Safety policy for High Power transducers

Many high power applications require a high level of accuracy :
- A precise control of beam pattern distribution is essential to precisely control the location of the ultrasonic beam and its interaction with tissue
- A precise control of the amount of generated power is necessary to control the effect itself

The consequences of the inapropriate use of the high power transducers can be serious as unexpected lesions of human tissues.

Moreover, the right functioning of a high power transducer also depends on operating conditions. For example :
- Excess of electrical power or inapropriate cooling may damage the transducer and produce various uncontrolled effects.
- Inappropriate electrical matching may produce unexpected level of reflected electrical power and can produce spurious effects on the electronic circuits.

Specification and using conditions

For these reasons, and in order to reduce as much as possible the above mentionned risks, Imasonic designs its high power transducers according to performance objectives but also according to defined using conditions.

For each inquiry of high power transducer we check the specifications with our customer, including using conditions, with necessary level of detail to identify the possible risks for the patient, and to define with our customer how to handle them.

Related paper

"Safety Issues for HIFU Transducer Design", J.Y. Chapelon, C. Lafon - INSERM U556, G.T. HAAR - ICR, M. Pernot, J-F. Aubry, M. Tanter, M. Fink - LOA-ESPCI, G. Fleury, O. Le Baron, L. Chupin, F. Pichonnat, J. Lenormand - IMASONIC, 4th ISTU Conference, 2004, Tokyo Japan
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