Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba

Tokyo Shibaura Electric Co., Ltd.

Tokyo Shibaura Denki Kabushiki Kaisha

Kinya Takamizawa

Kazuhiro Iinuma

Makoto Hirama

Yoshinori Suzuki

Satoshi Aida

Hiroshi Sasaki

Masayuki Nishiki

Akira Tsukamoto

Seiichiro Nagai

Ichiro Ogura

Ayao Itoh

Mikihito Hayashi

Shigemi Fujiwara

Masayuki Takano

Kenzo Matsumoto

Hironobu Hongo

Isao Uchiumi

Einoshin Itamura

Takeshi Kidokoro

Satoshi Yamazaki

A diagnostic ultrasound system capable of electronically controlling a beam width not only in a scan direction but also in a slice direction orthogonal to the scan direction despite a relatively small circuit scale. The system is provided with an ultrasonic probe having a plurality of ultrasonic transducers arranged two-dimensionally, and a transmitting/receiving unit for use in scanning an ultrasonic beam, which is transmitted and received by selectively driving the ultrasonic transducers, in the scan direction, and focusing the ultrasonic beam in the slice direction. A driving signal is supplied in common to a plurality of transducers elements adjoining in the slice direction. An echo signal converted by transducers is not only subjected to control of a specified delay time in the scan direction but also received in time sequence and then subjected to control of at least a specified delay time in the slice direction. The echo signal thus-processed is produced into an ultrasound image.

Diagnostic ultrasound imaging using two-dimensional transducer array

An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is used to obtain ultrasonic tomography images of subjects under examination. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention comprises an ultrasonic probe consisting of an array of transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves, driving means for producing driving signals to excite said transducer elements so that a transmitting beam is transmitted from the ultrasonic probe in a predetermined direction, receiving means for receiving ultrasonic reflected waves from within a subject under examination which form a receiving waves from a predetermined direction of reception by a predetermined number of elements of the plurality of transducer elements and outputting a receive signal, ultrasonic beam direction control means for controlling the driving signals and the receive signal so that the transmitting beam and the receiving waves cross each other within a predetermined region within the subject and the region where the transmitting beam and the receiving waves cross each other is shifted along the direction of the transmitting beam with time, and display means for displaying ultrasonic reflected waves received by the receiving means as an image.

Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus

In an ultrasonic imaging apparatus, ultrasound beams are diffused in the slice direction perpendicular to the scanning direction to thereby scan a three-dimensional region of a subject under examination with wide ultrasound beams. Thus, echoes are detected accumulated in the slice direction. Echoes from the surface of a region of interest, such as a fetus, are stronger than echoes from within the region of interest. As a consequence, an ultrasonic image is produced which approximates a surface image. The amount of data required to produce an ultrasonic image, the ultrasonic beam scanning procedure, and the signal processing system are the same as before, which permits real-time operation. A conventional ultrasonic imaging apparatus can be used without modification except a probe adapter for diffusing ultrasound beams in the slice direction.

A diagnostic apparatus for diagnosing the circulatory system of a patient, including an X-ray diagnostic system and an ultrasonic diagnostic system. The ultrasonic diagnostic system has an ultrasonic catheter for insertion into the circulatory systems of the patient and for scanning a circulatory organ with an ultrasonic wave to thereby an ultrasonic tomogram. A roadmap image is obtained prior to the ultrasonic diagnosis. When the ultrasonic catheter is inserted into the circulatory system of the patient, the X-ray diagnosis is performed to obtain a live image of the circulatory system which includes a picture of the catheter and is displayed overlapped on the roadmap image. The ultrasonic catheter is inserted into the circulatory system of the patient while the location of the catheter is monitored from the overlapped display of the live image and the roadmap image.

