US-20260123913-A1 - Operation-Specific Impedance Matching for Enhancing Sensitivity of an Ultrasound System

US20260123913A1US 20260123913 A1US20260123913 A1US 20260123913A1US-20260123913-A1

Abstract

Systems and methods for implementing operation-specific impedance matching for enhancing sensitivity of an ultrasound system are described. To enhance sensitivity while using a transducer element for transmission and reception, a transducer module's architecture provides operation-specific impedance matching. Operation-specific impedance matching means that different impedances are provided for mitigating mismatch loss during transmission and reception. The impedance provided for reception can be associated with separate signal path with a smaller amount of attenuation compared to the impedance provided for transmission. In this way, the architecture enhances sensitivity of the ultrasound system by reducing an amount of attenuation experienced during reception compared to other ultrasound systems that utilize a same impedance for impedance matching during transmission and reception. With enhanced sensitivity, the ultrasound system can utilize higher frequencies and/or broader bandwidths to provide high-resolution images at farther imaging depths while meeting power-intensity guidelines.

Inventors

Jimin Zhang
Wei Li
Andrew Lundberg

Assignees

FUJIFILM SONOSITE, INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251231

Claims (20)

1 . An apparatus comprising: a transducer module of an ultrasound system, the transducer module comprising: a transducer element coupled to a node that is disposed within a transmit path and a receive path of the ultrasound system; an impedance matching circuit disposed within the transmit path and configured to be coupled between the node and a transmitter of the ultrasound system; and a switching circuit disposed within the receive path and configured to be coupled between the node and a receiver of the ultrasound system.
2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein: a portion of the transmit path that is between the node and the transmitter is distinct from the receive path; and a portion of the receive path that is between the node and the receiver is distinct from the transmit path.
3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the switching circuit comprises a switch having: a first terminal coupled to the node; and a second terminal configured to be coupled to the receiver.
4 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the switch is configured to selectively: be in an open state during transmission; and be in a closed state during reception.
5 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the impedance matching circuit comprises at least one inductor.
6 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the impedance matching circuit comprises multiple series components.
7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the transducer module comprises: a transducer array module comprising the transducer element; an interface circuit comprising the impedance matching circuit, the switching circuit, and the node; and at least one connector configured to couple the transducer array module to the interface circuit.
8 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein: the transducer module comprises a transducer array module; and the transducer array module comprises the transducer element, the impedance matching circuit, the switching circuit, and the node.
9 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the transducer array module comprises: a first amplifier having an output coupled to the impedance matching circuit, the first amplifier associated with the transmitter; and a second amplifier having an input coupled to the switching circuit, the second amplifier associated with the receiver.
10 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the transducer array module comprises a second impedance matching circuit coupled between the switching circuit and the input of the second amplifier.
11 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein a magnitude of an impedance of the second impedance matching circuit is less than a magnitude of an impedance of the impedance matching circuit.
12 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the switching circuit is configured to: be in an open state to isolate the second amplifier from the node during transmission; and be in a closed state to connect the second amplifier to the node during reception.
13 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein an output of the second amplifier is configured to be connected to at least one connector of the ultrasound system.
14 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein an impedance of the impedance matching circuit is configured to be adjusted based on a variable impedance at an output of the transmitter.
15 . A method performed by a transducer module of an ultrasound system, the method comprising: configuring a switching circuit of the transducer module to be in a first state during transmission to enable current to pass from a transmitter of the ultrasound system, through an impedance matching circuit of the transducer module, through a node of the transducer module, and to a transducer element of the transducer module, the impedance matching circuit disposed within a transmit path of the ultrasound system, the switching circuit disposed within a receive path of the ultrasound system, the node and the transducer element disposed within both the transmit path and the receive path; and configuring the switching circuit to be in a second state during reception to cause the current to pass from the transducer element, through the node, through the switching circuit, and to a receiver of the ultrasound system in a manner that bypasses the impedance matching circuit that is disposed within the transmit path.
16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein: a portion of the transmit path that is between the node and the transmitter is distinct from the receive path; and a portion of the receive path that is between the node and the receiver is distinct from the transmit path.
