An ultrasound system is disclosed. The ultrasound system includes an ultrasound device. The ultrasound device includes a housing, a control panel coupled to the housing, and a receiver assembly coupled to the housing, wherein the receiver assembly includes a first contact surface. The ultrasound system further includes a transducer assembly having an ultrasound probe and a cartridge, wherein the cartridge includes a second contact surface. The cartridge is configured to be removably received in a slot of the receiver assembly such that the cartridge is movable between a removed position, in which the transducer assembly is not connected to the ultrasound device, and an engaged position, in which the cartridge is positioned in the slot and the first contact surface is electrically coupled to the second contact surface.

The power supply in ultrasound imaging includes a switched capacitance. The capacitance is switched on to provide power during generation of pushing pulses for elasticity imaging and is switched off during other modes of imaging.

A photoacoustic imaging device is suitable for performing photoacoustic imaging on an object to be tested and includes a light emitting device and a light-transmissible ultrasonic transducer. The light emitting device emits a beam along an optical axis. The light-transmissible ultrasonic transducer is disposed on the light emitting device at the optical axis and includes a transparent substrate and a plurality of ultrasonic transducer units. The plurality of ultrasonic transducer units is disposed on the transparent substrate and allows the beam to pass therethrough and be incident to the object to be tested along the optical axis, for coaxially receiving an ultrasound transmitted from the object to be tested along the optical axis after the beam is incident into the object to be tested.

An ultrasound imaging system is disclosed, including: an ultrasound probe including transducers, a digital acquisition board including: electronic circuits adapted to control the transducers to emit ultrasound waves and to convert signals sensed by transducers into digital data, and a real-time sequencer adapted to control the electronic circuits to drive the emission and reception of ultrasound signals, based on working parameters and sequence parameters, and a computer connected to the digital acquisition board and including a computer's memory, the parameters being stored in the computer's memory, the digital acquisition board further includes a DMA controller adapted to access the computer's memory in reading and writing by implementation of DMA protocols, and the sequencer is adapted to send requests to the DMA controller to recover the parameters from the computer's memory in real time.

The embodiments of the invention provide a smart seat and a control method for the same, which smart seat includes a seat body, a vital sign detector and a controller. The seat body includes a backrest, a seating surface and a backrest driver for driving the backrest to make an open and close movement relative to the seating surface. The vital sign detector is used for detecting a vital sign of a user to obtain vital sign data. The controller is electrically connected with the backrest driver and the vital sign detector, respectively, determines that the user is in the sleeping state or the waking state according to the vital sign data of the vital sign detector, and controls the backrest driver to drive the open and close movement of the backrest relative to the seating surface according to the state of the user.

The present invention relates to a probe and a system for optoacoustic imaging of an object as well as a method for controlling such a probe. An irradiation unit of the probe is configured to emit electromagnetic radiation and to irradiate the object with the electromagnetic radiation, and a detection unit of the probe is configured to detect primary acoustic waves emitted by the object in response to irradiating the object with the electromagnetic radiation. The probe further comprises a couplant compartment enclosing an acoustic coupling medium between the detection unit and the irradiation unit, on the one hand, and the object, on the other hand, the couplant compartment comprising a shielding element arranged between the object and the detection unit and being configured to at least partially transmit acoustic waves and to at least partially reflect and/or absorb electromagnetic radiation, the shielding element separating the couplant compartment into a first sub-compartment and a second sub-compartment such that electromagnetic radiation emitted by the irradiation unit can pass the first sub-compartment to impinge on the object but is at least partially hindered by the shielding element to enter the second sub-compartment, and primary acoustic waves emitted by the object can pass the shielding element and the second sub-compartment to impinge on the detection unit.

Ultrasound devices and guidance systems for ultrasound devices for subdermal devices (e.g., needles) used in conjunction with the ultrasound devices are described. The guidance systems can include features for easy release of a device from the system following targeting to a subdermal site. A guidance system can be ambidextrous such that a needle can be released by use of either the left or right hand and by use of either a thumb or a finger of an operator. Embodiments that include guidance tracks and slidable guidance cartridges that grasp the hub of a subdermal device are also described.

A system and method for noncontact ultrasound imagery capable of generating images in a manner that is safer for eyes and skin is provided. A photoacoustic excitation source may be employed to direct light signals with wavelengths of 1400-1600 nanometers into the patient to generate acoustic disturbances that induce propagating photoacoustic waves. The acoustic disturbances may be translated in defined directions to cause coherent summation of the propagating photoacoustic waves and, thereby, generate a resultant acoustic and/or elastic wave to probe structures within the patient. Vibrations created by the scatter of the resultant wave are detected at the surface of the patient and ultrasound images of the structures within the patient may be generated. Detection of the vibrations may be performed using a laser vibrometer. The excitation and detection systems may be used separately or in combination. Ultrasound images can be generated without physically contacting the patient.

An array of ultrasonic transducers can be controlled to produce a steerable beam. Beam steering can be skewed by buffer delays in the distribution of a clock signal. The skew can be at least approximately linearized by distributing the clock signal in a diagonal fashion across an array of buffers corresponding to ultrasonic transducer controllers. Potential error in beam steering that can arise from clock skew can be corrected based on the linear tilt.

An ultrasound endoscope includes: an ultrasound transducer including a piezoelectric element that includes a plurality of grooves with a groove filling material filled in the plurality of grooves, the groove filling material including the following (1) to (3): (1) an epoxy resin; (2) at least one filler selected from the group consisting of diamond, aluminum oxide, silicon oxide, silicon carbide, boron carbide, iron oxide (III), chromium oxide (III), and cubic boron nitride; and (3) an aliphatic diol diglycidyl ether.