Granted Patent B1

US 12,618,955 · App. 17/453,452 · Granted May 5, 2026

Inventors: Larry Y. L. Mo (Latham, NY); Anshumali Roy (Portland, OR); Clark D. Brooks (Hillsboro, OR)

Assignee: yoR Labs, Inc.

G01S7/52095G01S15/8915

Abstract

Claims (32)

1 . A handheld ultrasound imaging device, comprising:

an ultrasound imaging array having a plurality of transducers configured to transmit and receive ultrasound waves;

a motion sensor configured to sense movement of the handheld ultrasound imaging device; and

an adaptive retrospective transmit beamforming (RTB) controller for controlling processing of received ultrasound waves based on at least one input, the RTB controller configured to adjust a target frame rate and at least one image format parameter to a desired value of a range of values based on the at least one input,

wherein the at least one input includes a signal from the motion sensor indicative of motion of the handheld ultrasound imaging device,

wherein the RTB controller is configured to adaptively select a RTB profile among a plurality of RTB profiles in order to optimize a balance between image quality, frame rate, and power usage based on the motion of the handheld ultrasound imaging device, and

wherein each RTB profile comprises a set of RTB processing parameters including the target frame rate and the at least one image format parameter.

2 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input further comprises input from a user control.

3 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 2 , wherein the user control is received wirelessly by the handheld ultrasound imaging device.

4 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal indicating to generate a two-dimensional image.

5 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal indicating to generate a three-dimensional image.

6 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal indicating to focus the received ultrasound waves based on a procedure being performed.

7 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal indicating to focus the received ultrasound waves based on an identified object in an ultrasound image generated by the handheld ultrasound imaging device.

8 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , further comprising a thermal sensor, wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal from the thermal sensor.

9 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 8 , further comprising a housing, and wherein the thermal sensor senses a temperature of the handheld ultrasound imaging device within the housing.

10 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , further comprising a battery and an electrical sensor configured to sense a power level of the battery, wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal from the electrical sensor indicative of the power level of the battery.

11 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the motion sensor comprises an accelerometer.

12 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the motion sensor comprises two or more accelerometers.

13 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the motion sensor is configured to sense movement in three dimensions.

14 . The handheld ultrasound imaging device of claim 1 , wherein the motion sensor is configured to sense at least one of the pitch, the roll, and the yaw of the handheld ultrasound imaging device.

15 . A method of generating an ultrasound image with a handheld ultrasound imaging device using adaptive retrospective transmit beamforming (RTB), comprising:

transmitting a plurality of ultrasound waves into a medium;

receiving ultrasound waves propagating through the medium that are generated by the plurality of ultrasound waves transmitted into the medium;

receiving at least one input;

processing of the received ultrasound waves by adaptively performing retrospective transmit beamforming (RTB) in the handheld ultrasound imaging device based on the at least one input; and

adjusting, using an adaptive RTB controller, a target frame rate and at least one image format parameter to a desired value of a range of values based on the at least one input to adaptively select a RTB profile among a plurality of RTB profiles in order to optimize a balance between image quality, frame rate, and power usage based on the at least one input,

wherein the at least one input includes a signal from a motion sensor indicative of a motion of the handheld ultrasound imaging device, and

wherein each RTB profile comprises a set of RTB processing parameters including the target frame rate and the at least one image format parameter.

16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the at least one input further comprises input from a user control.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the user control is received wirelessly by the handheld ultrasound imaging device.

18 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal indicating to generate a two-dimensional image.

19 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the at least one input further comprises a signal indicating to generate a three-dimensional image.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (1)

References Cited (224)