Siemens Medical Systems, Inc.

Gregg Miller

Lin X Yao

An ultrasound imaging system enables 1.5D image information to be generated from a single firing of a linear transducer array by permitting dynamic control over the receive aperture. The imaging system comprises a transducer having a linear array of piezoelectric elements arranged in a plurality of distinct rows of the elements. The transducer is operable to provide acoustic pulses from elements of a first one of the rows in response to respective driving signals and to provide corresponding return signals in response thereto at elements of additional ones of the plurality of the rows and at the first one of the rows. A receiver is coupled to the transducer to receive a summed signal corresponding to the return signals from the elements. The receiver comprises a plurality of low voltage switches that couple to respective ones of the additional ones of the plurality of the rows, and a high voltage switch disposed in series with the low voltage switches. The timing of the high and low voltage switches is controlled to vary the focusing characteristics of the imaging system. A processor coupled to the receiver and the transducer generates a 1.5D image using the summed signal.

Dynamic receive aperture transducer for 1.5D imaging

A Doppler medical ultrasound apparatus, comprising means for transmitting ultrasound energy into a body, a plurality of parallel channels for receiving echoes of the ultrasound energy, digitizing the echoes, and digitally forming a received beam signal therefrom, means for processing the beam signals to produce a Doppler signal representing movement in a target volume within the body, and means for displaying the Doppler signal, and further including a summing circuit for summing a common dither signal with each of the received echoes and an A/D converter for digitizing the received echo in each parallel channel having the common dither signal added thereto.

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Bisbee, AZ, United States of America

Gregg Miller