Diagnostic apparatus for circulatory systems

In an ultrasound diagnosis apparatus, a plurality of transducers arranged in an ultrasound probe are classified into two transducer groups. By using a parallel simultaneous reception method, ultrasound beams from an observation point of an object to be examined along a transmitting direction of an ultrasound beam are received by the transducer groups. In other words, echo signals from different directions at the observation point are received. Flow velocities are respectively calculated on the basis of the echo signals received by the transducer groups, and the calculated flow velocities are added and averaged.

Method and system for acquiring flow velocities in ultrasound diagnosis

An ultrasonic imaging apparatus comprises an ultrasonic transducer for outputting ultrasonic beams and converting echo waves of the ultrasonic beams to a B-mode echo signal corresponding to a B-mode for obtaining a tomographic image and a D-mode echo signal corresponding to a D-mode for obtaining Doppler data, a transmitter circuit for driving the transducer for generating the ultrasonic beams for scanning a subject, a receiver circuit including a gain control circuit for controlling the gain of the B-mode and D-mode echo signals output from the ultrasonic transducer so that the level of the B-mode echo signal is made to equal to that of the D-mode echo signal and for outputting gain-controlled echo signals, and A/D converter for converting the gain-controlled signals to digital signals, and a delay/addition circuit for delaying the digital signals and adding them to output a received signal, a B-mode processor circuit for producing a B-mode image signal from the received signal, a D-mode processor circuit for producing Doppler data from the received signal, and a display for displaying the B-mode image signal and D-mode data.

Ultrasonic imaging apparatus

A measuring apparatus for an ultrasonic velocity in a region of interest within a medium includes an array transducer, and a velocity measuring circuit. The transducer is constructed of a plurality of transducer elements which are subdivided into at least first and second transmitting sections and first and second receiving sections with having a distance. First and second ultrasonic beams are emitted from the first and second transmitting sections to the ROI under the condition that the transmitting beam axis is intersected by the receiving ultrasonic beam axis. Then, the first and second receiver sections receives in total four echoes reflected from four corners of the ROI. The velocity measuring circuit calculates the propagation time of the ultrasonic beams and finally the ultrasonic velocity based upon the propagation time.

Method and apparatus for measuring ultrasonic velocity by crossed beam

A probe for an electronic scanning type ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus in which a plurality of real transducers and one or more pseudo-transducers are arranged in a row on a supporting plate. In order to equalize the ultrasonic directivity characteristics of each of the real transducers, the pseudo-transducers are arranged adjacent to the real transducers which are located at the ends of the row, and have approximately the same shape and dimensions as the real transducers.

Probe for electronic scanning type ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus

An ultrasound hyperthermia apparatus has a tomographic ultrasound probe for obtaining a tomographic image and a heating applicator for heating a tumor portion. A position detector is provided to detect the positional relationship of the tomographic ultrasound probe and the heating applicator with respect to a living organism, and a hot spot detector detects the position of a focusing point, i.e., a hot spot of the ultrasound radiated from the heating applicator in accordance with position data from the position detector, thereby generating an image signal indicating the hot spot. The image signal indicating the hot spot is superimposed on a tomographic image signal, and the hot spot is displayed on a TV monitor together with the tomographic image.

Ultrasound hyperthermia apparatus

In an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using an array type transducer probe, wherein improved tomographic image resolution is desired by electronically focusing ultrasonic wave toward an object to be examined in both directions, i.e., the array direction and the lens direction. During first scanning of the ultrasonic transducer array in the array direction, the signals received from the probe are synthesized in phase with respect to each other via delay lines having predetermined delay times to obtain first scanned signals in real time, so that focusing the reflected ultrasonic wave can be electronically accomplished in the array direction. After this first scanning, the probe is mechanically moved to a given position in the lens direction normal to the array direction. Then a second scanning operation is accomplished to obtain similar first scanned signals. All of the first scanned signals are processed by a delay time control circuit, digitized, and then stored. Finally, all of the stored first scanned signals are read out and synthesized in phase with respect to each other by an adder circuit to obtain second scanned signals, so that focusing the reflected ultrasonic wave can be accomplished in the lens direction. The resultant second scanned signals are converted into analogue signals to be displayed as a tomographic image of the desired diagnostic part in the object.

