System and method for sensing and locating disturbances in an energy path of a focused ultrasound system
First Claim
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1. A method for sensing a disturbance in a transmission path of a converging ultrasound energy beam transmitted by a transducer in a focused ultrasound system, the method comprising:
- transmitting a burst of ultrasound energy from the transducer, along the transmission path, to a focal zone;
detecting whether a reflected portion of the ultrasound energy burst is received at the transducer within a certain time period following transmission of the burst, wherein receipt within the time period indicates the reflected portion was reflected by a disturbance located in the transmission path proximal of the focal zone; and
determining the location of the disturbance based, at least in part, on a delay time from the transmission of the ultrasound energy burst to the reception of the reflected portions of the ultrasound energy bursts from the proximally located disturbance.
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Abstract
A method for sensing a disturbance in a transmission path of a converging ultrasound energy beam transmitted by a transducer in a focussed ultrasound system comprises transmitting a burst of ultrasound energy from the transducer, detecting whether a reflected portion of the ultrasound energy burst is received at the transducer within a certain time period following transmission of the burst, and, if so, analyzing the received reflected portion to determine a characteristic of the disturbance.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. A method for sensing a disturbance in a transmission path of a converging ultrasound energy beam transmitted by a transducer in a focused ultrasound system, the method comprising:
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transmitting a burst of ultrasound energy from the transducer, along the transmission path, to a focal zone; detecting whether a reflected portion of the ultrasound energy burst is received at the transducer within a certain time period following transmission of the burst, wherein receipt within the time period indicates the reflected portion was reflected by a disturbance located in the transmission path proximal of the focal zone; and determining the location of the disturbance based, at least in part, on a delay time from the transmission of the ultrasound energy burst to the reception of the reflected portions of the ultrasound energy bursts from the proximally located disturbance. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A focused ultrasound system comprising:
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a transducer configured to transmit a burst of ultrasound energy in a converging transmission path to a focal zone, and to received reflected portions of the ultrasound energy burst, the system configured to analyze reflected portions of an ultrasound energy burst received by the transducer within a certain time period following transmission of the respective burst and to determine the location of a disturbance located in the transmission path proximal of the focal zone based, at least in part on a delay time from the transmission of the ultrasound energy burst to the reception of the reflected portions of the ultrasound enemy burst from the disturbance. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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Specification