Butterfly Medical is expanding the use of its Butterfly iQ hand - held ultrasound device in the remoter areas of Africa , Asia and Latin America , where X - ray machines , CT and MRI machines may be a long distance from the patient . That’s where another aspect of the Butterfly comes in handy: iPhones make it easy to upload scans to the internet. The Connecticut firm is backed by family philanthropies including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation . Scanners , which are the size of an electric chair , have been donated to charities in 12 low - income countries . The device is currently used mainly for pneumonia checks but other uses are being developed .
Butterfly Medical is expanding the use of its Butterfly iQ hand - held ultrasound device in the remoter areas of Africa , Asia and Latin America , where X - ray machines , CT and MRI machines may be a long distance from the patient . The Connecticut firm is backed by family philanthropies including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation . Scanners , which are the size of an electric chair , have been donated to charities in 12 low - income countries . The device is currently used mainly for pneumonia checks but other uses are being developed .