Hitachi Aloka Medical, Ltd.

The University of Tokyo

Koji Ogawa

Ryoichi Sakai

Eiichi Minagawa

Kozo Nakamura

Isao Onishi

Koichi Miyasaka

Masaru Murashita

Satoru Ohashi

Koji Hirota

Juntaro Matsuyama

Kenji Tobita

An acoustic matching device has a water bag () that contains water and a water bag support frame () that sandwiches and supports the water bag on the left and right sides of the knee and curves along the knee cap. The water bag becomes a plate shape curved along the shape of the water bag support frame, which touches the knee cap and fits the unevenness of the knee. When an ultrasonic probe is moved along the knee cap, the acoustic matching between the knee cap and the ultrasonic probe is obtained.

Knee acoustic matching device for ultrasonic probe

A mounting unit () is aligned by using a mounting unit frame () touching the thigh and a knee-contacting portion () touching the knee, with the knee being bent. The mounting unit is also equipped with a probe support frame () used for moving an ultrasonic probe along the knee cap. The probe support frame moves rotationally about the mechanical center of the knee joint, thereby allowing the ultrasonic probe () to move along the knee cap while facing toward the mechanical center of the knee joint and to perform scanning of an ultrasonic beam.

Ultrasonic probe support device

An oscillation arm moves in a seesaw fashion about an oscillation axis which is supported by a support rod and which serves as a fulcrum. A rotation arm and a pressurizer are provided on one end of the oscillation arm. One end of the rotation arm is rotatably attached to the oscillation arm, and a load weight is placed on the other end of the rotation arm. By rotating the rotation arm, the magnitude of a force to be applied by the load weight to the pressurizer is adjusted. More specifically, by displacing the load weight to a predetermined position by rotation and then causing the load weight to stop at this position, a static load corresponding to the rotation angle can be applied to the pressurizer. Further, by causing the load weight to perform rotational motion, the magnitude of the force to be applied to the pressurizer is periodically varied, so that a load which varies periodically can be applied to hard tissue.

Load apparatus

Provided is a bone inspecting system for placing the lower legs (L) of an examinee (P) on a proximal support block () and a distal support block () mounted on a turning base (). The proximal support block supports the heads of fibula, and the distal support block supports the lateral malleolus or medial malleolus of a tibial distal end of the examinee. The turning base is supported turnably on a turning axis positioned near the knees of the examinee, with respect to a main base (), and is moved up and down by an elevating mechanism () disposed near the ankles. The turning base () is turned by the elevating mechanism while bearing the lower legs thereon, thereby positioning the lower legs horizontally.

Bone inspecting system, and lower leg supporting device

Growing community of inventors

Mitaka, Japan

Koji Ogawa