An operation method of an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus includes executing one or more imaging series of steps with an ultrasound transducer; and applying a polarization processing to the ultrasound transducer one or more of before, after, and interleaved between the one or more imaging series of steps, where the polarization processing is separate from the one or more imaging series of steps.

An ultrasound circuit comprising a trans-impedance amplifier (TIA) with built-in time gain compensation functionality is described. The TIA is coupled to an ultrasonic transducer to amplify an electrical signal generated by the ultrasonic transducer in response to receiving an ultrasound signal. The TIA is, in some cases, followed by further analog and digital processing circuitry.

This vibration actuator comprises a fixed body including a coil, a movable body including a magnet, and an elastic support part that supports the movable body so as to be freely moveable with respect to the fixed body, wherein the coil to which power is supplied and the magnet cooperate to cause the movable body to vibrate with respect to the fixed body. The elastic support part has an outer circumferential part bonded to the fixed body, an annular inner circumferential part disposed inside in the radial direction of the outer circumferential part and bonded to the movable body, and a deforming arm part that couples the outer circumferential part and the inner circumferential part and is elastically deformable. The elastic support part has a sealing part provided in a bonding part between the inner circumferential part and the movable body to seal the bonding part.

A negative impedance circuit includes: a differential circuit stage; a positive feedback path from an output of the differential circuit stage to a first input of the differential circuit stage; and a negative feedback path from the output of the differential circuit stage to a second input of the differential circuit stage. The negative feedback path includes a first transistor, and a unitary gain path from the output of the differential circuit stage to the second input of the differential circuit stage, the unitary gain path coupled to ground via a reference impedance. The positive feedback path includes a second transistor. The first and second transistors are coupled in a current mirror arrangement and have respective control electrodes configured to be driven by the output of the differential circuit stage, where the negative impedance circuit causes a negative impedance at the first input of the differential circuit stage.

A battery-powered, modular surgical device comprising an electrically powered surgical instrument that requires a pre-determined minimum amount of electrical energy to complete a surgical procedure, and a power module assembly that has a battery that powers the surgical instrument and has a current state of electrical charge, and a control circuit that is electrically coupled to the battery and the surgical instrument and has a memory and a microprocessor. The microprocessor determines the current state of electrical charge of the battery, compares the current state of electrical charge to the pre-determined minimum amount of electrical energy, permits the battery to discharge if the current state of electrical charge is above the pre-determined minimum amount of electrical energy, and maintains the battery in a non-discharge state if the current state of electrical charge is below the pre-determined minimum amount of electrical energy.

A control circuit of an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus having an ultrasound endoscope controls a transmission circuit to generate a transmission signal, which includes a diagnostic driving pulse applied to each of a plurality of ultrasound transducers that generate ultrasound waves for acquiring an ultrasound image, in the case of acquiring the ultrasound image, and controls the transmission circuit to generate a polarization driving pulse, which has a polarization driving voltage different from voltage of the diagnostic driving pulse within the same settable voltage range as the diagnostic driving pulse and has a frequency different from a probe frequency band for acquiring the ultrasound image, in order to perform the polarization processing of the plurality of ultrasound transducers in the case of performing the polarization processing.

An ultrasound transducer array is incorporated in a light-weight, conformable, and wearable patch that may be used to deliver, monitor, and control localized transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS). The patch may include full-duplex transmit-receive circuitry that may be used for continuous monitoring of transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) application. The circuitry may include a circulator. The ultrasound transducer array may be coupled to an aperture interface having irregularly sized or shaped channel conductors to provide a coarse aperture for the array. The coarse aperture may be designed using a method that provides a reduced channel count.

A driving device is provided. The driving device includes a boost inductor and a resonance circuit. The boost inductor receives a first power via a first terminal of the boost inductor in a first mode and provides a second power via a second terminal of the boost inductor. The resonance circuit stores a stored electric energy from the second power in the first mode, so that the boost inductor does not provide the second power in the second mode and drives a transducer by the stored electric energy in the first mode and the second mode.

A method for calibrating a second bonding machine based on a calibrated first bonding machine is disclosed. The first bonding machine includes a first ultrasonic transducer. The second bonding machine includes a second ultrasonic transducer and a power supply. The method includes providing a first electrical calibration supply that causes the first ultrasonic transducer to oscillate at a first calibration amplitude when it is damped by a mechanical damping, providing a second electrical calibration supply that causes the second ultrasonic transducer to oscillate at the same calibration amplitude when it is damped by the same mechanical damping. The second bonding machine is adapted to modify a second control signal based on a first electrical parameter of the first electrical calibration supply and on a second electrical parameter of the second electrical calibration supply in order to generate a modified second control signal, provide the modified second control signal to the power supply in order to cause the second power supply to generate a second electrical supply, and provide the second electrical supply to the second ultrasonic transducer.

This application relates to methods and apparatus for driving a transducer with switching drivers. A driver circuit has first and second switching drivers for driving the transducer in a bridge-tied-load configuration, each of the switching drivers having a respective output stage for controllably switching the respective driver output node between high and low switching voltages with a controlled duty cycle. Each of switching drivers is operable in a plurality of different driver modes, wherein the switching voltages are different in said different driver modes. A controller controls the driver mode of operation and the duty cycle of the switching drivers based on the input signal. The controller is configured to control the duty cycles of the first and second switching drivers within defined minimum and maximum limits of duty cycles; and to transition between driver modes of operation when the duty cycle of one of the switching drivers reaches a duty cycle limit.