Patents by Inventor David J. Napolitano
David J. Napolitano has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Publication number: 20120095338Abstract: An ultrasound scanner is equipped with one or more fuzzy control units that can perform adaptive system parameter optimization anywhere in the system. In one embodiment, an ultrasound system comprises a plurality of ultrasound image generating subsystems configured to generate an ultrasound image, the plurality of ultrasound image generating subsystems including a transmitter subsystem, a receiver subsystem, and an image processing subsystem; and a fuzzy logic controller communicatively coupled with at least one of the plurality of ultrasound imaging generating subsystems.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 5, 2011Publication date: April 19, 2012Applicant: Zonare Medical Systems Inc.Inventors: Larry Y. L. Mo, Glen W. McLaughlin, Brian Derek DeBusschere, Ting-Lan Ji, Ching-Hua Chou, David J. Napolitano, Kathy S. Jedrzejewicz, Thomas Jedrzejewicz, Kurt Sandstrom, Feng Yin, Scott Franklin Smith, Wenkang Qi, Robert Stanson
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Publication number: 20120083695Abstract: In one embodiment, an ultrasound imaging method comprises: providing a probe that includes one or more transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves; generating a sequence of spatially distinct transmit beams which differ in one or more of origin and angle; determining a transmit beam spacing substantially based upon a combination of actual and desired transmit beam characteristics, thereby achieving a faster echo acquisition rate compared to a transmit beam spacing based upon round-trip transmit-receive beam sampling requirements; storing coherent receive echo data, from two or more transmit beams of the spatially distinct transmit beams; combining coherent receive echo data from at least two or more transmit beams to achieve a substantially spatially invariant synthesized transmit focus at each echo location; and combining coherent receive echo data from each transmit firing to achieve dynamic receive focusing at each echo location.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 2, 2011Publication date: April 5, 2012Applicant: Zonare Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: David J. Napolitano, Brian Derek DeBusschere, Glen W. McLaughlin, Larry Y.L. Mo, Ching-Hua Chou, Ting-Lan Ji, Robert W. Steins
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Patent number: 8002705Abstract: In one embodiment, an ultrasound imaging method comprises: providing a probe that includes one or more transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves; generating a sequence of spatially distinct transmit beams which differ in one or more of origin and angle; determining a transmit beam spacing substantially based upon a combination of actual and desired transmit beam characteristics, thereby achieving a faster echo acquisition rate compared to a transmit beam spacing based upon round-trip transmit-receive beam sampling requirements; storing coherent receive echo data, from two or more transmit beams of the spatially distinct transmit beams; combining coherent receive echo data from at least two or more transmit beams to achieve a substantially spatially invariant synthesized transmit focus at each echo location; and combining coherent receive echo data from each transmit firing to achieve dynamic receive focusing at each echo location.Type: GrantFiled: July 24, 2006Date of Patent: August 23, 2011Assignee: Zonaire Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: David J. Napolitano, Brian Derek DeBusschere, Glen W. McLaughlin, Larry Y. L. Mo, Ching-Hua Chou, Ting-Lan Ji, Robert W. Steins
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Publication number: 20100189329Abstract: An ultrasound scanner is equipped with one or more fuzzy control units that can perform adaptive system parameter optimization anywhere in the system. In one embodiment, an ultrasound system comprises a plurality of ultrasound image generating subsystems configured to generate an ultrasound image, the plurality of ultrasound image generating subsystems including a transmitter subsystem, a receiver subsystem, and an image processing subsystem; and a fuzzy logic controller communicatively coupled with at least one of the plurality of ultrasound imaging generating subsystems.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 30, 2009Publication date: July 29, 2010Applicant: Zonare Medical Systems Inc.Inventors: Larry Y.L. Mo, Glen W. McLaughlin, Brian Derek DeBusschere, Ting-Lan Ji, Ching-Hua Chou, David J. Napolitano, Kathy S. Jedrzejewicz, Thomas Jedrzejewicz, Kurt Sandstrom, Feng Yin, Scott Franklin Smith, Wenkang Qi, Robert Stanson
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Patent number: 7627386Abstract: An ultrasound scanner is equipped with one or more fuzzy control units that can perform adaptive system parameter optimization anywhere in the system. In one embodiment, an ultrasound system comprises a plurality of ultrasound image generating subsystems configured to generate an ultrasound image, the plurality of ultrasound image generating subsystems including a transmitter subsystem, a receiver subsystem, and an image processing subsystem; and a fuzzy logic controller communicatively coupled with at least one of the plurality of ultrasound imaging generating subsystems.Type: GrantFiled: October 7, 2004Date of Patent: December 1, 2009Assignee: Zonaire Medical Systems, Inc.Inventors: Larry Y. L. Mo, Glen W. McLaughlin, Brian Derek DeBusschere, Ting-Lan Ji, Ching-Hua Chou, David J. Napolitano, Kathy S. Jedrzejewicz, Thomas Jedrzejewicz, Kurt Sandstrom, Feng Yin, Scott Franklin Smith, Wenkang Qi, Robert Stanson
