CA-3093250-C - THUMB-DOMINANT ULTRASOUND IMAGING SYSTEM

Abstract

Disclosed herein are portable ultrasound imaging systems for thumb-dominant operations comprising: a portable ultrasound probe, wherein the portable ultrasound probe is configured to be operable using a first hand of the user; a mobile device comprising a mobile application installed thereon, the mobile application comprising a user interface, the mobile application configured to be operable using a second hand of the user and; and direct electronic communication between the portable ultrasound probe and the mobile device, the direct electronic communication configured to allow a user to control an operation of the portable ultrasound probe for imaging via user interaction with the user interface.

Inventors

• Sandeep Akkaraju

Assignees

• EXO IMAGING, INC.

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20190301

Priority Date

20180305

Claims (20)

1. CLAIMS WHAT IS CLAIMED IS: 1. A portable ultrasound imaging system for thumb-dominant operations comprising: a portable ultrasound probe configured to be operable using a first hand; and a mobile application configured to run on a mobile device that comprises a processor, the mobile application comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the mobile device to display a user interface that: (i) is operable using a second hand while the user simultaneously operates the portable ultrasound probe with the first hand; (ii) comprises a single-finger accessibility zone configured to be reachable using a single finger during single-handed use of the mobile device, the single-finger accessibility zone having a size and shape that is measured for individual users during initialization of the mobile application, the single-finger accessibility zone configured to be different for the individual users when using different fingers, wherein the size and shape of the single-finger accessibility zone is configured to be determined during a calibration process or manually determined by the user, and (iii) provides access to commonly used commands or functions within the single-finger accessibility zone; wherein the portable ultrasound probe is configured to connect with the mobile device to allow a user to control an operation of the portable ultrasound probe for imaging via user interaction with the user interface.
2. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is configured to be operable using only one finger of the second hand.
3. 3. . The system of claim 1, wherein the second hand is a dominant hand or a nondominant hand of the user.
4. 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile device comprises a touch screen configured to allow user interaction with the user interface of the mobile application.
5. 5. The system of claim 4, wherein the user interaction with the user interface via the touch screen comprises: a swipe, a tap, a press, a press and hold, a drag, a scrub, a scroll, a pinch, a zoom, a circling, a contouring, a crossing, or a combination thereof.
6. 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface provides access to one or more non-commonly-used commands or functions outside of the single-finger accessibility zone.
7. 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the single-finger accessibility zone is scaled based on size of the second hand, size of the mobile device, size of a touch screen of the mobile device, display size of the mobile application, display size of the user interface, or a combination thereof.
8. 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the single-finger accessibility zone comprises an image display region and a control region.
9. 9. The system of claim 1, wherein providing access to commonly used commands or functions within the single-finger accessibility zone comprises displaying text, symbols, icons, or a combination thereof.
10. 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the control region comprises an imaging toolbar, an imaging mode selector, an imaging preset button, an access to image processing, or a combination thereof.
11. 11. The system of claim 9, wherein the text, symbols, icons, or a combination thereof are at least partly overlaid with an image, after the user activate the text, the symbols, or the icons.
12. 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable ultrasound probe comprises a communication interface that is configured to allow a direct electronic communication between the portable ultrasound probe and the mobile device.
13. 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the mobile device comprises a second communication interface that is configured to allow the direct electronic communication between the portable ultrasound probe and the mobile device.
14. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the direct electronic communication between the portable ultrasound probe and the mobile device is wired or wireless.
15. 15. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable ultrasound probe comprises an ultrasound transducer, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor, a pressure sensor, a force sensor, a unit for probe control, or a combination thereof.
16. 16. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable ultrasound probe, the mobile device, or both are configured to provide signals regarding operating conditions of the system, the signals comprising haptic signals, audio signals, visual signals, or a combination thereof.
17. 17. The system of claim 16, wherein the portable ultrasound probe comprises one or more of: a haptic feedback actuator, a speaker, a LED, or a combination thereof.
18. 18. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable ultrasound probe is configured to record user voice annotation.
19. 19. The system of claim 18, wherein the portable ultrasound probe comprises a microphone.
20. 20. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable ultrasound probe, the mobile device, or both are configured to provide a user interface allowing a user to select one or more texts from a list of pre-populated texts.

