US 12,246,347 B2
Capacitive micro-machined ultrasound transducer (CMUT) devices and control methods
Nico Maris Adriaan de Wild, Eindhoven (NL); Marc Godfriedus Marie Notten, Eindhoven (NL); Antonia Cornelia van Rens, Nuenen (NL); Franciscus Hendrikus van Heesch, Valkenswaard (NL); and Mckee Dunn Poland, Andover, MA (US)
Assigned to KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V., Eindhoven (NL)
Appl. No. 16/636,949
Filed by KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V., Eindhoven (NL)
PCT Filed Jul. 31, 2018, PCT No. PCT/EP2018/070642
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Feb. 6, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/030045, PCT Pub. Date Feb. 14, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/569,839, filed on Oct. 9, 2017.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/542,484, filed on Aug. 8, 2017.
Claims priority of application No. 17201544 (EP), filed on Nov. 14, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0164405 A1, May 28, 2020
Int. Cl. B06B 1/02 (2006.01); G01H 11/06 (2006.01); G01N 29/24 (2006.01); G01S 15/89 (2006.01)
CPC B06B 1/0292 (2013.01) [B06B 1/0207 (2013.01); G01H 11/06 (2013.01); G01N 29/2406 (2013.01); G01S 15/8906 (2013.01); B06B 2201/51 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An ultrasound system, comprising:
a set of ultrasound transducer devices, each device comprising an array of capacitive micro-machined ultrasound transducer (CMUT) cells, and each device comprising a first input for receiving a DC bias voltage and a second input for receiving an AC drive signal, wherein the set of ultrasound transducer devices are arranged adjacent to each other;
drive electronics for operating a selected device of the set of ultrasound transducer devices, wherein the drive electronics is shared between all devices of the set of ultrasound transducer devices, wherein the drive electronics comprises a first output for delivering the DC bias voltage and a second output for delivering the AC drive signal; and
a selector comprising a circuit for generating a set of switching signals for selecting which device of the set of ultrasound transducer devices is coupled to the DC bias voltage,
wherein the selector comprises a set of passive switches, with a respective passive switch between the first output of the drive electronics and the first input such that the DC bias voltage is coupled only to one selected device and the DC bias voltage is isolated from the non-selected devices of the set, wherein the same bias voltage is applied to each device of the set when the device is selected.