17 . The method of claim 15 , wherein: the configuring of the switching circuit to be in the first state during the transmission further comprises causing a switch of the switching circuit to be in an open state during the transmission, the switch having a first terminal that is coupled to the node and a second terminal that is coupled to the receiver; and the configuring of the switching circuit to be in the second state during the reception further comprises causing the switch of the switching circuit to be in a closed state during the reception.
18 . The method of claim 15 , further comprising: receiving a version of an ultrasound transmit signal from the transmitter of the ultrasound system; propagating, based on the switching circuit being in the first state, the version of the ultrasound transmit signal through the impedance matching circuit to the transducer element; transmitting the ultrasound transmit signal using the transducer element; receiving an ultrasound receive signal using the transducer element; and propagating, based on the switching circuit being in the second state, a version of the ultrasound receive signal from the transducer element to the receiver in a manner that bypasses an entirety of the impedance matching circuit.
19 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising: propagating, based on the switching circuit being in the second state, the version of the ultrasound receive signal from the node, through a second impedance matching circuit, to the receiver.
20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein a magnitude of an impedance of the second impedance matching circuit is less than a magnitude of an impedance of the impedance matching circuit.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a divisional of and claims priority to U.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 18/400,116, filed on Dec. 29, 2023, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. BACKGROUND An ultrasound system provides a non-invasive way of imaging a person's body. To produce a higher-resolution image, some ultrasound systems utilize higher frequencies and/or broader bandwidths. These higher frequencies and/or broader bandwidths, however, can pose many challenges. One such challenge is the larger amount of attenuation that these signals can experience while propagating through the human body compared to lower frequency and/or narrower bandwidth signals. This attenuation limits an imaging depth of the ultrasound system. In other words, an ultrasound system that utilizes higher frequencies and/or broader bandwidths may be unable to image areas of the human body that are farther below the surface compared to another ultrasound system that utilizes lower frequencies. This inherent tradeoff between resolution performance and imaging depth makes it challenging to design an ultrasound system that can provide high-resolution images at farther imaging depths. SUMMARY Systems and methods for implementing operation-specific impedance matching for enhancing sensitivity of an ultrasound system are described. To meet cost and size constraints, an architecture of a transducer module includes a transducer element that is disposed within both a transmit path and a receive path of the ultrasound system. As such, the transducer element is utilized for both transmission and reception. To enhance sensitivity of the ultrasound system while using the transducer element for both transmission and reception, the architecture of the transducer module provides operation-specific impedance matching. Operation-specific impedance matching means that different impedances are provided for mitigating mismatch loss between a transmitter of the ultrasound system and the transducer element for transmission, and for mitigating mismatch loss between the transducer element and a receiver of the ultrasound system for reception. The impedance provided for reception can be associated with a smaller amount of attenuation (or voltage drop) compared to the impedance provided for transmission. In this way, the architecture enhances sensitivity of the ultrasound system by reducing an amount of attenuation experienced during reception compared to other ultrasound systems that utilize a same impedance for impedance matching during transmission and reception. With enhanced sensitivity, the ultrasound system can utilize higher frequencies and/or broader bandwidths to provide high-resolution images at farther imaging depths without increasing transmission power. In some aspects, an apparatus is disclosed. The apparatus includes a transducer module of an ultrasound system. The transducer module includes a transducer element and an impedance matching circuit. The transducer element is configured to be coupled to a transmitter and a receiver of the ultrasound system. The transducer element is also configured to transmit an ultrasound transmit signal during a first time interval and receive an ultrasound receive signal during a second time interval that differs from the first time interval. The impedance matching circuit is coupled to the transducer element. The transducer module has an architecture that is configured to propagate a version of the ultrasound transmit signal that is provided by the transmitter in a manner that passes through the impedance matching circuit to the transducer element during the first time interval. The architecture is also configured to propagate a version of the ultrasound receive signal from the transducer element to the receiver in a manner that bypasses at least a portion of the impedance matching circuit during a second time interval. In some aspects, a method for enhancing sensitivity of an ultrasound system is disclosed. The method includes propagating a version of an ultrasound transmit signal provided by a transmitter of the ultrasound system through an impedance matching circuit of a transducer module of the ultrasound system to a transducer element of the transducer module. The impedance matching circuit includes at least one series component. The method also includes transmitting the ultrasound transmit signal using the transducer element and receiving an ultrasound receive signal using the transducer element. The method further includes propagating a version of the ultrasound receive signal from the transducer element to a receiver of the ultrasound system in a manner that bypasses the at least one series component of the impedance matching circuit. In some aspects, a transducer module of an ultrasound system is disclosed. The transducer module includes a transducer element and an impedance matching circuit. The transducer element is dispos