Feasibility of 3-D Coherent Multi-Transducer Ultrasound Imaging with Two Sparse Arrays

Coherent multi-transducer ultrasound (CoMTUS) creates an extended effective aperture through coherent combination of multiple arrays that results in significantly improved images, with enhanced resolution, extended field-of-view, and higher sensitivity. The approach has been previously validated in 2-D imaging using two linear arrays constrained into the same elevational plane. However, any misalignment between the arrays in the elevational plane could compromise the performance of the method. Extending CoMTUS to 3-D would generalise the framework and provide a mitigation for misalignment issues. In this study, CoMTUS is implemented and demonstrated for the first time in 3-D imaging using a pair of 2-D 256-element sparse arrays, which allows the channel count and the amount of data to be kept within feasible bounds. Simulated results show that, in comparison to a single array system using the same number of active elements, CoMTUS leads to significant improvements in resolution, contrast, and contrast-to-noise-ratio.