• The R-parameter imaging technique for interpreting gravity data. • The method is based on the analytic signal of observed and synthetic responses. • The maximum R-parameter value is the criterion in determining the true parameters. • The accuracy of this technique is verified on numerical and real data sets. This paper describes a fast imaging technique, the so-called here the "R-parameter imaging technique", for the interpretation of gravity data measured along profile. The technique calculates the R-parameter (a statistical parameter called the correlation coefficient) between the analytic signal of the measured gravity field and that of the synthetic response of an assumed interpretive model in the restricted class of spheres and cylinders. The characteristic source parameters (depth, shape, origin point of the gravity profile, and amplitude factor) of the model correspond to the maximum R-parameter value. The method has been verified on noise free numerical examples. Following that, the accuracy of the method has been carefully assessed on both noisy numerical examples and numerical examples with interference effects. Finally, the technique has been successfully applied to five field data examples from Canada, Sweden and Cuba for mineral exploration, and it is found that the obtained results are in good agreement with those reported in the published literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]