Method of generating ultrasound and ultrasound generator
AssigneesImec Vzw, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
InventorsJonas Pelgrims, Kris Myny, Wim Dehaene
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Abstract
A method of generating ultrasound by driving an array of ultrasonic transducers comprises a charge transfer procedure. The charge transfer procedure comprises switching a terminal of a first ultrasonic transducer of the array, at a first electric potential, to a charge distribution bus; switching a terminal of a second ultrasonic transducer of the array, at a second electric potential different than the first potential, to the charge distribution bus; and allowing charge to flow between the first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer through the charge distribution bus.
Claims20
A method of generating ultrasound by driving an array of ultrasonic transducers, the method comprising a charge transfer procedure comprising:
- switching, by way of a first switch, a terminal of a first ultrasonic transducer of the array, at a first electric potential, to a charge distribution bus, thereby charging the first ultrasonic transducer through the charge distribution bus;
- switching, by way of a second switch, a terminal of a second ultrasonic transducer of the array, at a second electric potential different than the first electric potential, to the charge distribution bus, thereby discharging the second ultrasonic transducer through the charge distribution bus;
- and
- allowing charge to flow between the first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer through the charge distribution bus.
An ultrasound generator comprising:
- an array comprising a plurality of ultrasonic transducers;
- and
- at least one charge distribution bus,
- wherein at least a subset of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers is switchably connectable, by way of a plurality of individual switches, to the at least one charge distribution bus, and wherein the plurality of individual switches includes at least a first switch and a second switch, wherein the first switch is connectable to the charge distribution bus to charge a first ultrasonic transducer of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers, wherein the second switch is connectable to the charge distribution bus to discharge a second ultrasonic transducer of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.