Patent ID: 7135809

Claim:
An acoustic imaging system, comprising: a transducer including a two-dimensional transducer element matrix array, the transducer having a protective cover configured to mate with a transducer body, the protective cover having a non-uniform thickness and configured to mate with a protective cover mounting portion of the transducer body, the protective cover for being superposed above the two-dimensional transducer element matrix such that acoustic energy incident at the protective cover from the two-dimensional transducer element matrix is mechanically directed by the protective cover of the non-uniform thickness, where the protective cover further comprises an acoustic material for exhibiting an acoustic impedance corresponding to an acoustic impedance of a body to be imaged and further having a shape that includes a tissue-engagement surface and curved surfaces adjacent the tissue-engagement surface, the shape specified to provide an optimum contact with the body to be imaged, wherein the curved surfaces are configured to align the tissue-engagement surface in relation to an acoustic window defined by geometry-limited access points of the body to be imaged; and an image processing system coupled to the transducer and configured to provide a plurality of individualized excitation signals each being delayed by a predetermined delay with respect to each other according to a two-dimensional delay profile to control respective transducer elements of the controlling lateral and elevation dimensions at different times for controlling lateral and elevation dimensions of the transmit aperture of the acoustic imaging system over time to compensate for the shape of the protective cover such that the two-dimensional transducer element matrix array generates and transmits acoustic energy through the protective cover over time such that acoustic energy transmitted through the protective cover is electrically focused according to the two-dimensional delay profile, wherein the image processing system electronically focuses transmitted acoustic energy at a target position within the body to be imaged through the protective cover as a function of (i) a position of each element of the two-dimensional transducer element array matrix, (ii) a thickness of the protective cover over a corresponding transducer element, and (iii) the target position within the body to be imaged, thereby by electrically compensating for the focusing characteristics of the protective cover as a function of non-uniform acoustic delays caused introduced by the protective cover.