In-body Communication

We are investigating ultrasound as a communications channel for interacting with in-body devices. We have developed protocols involving ultrasound as the communication channel and have demonstrated the ability to produce high data rates through tissues, i.e., > 15 Mbps, and have successfully streamed 4k video through 6 cm pork bellies (see Figures 1 and 2). Our goal is to replace electromagnetic communications for in-body devices with ultrasound because ultrasound is safe, attenuation is low, data rates can be orders of magnitude larger, is a secure communications channel, and the small wavelengths allow for millimeter localization. One application we are planning is the development of a wireless capsule endoscopy that uses ultrasound to stream high-definition images and can localize image findings to unprecedented accuracy. We call this technology SoniCam. Figures 3 and 4 shows concept images of our SoniCam device.

Figure 1. Experimental setup using a ultrasonic microcrystal to transmit 4k video through water and a 6 cm thick pork belly and received by an array transducer.
Figure 2. The actual 4k video that was streamed via ultrasound through the pork belly. This is a world record!
Figure 3. Diagram of our proposed SoniCam capsule endoscopy device that uses ultrasound to stream high-definition images of the small bowel using two cameras.
Figure 4. Illustration of the software displaying imaging results and the registered locations of the images in the small bowel.