Five applications of ultrasound that will change the world

Ultrasound can do more than just creating images of unborn babies. Since in the 1930s he became almost indispensable medical instrument, the production technology of sound waves that people cannot hear, has found application in almost all industries. The vibration that it creates, can kill bacteria, melting plastics and even help brandy to grow up in a matter of days, not years.

Today, the ultrasound finds application in the wider sector, encouraging inventions, which can lead to powerful changes. Before you several of these:

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truly intangible phones

We stand on the threshold of the emergence of a truly contactless alternative to touchscreen technology. Devices like Microsoft's Kinect can detect where you are and use this information as guidance. But positioning your hands in the right place to give the correct instructions, it is still rather difficult, and this gesture-controlled system is not yet widely used.

One company uses ultrasound to efficiently create invisible buttons in the air that you can feel. An array of ultrasonic transmitters produce and generates sound waves by creating small areas with tactile sensations on the skin in certain places. So instead of waving a hand and hope that she is in the right place, you immediately know when you have activated the gesture recognition.

This can make everyday devices, such as smartphones, completely waterproof, contactless and knowledgeable about the environment. This technology can also be combined with virtual reality systems, so you can feel your artificially created environment that will give a new dimension to video games and entertainment.

Rumor has it that the next generation of smartphones will use ultrasonic fingerprint recognition, so you don't even need to touch the phone to unlock it. These phones can even turn on the ultrasound for wireless charging, when ultrasound energy is converted into electrical energy in the phone. This energy will be projected from the transmitting device, stored for example on the wall of your house.

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Acoustic hologram

Ultrasound has long been used to create two-dimensional images of the body that can examine the doctors. But only recently appeared to develop, which may take a prominent place in medicine in the future — ultrasonic acoustic hologram.

In this method, ultrasound is used to move microparticles in a particular environment for the formation of the desired image. For example, projection of sound waves through a specially designed plate with a pattern in water, containing plastic particles, leads them to a particular alignment. Scientists believe that the acoustic hologram of this kind can be useful to improve medical imaging and to develop improved methods of ultrasonic treatment.

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Points for the blind

Another possible medical application of ultrasound can help blind people "see" just as bats can see by using echolocation. Instead of locking the reflected light waves to see objects, bats send out ultrasonic waves and use reflected sound to navigate in space. The echo gives information about the size and position of the object.

Scientists in California have created an ultrasonic helmet, which sends a similar ultrasonic waves. It then converts the reflected signals into audible sounds which the human brain can learn to turn into a detailed mental picture of the environment. Over time, this technology may become more practical and compact. Perhaps, even make special glasses.

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traction beams

Having sufficient power, you can use ultrasound to cause objects to levitate by means of one only of the sound waves and move them in different directions, like a tractor beam from science fiction. Scientists from Bristol University has shown that controlling and focusing sound waves from an array of ultrasonic sources, can create enough force to raise object the size of a bead from the ground.

The Rise of larger objects such as people, will require very high power levels, and it is not clear what harm the acoustic power can do to a person. But this technology has the potential to transform the field of medicine. For example, it can be used to move drugs through the body in the direction of the target cells.

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the Martian scanners

Ultrasound technology has long been viewed as a research tool. At sufficiently high power ultrasonic oscillations can be used for drilling dense enough material. This use was proposed when searching for underground oil and gas deposits. Ultrasonic echolocation can also be used as a sensor that helps aerial unmanned vehicles to avoid obstacles, to be able to send in a dangerous and remote places.

However, the research application is not restricted to planet Earth. If humans ever visit Mars, we need new methods of analysis of the Martian environment. Due to the low gravity on Mars a regular drill will not work with the usual strength, so scientists are considering the use of ultrasonic devices for collecting samples.

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