Ultrasound in Med. & Biol. Vol. 17, No. 7, pp. 743-744, 1991 0301-5629/91 $3.00 + .00 Printed in the U.S.A. © 1991 Pergamon Press plc

NEW PATENTS

This Section contains abstracts and, where appropriate, illustrations of recently issued United States patents and published patent applications filed from over 30 countries under the Patent Cooperation Treaty. This information was obtained from recent additions to the Pergamon PATSEARCH ~ online database in accordance with interest profiles developed by the Editors. Further information about Pergamon PATSEARCH -'~ can be obtained from Pergamon Orbit InfoLine Inc., 8000 Westpark Drive, McLean, Virginia 22102, U.S.A.

Copies of complete patents announced in this Section are available from Pergamon Orbit InfoLine Inc. for $8 per copy. Payment with order is required. Orders outside North America add $2 for air postage. Order by patent number for Pergamon Orbit InfoLine only.

4934365

N O N - I N V A S I V E H Y P E R T H E R M I A M E T H O D A N D A P P A R A T U S

Frederic R Morgenthaler assigned to Mas- sachusetts Institute of Technology

A method and apparatus for non-invasive hyperthermia is described employing an elec- tromagnetic (EM) energy generating applicator which utilizes in one embodiment an artificially simulated impedance matching layer for coupling energy to tissue. In another embodi- ment, the matching layer is comprised of varac- tor diodes and is voltage controllable. In another embodiment, the applicator utilizes a voltage controllable trough-guide applicator and, lastly, a combination ultrasound and EM applicator is described.

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M E T H O D A N D A P P A R A T U S F O R S Y N T H E S I Z I N G A C O N T I N U O U S

E S T I M A T E S I G N A L F R O M S E G M E N T S O F A G A U S S I A N

S I G N A L P R O V I D E D B Y U L T R A S O N I C D O P P L E R

M E A S U R E M E N T O N A F L U I D F L O W

Bjorn A Angelsen, Kjel Kristoffersen, Trond- heim, Norway assigned to Vingmed A/S

Method and apparatus for synthesizing a con- tinuous estimate signal of a Gaussian signal resulting from ultrasonic Doppler measurement on a fluid flow, from existing segments of the Gaussian signal. The segment signals are first stored and there is at the same time calculated a

743

characteristic frequency parameter for each seg- ment. The frequency parameter is combined with the first stored segment signal for transposi- tion thereof to a base-band at or about the zero frequency point, and this base-band signal is used to generate coefficients in a controlled filter device which on the basis of a broad-band input signal gives a synthesized filter output signal which is a substantially Gaussian signal. The fil- ter output signal is multiplied by a weighting or window function for smoothing the transitions between successive segments. Parallel to the ab- ove signal processing there is for each segment of the initial Gaussian signal on the basis of said frequency parameter, formed a parameter at each instant which is an estimate of the fre- quency parameter of the initial signal between the segments, in order to thereby represent the comparatively quick variations in the location of the frequency spectrum of the initial signal. The latter estimated frequency parameter is com- bined with the smoothed filter output signal so that this is transposed back to the frequency range of the initial signal and thereby constitutes the synthesized continuous estimate signal. The invention primarily is intended for use with ul- trasonic blood flow measurement in living bio- logical structures. This method and apparatus may be incorporated into a complete system for investigating circulatory systems, particularly in hospitals.

4936307

U L T R A S O N I C O B S E R V A T I O N S Y S T E M A N D A N U L T R A S O N I C

E N D O S C O P E S Y S T E M

Yoshitak Saito, Tatsu Nagasaki, Takash Tsukaya, Tsuguhis Sasai, Akira Hasegawa, Takeak Nakamura, Koichi Matsui, Akira Murata, Hiroki Hibino, Yutaka Ohshima, Koji

744 New Patents

Yamaya, Michio Sato, Akira Suzuki, Koji Kam- bara, Masaaki Hayashi, Hideo Adachi, Hideo Tomabechi, Kunitachi, Japan assigned to Olym- pus Optical Co Ltd

In a probe for observing an ultrasonic image, which obtains the ultrasonic image of an object to be observed such as a body cavity by means of an ultrasonic transmitting and receiving means, a mechanical scanning operation of the ul-

trasonic transmitting and receiving means is per- formed by an ultrasonic driving means, and thus it is possible to obtain a good diagnosis image with no distortion and no flicker because noises of the driving means can be reduced. Therefore, an ultrasonic endoscope system and an ul- trasonic video endoscope system etc. which utilize the probe mentioned above can display a good ultrasonic image and a good optical image.