Verasonics Adds New Features to its NXT Research Ultrasound System

Verasonics Inc. has released new features and functionality for its Vantage NXT Research Ultrasound System, successor to the firm’s Vantage Research Ultrasound System.
 
Updates to Vantage NXT features and functionality include:

• Multi-System configurations: Vantage NXT multi-system configurations are available in two- and four-system versions. These high-channel count configurations are most often required in volume imaging research efforts requiring phase-accurate transmit and receive acquisitions. New features include a simpler programming model, better sequence reliability, and the ability to run hardware and software asynchronously, enabling faster acquisition framerates.
• Improvements to MUX capabilities: Vantage NXT is designed to remove bottlenecks from multiplex imaging and offers increased multiplex control, leading to lower overhead time, faster frame rates and the ability to accommodate a wider range of transducer architectures and configurations. This advancement in functionality, coupled with increased memory, provides easier programming capability of more unique apertures. In addition, improved signal transmit and receive fidelity enhances overall multiplex imaging performance.
• Analog inputs: Vantage NXT offers two low-frequency inputs for acquisition of auxiliary signals to enable precise co-registration with ultrasound data capture. Analog inputs are suitable for recording physiological signals such as EKG and respiration, as well as a range of sensor signals including strain, acceleration, and temperature This data capture method allows the alignment of analog signal inputs with ultrasound RF data during offline analysis.
• 16-bit Float RF Datatype: With a 16-bit A/D converter, an improvement over the 14-bit A/D converter on the Vantage platform, Vantage NXT provides improved resolution for small signal processing. Applications benefiting from 16-bit float RF data include photoacoustic and other low SNR acquisitions using accumulation measurement techniques, Doppler measurements and external processing using GPUs. 

“The Vantage NXT platform is rapidly becoming the platform of choice by our academic and commercial customers looking to take their ultrasound research to the next level,” Verasonics President/CEO Jon K. Daigle said. “We are excited to debut these improved configurations and options that extend and advance data capture in a variety of ultrasound applications.”
 
Verasonics is a privately held company founded in 2001, with headquarters in Kirkland, Wash. Verasonics, the leader in research ultrasound, is focused on providing researchers and developers with the most advanced and flexible tools enabling them to develop new algorithms and products used in biomedical ultrasound, materials science, earth sciences, and the physics of acoustics and ultrasonics. Verasonics also licenses its technology to companies for use in their commercial products. Researchers in countries across North and South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania routinely use Verasonics product solutions to advance the art and science of ultrasound through their own research efforts.