Simple uniformity and penetration phantoms for the quality assurance of ultrasound scanners

A pair of polyethylene bottles filled with tissue-mimicking gel provides a quick and economical method for sonographers in small hospitals and clinics to perform quality assurance on ultrasound scanners. The uniformity phantom filled with a homogeneous low attenuation gel provides a visual display of the spatial sensitivity of the probe's scanning pattern, and has proved particularly effective for detecting insensitive elements in transducer arrays. The penetration phantom contains a tissue equivalent attenuating wedge, which allows the penetration depth of the system to be measured under standard conditions. Any loss of system sensitivity will be reflected as a long term reduction in the measured penetration.