Dual frequency ultrasound transducer
AssigneeFujifilm Sonosite, Inc.
InventorsGuofeng Pang, Oleg Ivanytskyy, Hossein Amini, Robert Kolaja
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Abstract
A dual frequency ultrasound transducer includes a high frequency (HF) transducer and a low frequency (LF) transducer that is positioned behind the high frequency transducer. An intermediate layer is positioned between the low frequency transducer and the high frequency transducer to absorb high frequency ultrasound signals. An alignment feature on the low frequency transducer is positioned with respect to a fiducial that is marked at a known position with respect to high frequency transducer elements of the HF transducer to align low frequency transducer elements of the LF transducer with the HF transducer elements.
Claims20
A method of manufacturing a dual frequency transducer comprising:
- providing a high frequency (HF) transducer having a first sheet of piezoelectric material including HF transducer elements, one or more matching layers, and a HF frame;
- securing a surface of the sheet of piezoelectric material to a support frame, the support frame including an epoxy material;
- forming at least one alignment post in the epoxy material;
- marking the at least one alignment post with one or more fiducials;
- positioning, on a first side of the HF transducer elements, an intermediate layer that is configured to absorb HF ultrasound signals, the intermediate layer including at least one slot configured to engage with the at least one alignment post;
- aligning, with the one or more fiducials, a low frequency (LF) transducer including:
- one or more tabs with an alignment feature that aligns the LF transducer with the one or more fiducials;
- a second sheet of piezoelectric material including LF transducer elements;
- and
- one or more matching layers;
- and
- securing the one or more matching layers to the intermediate layer.
A method of manufacturing a dual frequency transducer comprising:
- providing a high frequency (HF) transducer comprising a sheet of piezoelectric material including a number of HF transducer elements;
- providing a backing material that is constructed to absorb HF ultrasound signals and pass low frequency (LF) ultrasound signals;
- providing one or more fiducials marked on a first side of the HF transducer elements at a known position with respect to the HF transducer elements;
- and
- providing an LF transducer including a number of LF transducer elements including one or more alignment tabs that are positioned using the one or more fiducials to align the LF transducer elements with the HF transducer elements.
A method of manufacturing a dual frequency transducer comprising:
- providing a high frequency (HF) transducer including
- a first sheet of piezoelectric material including a number of HF transducer elements,
- one or more matching layers, and
- a support frame on a back side of the piezoelectric material configured to support one or more flex circuits with signal traces that connect to the HF transducer elements;
- providing one or more fiducials marked at known positions with respect to the HF transducer elements;
- providing an intermediate layer that is configured to absorb HF ultrasound signals and positioned on a first side of the HF transducer elements;
- and
- providing a low frequency (LF) transducer including
- a second sheet of piezoelectric material including a number of LF transducer elements,
- one or more matching layers, and
- a flex circuit with signal traces that connect to the LF transducer elements, wherein the LF transducer includes one or more tabs with an alignment feature that aligns the LF transducer with a fiducial.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.