Twelve years in the making, the camera was invented by Dr. Marvin Lasser, the Former Chief Scientist of the U.S. Army and Director of Research for Ford/Philco, and his son Bob Lasser, President & CEO of Imperium. As one of the pioneers of infrared technology, Dr. Lasser has turned his fascination with camera technology to the development of a digital camera that uses ultrasound imaging to see inside parts and materials.

 
‚“We started with CCD technology,‚” said Bob. ‚“Marvin invented a CCD that picks up megahertz ultrasound signals. In simple terms, he replaced the infrared material on the CCD chip with material that picks up ultrasound signals. An acoustic lens gathers the signals.‚”
The device, which is a camcorder for ultrasound, generates real time video of internal flaws, such as impact damage, voids, delaminations, disbonds, corrosion, and internal cracks. In many of these cases, the damage cannot be visually seen on the outside of these structures. The camera connects directly to a PC, so images are automatically downloaded for your analysis.

You do not need to be an ultrasound technician to read and interpret the images from the camera. The device was built to suit industrial, rather than medical, applications. You spray water or spread a gel-like medium onto the part you wish to examine and touch the probe onto the part. With the Acoustocam, you can check for corrosion and cracks, inspect welds, and check for missing components. Because the camera functions on the principal of detecting pressure waves, it is not invasive to the part under examination.