Therapy apparatus for locating and treating a zone located in the body of a life form with acoustic waves

Patent 5526815 Issued on June 18, 1996. Estimated Expiration Date:

December 10, 2013. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.

Abstract Claims Description Full Text

Patent References

Ultrasonic multi-sector scanner
Patent #: 4159462
Issued on: 06/26/1979
Inventor: Rocha , et al.

Apparatus for destroying calculi in body cavities
Patent #: 4526168
Issued on: 07/02/1985
Inventor: Hassler , et al.

Localization and therapy system for treatment of spatially oriented focal disease
Patent #: 5036855
Issued on: 08/06/1991
Inventor: Fry, et al.

Ultrasonic treatment device using a focussing and oscillating piezoelectric element
Patent #: 5143074
Issued on: 09/01/1992
Inventor: Dory

Method and apparatus for therapeutic treatment with focussed acoustic waves switchable between a locating mode and a therapy mode Patent #: 5435304
Issued on: 07/25/1995
Inventor: Oppelt, et al.

Inventors

Assignee

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Application

No. 164723 filed on 12/10/1993

US Classes:

600/439, With therapeutic device600/447, Electronic array scanning600/459, Structure of transducer or probe assembly601/3, Hyperthermia601/4Contact-free comminution of concretion

Examiners

Primary: Smith, Ruth S.

Attorney, Agent or Firm

Hill, Steadman & Simpson

Foreign Patent References

0194897 EP. 09/13/1986
0339693 EP. 11/13/1989
0444680 DE. 09/13/1991
0S4213583 DE. 04/13/1993

International Class

A61B 017/22

Foreign Application Priority Data

1993-01-29 DE

Abstract

A therapy apparatus for locating and treating a zone situated in the body of a subject life form with ultrasound includes an ultrasound transducer which can be optionally operated in a therapy mode or a locating mode, and which generates therapeutic ultrasound waves having a first frequency focused onto a zone of action in the therapy mode and generates diagnostic ultrasound having a second frequency in the locating mode. The ultrasound transducer also receives portions of the diagnostic ultrasound reflected in the body of the subject in the locating mode and converts them into electrical signals that are supplied to an evaluation electronics which provides image information about the zone to be treated.