Abstract: A device provides ultrasonic therapy to a female breast. To this end, the breast is introduced into a container which, for a good acoustic coupling, is filled with at least one liquid. An ultrasonic transducer emits sound into the breast in a region which, in the positive and negative direction of rotation, related to the plane of the body of the female patient, covers angles of less than or equal to 50°. In a preferred embodiment, a compression pad and a fixing membrane are provided for fixing a position of the breast.

Abstract: A bellows for coupling a source of acoustic waves having an acoustic propagation medium, to a patient, has a geometrical modification in that region wherein the bellows can be seated against the patient for the introduction of acoustic waves into the patient . The geometrical modification in the propagation path of the acoustic waves generated by the source of acoustic waves shapes the acoustic waves in a designated (designed) manner. Additionally or alternatively, the bellows can have a section in the region that is formed of a different material than the rest of the bellows.

Abstract: A shock wave source has a coil carrier, a coil, having a metallic membrane separated from the coil in insulating fashion for generating shock waves. The coil carrier is formed of a material that damps the formation and/or the propagation of audible acoustic waves in the generation of shock waves.

Abstract: A shock wave source has a coil carrier, having a longitudinal axis, a coil and a metallic membrane separated from the coil in insulating fashion for generating shock waves. The coil carrier has a generated surface, a first cover surface facing toward the coil and a second cover surface facing away from the coil. For reducing the low-frequency sound generation when generating shock waves, a cross-sectional area of the coil carrier intersected at a right angle by the longitudinal axis has a non-circular contour. A reduction of the audible sound generation when generating shock waves can also be achieved when the second cover surface of the coil carrier is non-flat.

Abstract: An ultrasound transmitting configuration includes at least one ultrasound generating device for exposing a medium which has an acoustic medium impedance and a medium speed of sound to ultrasonic waves. The ultrasound generating device has at least two ultrasound transducers which can be excited through actuating electrodes for emitting ultrasound and which have an acoustic transducer impedance. The ultrasound transducers are separated from one another and disposed alongside one another. An ultrasound lens which has an acoustic lens impedance and a lens speed of sound is disposed between the ultrasound generating device and the medium. The ultrasound generating device is acoustically coupled on a coupling side to the ultrasound lens. The ultrasound transducers extend toward the medium over a transducer depth, they extend toward one another over a transducer width, and they extend at right angles to both the transducer depth and the transducer width over a transducer length.

Abstract: An apparatus for fixing a female breast for use in a variety of medical-technical applications such as, for example, ultrasound therapy, ultrasound diagnosis or biopsy. The fixing apparatus includes a container, into which the breast is introduced, a fixing diaphragm, and at least one compression cushion. The compression cushion presses the breast against the fixing diaphragm thereby achieving a fixed position of the breast.

Abstract: A therapy apparatus with a source of therapeutic acoustic waves, an ultrasound locating system with a diagnostic ultrasound transducer that emits a diagnostic ultrasound beam whose central ray is displaceable such in a scanning surface so that it scans a body slice of a subject to be treated achieves an improved image quality of the ultrasound images by the scanning surface being continually displaced slightly relative to the source during the generation of ultrasound images.

Abstract: An ultrasound imaging system has a probe containing a 2-D array of transducer elements and a base unit for the phase-delayed driving of the transducer elements of the array. Transmit pulsers digitally controlled by the base unit are provided for the transducer elements in the probe, and an address decoder is provided for the transmitting state, and a multiplexer for the ultrasonic signals in the receiving state. For the transmitting state, the probe and the base unit are interconnected via digital control lines and, for the receiving state, via a number of signal lines that is reduced by the multiplexer factor of the multiplexer.

Abstract: A therapy apparatus for locating and treating a zone situated in the body of a subject life form with ultrasound includes an ultrasound transducer which can be optionally operated in a therapy mode or a locating mode, and which generates therapeutic ultrasound waves having a first frequency focused onto a zone of action in the therapy mode and generates diagnostic ultrasound having a second frequency in the locating mode. The ultrasound transducer also receives portions of the diagnostic ultrasound reflected in the body of the subject in the locating mode and converts them into electrical signals that are supplied to an evaluation electronics which provides image information about the zone to be treated.

Abstract: A therapy apparatus for locating and treating a zone in the body of a living subject with focused, therapeutic ultrasound waves having a first frequency includes an ultrasound locating system which emits diagnostic ultrasound having a second frequency, and which receives parts of the diagnostic ultrasound reflected in the body of the subject and converts them into electrical signals which are used to form an image of the zone to be treated with the subject. In order to permit the locating system to be operated simultaneously with the generation of therapeutic waves, and thus to be able to generate a continuous image without disturbances caused by therapeutic waves, the electrical signals are supplied, before forming the image, to a filter having a transfer function with a rejection band wherein the first frequency lies and a passband wherein the second frequency lies. The output signals from the filter are then used to generate the image.

