ABLIC (President: Seiji Tanaka, Head Office: Minato-ku, Tokyo; hereinafter “ABLIC”), a group company of MinebeaMitsumi Inc., received the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award, the highest ranked award at the FY2024 Kanto Regional Commendation for Invention, for its semiconductor integrated circuit equipment (Patent No. 5337523).
The Patent No. 5337523 semiconductor integrated circuit equipment which was awarded the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award is a patent related to improving quality and reducing costs in transmission waveforms for transmitter circuits, which are key devices for determining diagnostics quality in ultrasound diagnostic equipment mainly used in the medical field.
Ultrasound diagnostic equipment consists of devices which utilize ultrasound to generate real-time images to allow for safe and easy diagnoses of the conditions inside a living body. The devices transmit ultrasonic waves into the living body and receive reflected waves from internal organs and tissues, and then generate images based on the biological information contained in the reflected waves. Further improving the performance of the transmitter and receiver circuits is the key to achieving even higher quality diagnostic images.
Although circuit technologies for generating ideal transmission waveforms was already available for transmitter circuits, which are a key device in this technology, in practice, the quality of transmission waveforms was degraded by noise introduced to the transmitter circuit either directly through the signal or indirectly from outside via parasitic capacitance.
This invention uses an innovative transmitter circuit structure to increase noise resistance and achieve practical higher quality waveforms. In addition, it also contributes to cost reductions by requiring fewer device elements than previously possible.
Satoshi Hanazawa is a current ABLIC Senior Vice President and Chief Product Officer, and the lead inventor of this now award-winning, patented technology commented as follows:
"We are very honored to have received the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award. We believe that this invention can contribute to further enhancement of the performance of ultrasound diagnostic equipment by realizing practical higher quality waveforms, and thereby also can contribute to greater adoption and use of these systems. Going forward, we will continue to strive to contribute to society by developing and providing high quality products."
ICs for ultrasound diagnostic equipment are one of ABLIC's core products, and this patented technology is widely used in transmitter IC.
It was recently decided that ABLIC would acquire the medical device-related business of Socionext Inc. One of the core features of this business is its high performance receiver IC technologies .
Going forward, ABLIC will aim to expand our business on its strengths in transmission and reception technologies by developing and providing ICs for ultrasound diagnostic equipment with even higher added value.
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ABLIC Inc.
Masae Onuma
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