Advancing towards ubiquitous medical ultrasound

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The field of ultrasound is being disrupted as imaging devices get smaller, prices get lower, and markets get larger and more diverse. The fastest growing segment of ultrasound is in pocket-sized devices with prices approaching $2000. Growth has been derived from new, miniature ultrasound-on-a-chip electronics, direct connection to a smartphone, and advanced real-time image processing. As a result, these extremely portable ultrasound devices have the potential to become “ubiquitous ultrasound” as they reach new markets with a wider range of operators. My research has been on improving image acquisition in both 2D and 3D plus improving image quality through new software. Although we have been successful in improving these aspects, it is becoming clearer that barriers to adoption still exist with traditional ultrasound hardware. In particular, ultrasound must be easier to operate. Today, the expertise of the operator is still a critical and limiting factor, so even the latest ultrasound devices are used relatively infrequently compared to their potential usage. Breakthrough research in our lab on ultrasound transducers has the potential to fundamentally change the way ultrasound is operated and greatly expand the use of ultrasound. In particular, we invented a new way of creating ultrasound-on-a-chip that replaces the standard rigid hand-held transducer with a flexible, transparent, wearable patch. This grant will develop new computer algorithms that use these capabilities to help operate ultrasound in new ways, especially in guiding specialized procedures. For example, a flexible, transparent, wearable patch could allow an operator to use both hands to perform a procedure, while at the same time watch the procedure live on the ultrasound image. Enabling ultrasound guidance in this and other related procedures should improve their uptake, speed, accuracy and outcomes. The proposed algorithms will: (1) form high-quality ultrasound images from a flexible transducer; (2) perform tracking and guidance with a transparent transducer; (3) calculate and display image-based guidance using augmented reality; and then we will (4) integrate these algorithms into a usable system that can be objectively tested. The end result will be a set of technologies that enable a new and complementary way of operating ultrasound. These new technologies will open up new applications not only in medical applications but also in non-destructive testing of man-made materials such as flaw detection in manufacturing. This research grant will train 3 PhD, 3 MASc, and 4 BASc in this growing field of ultrasound that Canada enjoys a leading role both in academia and industry. These HQP will gain specific skills in ultrasound signal and image processing plus more general skills in real-time software design, augmented reality and artificial intelligence, all of which are in high demand, in an interdisciplinary, representative, challenging, and welcoming research environment.