Ultrasound On A Chip
The latest episode of BBC Click is a must-watch.
One section is about a new ultrasound device from Butterfly Network.
Their product called Butterfly iQ; is an ultrasound sensor on a chip, that converts a smart phone into a full function medical ultrasound machine.
But as an engineer, who knows a bit about this sort of technology, I doubt that all the applications are medical ones.
Typical hospital ultrasound machines cost tens of thousands of pounds, but the price of the sensor on the Butterfly Network web site is in the order of a couple of grand. Software is probably extra, but even so, Southampton Hospital has bought four and one is in their paediatric ambulance.
I have one big question.
Is the device open source? This would enable, an imaginative programmer, as I once was, to convert the device, so that it is able to perform an important application.
I would be very disappointing if it wasn’t!
To get a snapshot of the power of ultrasound, read the Wikipedia entry for ultrasound.
A Video
I found this on the Internet.
As you can see, it’s not very big.
Conclusion
This is an amazing development and it will revolutionise so much of healthcare and other fields.
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The Anonymous Widower 
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