Medical ultrasound 2-D transducer array architecture: spot of arago

An ultrasound device having an array of elements, the array comprising:

• a first area including a first plurality of elements of a first type having a first functionality and which do not transmit ultrasound signals;
• a second area including a second plurality of elements of a second type having a second functionality;
• and
• a third area including a third plurality of elements of a third type having a third functionality,
• wherein the array has an oblong ellipse shape, and
• wherein the first area is positioned inside the second area and the third area and the first area includes the center of the array.

A method of processing an ultrasound signal, the method comprising:

• receiving the ultrasound signal from an array, the signal having multiple channels, wherein the array includes a first area including a first plurality of elements of a first type having a first functionality, a second area including a second plurality of elements of a second type having a second functionality, and a third area including a third plurality of elements of a third type having a third functionality different from the first functionality, wherein the second area further includes fourth area having a number of elements that are switchable between the second and third types of functionality;
• determining a weight for each channel based on an apodization profile, wherein the apodization profile is one of ring-centered and edge-centered;
• multiplying the received ultrasound signal by the determined weight for each channel;
• and
• displaying the multiplied ultrasound signal as an ultrasound image.