Multispectral photoacoustic devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025072762-A1
Application number	US-202318461397-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 5, 2023
Priority date	Sep 5, 2023
Publication date	Mar 6, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

An apparatus may include a platen, a light source system, an ultrasonic receiver system and a control system, the light source system configured for providing first light of a first wavelength and second light of a second wavelength to a target object along a first axis. The control system may be configured to: cause the light source system to provide the first light to the target object at a first time and to provide the second light to the target object at a second time; receive first ultrasonic receiver signals and second ultrasonic receiver signals from the ultrasonic receiver system corresponding to photoacoustic responses of the target object to the first light and the second light, respectively; and estimate one or more blood vessel features based on at least one of the first ultrasonic receiver signals or the second ultrasonic receiver signals.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An apparatus, comprising:
a platen; a light source system configured for providing light to a target object on an outer surface of the platen, the light including at least first light of a first wavelength emitted by a first light-emitting device and second light of a second wavelength emitted by a second light-emitting device, the light source system being configured for providing the first light to the target object along a first axis and being configured for providing the second light to the target object along the first axis; an ultrasonic receiver system configured to receive ultrasonic waves generated by the target object responsive to the light from the light source system; and a control system configured to:
cause the light source system to provide the first light to the target object at a first time;
receive first ultrasonic receiver signals from the ultrasonic receiver system corresponding to photoacoustic responses of the target object to the first light;
cause the light source system to provide the second light to the target object at a second time;
receive second ultrasonic receiver signals from the ultrasonic receiver system corresponding to photoacoustic responses of the target object to the second light; and
estimate one or more blood vessel features based on at least one of the first ultrasonic receiver signals or the second ultrasonic receiver signals.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the control system is further configured to differentiate a desired signal from one or more background signals based, at least in part, on the first ultrasonic receiver signals and the second ultrasonic receiver signals.

3 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the desired signal corresponds to a blood vessel within the target object.

4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more blood vessel features include blood vessel diameter, blood vessel area, blood vessel profile, blood vessel distention, volumetric flow, pulse wave velocity, blood vessel wall thickness, or combinations thereof.

5 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the control system is further configured to estimate blood pressure based, at least in part, on the one or more blood vessel features.

6 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first light-emitting device comprises a first laser configured to emit the first light and wherein the second light-emitting device comprises a second laser configured to emit the second light.

7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the light source system further comprises a light guide system configured to convey light from the light source system to the platen.

8 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein a first light guide portion of the light guide system resides between at least two ultrasonic receiver system portions.

9 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the light guide system includes a second light guide portion configured to convey the first light to the first light guide portion and a third light guide portion configured to convey the second light to the first light guide portion.

10 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein at least a portion of the ultrasonic receiver system is arranged in a ring around a first light guide portion.

11 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the light guide system includes a first light-directing device and a second light-directing device, the second light-directing device being configured to reflect light emitted by the second light-emitting device towards the first light-directing device.

12 . The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the first light-directing device is configured to direct light emitted by the first light-emitting device and the second light-emitting device along the first axis.

13 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the first axis is orthogonal, or substantially orthogonal, to a plane of the platen.

14 . The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the first light-directing device comprises a mirror and the second light-directing device comprises a beamsplitter.

15 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first axis is offset by an angle in a range of 10 degrees to 60 degrees of a normal to a plane of the platen a linear array of ultrasonic receiver elements.

16 . The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the plane corresponds to an outer surface of the platen.

17 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the ultrasonic receiver system includes a linear array of ultrasonic receiver elements, a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic receiver elements, or both.

18 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the ultrasonic receiver system includes an array of transparent ultrasonic receiver elements transparent piezoelectric layer, a transparent electrode layer, or combinations thereof.

19 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the ultrasonic receiver system receives acoustic waves from the target object along a second axis that is different from the first axis, the acoustic waves corresponding to the first ultrasonic receiver signals and the second ultrasonic receiver signals.

20 . The apparatus of claim 19 , wherein the second axis is separated from the first axis by an angle in a range from 10 degrees to 60 degrees.

Assignees

• Qualcomm Inc

Inventors

• Agrawal Sumit
• Zhan Ye
• Brooks Emily Kathryn
• Panchawagh Hrishikesh Vijaykumar
• Lopez Ali
• Buchan Nicholas
• Djordjev Kostadin Dimitrov
• Schneider John Keith

Classifications

• A61B5/02007

  Evaluating blood vessel condition, e.g. elasticity, compliance · CPC title

• A61B5/6826

  Finger · CPC title

• A61B5/681

  Wristwatch-type devices · CPC title

• A61B5/1075

  for measuring dimensions by non-invasive methods, e.g. for determining thickness of tissue layer (A61B8/0858 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A61B5/02125

  of pulse wave propagation time · CPC title