William Patrick Phillips
Engineers in Bellevue, WA

5615678, Apr 1, 1997

Nov 25, 1994

8/344920

Thomas R. Kirkham - Dousman WI
Kirsten N. Laconte - Waukesha WI
Michael L. Hall - Pewaukee WI
Jonathan E. Snyder - Whitefish Bay WI
Edward S. Wallace - Tempe AZ
William H. Phillips - Issaquah WA
Robert L. Petersen - Lake Zurich IL

General Electric Company - Milwaukee WI

A61B 800

12866001

An integral yoke/transducer connector has built-in probe switches for detecting when a transducer probe has been removed from its yoke. Based on the status of the probe switch and other feedback information, a system controller activates the out-of-holder probe if it has priority. In this manner, a probe can be automatically activated when it is lifted out of its yoke, thereby eliminating the need to trace a desired probe to its connector/port via the cable. Once a probe/port is auto-selected, it remains the only active probe/port until the probe is placed back in the yoke (or its transducer connector is disconnected from the port on the imaging unit). Placement of the probe in its corresponding yoke opens the probe switch which is built into the yoke/connector assembly. The imaging system can be provided with a plurality of interchangeable probe assemblies, each probe assembly consisting of a transducer probe, a coaxial cable, a transducer connector and a yoke, all four components being integrally attached to each other for installation and removal as an integral unit.

5555886, Sep 17, 1996

Sep 28, 1995

8/535496

Lee Weng - Issaquah WA
William H. Phillips - Issaquah WA

Siemens Medical Systems, Inc. - Iselin NJ

A61B 800

12866110

An ultrasonic diagnostic system is provided that automatically measures a volumetric flow rate of a vessel presented on a graphical display by estimating the vessel size and direction. The Doppler information signals received from an ultrasonic transducer include frequency components representing fluid flow through a region of interest. The operator selects a vessel represented graphically on the display in which a volumetric flow rate measurement is desired. The ultrasonic diagnostic system then performs a search in a plurality of directions that extend radially outward from a location within the vessel for an upper and a lower set of edge points that correspond to inner wall surfaces of the vessel. Once the upper and lower set of edge points are identified, curves are fitted through the respective sets of edge points to define respective estimates of the inner wall surfaces. Next, an angular difference between the respective curves and a beam direction of the Doppler information signals is measured.