To implement a single-chip ultrasonic imaging solution, on-chip signal processing may be employed in the receive signal path to reduce data bandwidth and a high-speed serial data module may be used to move data for all received channels off-chip as digital data stream. The digitization of received signals on-chip allows advanced digital signal processing to be performed on-chip, and thus permits the full integration of an entire ultrasonic imaging system on a single semiconductor substrate. Various novel waveform generation techniques, transducer configuration and biasing methodologies, etc., are likewise disclosed. HIFU methods may additionally or alternatively be employed as a component of the “ultrasound-on-a-chip” solution disclosed herein.

A sensor installation structure includes: a sensor that has a sensing portion that senses periphery information of a vehicle; an exterior member having an opening portion that exposes the sensing portion, the opening portion being configured so as to allow changes in an angle of the sensing portion; and a cover member that is provided at an outer edge portion of the sensing portion, the cover member covering a gap between the outer edge portion of the sensing portion and a peripheral edge portion of the opening portion such that the gap cannot be seen from an exterior.

A sensor installation structure includes: a sensor that has a sensing portion that senses periphery information of a vehicle; an exterior member having an opening portion that exposes the sensing portion, the opening portion being configured so as to allow changes in an angle of the sensing portion; and a cover member that is provided at an outer edge portion of the sensing portion, the cover member covering a gap between the outer edge portion of the sensing portion and a peripheral edge portion of the opening portion such that the gap cannot be seen from an exterior.

A micromachined ultrasonic transducer (MUT). The MUT includes: a substrate; a membrane suspending from the substrate; a bottom electrode disposed on the membrane; a piezoelectric layer disposed on the bottom electrode and an asymmetric top electrode is disposed on the piezoelectric layer. The areal density distribution of the asymmetric electrode along an axis has a plurality of local maxima, wherein locations of the plurality of local maxima coincide with locations where a plurality of anti-nodal points at a vibrational resonance frequency is located.

A micromachined ultrasonic transducer (MUT). The MUT includes: a substrate; a membrane suspending from the substrate; a bottom electrode disposed on the membrane; a piezoelectric layer disposed on the bottom electrode and an asymmetric top electrode is disposed on the piezoelectric layer. The areal density distribution of the asymmetric electrode along an axis has a plurality of local maxima, wherein locations of the plurality of local maxima coincide with locations where a plurality of anti-nodal points at a vibrational resonance frequency is located.

An array of micromachined ultrasonic transducers (MUTs). The array has first and second rows, the MUTs in the first row being equally spaced by a horizontal pitch in a horizontal direction, the MUTs in the second row being equally spaced by the horizontal pitch in the horizontal direction. The MUTs in the second row are shifted along the horizontal direction by a first horizontal distance relative to the MUTs in the first row and shifted along a vertical direction by a first vertical distance relative to the MUTs in the first row. The first horizontal distance is greater than zero and less than the horizontal pitch. The first vertical distance ranges from one tenth of a horizontal width of a MUT to a half of a vertical height of a MUT.

An array of micromachined ultrasonic transducers (MUTs). The array has first and second rows, the MUTs in the first row being equally spaced by a horizontal pitch in a horizontal direction, the MUTs in the second row being equally spaced by the horizontal pitch in the horizontal direction. The MUTs in the second row are shifted along the horizontal direction by a first horizontal distance relative to the MUTs in the first row and shifted along a vertical direction by a first vertical distance relative to the MUTs in the first row. The first horizontal distance is greater than zero and less than the horizontal pitch. The first vertical distance ranges from one tenth of a horizontal width of a MUT to a half of a vertical height of a MUT.

The invention is based on speed changes of sound/ultrasound pulses and a fixed detecting depth between a transducer and sampling points to collect information of the detecting depth and/or a velocity of motionless and/or moving objects from the sampling points to construct two-dimension or three-dimension images of the sampling points. By taking advantages of a pulse ultrasound and a continuous ultrasound, a method of coded sound pulses can simultaneously collect the information of the detecting depth and the velocity from the sampling points, which improves imaging quality. Calculating a speed of the moving objects by simultaneously detecting time-of-flight (TOF) and TOF shift at same site from two separated piezoelectric (PZT) elements improves testing results with accuracy, simplification and reproducibility. An aliasing can be rectified based on the TOF and the TOF shift.

The invention is based on speed changes of sound/ultrasound pulses and a fixed detecting depth between a transducer and sampling points to collect information of the detecting depth and/or a velocity of motionless and/or moving objects from the sampling points to construct two-dimension or three-dimension images of the sampling points. By taking advantages of a pulse ultrasound and a continuous ultrasound, a method of coded sound pulses can simultaneously collect the information of the detecting depth and the velocity from the sampling points, which improves imaging quality. Calculating a speed of the moving objects by simultaneously detecting time-of-flight (TOF) and TOF shift at same site from two separated piezoelectric (PZT) elements improves testing results with accuracy, simplification and reproducibility. An aliasing can be rectified based on the TOF and the TOF shift.

A method for finding door location in an automated way based on observations of people that are equipped with a device whose position is determined acoustically. By observing positioning transitions across internal structures such as walls, the location of doors can be automatically identified.