Hitachi Medical Corporation

Hideki Okazaki

Takashi Kobayashi

Satoshi Tamano

Mikio Izumi

Sachie Yoshida

Akibiko Hanaoka

In an ultrasonic probe including an insert section which is to be inserted into a body cavity organ of a subject and a handle section which is coupled with the insert section, a plurality of vibrator elements () are disposed at a tip end of the insert section over the entire 360 degree circumference thereof and in the handle section, a connection change over switch () is disposed which successively changes over the electrical connection of a predetermined number of the vibrator elements among the plurality of the vibrator elements to be connected with a predetermined number of ultrasonic wave transmission and reception channels () in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus main body for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic wave signals. Accordingly, an ultrasonic probe which permits to collect ultrasonic wave images including tomograms and blood flow images of high quality without positional irregularity over the entire circumference of the insert section of the ultrasonic probe and to display the same, and an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using the same are obtained.

Ultrasonic probe and ultrasonic diagnostic device

An array of a plurality of ultrasonic transducers having a piezoelectric layerand a couple of electrodes-and-sandwiching the piezoelectric layer therebetween is provided. The piezoelectric layerhas a first piezoelectric layer-provided on the ultrasonic-wave emission side, a second piezoelectric layer-provided on the other side of the first piezoelectric layer-, and a common electrodeprovided therebetween. Each of the ultrasonic transducers has a low-frequency response distribution that is uniform in the minor-axis direction perpendicular to a direction in which the ultrasonic transducers are arranged and a high high-frequency response distribution at a center part in the minor-axis direction. The characteristics of the minor-axis-direction frequency and sound pressure of the first piezoelectric layer are complemented by those of the second piezoelectric layer, whereby a uniform frequency characteristic for a minor-axis-direction low frequency is obtained.

Growing community of inventors

Chiba, Japan

Hideki Okazaki