Two-dimensional ultrasonic transducer array having transducer elements in a non-rectangular or hexagonal grid for medical diagnostic ultrasonic imaging and ultrasound imaging system using same

A medical diagnostic ultrasonic transducer array comprising:

• a substrate having a plurality of transducer elements disposed in a non-rectangular grid on the substrate;
• a plurality of interconnections routed to the plurality of transducer elements;
• and
• a plurality of interconnected substrates that form multiple layers of transducers.

A medical diagnostic ultrasound imaging system comprising:

• a transducer array including a substrate having a plurality of transducer elements disposed in a non-rectangular grid on the substrate, and a plurality of interconnections routed to the plurality of transducer elements;
• a transmit beamformer coupled to the transducer array;
• imager electronics electrically coupled to the plurality of plurality of interconnections of the transducer array for generating an ultrasound image;
• and
• a display coupled to the imager electronics for displaying an ultrasound image.