Geometric distortion correction for echo planar images using nonrigid registration with spatially varying scale

One method used to correct geometric and intensity distortions in echo planar images is to register them to undistorted images via nonrigid deformations. However, some areas in the echo planar images are more distorted than others, thus suggesting the use of deformations whose characteristics are adapted spatially. In this article, we incorporate into our previously developed registration algorithm a spatially varying scale mechanism, which adapts the local scale properties of the transformation by means of a scale map. To compute the scale map, a technique is proposed that relies on an estimate of the expected deformation field. This estimate is generated using knowledge of the physical processes that induce distortions in echo planar images. We evaluate the method of spatially varying scale on both simulated and real data. We find that, in comparison with our earlier method using fixed scale, our new method finds deformation fields that are smoother and finds them faster without sacrificing accuracy.     

Boundary Effects in the Eigenstrain Method

We present a comprehensive study of the effects of internal boundaries on the accuracy of residual stress values obtained from the eigenstrain method. In the experimental part of this effort, a composite specimen, consisting of an aluminum cylinder sandwiched between steel cylinders of the same diameter, was uniformly heated under axial displacement constraint. During the experiment, the sample temperature and the reaction stresses in the load frame in response to changes in sample temperature were monitored. In addition, the local (elastic) lattice strain distribution within the specimen was measured using neutron diffraction. The eigenstrain method, utilizing finite element modeling, was then used to predict the stress field existing within the sample in response to the constraint imposed by the load frame against axial thermal expansion. Our comparison of the computed and measured stress distributions showed that, while the eigenstrain method predicted acceptable stress values away from the cylinder interfaces, its predictions did not match experimentally measured values near them. These observations indicate that the eigenstrain method is not valid for sample geometries with this type of internal boundaries.