Description

THUMB-DOMINANT ULTRASOUND IMAGING SYSTEM [001] This paragraph has been intentionally left blank. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [002] During ultrasound imaging, an ultrasound probe is typically held in the dominant hand of the user relegating the user to utilize his/her second hand for a mobile device or other devices for controlling imaging operations. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [003] Existing ultrasound systems include an imaging probe that is commonly held with a dominant hand of an operator, thereby presenting a significant hurdle for simultaneously usage of a mobile device by the same operator. [004] There is an urgent and unmet need for portable ultrasound devices that can be used in the field in conjunction with a mobile device for acquiring ultrasound images. In order to effectively reduce the difficulties of using an ultrasound imaging application on a mobile device to acquire images, a single-handed user interface is needed. In some cases, a user interface that is designed mainly with the thumb is preferred as it allows the user to focus on positioning the ultrasound probe for the best quality images as opposed to fidgeting with the user interface. [OOS] Disclosed herein are portable ultrasound systems. Such systems can include a user interface for interacting with an ultrasound imager ( also known as ultrasound probe or simply probe) on a mobile device. The user interface in the present disclosure is designed for single-handed operation and takes advantage of a thumb-dominant interface. Disclosed herein, a thumb-dominant interface is configured to allow a user to use the thumb to interact with a lot of features, icons, and other accessories at the user interface thus enabling user operation of the mobile application with no or minimal need to use other fingers. In some embodiments, a thumb-dominant interface is advantageous as it enables the user to hold the mobile phone and operate the mobile application with the same hand. While the interface is designed primarily for the thumb, the user at his/her convenience can use other finger(s) to interact with the interface. Further, the interface herein advantageously enables novice users to use ultrasound imaging systems herein and find clinically valid views of organs/tissue by providing features such as displaying orientation or attitude of the ultrasound probe as an overlay on the image and Date Re9ue/Date Received 2024-01-05 WO 2019/173152 PCT /0S2019/020338 automatically providing guidance instructions on how to move the probe displayed as overlay. [006] In one aspect, disclosed herein, is a portable ultrasound imaging system for thumbdominant operations comprising: a portable ultrasound probe, wherein the portable ultrasound probe is configured to be operable using a first hand of the user; a mobile device comprising a mobile application installed thereon, the mobile application comprising a user interface, the mobile application configured to be operable using a second hand of the user while the user operates the portable ultrasound probe with the first hand; and direct electronic communication between the portable ultrasound probe and the mobile device, the direct electronic communication configured to allow a user to control an operation of the portable ultrasound probe for imaging via user interaction with the user interface. In some embodiments, the portable ultrasound probe is configured to be operable using only the first hand of the user. In some embodiments, the first hand is a dominant hand or a non-dominant hand of the user. In some embodiments, the mobile application or the user interface is configured to be operable using only the second hand of the user. In some embodiments, the mobile application or the user interface is configured to be operable using only one finger of the second hand of the user. In some embodiments, the second hand is a dominant hand or a non-dominant hand of the user. In some embodiments, the mobile device comprises an input device, the input device configured to allow user interaction with the user interface of the mobile application. In some embodiments, the input device is a touch screen. In some embodiments, the user interaction with the user interface via the input device comprises: a swipe, a tap, a press, a press and hold, a drag, a scrub, a scroll, a pinch, a zoom, a circling, a contouring, a crossing, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the user interface comprises a single finger accessibility zone. In some embodiments, the user interface comprises access to one or more commonly-used commands or functions within the single finger accessibility zone for controlling operations of the portable ultrasound probe. In some embodiments, the user interface comprises access to one or more non-commonly-used commands or functions outside of the single finger accessibility zone for controlling operations of the portable ultrasound probe. In some embodiments, the single finger accessibility zone is scaled ba