Other

Branson Ultrasonics Corporation

William L Puskas

Jean G Dussault

Robert A Geckle

A system for imploding leukemia cells of a patient includes (a) a first vessel for containing a volume of blood received from the patient, and (b) drive circuitry cooperatively coupled with at least one transducer to produce ultrasound energy that spatially decoheres and disperses throughout the volume, to implode the leukemia cells throughout the volume via absorption of the ultrasound energy by the leukemia cells. The transducer may be an immersible transducer configured to be immersed in the blood. The system may include a second vessel for containing a liquid, within which the ultrasound energy is decohered and dispersed and from which at least a portion of the ultrasound energy is transmitted to the first vessel to implode the leukemia cells.

Systems and methods for imploding leukemia cells

An ultrasound transducer array for coupling sonic energy into a liquid includes a plurality of transducer pairs, where each transducer pair includes an inverted ultrasound transducer and a non-inverted ultrasound transducer electrically coupled in series. A method for coupling sonic energy into a liquid includes (a) driving a first transducer pair with a first electrical signal, where the first transducer pair includes a first inverted ultrasound transducer and a first non-inverted ultrasound transducer electrically coupled in series and (b) driving a second transducer pair with the first electrical signal, where the second transducer pair is electrically coupled in parallel with the first transducer pair, and where the second transducer pair includes a second inverted ultrasound transducer and a second non-inverted ultrasound transducer electrically coupled in series.

Ultrasound transducer arrays and associated systems and methods

An apparatus for destroying cancer cells in blood includes a vessel for accepting a flow of blood of a patient through the vessel, and a sound energy source coupled with the vessel for generating sound energy at a resonant sweep frequency that causes cancer cells, within the flow of blood in the vessel, to act as cavitation nuclei and implode without implosion of other cells not resonant with the resonant sweep frequency. A method for destroying cancer cells in blood includes circulating blood from a patient through a vessel coupled with a sound energy source and exposing the blood, when passing through the vessel, to sound energy at a resonant sweep frequency to make cancer cells therein act as cavitation nuclei and implode without implosion of other cells not resonant with the resonant sweep frequency.

Systems and methods for destroying cancer cells in blood

A method of causing an object to act as a cavitation nucleus comprising the steps of providing a sound energy source capable of generating a sound energy over a plurality of frequency ranges, providing a target object contained in a liquid, coupling the sound energy source to the liquid, determining a specific frequency range, within the frequency ranges, that resonates the target object, and exposing the target object to sound energy at the specific frequency range to cause the target object to act as a cavitation nucleus.

Methods and systems for improved cavitation efficiency and density, cancer cell destruction, and/or causing a target object to be a cavitation nucleus

The invention utilizes single and multiple frequency ultrasound generators driving single and multiple frequency resonant and harmonic transducer arrays at frequencies into the megasonic range. Generator signals that increase cavitation efficiency improve the performance of the cleaning, microbiological inactivation, sonochemistry or processing systems.

Apparatus, circuitry, signals, probes and methods for cleaning and/or processing with sound

An ultrasound system for providing megasonics and ultrasonics to a liquid at different frequencies and/or sweeping frequencies with associated generators, transducers, operations between resonance and anti-resonance, non-resistive output with phase shift, multiple/sweep/single frequency modes, individually controlled sections, gate drive power control, variable inductive compensation for temperature changes, parallel inductor matching, stacked ceramics and non-volatile memory storage of fault, error and failure history.

Ultrasound system

The invention utilizes multiple frequency megasonic generators driving multiple frequency harmonic transducers. Generator signals that increase cavitation efficiency and that have successive time periods with predominantly stable cavitation and predominantly transient cavitation further improve the performance of the cleaning, microbiological inactivation, sonochemistry or processing systems. Probes that monitor the megasonics and feedback the information to the generator provide consistency of process.

Megasonic apparatus, circuitry, signals and methods for cleaning and/or processing

The invention utilizes multiple frequency ultrasound generators driving multiple frequency harmonic transducer arrays at sweeping frequencies into the megasonic range. Generator signals that increase cavitation efficiency and that have successive time periods with predominantly stable cavitation and predominantly transient cavitation further improve the performance of the cleaning, microbiological inactivation, sonochemistry or processing systems. Probes that monitor the ultrasound and feedback the information to the generator provide consistency of process.

The invention utilizes a multiple frequency ultrasound generator driving a multiple frequency harmonic transducer array to improve cleaning and processing effects while eliminating damage to parts being cleaned. An AC switch and circuitry to modify the output of an ultrasound generator in combination with techniques such as random AM and FM signals are used to produce ultrasound waves that have no single frequency components which eliminates exciting parts being cleaned into resonance. Generator signals that increase cavitation efficiency and that have successive time periods with predominately stable cavitation and predominantly transient cavitation further improve the performance of the cleaning or processing systems.

