WULPUS PRO: Multi-mode Ultra-Low-Power Wearable Ultrasound and Array Imaging with CMUT Support

Abstract

Wearable ultrasound enables continuous monitoring of physiological processes such as muscle dynamics, bladder volume, and cardiovascular activity. Existing fully wearable ultra-low-power platforms are limited to shallow, low-channel A-mode sensing, while larger multi-mode systems are too bulky and power-hungry for true wearability. We present WULPUS PRO, a runtime-programmable wearable ultrasound acquisition platform measuring $39\times 21\times 6\mathrm{mm}$ and weighing $5\mathrm{g}$. It integrates $30\mathrm{V}$ excitation, 16 time-multiplexed channels, a low-noise receive front-end with up to $70\mathrm{dB}$ gain, $9.9\mathrm{MHz}$ bandwidth, time-gain compensation, and $32\mathrm{dB}$ SNR. The platform supports deep-tissue echo acquisition up to $2.2\mathrm{MHz}$ in RF-sampling mode and $8\mathrm{MHz}$ in envelope-detection mode. We demonstrate B-mode imaging in a 16-channel ultra-low-power wearable with sub-millimeter axial and millimeter-scale lateral resolution in phantom experiments, while consuming $40\mathrm{mW}$ at $50\mathrm{Hz}$ PRF and under $60\mathrm{mW}$ at $300\mathrm{Hz}$ PRF. WULPUS PRO supports both piezoelectric and capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers, enabling integration with skin-conformal polymer-based CMUT arrays. As a host-agnostic acquisition front-end, it exposes standard data and power interfaces for BLE- and Wi-Fi-based wearable hosts. We demonstrate wireless transmission with external BLE and Wi-Fi modules and project 1-2 days of BLE operation at $50\mathrm{Hz}$ PRF and over 3 h of Wi-Fi streaming at $300\mathrm{Hz}$ PRF using a $300\mathrm{mAh}$, $6.4\mathrm{g}$ Li-Po cell. WULPUS PRO establishes a new class of fully programmable, B-mode-enabled, ultra-low-power wearable ultrasound platforms.

16 pages, 13 figures

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