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Patent number: 7540842Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging system acquires receive beams from spatially distinct transmit beams. The receive beams alternate in type between at least first and second types across the region being imaged. The first and second types of receive beams differ in at least one scan parameter other than transmit and receive line geometry, and can for example differ in transmit phase, transmit or receive aperture, system frequency, transmit focus, complex phase angle, transmit code or transmit gain. Receive beams associated with spatially distinct ones of the transmit beams (including at least one beam of the first type and at least one beam of the second type) are then combined. In this way, many two-pulse techniques, including, for example, phase inversion techniques, synthetic aperture techniques, synthetic frequency techniques, and synthetic focus techniques, can be used while substantially reducing the frame rate penalty normally associated with such techniques.Type: GrantFiled: October 28, 2003Date of Patent: June 2, 2009Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.Inventors: David J. Napolitano, Christopher R. Cole, Gregory L. Holley, John A. Hossack, Charles E. Bradley, Patrick Phillips
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Publication number: 20040087857Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging system acquires receive beams from spatially distinct transmit beams. The receive beams alternate in type between at least first and second types across the region being imaged. The first and second types of receive beams differ in at least one scan parameter other than transmit and receive line geometry, and can for example differ in transmit phase, transmit or receive aperture, system frequency, transmit focus, complex phase angle, transmit code or transmit gain. Receive beams associated with spatially distinct ones of the transmit beams (including at least one beam of the first type and at least one beam of the second type) are then combined. In this way, many two-pulse techniques, including, for example, phase inversion techniques, synthetic aperture techniques, synthetic frequency techniques, and synthetic focus techniques, can be used while substantially reducing the frame rate penalty normally associated with such techniques.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 28, 2003Publication date: May 6, 2004Applicant: Acuson CorporationInventors: David J. Napolitano, Christopher R. Cole, Gregory L. Holley, John A. Hossack, Charles E. Bradley, Patrick Phillips
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Patent number: 6679846Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging system acquires receive beams from spatially distinct transmit beams. The receive beams alternate in type between at least first and second types across the region being imaged. The first and second types of receive beams differ in at least one scan parameter other than transmit and receive line geometry, and can for example differ in transmit phase, transmit or receive aperture, system frequency, transmit focus, complex phase angle, transmit code or transmit gain. Receive beams associated with spatially distinct ones of the transmit beams (including at least one beam of the first type and at least one beam of the second type) are then combined. In this way, many two-pulse techniques, including, for example, phase inversion techniques, synthetic aperture techniques, synthetic frequency techniques, and synthetic focus techniques, can be used while substantially reducing the frame rate penalty normally associated with such techniques.Type: GrantFiled: February 21, 2002Date of Patent: January 20, 2004Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: David J. Napolitano, Christopher R. Cole, Gregory L. Holley, John A. Hossack, Charles E. Bradley, Patrick Phillips
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Patent number: 6551246Abstract: A pulse echo beamforming system generates high spatial bandwidth ultrasound images using only a few transmit/receive events per frame. Each transmit/receive event consists of firing an unfocused or weakly focused wave and receiving and storing the echo on every receive channel. Each set of stored echoes is delayed and apodized to form component beams for each desired image point in the region insonified by that particular wave. The final images are synthesized by adding two or more of the component beams for each image point.Type: GrantFiled: April 19, 2001Date of Patent: April 22, 2003Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: Kutay F. Ustuner, Charles E. Bradley, Lewis J. Thomas, Ching-Hua Chou, David J. Napolitano, Patrick J. Phillips
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Patent number: 6517489Abstract: A medical ultrasonic imaging method uses transmitted plane waves, or transmitted wavefronts that are substantially planar, to improve contrast agent imaging by generating peak pressures that are more uniform over depth. Depending on the type of contrast agent, the returned frequencies of interest, and the desired strength of the non-linear response, multiple wavefronts can be generated at substantially the same time to increase peak pressures.Type: GrantFiled: April 19, 2001Date of Patent: February 11, 2003Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: Patrick J. Phillips, Kutay F. Ustuner, Charles E. Bradley, Lewis J. Thomas, David J. Napolitano