Abstract: A pressure pulse source, of the type suitable for generating shockwaves, has a positive lens for focusing the pressure pulses onto a focal zone. The positive lens has an acoustic exit face which has a shape, in a focusing zone, for focusing the pressure pulses and a shape, in at least one measurement zone, which deviates from the shape in the focusing zone. A pressure sensor containing a piezoelectric polymer foil is disposed at the measurement zone. The pressure sensor, or a number of such pressure sensors, generate signals which are used to monitor the pressure pulses emerging from the positive lens, such as by acquiring their peak value.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device for the spatial, ultrasonic location of concrements found in the body of a living being, which are to be located at the focus of an ultrasonic shock wave so as to be destroyed in a lithotritor. According to the invention, an ultrasonic camera, which works in the reflection mode, is provided for the ultrasonic location procedure focal region which is adjusted to an object plane, which contains the focus of the ultrasonic shock wave. In this way, information from sectional planes of the body can be made available to the user, making it easier to position the concrement securely in the focus of the ultrasonic shock wave.

Abstract: An ultrasonic sensor which is particularly suited to measuring the sound-pressure amplitude in the focus range of a lithotripter and includes in a region a piezoelectrically activated polymeric foil, which is coupled to electrodes. The polymeric foil is mounted in a housing, which has a convex curved, dome-shaped surface at least in one region located opposite one of the flat sides of the polymeric foil. A simple measurement of the sonic field is thus made possible directly on the rubber-diaphragm encased, water-filled delay path of the lithotripter.

Abstract: An optical apparatus which includes an optical waveguide with an unattached end and a control and evaluation circuit for detecting a cavitation signal caused by the accumulation of cavitation bubbles at the unattached end is used to detect cavitation bubbles such as occur when shock waves pass through liquids.

Abstract: An ultrasound sensor is used for measuring the sound pressure amplitude in the focal range of focused ultrasound shock waves. The sensor contains a polymer foil which is piezoelectrically activated in one region and is coupled to electrodes which are physically separated from the region. The polymer foil is arranged in a hollow plastic cylinder with its flat surface sides parallel to the central longitudinal axis of the hollow cylinder. By this measure, interfering diffraction effects are reduced and miniaturization of the ultrasound sensor is achieved.

Abstract: An apparatus for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic signals for an ultrasonic imaging device operating by the pulse echo method. There is arranged next to a linear array of ultrasonic transducer elements serving as ultrasonic transmitter, a matrix type array of ultrasonic transducer elements serving as ultrasonic receiver, the columns of which run parallel to the longitudinal direction of the linear array. By the use of the matrix type array of ultrasonic receivers it is possible to receive echo signals from a wide angle range and to discriminate them with respect to their scattering angle.

Abstract: The ultrasound sensor (2) of the invention comprises a polymer foil (4) which is supported in its outer region and is piezoelectrically activated at least in one portion (42). The portion (42) is coupled electrically to a first electrode (200) in the form of an adjacent, i.e., touching pin. A second electrode (8), in the form of a grid (214) connected to ground and/or a ring (216) connected to ground, is physically separated from the activated portion (42). The pin (200) is connected to the first input of an amplifier (210). The second input thereof is connected to ground. The metallic take-off at the activated zone (42) results in high sensitivity of the ultra-sound sensor (2) which is provided particularly for the measurement of shock waves with a high pressure amplitude and which finds application in lithotripsy.

Abstract: The invention concerns an ultrasonic transducer for the determination of the acoustic power of an ultrasonic field (1) focused at a point (F). According to the invention, an ultrasonic transducer 2 contains a support structure (4) which has the shape of a spherical cup and whose center coincides with the focus (F) of the focused ultrasonic field (1), and a piezoelectric polymer foil (6) equipped on its respective surfaces (62, 64) with a conductive layer (8) is attached to said support structure. These measures ensure that the acoustic charge vibrations within the area formed by the piezoelectric polymer foil (6) are at least approximately in phase and that the respective surface charge vibrations can be measured with the aid of a single, continuous electrode without partial mutual cancellation.

Abstract: A miniature hydrophone is disclosed which contains a piezoelectric foil as a base element (2) with a linear arrangement of multiplicity of detector elements (10). In accordance with the invention, the electrodes (5) are arranged on a top surface (15) of one of the flat sides of a support (16) and are capacitively coupled by a bonding layer (6) to the base element (2). The detector elements (10) are associated with an amplifier (32) which, with equal length connecting leads (11, 26 and/or 12, 27), is fastened to a side face of the support (16). The electrical interconnection between the detector element (10) and the associated amplifier (32) employs a groove (24) through the corners of support 16. Additional such modules can form an assembly unit in a row arrangement of a size equal to that of the detector elements (10).

Abstract: Stacked slab-shaped support bodies of electrically insulated material are provided with electrodes at one of their side surfaces. In the stack, the electrodes of a support body form the rows of a matrix. The support bodies are each connected detachably to a circuit board on which switchable amplifiers are arranged. In a preferred embodiment, the switchable amplifiers are dual-gate MOS-FETs, the first gate terminals of which are each connected electrically to an electrode of the support body.