US Patent:
20180143165, May 24, 2018
Inventors:
- Palo Alto CA, US
Scott S. Hsieh - Anaheim CA, US
Marko Jakovljevic - Redwood City CA, US
International Classification:
G01N 29/07
A61B 8/00
A61B 8/08
Abstract:
Measuring local speed of sound for ultrasound by inducing ultrasound waves in a subject by focusing an ultrasound beam, using an ultrasound Tx transducer to propagate waves from a focal point to the surface, measuring a time of arrival of the waves using at least three single Rx transducer surface elements, signal traces recorded on individual Rx transducers are evenly sampled in time, an average speed of sound equals an arithmetic mean of local sound-speed values sampled along a wave path, each Rx transducer outputs a separate arrival time of the waves, computing a local speed of sound (c) of waves from an average speed of sound (c) using a computer that receives arrival times, wherewhere c=d/T, dis the length a tissue traveled during one sampling period T, and using cto differentiate human disease, or with ultrasound measurements to differentiate degrees of human disease.