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Publication number: 20030018253Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging system acquires receive beams from spatially distinct transmit beams. The receive beams alternate in type between at least first and second types across the region being imaged. The first and second types of receive beams differ in at least one scan parameter other than transmit and receive line geometry, and can for example differ in transmit phase, transmit or receive aperture, system frequency, transmit focus, complex phase angle, transmit code or transmit gain. Receive beams associated with spatially distinct ones of the transmit beams (including at least one beam of the first type and at least one beam of the second type) are then combined. In this way, many two-pulse techniques, including, for example, phase inversion techniques, synthetic aperture techniques, synthetic frequency techniques, and synthetic focus techniques, can be used while substantially reducing the frame rate penalty normally associated with such techniques.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 21, 2002Publication date: January 23, 2003Applicant: Acuson CorporationInventors: David J. Napolitano, Christopher R. Cole, Gregory L. Holley, John A. Hossack, Charles E. Bradley, Patrick Phillips
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Patent number: 6436046Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging system acquires receive beams from spatially distinct transmit beams. The receive beams alternate in type between at least first and second types across the region being imaged. The first and second types of receive beams differ in at least one scan parameter other than transmit and receive line geometry, and can for example differ in transmit phase, transmit or receive aperture, system frequency, transmit focus, complex phase angle, transmit code or transmit gain. Receive beams associated with spatially distinct ones of the transmit beams (including at least one beam of the first type and at least one beam of the second type) are then combined. In this way, many two-pulse techniques, including, for example, phase inversion techniques, synthetic aperture techniques, synthetic frequency techniques, and synthetic focus techniques, can be used while substantially reducing the frame rate penalty normally associated with such techniques.Type: GrantFiled: October 27, 2000Date of Patent: August 20, 2002Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: David J. Napolitano, Christopher R. Cole, Gregory L. Holley, John A. Hossack, Charles E. Bradley, Patrick Phillips
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Patent number: 6360027Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging system includes an ultrasonic transducer having an image data array and a tracking array at each end of the image data array. The tracking arrays are oriented transversely to the image data array. Images from the image data array are used to reconstruct a three-dimensional representation of the target. The relative movement between respective frames of the image data is automatically estimated by a motion estimator, based on frames of data from the tracking arrays. As the transducer is rotated about the azimuthal axis of the image data array, features of the target remain within the image planes of the tracking arrays. Movements of these features in the image planes of the tracking arrays are used to estimate motion as required for the three-dimensional reconstruction. Similar techniques estimate motion within the plane of an image to create an extended field of view.Type: GrantFiled: September 26, 2000Date of Patent: March 19, 2002Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: John A. Hossack, John W. Sliwa, Jr., Samuel H. Maslak, Edward A. Gardner, Gregory L. Holley, David J. Napolitano
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Patent number: 6241674Abstract: A medical ultrasonic diagnostic imaging method and apparatus uses a phased array transducer probe to transmit a fundamental coded ultrasonic pulse into a tissue. This pulse has a time-bandwidth product that is greater than 1 but less than 100. A receiver is coupled to the probe to receive an Nth harmonic echo signal from the tissue, and a compression filter compresses the harmonic echo signal with a compression function having a phase that varies about N times as fast as the fundamental coded ultrasonic pulse. In this way, the SNR of the resulting image is increased. The disclosed method and apparatus are particularly well adapted for use with tissue harmonic imaging, because of the typically low SNR characteristic of such imaging. Other aspects are well-suited for imaging with non-linear contrast agents.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 1999Date of Patent: June 5, 2001Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: Patrick Phillips, Gregory L. Holley, David J. Napolitano, Kutay F. Ustuner
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Patent number: 6222948Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging system includes an ultrasonic transducer having an image data array and a tracking array at each end of the image data array. The tracking arrays are oriented transversely to the image data array. Images from the image data array are used to reconstruct a three-dimensional representation of the target. The relative movement between respective frames of the image data is automatically estimated by a motion estimator, based on frames of data from the tracking arrays. As the transducer is rotated about the azimuthal axis of the image data array, features of the target remain within the image planes of the tracking arrays. Movements of these features in the image planes of the tracking arrays are used to estimate motion as required for the three-dimensional reconstruction. Similar techniques estimate motion within the plane of an image to create an extended field of view.Type: GrantFiled: February 11, 2000Date of Patent: April 24, 2001Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: John A. Hossack, John W. Sliwa, Jr., Samuel H. Maslak, Edward A. Gardner, Gregory L. Holley, David J. Napolitano
