Systems and methods for testing and calibrating a focused ultrasound transducer array
First Claim
1. A method for testing a focused ultrasound transducer, comprising:
- locating an acoustic reflector in a position to receive an ultrasonic signal transmitted by the transducer;
transmitting an emitted ultrasonic signal from the transducer towards the acoustic reflector;
receiving a reflected ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector;
evaluating the transducer performance based upon the received reflected ultrasonic signal; and
using an estimation algorithm to estimate any deviation in alignment between the acoustic reflector and transducer;
wherein the step of evaluating the transducer performance comprises adjusting the transducer performance evaluation based upon the estimated deviation to correct for any misalignment between the acoustic reflector and the transducer.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods for testing the performance of a focused ultrasound transducer array include transmitting ultrasonic energy from the transducer array towards an acoustic reflector, such as a planar air mirror, and receiving ultrasonic energy reflected off of the acoustic reflector using a sensing element. A characteristic of the reflected ultrasonic energy, such as amplitude and phase, is measured by processing circuitry, for example, by comparing the characteristic of the received ultrasonic energy to a corresponding characteristic of the transmitted ultrasonic energy to obtain an actual gain and phase shift for the received ultrasonic energy. A controller compares the actual gain and phase shift of the received ultrasonic energy to an expected gain and phase shift of the received ultrasonic energy. This information is used to calibrate the transducer array and/or to declare a system failure if the comparison indicates an error.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method for testing a focused ultrasound transducer, comprising:
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locating an acoustic reflector in a position to receive an ultrasonic signal transmitted by the transducer;
transmitting an emitted ultrasonic signal from the transducer towards the acoustic reflector;
receiving a reflected ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector;
evaluating the transducer performance based upon the received reflected ultrasonic signal; and
using an estimation algorithm to estimate any deviation in alignment between the acoustic reflector and transducer;
wherein the step of evaluating the transducer performance comprises adjusting the transducer performance evaluation based upon the estimated deviation to correct for any misalignment between the acoustic reflector and the transducer. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A method for testing a focused ultrasound transducer, comprising:
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locating an acoustic reflector in a position to receive an ultrasonic signal transmitted by the transducer;
transmitting an emitted ultrasonic signal from the transducer towards the acoustic reflector;
receiving a reflected ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector; and
evaluating the transducer performance based upon the received reflected ultrasonic signal;
wherein the transducer has a geometric focal point, and wherein the acoustic reflector comprises a planar reflector located half-way between the transducer and the geometric focal point. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
obtaining a received ultrasonic characteristic from the received ultrasonic signal; and
comparing the received ultrasonic characteristic with a linear superposition of a like ultrasonic characteristic of the one or more emitted ultrasonic signals.
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8. The method of claim 6, wherein the step of evaluating the transducer performance comprises determining a gain and phase shift of the received ultrasonic signal by comparing the amplitude and phase of the received ultrasonic signal with corresponding amplitudes and phases of the one or more emitted ultrasonic signals.
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9. An ultrasound system, comprising:
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a spherical cap transducer array including one or more transducer elements, the transducer elements configured for transmitting an emitted ultrasonic signal;
an acoustic reflector positioned to reflect at least a portion of an emitted ultrasonic signal transmitted by one or more of the transducer elements;
a sensing element located at a center of the spherical cap transducer array to receive a received ultrasonic signal comprising at least a portion of the ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector;
processing circuitry coupled to the sensing element for measuring an actual characteristic of the received ultrasonic signal; and
a controller coupled to the processing circuitry for comparing the actual characteristic of the received ultrasonic signal to an expected characteristic of the received ultrasonic signal;
wherein the acoustic reflector is positioned half-way between the spherical cap transducer array and its geometric focal point.
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10. An ultrasound system, comprising:
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a transducer including one or more transducer elements, the transducer elements configured for transmitting an emitted ultrasonic signal;
a planar acoustic reflector positioned to reflect at least a portion of an emitted ultrasonic signal transmitted by one or more of the transducer elements;
a sensing element positioned to receive a received ultrasonic signal comprising at least a portion of the ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector;
processing circuitry coupled to the sensing element for measuring an actual characteristic of the received ultrasonic signal; and
a controller coupled to the processing circuitry for comparing the actual characteristic of the received ultrasonic signal to an expected characteristic of the received ultrasonic signal, wherein the transducer comprises a plurality of transducer elements and wherein the sensing element is positioned for receiving at least a portion of an ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector from each of the transducer elements. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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14. A method for testing a focused ultrasound transducer, comprising:
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transmitting an ultrasonic signal from a transducer element of a transducer array towards an acoustic reflector;
receiving the ultrasonic signal reflected off of the acoustic reflector from the transducer element at a sensing element that is different than the transducer element; and
evaluating performance of the transducer array based upon the ultrasonic signal received by the sensing element, wherein the transducer array has a geometric focal point, and wherein the acoustic reflector comprises a planar reflector located between the transducer array and the geometric focal point. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification