Patent ID: 7687976

Claim:
An ultrasound imaging system of the type which generates an image of an object under observation, comprising: an array of transducer elements arranged along a plane in a matrix of subarrays, with each sub array containing a plurality of the transducer elements, for generating acoustic signals and receiving reflections of the signals; a plurality of circuit units, each subarray of transducer elements connected to a different circuit unit, circuitry in each unit comprising two or more integrated circuits in a stacked configuration, with each unit including transmission circuitry for generating the acoustic signals, receiver circuitry for processing of the reflected signals and control circuitry; and a system console coupled to receive image information from the circuit units and including image processing circuitry for displaying an image of the object, wherein all of the subarrays are positioned along a first plane, a first of the integrated circuits is positioned in a second plane parallel with the first plane and a second of the integrated circuits is positioned in a third plane parallel with the first plane.