Ultrasound Scanning Capsule Endoscope (USCE)

• US 20120101386A1
• Filed: 03/28/2011
• Published: 04/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innurvation Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Innurvation Incorporated
• Inventors: Arneson, Michael, Bandy, William, Shanks, Wayne
• Granted Patent: US 8,647,259 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/447
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/12 in body cavities or body tracts, e.g. by using catheters catheters per se A61M25/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4472 Wireless probes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4488 the transducer being a phased array
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8915 using a transducer array
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8993 Three dimensional imaging systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/003 Transmission of data between radar, sonar or lidar systems and remote stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52017 particularly adapted to short-range imaging G01S7/53 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52065 Compound scan display, e.g. panoramic imaging

Abstract

The present invention relates to ultrasound imaging on a capsule endoscope platform. It relates to the generation of a focused ultrasound acoustic signal and the receiving of echo signals from the wall of a body lumen with an array of acoustic transducers wrapped around the circumference of the capsule. It relates to sending the generated echo image signals to receiver devices attached or worn on the body. It relates to the generation of 360° overlapping sidewall ultrasound scans of a body lumen, and image processing techniques to assemble these scans into a high resolution continuous ultrasound image. Finally, it relates to the manufacture and assembly of such an ultrasound scanning capsule endoscope (USCE). The concept is extendable to conventional endoscopes and catheters.

Claims

1. An ultrasound scanning capsule endoscope, comprising:

a housing configured to have a size that is ingestible;

an ultrasonic transducer array wrapped around a circumference of the housing, each transducer in the ultrasonic transducer array configured to transmit an ultrasonic signal and receive an echo signal;

a timing circuit configured to induce transmission of a respective ultrasonic signal by each transducer according to a phased array sequence, wherein the phased array sequence configures the ultrasonic transducer array into consecutive phased arrays around the circumference of the housing for sequentially imaging at least one or more voxels at a time around the circumference.