ULTRASOUND SCAN CONVERSION AND MEMORY SYSTEM

Imaging information characterizable as a pixel grid or matrix of 256 image columns and 512 image rows is supplied by a scanning transducer means delivering a series of ray lines of information where each ray corresponds to an image column. The incoming pixels of the rays are converted into digitized data words, and stored for scan conversion by being routed, in simultaneous blocks of eight words, to a respective one of eight different page memories, in accordance with an image memory organization scheme assigning a different page routing number to each pixel of a block for the entire image matrix, to enable parallel memory access for both input and output operations. The first page for the first pixel of each incoming ray is determined by logic which subtracts the ray or column number from eight, modulo 8. Subsequent pages are generated by incrementing repetitively within the range 0, 1, 2 . . . for each subsequent incoming pixel, after being set to said first page number. Each page is associated with a corresponding element of an input buffer, to receive the corresponding pixel for each incoming column block. All elements of the full buffer are dumped in parallel to the eight page memories simultaneously. This occurs repetitively for all blocks of each ray/column until each pixel of a frame is stored at an individually separate page address determined by simple arithmetical logic. For output, the page memories are read out in rows, in simultaneous parallel row blocks of eight, one block element from each page, to an output buffer having an element connected to each page, with the page address for each pixel of a row block determined by a simple arithmetical operation. The output buffer elements are fed serially to a video display subsystem in an order determined by the page routing numbers of the rows of the image memory organization scheme. Simple circuitry determines the order of buffer element readout, with the first page/buffer element number being simply the number of the image row being read out, (Modulo 8), and subsequent page/buffer element numbers of that row being generated incrementing repetitively within the range 0, 7, 6 . . . 1, after being set to said row first page number. Such readout in successive rows of course effects conversion to a conventional video format for display.