.14035