Analog Devices advances ultrasound system design with low-power receiver ICs

NORWOOD, USA: Analog Devices Inc. has launched the fourth generation of its award-winning octal (eight-channel) ultrasound receivers with the introduction of two new ICs that reduce system size, complexity, and power consumption for high-end, mid-range, and portable ultrasound systems.

The need for smaller, faster, lower-power ultrasound equipment continues to grow as hospitals, medical clinics, and medical emergency units increasingly rely on more sophisticated ultrasound equipment for providing diagnostic imaging. InMedica, the medical research division of IMS Research, predicts worldwide ultrasound revenues will grow from $4.9 billion in 2009 to more than $6 billion by 2012.

The new AD9278 and AD9279 receiver chips each integrate ADI’s world-leading data conversion technology for low noise TGC (time-gain-control) mode performance while providing high dynamic range I/Q demodulators that reduce the power and area for implementation of CW (continuous wave) Doppler processing.

The new octal ultrasound receivers provide the highest available output-referred large-signal SNR--up to 67 dB--enabling improved sensitivity in diagnostic ultrasound systems while reducing board space up to 40 percent.

“Ultrasound equipment designers must continually balance new and changing demands for higher image quality and increased power efficiency,” said Patrick O’Doherty, vice president for the Healthcare Group, Analog Devices. “The new AD9278 and AD9279 octal ultrasound receivers help system designers manage the design challenges inherent in trying to get the best image quality at the lowest power for either high-end or portable systems.”

The AD9278 octal ultrasound receiver is designed for portable ultrasound systems while the AD9279 octal ultrasound receiver is suitable for high-end and mid-range systems. The devices are pin- and package-compatible with each other and allow designers to use a common PCB (printed circuit board) layout that can be leveraged across multiple ultrasound platforms to save development time and cost.

Products in Analog Devices’ octal ultrasound receiver portfolio include the AD9271, which, when unveiled in April 2007, was the first device to integrate a complete octal ultrasound receiver on a single chip, and is used today in ultrasound equipment throughout the world.

Other octal ultrasound receivers include the AD9272 for high-and mid-range cart-based ultrasound equipment, AD9273 for portable ultrasound systems, and the AD9276 and AD9277 that enable high-quality CW (continuous wave) Doppler processing.