Portable Acoustic Imaging with EM Alignment for Source Localization
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing acoustic imaging devices face limitations in detecting and imaging a wide range of acoustic frequencies due to hardware and calculation algorithm discrepancies, requiring expert knowledge and multiple equipment setups, and often result in misalignment and misdiagnosis when combined with other imaging technologies.
Innovation Solution
An acoustic sensor array system integrated with electromagnetic imaging tools and a processor that generates and displays combined acoustic and electromagnetic image data, utilizing back-propagation calculations and distance information to align and analyze acoustic parameters, with optional user interface for manual input.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If acoustic sensor arrays are optimized for lower (audible) frequencies with sensors spaced farther apart, then lower frequency detection is improved, but higher frequency detection capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The acoustic sensor array is designed with multiple sensor spacing configurations that can be selectively activated based on the frequency range of interest. The system includes sensors at different spacings (e.g., first spacing for audible frequencies, second spacing for ultrasonic frequencies) within the same array structure, allowing a single array to perform multiple frequency detection functions without requiring separate dedicated arrays for each frequency range.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple specialized acoustic imaging devices are used to cover different frequency ranges, then frequency detection capability is improved, but device complexity and operational difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple sensor arrays with different spacing characteristics into a single integrated acoustic sensor array system. This merged structure includes sensors at various spacings that can be selectively used together or independently, consolidating what would otherwise require multiple separate imaging devices into one unified system, thereby reducing overall complexity while maintaining broad frequency coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically selects and activates specific sensor subsets based on the frequency characteristics of the acoustic signals being analyzed. The controller automatically adjusts which sensors and spacing configurations are active according to real-time frequency detection needs, eliminating the need for manual reconfiguration of multiple devices and simplifying operation across different frequency ranges.
3Measurement precision
If manual selection of hardware and software configurations is required for acoustic analysis, then analysis precision can be optimized, but ease of operation and time efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs automatic frequency range detection and self-configures the appropriate sensor subsets and processing algorithms without requiring manual intervention. The controller automatically identifies the frequency characteristics of acoustic signals and selects the optimal sensor spacing configuration and analysis method, enabling the system to serve itself in terms of configuration selection, thereby maintaining precision while dramatically improving ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors acoustic signal characteristics and uses this feedback to automatically adjust sensor selection and processing parameters. Based on real-time frequency analysis, the controller dynamically reconfigures which sensors are active and which algorithms are applied, creating a closed-loop system that automatically optimizes precision for each specific acoustic scenario without user input.
4Productivity
If acoustic image data is collected without alignment with electromagnetic image data, then acoustic imaging capability is maintained, but localization accuracy and diagnostic precision deteriorate due to misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces electromagnetic imaging tools (such as visible light or infrared cameras) as intermediary devices that capture simultaneous images of the same scene being analyzed acoustically. These electromagnetic images serve as reference data that the controller uses to automatically align and register acoustic image data, providing a common spatial framework that enables accurate localization of acoustic sources relative to visual features in the scene.
Data Source
AI summary
A handheld acoustic imaging tool and method of imaging acoustic signals includes receiving acoustic signals from a scene, identifying a subset of the acoustic signals based on a predetermined condition of an acoustic parameter of the acoustic signals, and generating a display image using electromagnetic image data representative of electromagnetic radiation from the scene. The display image visually indicates a location in the scene corresponding to the subset of the acoustic signals. Generating the display image may further include using acoustic image data representative of the subset of the acoustic signals, wherein the electromagnetic image data and the acoustic image data are shown together in the display image. In some cases, the acoustic image data in the display image may be palettized according to the acoustic parameter, for example according to an amount, an amount of change, or a rate of change, of the acoustic parameter.