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Patent number: 6201900Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging system includes an ultrasonic transducer having an image data array and a tracking array at each end of the image data array. The tracking arrays are oriented transversely to the image data array. Images from the image data array are used to reconstruct a three-dimensional representation of the target. The relative movement between respective frames of the image data is automatically estimated by a motion estimator, based on frames of data from the tracking arrays. As the transducer is rotated about the azimuthal axis of the image data array, features of the target remain within the image planes of the tracking arrays. Movements of these features in the image planes of the tracking arrays are used to estimate motion as required for the three-dimensional reconstruction. Similar techniques estimate motion within the plane of an image to create an extended field of view.Type: GrantFiled: June 28, 1999Date of Patent: March 13, 2001Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: John A. Hossack, John W. Sliwa, Jr., Samuel H. Maslak, Edward A. Gardner, Gregory L. Holley, David J. Napolitano
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Patent number: 6193663Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging system acquires receive beams from spatially distinct transmit beams. The receive beams alternate in type between at least first and second types across the region being imaged. The first and second types of receive beams differ in at least one scan parameter other than transmit and receive line geometry, and can for example differ in transmit phase, transmit or receive aperture, system frequency, transmit focus, complex phase angle, transmit code or transmit gain. Receive beams associated with spatially distinct ones of the transmit beams (including at least one beam of the first type and at least one beam of the second type) are then combined. In this way, many two-pulse techniques, including, for example, phase inversion techniques, synthetic aperture techniques, synthetic frequency techniques, and synthetic focus techniques, can be used while substantially reducing the frame rate penalty normally associated with such techniques.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 1999Date of Patent: February 27, 2001Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: David J. Napolitano, Christopher R. Cole, Gregory L. Holley
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Patent number: 6168565Abstract: A medical diagnostic ultrasound method and system for simultaneous phase correction of signal components at two frequency bands is provided. Simultaneous phase correction is performed, in part, during transmission of ultrasound waveforms and, in part, during reception of returning echoes. The phase between any two transmitted beams is adjusted by a first phase value. The phase between any two received beams is adjusted by a second phase value. Selection of the first and second phase values allows for simultaneous correction of signal components at two different frequency bands. For example, fundamental and second harmonic frequency bands are corrected for coherent imaging or processing. The phase corrections may account for different transmit and receive processes, such as fixed focus transmission and dynamic receive focusing.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 1999Date of Patent: January 2, 2001Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventor: David J. Napolitano
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Patent number: 6132375Abstract: Coherent data representing a plurality of two-dimensional regions that overlap as a function of the elevational beam width are obtained. The coherent data, such as in-phase and quadrature data, is filtered along an elevational dimension. The filtering adjusts the phase of the coherent data in the elevation dimension. Filtering effectively generates a Fourier transform of the coherent data along the elevational dimension, and adjusts the phase by multiplying by a spectral focusing function. Multiplying by the spectral focusing function results in a constant phase. The coherent data is then inversed Fourier transformed. This filtering narrows the elevation beam width associated with portions of each two-dimensional set of data. The filter varies as a function of the axial position of the coherent data.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 1999Date of Patent: October 17, 2000Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventor: David J. Napolitano
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Patent number: 6132376Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging system includes an ultrasonic transducer having an image data array and a tracking array at each end of the image data array. The tracking arrays are oriented transversely to the image data array. Images from the image data array are used to reconstruct a three-dimensional representation of the target. The relative movement between respective frames of the image data is automatically estimated by a motion estimator, based on frames of data from the tracking arrays. As the transducer is rotated about the azimuthal axis of the image data array, features of the target remain within the image planes of the tracking arrays. Movements of these features in the image planes of the tracking arrays are used to estimate motion as required for the three-dimensional reconstruction. Similar techniques estimate motion within the plane of an image to create an extended field of view.Type: GrantFiled: July 20, 1999Date of Patent: October 17, 2000Assignee: Acuson CorporationInventors: John A. Hossack, John W. Sliwa, Jr., Samuel H. Maslak, Edward A. Gardner, Gregory L. Holley, David J. Napolitano