Apparatus, circuitry, signals and methods for cleaning and/or processing with sound

The invention provides systems, methods and apparatus for processing delicate parts within a process tank such as an ultrasonic tank. Typically, one or more transducers connect to the tank and respond to drive signals from a generator to produce ultrasound within process liquid within the tank. Specific features of the invention include: (1) a power up-sweep ultrasonic system for moving contaminants upwards within the tank by sweeping transducer drive signals from an upper frequency to a lower frequency without sweeping from the lower frequency to the upper frequency; (2) a multi-generator system for producing ultrasound at selected different frequencies within the tank by switching a common transducer bank to one of the generators in response to remote relays initiated by the user; (3) a probe sensing system for sensing process conditions within the tank including an enclosure for housing a sample liquid and one or more sensing transducers within the sample liquid, the transducers generating signals indicative of characteristics of the sample liquid, a subsystem analyzing the signals in feedback with the generator to modify process conditions; (4) variable voltage ultrasonic generator systems to accommodate varying world-wide voltage supplies; (5) a laminar process tank for efficiently pushing contaminants upwards in a tank; (6) a quick dump rinse tank including a pressure cavity to accelerate dumping processes; (7) an ultrasonic generating unit formed of a printed circuit board (PCB) and multiple transducers within the PCB; (8) an AC power system to produce an AC voltage at frequency f that is impressed across a capacitive element; and (9) various configurations of transducers, including acid-safe transducers, double-compression transducers, and transducers with increased reliability.

Multi-generator system for an ultrasonic processing tank

The invention provides a sensing system for sensing process conditions within an ultrasonic process tank that includes process liquid, the liquid being subjected to ultrasound produced by transducers coupled to a generator. The sensing system includes an enclosure for housing a sample liquid, the enclosure passing ultrasonic energy from the process liquid to the sample liquid, the sample liquid being responsive to the ultrasonic energy, and at least one sensing device within the sample liquid, the sensing device generating signals indicative of characteristics of the sample liquid. The sample liquid includes materials adapted to produce chemiluminescence in response to the ultrasonic energy. The at least one sensing device includes a photo sensor for sensing the produced chemiluminescence and generating signals in response to the produced chemiluminescence.

Sensing system for measuring cavitation

Probe system for ultrasonic processing tank

The invention utilizes harmonics of certain clamped ultrasound transducers to generate ultrasound within the liquid of an ultrasonic tank and in a frequency range of between about 100 khz to 350 khz (i.e., 'microsonic' frequencies). The application of microsonic frequencies to liquid preferably occurs simultaneously with a sweeping of the microsonic frequency within the transducer's harmonic bandwidth to reduce or eliminate (a) standing waves within the liquid, (b) other resonances, (c) high energy cavitation implosion, and (d) non-uniform sound fields, each of which is undesirable for cleaning and/or processing of semiconductor wafers and other delicate parts. The invention can also drive ultrasonic transducers such that the frequency of applied energy has a sweep rate within the ultrasonic bandwidth of the transducers; and that sweep rate is also varied so that the sweep rate is substantially non-constant during operation.

Apparatus and methods for cleaning and/or processing delicate parts

The invention utilizes harmonics of certain clamped ultrasound transducers to generate ultrasound within the liquid of an ultrasonic tank and in a frequency range of between about 100 khz to 350 khz (i.e., 'microsonic' frequencies). The application of microsonic frequencies to liquid preferably occurs simultaneously with a sweeping of the microsonic frequency within the transducer's harmonic bandwidth to reduce or eliminate (a) standing waves within the liquid, (b) other resonances, (c) high energy cavitation implosion, and (d) non-uniform sound fields, each of which is undesirable for cleaning and/or processing of semiconductor wafers and other delicate parts. The invention can also drive ultrasonic transducers such that the frequency of applied energy has a sweep rate within the ultrasonic bandwidth of the transducers; and that sweep rate is also varied so that the sweep rate is substantially non-constant during operation. This reduces or eliminates resonances which are created by transducers operating with a single sweep rate. An ultrasound generator of the invention sometimes utilizes amplitude modulation (AM), and the AM frequency is swept over time so as to reduce resonances. AM control is preferably provided by selecting a portion of the rectified power line frequency. In applications which utilize multiple generators, multiple transducers, and one or more tanks, simultaneously, the invention synchronizes the operation of the generators to a common FM signal to reduce beat frequencies between generators. Each such generator can also be adjusted, through AM, to control the process characteristics within the associated tank. Two or more transducers are sometimes used by the invention, in combination, to broaden the overall bandwidth of acoustical energy applied to the liquid around the primary frequency or one of the harmonics. The bandwidths of the transducers are made to overlap such that an attached generator can drive the transducers, in combination, to deliver ultrasound to the liquid in a broader bandwidth. In a single chamber ultrasound system, two or more generators, each operating or optimized to generate a different range of frequencies, are connected to a multiplexer; and the desired frequency range is selected, and hence the right generator, according to the cavitation implosion energy that is desired within the tank chemistry.

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New London, NH, United States of America

William L Puskas