Abstract: Ultrasound probes that transmits/receives ultrasound pulses with frequencies both in a low frequency (LF) and a high frequency (HF) band, where the radiation surfaces of said HF and LF bands at least have a common region. Several solutions for transmission (and reception) of LF and HF pulses through the same radiation surface are given. The arrays and elements can be of a general type, for example linear phased or switched arrays, or annular arrays or elements with division in both azimuth and elevation direction, like a 1.5D, a 1.75D and a full 2D array. The LF and HF element division and array apertures can also be different.

Abstract: The invention presents solutions for large apertures of an ultrasound array under given dimension constraints given by the application for the ultrasound probe, for example by an endoluminal application. The invention has applications to annular arrays for 2D and 3D imaging, and also to linear or curvilinear arrays for 2D and 3D imaging. The invention further provides large aperture of arrays for dual frequency band operation with large difference between the dual bands.

Abstract: A digital ultrasound beam former for ultrasound imaging, that can be configured by a control processor to process the signals from ultrasound transducer arrays with variable number of elements at variable sampling frequencies, where the lowest sampling frequency allows for the highest number of array elements. The maximal number of array elements is reduced in the inverse proportion to the sampling frequency. Parallel coupling of transmit/receive circuits for each element allow adaption of the receive Noise Figure and transmit drive capabilities to variations in the electrical impedance of the array elements.

Abstract: An ultrasound imaging probe for real time 3D ultrasound imaging from the tip of the probe that can be inserted into the body. The ultrasound beam is electronically scanned within a 2D azimuth plane with a linear array, and scanning in the elevation direction at right angle to the azimuth plane is obtained by mechanical movement of the array. The mechanical movement is either achieved by rotation of the array through a flexible wire, or through wobbling of the array, for example through hydraulic actuation. The probe can be made both flexible and stiff, where the flexible embodiment is particularly interesting for catheter imaging in the heart and vessels, and the stiff embodiment has applications in minimal invasive surgery and other procedures. The probe design allows for low cost manufacturing which allows factory sterilized probes to be disposed after use.

Abstract: An ultrasound probe with a distal probe tip that can be inserted into the body for real time 2D ultrasound imaging from said probe tip, where said 2D image can be both in the forwards direction from the probe tip and at an angle to the probe tip. The ultrasound beam is generated with one of a single element transducer, and an annular array transducer, and scanned laterally through mechanically movement of the array. The mechanical movement is either achieved by rotation of the array via a flexible wire, or through wobbling of the array, for example through hydraulic actuation. The probe can be made flexible or stiff, where the flexible embodiment is particularly interesting for catheter imaging in the heart and vessels, and the stiff embodiment has applications in minimal invasive surgery and other procedures. The probe design allows for low cost manufacturing which allows factory sterilized probes to be disposed after use.

Abstract: A design and a manufacturing method of ultrasound transducers based on films of ferro-electric ceramic material is presented, the transducers being particularly useful for operating at frequencies above 10 MHz. The manufacturing technique can involve tape-casting of the ceramic films, deposition of the ceramic films onto a substrate with thick film printing, sol-gel, or other deposition techniques, where manufacturing methods for load matching layers and composite ceramic layers are described. The designs also involve acoustic load matching layers that provide particularly wide bandwidth of the transducers, and also multi-band operation of the transducers. The basic designs can be used for elements in a transducer array, that provides the frequency characteristics of the single element transducers, for array steering of the focus and possibly also direction of a pulsed ultrasound beam at high frequencies and multi-band frequencies.

Abstract: A method for characterizing ultrasound scatterers in soft tissue, wherein scattered signals are used to eliminate the absorption attenuation of an ultrasound wave from estimated parameters and to obtain directional scattering information. The scattered signals are obtained from either multiple regions where one region is used as a reference or multiple scattering directions, creating known reference signals from the same scattering region. The method provides new ultrasound parameters for the characterization and contrast enhancement of tissue structures in ultrasound imaging, such as tumor structures, ischemia of a myocardial wall and/or plaque compositions in vascular atheroma. The method of the invention can be used with various arrangements of ultrasound transducers, particularly switched linear arrays.

Abstract: An ultrasound probe for three-dimensional scanning and focusing of an ultrasound beam in both an azimuth direction and an elevation direction normal to the azimuth direction. The probe is composed of an ultrasound transducer array which has a linear division of the elements in the azimuth direction for electronic steering of the beam direction and focus in the azimuth direction. The array elements have a coarse division in the elevation direction for electronic steering of the focus in the elevation direction, and possibly small angle direction steering of the beam in the elevation direction for parallel receive and/or transmit beams. Large angle direction scanning of the beam in the elevation direction is obtained by mechanical rotation of the array around an axis. The invention implies useful embodiments for insertion of the probe into the body, through mounting the array at the distal tip of an elongated device.

Abstract: A method and an instrument for ultrasound imaging using an array of transducer elements which is connected to the instrument with a limited number of wires, where focusing of the transmit beam improves image signal to noise ratio above state of the art methods. This allows the use of higher ultrasound frequencies providing improved image resolution.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing of ultrasound transducer arrays with a curved surface, where the array is first manufactured on a planar substrate, followed by etching or saw dicing of grooves from the front and/or the back face of the substrate, so that all bending of the substrate occurs along the bottom material of the grooves.

Abstract: An estimation method for correction filters for wavefront aberration correction in ultrasound imaging is given. The aberration is introduced due to spatial variations of the ultrasound propagation velocity in heterogeneous tissue. The correction filters are found as eigenvectors of the cross-correlation matrix of the element signals. In particular, the eigenvectors with a small spatial linear/plane phase component is sought. Detailed methods for calculating the eigenvectors are given.