William Richard

William Richard

Associate Professor

Computer Science & Engineering

  • Phone
    314-935-4676
  • Office
    McKelvey Hall, Room 1052

Education

PhD, Missouri University of Science & Technology, 1988
MS, Missouri University of Science & Technology, 1985
BS, Missouri University of Science & Technology, 1983

Expertise

Aims to provide low-cost & low-power ultrasonic imaging devices

Focus

Low-cost medical ultrasound

Research

William Richard's research focuses on the development of architectures and image processing algorithms for low-cost, low-power, portable ultrasound systems that can be used to provide ultrasonic imaging capability in underserved and remote areas.

Biography

Since joining Washington University in St. Louis in 1988, Professor Richard has continued the development of architectures and image processing algorithms for ultrasonic imaging. His 1989 paper on real-time gain correction and his 1994 paper on real-time scan conversion (with Professor Martin Arthur) were key to the development of many low-cost commercial ultrasonic imaging systems. Professor Richard developed a low-cost, PCI-bus based system based on these techniques in 1995 for prostate localization during radiation treatment at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and a second system in 1996 to localize brain tumors during neurosurgery at the Cleveland Clinic as part of the CAMIS (Computer-Assisted Minimally-Invasive Surgery) project.

The Universal Serial Bus (USB) ultrasound probes developed by Professor Richard, which require only a laptop or tablet to form a complete ultrasonic imaging system, were named by Popular Science Magazine as one of the Best 100 Innovations of 2006. The same year, the International Academy of Science named the USB probes one of the top 10 finalists for their "Technology of the Year Award." With funding from Microsoft Research, Professor Richard combined his USB probes with a Windows Mobile (TM) smartphone to develop the first smartphone-based ultrasound imaging system. The commercial version of this system was the first smartphone-based diagnostic device cleared by the FDA, and it was named by Popular Science as one of the Best 100 Innovations of 2012.

Professor Richard was awarded a patent on a novel technique for real-time synthetic focus ultrasonic imaging in 2004. He served on the editorial board for Computerized Medical Imaging and Graphics for over twenty years. He is a member of the American Society for Engineering Education and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.