IMMERSED IN: Ultrasound imaging

Immersive real-time 3D ultrasound imaging in augmented reality: Contextual overlays for medical training & practice

DATE: Wednesday, October 29, 2025
TIME: 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. ET
LOCATION: Virtual (register for webinar link)
SPEAKERS: Jason Hou, PhD Student in the MIT Media Lab, Conformable Decoders Group and April Anlage, PhD candidate, MIT Mechanical Engineering

ABSTRACT #1

Ultrasound imaging is non-radiative, portable, and widely used—but interpreting two dimensional (2D) slices in real time poses significant cognitive challenges, especially when spatial understanding is critical. Hou proposes a novel system for immersive, real-time, three dimensional (3D) ultrasound visualization using augmented reality (AR). Their approach reconstructs incoming ultrasound data into a dynamic 3D voxel representation that is overlaid directly on top of a real-world visual feed within an AR environment. This contextual overlay provides critical spatial reference points, ensuring operators remain oriented during live exploration of volumetric data. In medicine, it can enhance guidance during critical procedures or live-examination and create intuitive training tools. Outside of healthcare, potential uses include nondestructive testing in manufacturing, biomechanical analysis, and immersive STEM education, where dynamic structure changes within an object are contextualized in real-time spatiotemporal resolution.
 

ABSTRACT #2

Ultrasound is a safe, portable, and inexpensive medical imaging modality. However, it can be difficult for inexperienced users to accurately and completely image a target. By tracking where a user has scanned, an ultrasound volume can be built. Using the information contained in the volume, scan-specific user guidance can be communicated. In this talk, Anlage will describe the ongoing development of a HoloLens 2 augmented reality (AR) application designed to efficiently guide a user through collecting a complete ultrasound scan over a given volume. With guided volume ultrasound, there is the potential to improve the education, training, and accessibility of ultrasound for medical imaging.

Event webpage: https://mitnano.mit.edu/events/immersed-ultrasound">https://mitnano.mit.edu/events/immersed-ultrasound