An active needle assembly for use with an ultrasound imaging system includes a needle having a proximal end and a distal end. The distal end is adapted to be inserted into a patient. The needle assembly also includes a needle transducer mounted to an exterior surface of the needle. Further, the needle transducer has an area that is less than about two (2) square millimeters (mm.sup.2). Moreover, the needle assembly includes an electrical connection for connecting the needle transducer to a power source.

A control method for a vibration-type actuator which prevents the vibration-type actuator from becoming inoperable during operation. To drive the vibration-type actuator when a load for moving a vibrating body and a driven body relatively to each other is relatively high, a first frequency falling within a frequency range including a frequency at which thrust of the vibration-type actuator reaches its peak is set as a starting frequency of AC voltage applied to an electro-mechanical energy conversion element of the vibrating body. To drive the vibration-type actuator when the load is relatively low, a third frequency lower than the first frequency and higher than a second frequency is set as the starting frequency, the second frequency being a frequency at which a moving speed at which the driving body and the driven body move relatively to each other reaches its peak.

The present invention relates to a method for producing an intravascular ultrasonic transducer and a structure for same, the method for producing a ultrasonic transducer producing a single element by: forming a piezoelectric element lapped according to a previously set thickness; depositing conductive material on the lapped surface of the piezoelectric element; forming a matched layer and a rear surface layer by casting the front and rear surfaces of the piezoelectric element to which conductive material has been deposited; lapping according to a previously set thickness; and dicing the bulk material, which is a stack of a matched layer, a piezoelectric element and a rear surface layer, along the stack direction so that the size of the element is less than the critical size for intravascular ultrasound (IVUS).

A piezoelectric device includes a body provided with a first region and a second region lined along a first direction. The first region deformably extends/contracts along the first direction. The second region deformably curves in such a manner that one or the other side in a second direction intersecting the first direction curves outward.

An ultrasound transducer has an array of transducer elements that are electrically coupled to electrical conductors. In one embodiment, the conductors are included in a flex circuit and engage a conductive surface formed on a number of outwardly extending ribs on a frame that holds the ultrasound array. In one embodiment, the flex circuit includes an alignment feature that engages a corresponding registration feature on the frame so that the traces on the flex circuit align with the ribs on the frame.

An ultrasonic sensor includes a piezoelectric body including a transmission region for an ultrasonic wave and a reception region for a reflected wave of the ultrasonic wave, a common electrode in the transmission region and the reception region, a transmission electrode in the transmission region, a reception electrode in the reception region; and a semiconductor element that is electrically connected to the transmission electrode and the reception electrode and switches an electrical path between a conductive state and a non-conductive state. The semiconductor element puts the path into the conductive state after application of the alternating-current voltage is stopped. Thus, a reverberation signal, output from the reception region in accordance with a reverberant vibration of the ultrasonic wave, is fed back to the transmission electrode.

Transducers are provided including a piezoelectric block having first and second opposing surfaces; a first non-piezoelectric layer on the first surface of the piezoelectric block, the first layer including a low density material having a first thickness; and a second non-piezoelectric layer on the second surface of the piezoelectric block, the second layer including a high density material having a second thickness, the second thickness being different from the first thickness and being at least two times the first thickness. Related devices and methods are also provided.

The invention provides a Diagonal Resonance (DR) mode for sound and ultrasound generation and reception. This new driving mode is made possible due to the anisotropic sound velocity in piezoelectric single crystals. This gives rise to a crossed slab active material, which contains the crossed-diagonals of the substantially rectangular shaped active material, exhibiting comparable resonance frequency. Due to reasonably large Piosson's ratios of lead-based relaxor single crystal, the resonance vibration of the active material in crossed face or body diagonal directions induces sufficiently large vibration amplitudes for sound and ultrasound generation via any free surface which could be normal or at an angle to the resonating diagonal directions. Said DR mode typically has lower resonance frequency than conventional longitudinal and transverse width modes but high TVR and can be combined or coupled with said two driving modes to make broadband to extra-broadband sonic and ultrasonic transducers.

Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasound Transducer (pMUT) arrays for ultrasonic imaging, and related apparatuses, systems, and methods are disclosed. In one embodiment, an ultrasonic imaging assembly comprises a substrate and a plurality of array elements arranged on the substrate in an array. Each array element comprises at least one pMUT disposed on the substrate each having a geometry configured to accept a predetermined fundamental mode vibration. The plurality of array elements are configured to transmit and receive at least one ultrasound beam based on the predetermined fundamental mode vibration. By sizing the pMUTs to correspond to a desired fundamental mode vibration, the pMUT array has improved sensitivity, and can be produced relatively cheaply compared to conventional dicing methods.

A vibrator device includes a semiconductor substrate, a vibrator unit, a cover, and an insulating film. The vibrator unit is disposed at a first surface of the semiconductor substrate, and includes a vibrator element, and an excitation electrode disposed at the vibrator element and having a portion facing the semiconductor substrate. The cover is bonded to the first surface in a joint portion surrounding the vibrator unit. The insulating film is disposed at the first surface. The insulating film overlaps the portion of the excitation electrode in plan view, and is absent at the joint portion of the semiconductor substrate and the cover.