An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus has a probe for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic wave and an amplitude-detecting circuit, and in operation transmits an ultrasonic wave into an organism while the organism is scanned by the probe and amplitude-detects a received signal reflected from the inside of the organism, thereby to obtain a tomographic image of the organism. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus further includes a phase detecting circuit and an ultrasonic drive circuit. The ultrasonic drive circuit alternately supplies to the probe a first drive signal for obtaining tomographic image information and a second drive signal for obtaining blood flow information, scans in a direction of the ultrasonic wave transmission according to the first drive signal and sets the ultrasonic wave transmitting direction according to the second drive signal to a desired direction for obtaining blood flow information. Blood flows information may be obtained for a specific point, a specific line, a specific area, or for a specific area in synchronism with the organism's heartbeat. Thereby, the tomographic image information of the organism and the blood flow information as well are simultaneously obtained.

An ultrasonic diagnostic equipment of linear electric scanning type includes a plurality of pulse generators for supplying electric pulses to a plurality of ultrasonic transducers disposed on a plane, gate circuits for driving the pulse generator, a plurality of analogue switching circuits for selecting the reflected ultrasonic pulse signals received by the ultrasonic transducers, and a control circuit for controlling these pulse generators and switching circuits. The control circuit synchronizingly controls the operations of the gate circuits and analogue switching circuits in order to operate a given number of ultrasonic transducers of the plural of the ultrasonic transducers. The pulse generator and switching circuit are provided corresponding to each transducer.

Ultrasonic diagnostic equipment

A probe for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is provided which has a supporting plate and a plurality of electro-acoustic transducers arranged in a line on the supporting plate. A thin film with flexibility and watertightness is attached to the electro-acoustic transducers so that the spaces between the adjacent electro-acoustic transducers are hermetically sealed. The result is a reduction in the acoustic coupling between the adjacent transducers.

Probe for ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus

An ultrasonic wave transmitting and receiving apparatus comprises a plurality of electrical-acoustic converting elements arranged in the same plane; a clock pulse generator; a plurality of first switching circuits coupled between the clock pulse generator and each of the electrical-acoustic converting elements; a data signal receiving circuit; a plurality of second switching circuits coupled between the data signal receiving circuit and each of the electrical-acoustic converting elements; a first control circuit adapted to control the first switching circuit so as to radiate a beam of ultrasonic wave from the electrical-acoustic converring element into a to-be-measured subject by sequentially supplying the clock pulse of the clock pulse generator; and to control the second switching circuit so as to sequentially supply to the data signal receiving circuit an electric signal generated from the electrical-acoustic converring element which receives a beam of ultrasonic wave reflected from the subject; three memories coupled to the data signal receiving circuit; a second control circuit adapted to control the memories so as to sequentially write at a predetermined rate data signals from the data signal receiving circuit into the memories and, when the data signal is being written into one of the memories, read data at a rate higher than the predetermined rate from the remaining memories; and an addition circuit adapted to add together the readout data signal from the memories so as to deliver an output.

Ultrasonic wave transmitting and receiving apparatus

Provided is an ultrasonic wave transmitting and receiving apparatus comprising a plurality of electro-acoustic conversion elements linearly arranged on a flat plane, means for selectively delaying an electrical signal being supplied to or an electrical signal being supplied from the electro-acoustic conversion element so that the ultrasonic wave beams emitted respectively from the electro-acoustic conversion elements may be substantially deflected and scanned to such an extent that the centers of the beams do not intersect each other within a range of field to be examined, a receiver for receiving the ultrasonic wave beam reflected within the field range, through the electro-acoustic conversion elements and the delay means, and means for displaying a picture image of an object to be examined in accordance with an electrical signal from the receiver by using equidistant and parallel scanning lines.

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Yokohama, Japan

Kinya Takamizawa