OPERATING A TWO-DIMENSIONAL ARRAY OF ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCERS

• US 20170322305A1
• Filed: 09/15/2016
• Published: 11/09/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Invensense Incorporated (TDK Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Invensense Incorporated (TDK Corporation)
• Inventors: APTE, Nikhil, TSAI, Julius Ming-Lin, DANEMAN, Michael Julian, BERGER, Renata Melamud
• Granted Patent: US 10,670,716 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B06B 1/0622 on one surface
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/06 Systems determining the position data of a target
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/346 using phase variation

Abstract

In a method of operating a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, a plurality of array positions comprising pluralities of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers is defined, the plurality of array positions each comprising a portion of ultrasonic transducers of the two dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers. For each array position of the plurality of array positions, a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position are activated. The activation includes transmitting ultrasonic signals from a first group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers, the first group of ultrasonic transducers for forming a focused ultrasonic beam. The activation also includes receiving reflected ultrasonic signals at a second group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers.

Claims

1. A method of operating a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, the method comprising:

defining a plurality of array positions comprising pluralities of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, the plurality of array positions each comprising a portion of ultrasonic transducers of the two dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers;

for each array position of the plurality of array positions, activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position, the activating comprising;

transmitting ultrasonic signals from a first group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers, the first group of ultrasonic transducers for forming a focused ultrasonic beam; and

receiving reflected ultrasonic signals at a second group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic transducers are Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducer (PMUT) devices.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a phase delay pattern of the first group of ultrasonic transducers is symmetric about two axes of the first group of ultrasonic transducers, wherein the two axes are orthogonal to each other.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a phase delay pattern of the first group of ultrasonic transducers is asymmetric about two axes of the first group of ultrasonic transducers, wherein the two axes are orthogonal to each other.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a phase delay pattern of the first group of ultrasonic transducers is symmetric about an axis of the first group of ultrasonic transducers.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the axis is orthogonal to an edge of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the phase delay pattern of the first group of ultrasonic transducers is symmetric about the axis of the first group of ultrasonic transducers for an array position adjacent an edge of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein a phase delay pattern of the first group of ultrasonic transducers comprises at least three distinct timing phases.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of array positions comprise a same amount of ultrasonic transducers having a uniform arrangement.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position is performed concurrently for at least two non-overlapping array positions of the plurality of array positions.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position is performed consecutively for at least two overlapping array positions of the plurality of array positions offset by one row of ultrasonic transducers.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position is performed consecutively for at least two overlapping array positions of the plurality of array positions offset by one column of ultrasonic transducers.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

defining an activation sequence of the plurality of array positions; and

performing the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position according to the activation sequence.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one array position of the plurality of array positions comprises ultrasonic transducers that are not activated.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the first group of ultrasonic transducers and the second group of ultrasonic transducers comprise different ultrasonic transducers of each respective array position of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one ultrasonic transducer is comprised within both the first group of ultrasonic transducers and the second group of ultrasonic transducers.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the activating comprises:

transmitting second ultrasonic signals from the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers, wherein a phase delay pattern of the second ultrasonic signals is different than a phase delay pattern of the ultrasonic signals such that the second ultrasonic signals forms the focused beam over a different location of the array position than the ultrasonic signals; and

receiving second reflected ultrasonic signals at the second group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein the reflected ultrasonic signals are for sensing a first pixel of an image and the second reflected ultrasonic signals are for sensing a second pixel of the image.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting ultrasonic signals from a first group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers comprises:

provided an array position of the plurality of array positions extends over an edge of the two-dimensional array, truncating ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers from the array position that extend over the edge of the two-dimensional array.

19. A method of operating a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, the method comprising:

defining a plurality of array positions comprising pluralities of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers;

for a first array position of the plurality of array positions, activating a first plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the first array position, the activating the first plurality of ultrasonic transducers comprising;

transmitting ultrasonic signals from a first group of ultrasonic transducers of the first plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the first plurality of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the first plurality of ultrasonic transducers, the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the first plurality of ultrasonic transducers for forming a focused ultrasonic beam; and

receiving reflected ultrasonic signals at a second group of ultrasonic transducers of the first plurality of ultrasonic transducers; and

for a second array position of the plurality of array positions, activating a second plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the second array position, the activating the second plurality of ultrasonic transducers comprising;

transmitting ultrasonic signals from a first group of ultrasonic transducers of the second plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the second plurality of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the second plurality of ultrasonic transducers, the first group of ultrasonic transducers of the second plurality of ultrasonic transducers for forming a focused ultrasonic beam; and

receiving reflected ultrasonic signals at a second group of ultrasonic transducers of the second plurality of ultrasonic transducers.

20. A method of operating a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, the method comprising:

for an array position of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, the array position comprising a plurality of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the array position, the activating comprising;

transmitting first ultrasonic signals from a first group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the first group of ultrasonic transducers according to a first phase delay pattern, the first group of ultrasonic transducers for forming a focused ultrasonic beam, wherein the first ultrasonic signals form the focused ultrasonic beam over a first location of the array position;

receiving first reflected ultrasonic signals at a second group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, the first reflected ultrasonic signals for sensing a first pixel of an image;

transmitting second ultrasonic signals from a third group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein at least some ultrasonic transducers of the third group of ultrasonic transducers are phase delayed with respect to other ultrasonic transducers of the third group of ultrasonic transducers according to a second phase delay pattern different than the first phase delay pattern, wherein the second ultrasonic signals form the focused ultrasonic beam over a second location of the array position; and

receiving second reflected ultrasonic signals at a fourth group of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, the second reflected ultrasonic signals for sensing a second pixel of the image.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the ultrasonic transducers are Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducer (PMUT) devices.

22. The method of claim 20, the first phase delay pattern is symmetric about the first location.

23. The method of claim 20, the second phase delay pattern is symmetric about the second location.

24. The method of claim 20, the first phase delay pattern is asymmetric about the first location.

25. The method of claim 20, the second phase delay pattern is asymmetric about the second location.

26. The method of claim 20, wherein the first phase delay pattern comprises at least three distinct timing phases.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein the second phase delay pattern comprises at least three distinct timing phases.

28. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

defining a plurality of array positions comprising pluralities of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers; and

for each array position of the plurality of array positions, performing the activating the plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with each respective array position.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position is performed concurrently for at least two non-overlapping array positions of the plurality of array positions.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position is performed consecutively for at least two overlapping array positions of the plurality of array positions offset by one row of ultrasonic transducers.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position is performed consecutively for at least two overlapping array positions of the plurality of array positions offset by one column of ultrasonic transducers.

32. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

defining an activation sequence of the plurality of array positions; and

performing the activating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the respective array position according to the activation sequence.

33. The method of claim 28, wherein at least one array position of the plurality of array positions comprises ultrasonic transducers that are not activated.

34. The method of claim 28, wherein the first group of ultrasonic transducers and the second group of ultrasonic transducers comprise different ultrasonic transducers of each respective array position of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers.

35. The method of claim 28, wherein at least one ultrasonic transducer is comprised within both the first group of ultrasonic transducers and the second group of ultrasonic transducers.