Low-Cost Ultrasound Scanner Unveiled in UK

There still exists market needs for low-cost ultrasound devices. The challenge lies in developing them with good image quality. We are taking on it. We are interested in not only return and profit but also a positive return to society. From Al Jazeera:

Researchers in the UK have unveiled a low-cost ultrasound scanner that can be plugged into any computer or laptop to reveal vital information about the unborn child. The hand-held USB device, which is roughly the size of a computer mouse, costs just $65 to make – a far cry from most machines which can cost more than $300,000. "At the moment ultrasound machines tend to be very expensive and very large pieces of equipment that can only really be afforded in a hospital setting and mainly in the developed world,” Newcastle University researcher Jeff Neasham told Al Jazeera. The United Nations estimates that more than 250,000 women die each year from complications during pregnancy or childbirth. Almost all of them – 99 per cent – are in developing countries. In many cases, these could have been prevented if the women had had access to simple equipment like an ultrasound scanner. "Even simple imaging technology would allow us to diagnose things like breech birth or multiple births – straightforward complications in birth. Having the ability to identify these problems can make a real difference," Neasham said. To make the device as cheap as possible the researchers have moved much of the complexity into the PC. Instead of using an array of scanners – as found in more expensive models – the device has just one. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2012/09/201292782345838858.html