Dual frequency band ultrasound transducer arrays
First Claim
1. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and at least a 1St lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves at least in the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
- a transducer structure including different arrays of transducer elements configured for respective HF and the LF1 electro-acoustic transduction, the array for the HF electro-acoustic transduction having HF array elements and the array for the LF1 electro-acoustic transduction having LF1 array elements, andradiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands is common in a same common radiation surface region of the transducer structure, wherein the LF1 array elements within the common radiation surface have larger radiation surfaces with larger distance between neighboring element centers, than do the HF array elements within the common radiation surface, andwherein the radiation surfaces include at least an LF1 transmit surface for LF1 band transmission and an HF transmit surface for HF band transmission, an outer boundary of said LF1 transmit surface extends at least in a region outside an outer boundary of said HF transmit surface.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An acoustic probe transmits/receives acoustic pulses with frequencies both in a high frequency (HF), and a selectable amount of lower frequency (LF1, LF2, . . . , LFn, . . . ) bands. The radiation surfaces of at least two of the multiple frequency bands have a common region. The arrays and elements can be of a general type such as annular arrays, phased or switched arrays, linear arrays with division in both azimuth and elevation direction, like a 1.5D, a 1.75D and a full 2D array, or curved arrays. The element division, array type, and array aperture sizes for the different bands can also be different.
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Citations
51 Claims
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1. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and at least a 1St lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves at least in the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
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a transducer structure including different arrays of transducer elements configured for respective HF and the LF1 electro-acoustic transduction, the array for the HF electro-acoustic transduction having HF array elements and the array for the LF1 electro-acoustic transduction having LF1 array elements, and radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands is common in a same common radiation surface region of the transducer structure, wherein the LF1 array elements within the common radiation surface have larger radiation surfaces with larger distance between neighboring element centers, than do the HF array elements within the common radiation surface, and wherein the radiation surfaces include at least an LF1 transmit surface for LF1 band transmission and an HF transmit surface for HF band transmission, an outer boundary of said LF1 transmit surface extends at least in a region outside an outer boundary of said HF transmit surface. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and at least a 1st lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves in at least the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
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a transducer structure including different arrays of transducer elements configured for respective HF and the LF1 electro-acoustic transduction, the array for the HF electro-acoustic transduction having HF array elements and the array for the LF1 electro-acoustic transduction having LF1 array elements, and radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands is common in a same common radiation surface region of the transducer structure, wherein LF1 the array elements within the common radiation surface have larger radiation surfaces with larger distance between neighboring element centers, than do the HF array elements within the common radiation surface, and wherein the radiation surfaces include at least an LF1 transmit surface for LF1 band transmission and an HF transmit surface for HF band transmission, said LF1 transmit surface being not common with the HF transmit surface in a region around the center of said LF1 transmit surface. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and a at least a 1st lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves in at least the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
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a transducer structure including radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band including at least an HF transmit surface for HF band transmission and an LF1 transmit surface for LF1 band transmission, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands are common in a same common radiation surface region of the transducer structure, and the transducer structure further including HF array elements and LF1 array elements, at least said LF1 array elements being selectively activable so that a size of the LF1 transmit surface can selectively be varied to be one of a) a outer boundary of the LF1 surface is equal to an outer boundary of the HF transmit surface, b) the outer boundary of the LF1 surface is at least in a region outside the outer boundary of the HF transmit surface, c) there is no active LF1 transmit surface in a central region of said LF1 transmit surface, and d) a combination of a) and c, and e) a combination of b) and c) and wherein the LF1 array elements within the common radiation surface have larger radiation surfaces with a larger distance between neighboring element centers, than do the HF array elements within the common radiation surface.
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21. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and at least a 1st lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves in at least the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
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radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands are common in a same common radiation surface region of the transducer structure, and at least in a region of the common radiation surface region, a stack of layers stacked in a thickness direction substantially normal to the common radiation surface region, said stack including separate HF and LF1 piezoelectric layers configured for respective HF and LF1 electro-acoustic transduction, wherein said HF piezoelectric layer is disposed closer to the common radiation surface region than is said LF1 piezoelectric layer, and an acoustic isolation section composed of at least two acoustic layers stacked in the thickness direction and disposed between said HF and LF1 piezoelectric layers. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and a at least a 1st lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves in at least the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
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radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands are common in a same common radiation surface region of the front face, and at least in a region of the common radiation surface region, a stack of layers stacked in a thickness direction substantially normal to the common radiation surface region, wherein said stack includes a piezoelectric layer configured for one of HF electro acoustic transduction and LF1 electro acoustic transduction, and a substrate layer with cmut/pmut based transduction membranes on a front face configured for the other of HF electro acoustic transduction and LF1 electro acoustic transduction, wherein the stack of layers includes HF array elements and LF1 array elements respectively in the region of the radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, the LF1 array elements within the common radiation surface region having larger radiation surfaces with larger distance between neighboring element centers, than do the HF array elements within the common radiation surface region, and wherein said substrate layer based on cmut/pmut transduction membranes is placed to the front of said piezoelectric layer. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. An acoustic transducer array probe for transmission from a front face of said probe of acoustic waves in a high frequency (HF) band and at least a 1st lower frequency (LF1) band and reception of acoustic waves in at least the HF band, the acoustic transducer array probe comprising:
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radiation surfaces for the HF band and the LF1 band, wherein at least a portion of said radiation surfaces for the HF and LF1 bands are common in a same common radiation surface region, and a substrate wherein at least in a region of the common radiation surface region, separate cmut/pmut based HF and LF1 transduction membranes are arranged on said substrate and configured for respective HF and LF1 electro acoustic transductions, and wherein said HF and LF1 transduction membranes form HF array elements and LF1 array elements within the common radiation surface region, the LF1 array elements within the common radiation surface region having larger radiation surfaces with larger distance between neighboring element centers, than do the HF array elements within the common radiation surface region. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51)
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Specification