Benjamin J Herrick, 28Goldsboro, NC

6368281, Apr 9, 2002

Jul 30, 1999

09/365303

Rodney J Solomon - Andover MA, 01810
Benjamin M Herrick - Boxborough MA, 01719

A61B 814

600459

A two-dimensional phased array ultrasound transducer comprises a transducer housing, a sensor mounted within the housing, and a convex environmental barrier for placement against, and maximizing contact with, a patients body. The environmental barrier does not necessarily provide any focusing capability, therefore the propagation velocity of sound through the environmental barrier is approximately equal to the propagation velocity of sound through tissue of the patients body.

6475152, Nov 5, 2002

Mar 13, 2000

09/524466

Marienne Moro Sanders - Watertown MA
Matthew A Keary - Etna NY
Alec Rooney - North Eliot ME
Benjamin M Herrick - Boxborough MA
Brevard S Garrison - Reading MA

Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. - Eindhoven

A61B 800

600461

A biopsy needle guide in accordance with the invention is configured for attachment to an ultrasound transducer. The biopsy needle guide is arranged in two sections, an inner attachment block and an outer attachment block. The inner attachment block includes (i) a coupler which attaches the inner attachment block to the ultrasound transducer and (ii) a first engagement structure which extends from a surface thereof. The outer attachment block includes a biopsy needle guide through hole and a second engagement structure. The second engagement structure releasably mates with the first engagement structure even when the inner attachment block is covered by a sterile film sheath.

6695777, Feb 24, 2004

Jul 26, 2001

09/916098

Rodney J Solomon - Andover MA
Benjamin M Herrick - Boxboro MA

Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. - Eindhoven

A61B 800

600437

A method and apparatus are provided for enabling battery packs of different sizes to be used with an ultrasound device. The apparatus of the present invention comprises an ultrasound device having a battery pack installment apparatus configured to be capable of being coupled with battery packs of different sizes. The method comprises the step of providing the ultrasound device with a battery pack installment apparatus that is configured to couple with battery packs of different sizes.

6314057, Nov 6, 2001

Mar 8, 2000

9/521871

Rodney J Solomon - Andover MA
Bernard J Savord - Andover MA
William J Ossmann - Acton MA
Benjamin M Herrick - Boxborough MA

H04R 2300

367174

A plurality of applications for a micro-machined ultrasonic transducer (MUT) including an improved MUT array containing optimized transmit MUT elements and optimized receive MUT elements, a MUT array in which staggered MUT elements increase the sensitivity of the array, and a MUT array for multiple plane scanning.

5961465, Oct 5, 1999

Feb 10, 1998

9/021550

Walter Patrick Kelly - Dracut MA
Benjamin M. Herrick - Boxborough MA

Hewlett-Packard Company - Palo Alto CA

A61B 800

600459

An ultrasound transducer structure in accord with the invention includes: an ultrasound transducer operable to generate and receive ultrasonic energy, a communication cable, integrated circuits for processing signals received from said ultrasound transducer and flexible circuits for connecting the communication cable to the integrated circuit, and for further connecting the integrated circuits to the ultrasound transducer. A housing contains the ultrasound transducer, the integrated circuits and the flexible circuits. A heat transfer structure is positioned within the housing and is in contact with the integrated circuit. A heat conductor resides in contact with the heat transfer structure and conducts heat generated by the integrated circuits to a heat sink.

5684243, Nov 4, 1997

Sep 11, 1996

8/712015

Turuvekere R. Gururaja - North Andover MA
Darwin P. Adams - Lexington MA
Benjamin M. Herrick - Boxborough MA
David M. Prater - Melrose MA

Hewlett-Packard Company - Palo Alto CA

G01N 2922

73 1DV

Apparatus and methods for controlling electrostrictive transducer sensitivity in a pulse-echo medical ultrasound system. Certain characteristics of each transducer element are tested after manufacture and recorded on a storage medium. The stored data is then used, along with certain model relations, for monitoring certain operational parameters of the transducer during use, and feedback compensation applied for maintaining the transducer sensitivity substantially constant. The parameters to be monitored may include the temperature, acoustic pressure, input power, and a figure of merit determined from the dielectric constant and coupling coefficient.

5462057, Oct 31, 1995

Aug 9, 1994

8/287762

Thomas J. Hunt - Pelham NH
Benjamin M. Herrick - Boxborough MA
Kimberly K. Robertson - Boxford MA
Karl E. Thiele - Andover MA
J. Mark Ziel - Methuen MA

Hewlett-Packard Company - Palo Alto CA

A61B 800

12866101

In a phased array ultrasound imaging system, a high quality image is obtained by a combination of line splicing and parallel receive beamforming. Two transmit pulses, one focused in the near field and one focused in the far field, are transmitted sequentially at each steering angle. The transmitted ultrasound energy is preferably focused both in azimuth and in elevation. Ultrasound echos are simultaneously received along two receive scan lines spaced angularly on opposite sides of each transmit scan line. Signals received in response to the near field and far field transmit pulses are spliced together to provide signals that represent a high quality image throughout the region of interest. Image artifacts are reduced by blending the received signals near the splice between the near field and the far field, by dynamically steering the receive scan lines to reduce the effect of line warping, and by weighted averaging of adjacent scan lines.

5585546, Dec 17, 1996

Oct 31, 1994

8/332287

Turuvekere R. Gururaja - North Andover MA
Darwin P. Adams - Lexington MA
Benjamin M. Herrick - Boxborough MA
David M. Prater - Melrose MA

Hewlett-Packard Company - Palo Alto CA

G01N 2922

73 1DV

Apparatus and methods for controlling electrostrictive transducer sensitivity in a pulse-echo medical ultrasound system. Certain characteristics of each transducer element are tested after manufacture and recorded on a storage medium. The stored data is then used, along with certain model relations, for monitoring certain operational parameters of the transducer during use, and feedback compensation applied for maintaining the transducer sensitivity substantailly constant. The parameters to be monitored may include the temperature, acoustic pressure, input power, and a figure of merit determined from the dielectric constant and coupling coefficient.