Patent ID: 7104131

Claim:
Ultrasonic pulser-receiver circuitry, for use with an ultrasonic transducer, the circuitry comprising: a circuit board; ultrasonic pulser circuitry supported by the circuit board and configured to be coupled to an ultrasonic transducer and to cause the ultrasonic transducer to emit an ultrasonic output pulse; receiver circuitry supported by the circuit board, coupled to the pulser circuitry, including protection circuitry configured to protect against the ultrasonic pulse and including amplifier circuitry configured to amplify an echo, received back by the transducer, of the output pulse; and a connector, proximate an end of the circuit board, configured to couple the ultrasonic transducer directly to the circuit board, to the pulser circuitry and receiver circuitry, wherein impedance mismatches that would result if the transducer was coupled to the circuit board via a cable can be avoided and said ultrasonic pulser-receiver circuitry when in operation having a rise time of less than 5 nanoseconds.