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Passive synthetic aperture (PSA) extension for a moving array has the ability to enhance the accuracy of direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation by constructing a larger virtual aperture. The array element overlap in array continuous measurements is required for the traditional extended towed array measurement (ETAM) methods. Otherwise, the phase factor estimation is biased, and the aperture extension fails when multiple sources exist. To solve this problem, passive aperture extension with sparse Bayesian learning (SBL) is proposed. In this method, SBL is used to simultaneously estimate the phase correction factors of different targets, followed by phase compensation applied to the extended aperture manifold vectors for DOA estimation. Simulation and experimental data results demonstrate that this proposed method successfully extends the aperture and provides higher azimuth resolution and accuracy compared to conventional beamforming (CBF) and SBL without extension. Compared with the traditional ETAM methods, the proposed method still performs well even when the array elements are not overlapped during the motion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coherence factor (CF) and Wiener postfilter methods have been proposed as effective approaches for reducing the output noise of the delay-and-sum (DAS) beamformer in ultrasound imaging. The theoretical framework between them was also established. However, past researches about the CF and Wiener postfilter methods mainly focused on the summation of an array signal. This paper analyzes the CF and Wiener postfilter in the synthetic aperture (SA) imaging mode, where two-dimensional echo data are recorded. Different CF definitions in the SA imaging are first given and the corresponding Wiener postfilter methods are then proposed, including a Wiener postfilter especially for the SA imaging, named as WienerSA. The performances of different CF and Wiener postfilter methods were evaluated on both simulated and experimental SA data. Results showed that the proposed WienerSA outperformed the other Wiener postfilters in reducing the sidelobe noise level. It obtained the highest contrast ratio among the Wiener postfilter methods, which was even higher than some of the CF methods. Meanwhile it could benefit a much higher contrast-to-noise ratio than those CF methods with further suppression of incoherent noises. Consequently, the WienerSA is believed to be a promising approach in enhancing the SA image quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A continuous wave signal received on a single hydrophone from a moving source is beamformed using the synthetic aperture created by the source, where the signal at each range is steered by a range-dependent phase, relative to the starting point. The range increment (aperture) is determined based on the Doppler shift estimated from the data, knowing the original signal frequency. Given a sufficient signal-to-noise ratio, the source depth can be estimated from the beam output, assuming knowledge of the mode depth functions based on the nominal sound speed and bottom profile in the area. The method is illustrated with simulated data and at-sea data. For real data, the signal phase contains a random, incoherent component caused by the (random) source motion and media fluctuations in addition to the deterministic range-dependent component due to source range change. A phase locked loop is introduced to remove the random component assuming that the random component fluctuates faster with time than the range-dependent phase. When a vertical array of receivers are available covering the depth span of interest, the beam output can be used directly to estimate the source depth. In this case, no knowledge of the acoustic environment is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The localization of low-frequency coherent sources requires a proper aperture to ensure a high spatial resolution. Attaining a large aperture is difficult in practice when the conditions involved are limited. This letter investigated a compressive beamforming-based passive synthetic aperture approach with a reference sensor in a fixed position. Localization findings on acoustic sources in a semi-anechoic chamber were compared with conventional beamforming, compressive beamforming, passive synthetic aperture, and compressive beamforming-based passive synthetic aperture. Results suggest that the proposed method can produce a higher spatial resolution and higher detection ability than the others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method for synthetic aperture flow imaging using dual stage beamforming has been developed. The main motivation is to increase the frame rate and still maintain a beamforming quality sufficient for flow estimation that is possible to implement in a commercial scanner. This method can generate continuous high frame rate flow images with lower calculation demands than the full synthetic aperture flow imaging. The performance of the approach was investigated using Field II simulations and measurements with the experimental scanner SARUS. A laminar flow with a parabolic profile was generated by a flow rig system. The flow data were acquired by a commercial 7 MHz linear array transducer. Four emissions were transmitted sequentially and repeated 12 times corresponding to 48 emissions. Flow with a peak velocity of 0.12 m/s was measured, the relative standard deviation was 6.4%, and the bias was 7.6% (2.1% and 3.2% for the simulations). A parameter study revealed that emission spacing, number of cross-correlation functions used for averaging, and the length of the velocity searching range influence the performance. Compared to the full synthetic aperture flow imaging the total number of beamformed samples are reduced by a factor of 64 times, and the frame rate is much higher than the conventional method for the same velocity estimation accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction to the article "Source Depth Estimation Based on Synthetic Aperture Beamfoming for a Moving Source," published in a previous issue of the "Journal of the Acoustical Society of America," is presented.