Hitachi, Ltd.

Fujifilm Healthcare Corporation

Renesas Electronics Corporation

Maxell, Ltd.

Fujifilm Corporation

Renesas Technology Corp.

Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd.

Shinya Kajiyama

Yutaka Igarashi

Kengo Imagawa

Yoshihiro Hayashi

Yohei Nakamura

Yuhua Zhang

Akihiko Kandori

Tatsuo Nakagawa

Yusaku Katsube

Masayoshi Ishibashi

Takuma Nishimoto

Shinichiro Wada

Satoshi Ueno

Shinta Takano

Kazuhiro Amino

Tadahiro Nabeta

Takayuki Iwashita

Riichiro Takemura

Takao Watanabe

Tomonori Sekiguchi

Taizo Yamawaki

Yutaka Shinagawa

Yoichiro Kobayashi

Hideo Kasai

Takahide Terada

Hiroshi Masuzawa

Makoto Mizuno

Ming Liu

Hiroyasu Yoshizawa

Yasuyuki Okuma

Yasushi Sugiyama

Ryosuke Ishida

Toru Yazaki

Hirofumi Kurimoto

Ichiro Somada

Joan Giner

Provided are a two-dimensional array ultrasonic probe and an addition circuit that switch an addition unit of a reception signal according to a reception channel of a main unit while preventing an increase in a chip area. The addition circuit includes, between addition output terminals that output an addition signal and transducer channels, wirings provided for each transducer channel row including the transducer channels arranged in a vertical direction on a subarray basis and coupled to the transducer channels of the corresponding transducer channel row, output switches provided for each of the wirings and coupled to the corresponding transducer channel row wiring, and an inter-output switch that couples wirings corresponding to transducer channel rows adjacent in the horizontal direction via the output switches.

Two-dimensional array ultrasonic probe and addition circuit

An ultrasonic probe including: a plurality of transducers; a plurality of low-noise amplifier circuits individually corresponding to the plurality of transducers, the plurality of low-noise amplifier circuits having a variable resistor feedback unit making a resistance value variable by an electrical signal inputted to a control terminal; and a control circuit; wherein the control circuit has a dummy circuit generating a bias voltage of a feedback unit of the low-noise amplifier circuit, and an adding circuit outputting an added signal of a bias voltage by the dummy circuit and a control signal increasing or decreasing with a lapse of time; and the plurality of low-noise amplifier circuits input an output of the adding circuit to the control terminal of the variable resistor feedback unit to perform variable control on a gain of the low-noise amplifier circuit.

Ultrasonic probe and ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using thereon

To provide a probe including a TGC circuit therein. The probe includes a plurality of receive circuits. Each receive circuit includes: an ultrasound transducer; a transmit/receive switch; a variable attenuator; a first capacitor; and an amplifier. The ultrasound transducer converts the receive signal into a ground level electric signal and outputs the ground level electric signal as a first output signal. The transmit/receive switch is connected to a first signal line, and switches depending on whether to output the first output signal output from the ultrasound transducer to the first signal line. The variable attenuator includes a control terminal and two terminals, and changes a resistance value between the two terminals other than the control terminal based on a control signal input to the control terminal. The amplifier has an input terminal connected to the first capacitor and includes at least an amplifier circuit configured to amplify an electric signal of the first signal line and output the amplified electric signal to a second signal line. In the variable attenuator, one of the two terminals other than the control terminal is connected to the first signal line, and the other terminal is connected to the ground via a second capacitor different from the first capacitor.

Probe and ultrasound diagnostic device using the same

An object of the present invention is to provide a technique of quantitatively measuring physical properties including both viscosity and elasticity. A viscoelasticity measurement system includes a measurement apparatus, a processor, and a display apparatus. The measurement apparatus includes a movable unit continuously pressed against a measurement object, a first sensor outputting acceleration information corresponding to an acceleration of pressing-directional movement of a contact portion of the movable unit with respect to the measurement object, and a second sensor outputting reactive force information corresponding to a reactive force applied to the contact portion of the movable unit with respect to the measurement object. The processor calculates first information on an elasticity component of the measurement object and second information on a viscosity component of the measurement object based on the acceleration information and the reactive force information. The display apparatus displays the first information and the second information.

Viscoelasticity calculation system and viscoelasticity measurement method

A two-dimensional array ultrasound probe, which is enabled for ultrasonic reception operation of a continuous wave Doppler mode (C mode) and an imaging mode (B mode). The probe includes a reception circuit provided for each transducer and a first multiplexer; a plurality of first wires connected to the first multiplexer; a second wire connected to a plurality of first wires outside the array; switches that are provided to the second wire and that can be turned off to adapt to phasing addition units; a plurality of second multiplexers connected to the second wire and a plurality of first output ports for the first mode; and a plurality of second output ports that are connected to each region between the switches on the second wire and that are used in the second mode.

Ultrasound probe enabled for ultrasound reception operation of at least two modes

A switch circuit connected to a transducer, a reception circuit connected to the switch circuit, a first switch element connected to a reception terminal provided between the switch circuit and the reception circuit, a first resistance element connected to a control terminal of the switch circuit, a second resistance element provided inside the reception circuit, and a second switch element provided inside the reception circuit are provided.

Ultrasonic probe, ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, and ultrasonic transmission/reception switching method

An ultrasonic probe includes: a plurality of transducers that perform electro-acoustic conversion on transmission pulses applied thereto to generate a transmission beam of ultrasonic waves; and transmission/reception circuits that are provided so as to correspond to each of the plurality of transducers. The transmission/reception circuits set transmission/reception switching timings at which the ultrasonic waves are switched from transmission to reception independently for each of the plurality of transducers.

Ultrasonic probe and ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus for image noise reduction by switching noise of the switching power supply to transmission

Provided is a probe which transmits an ultrasonic wave to a diagnostic site and receives a reception signal which is a reflected wave. The probe includes: a plurality of transducers; a plurality of low-noise amplifying circuits respectively corresponding to the plurality of transducers; and a single differential converter which converts a control signal rising with the elapse of time to a first bias signal rising with the elapse of time and a second bias signal falling with the elapse of time to control the plurality of low-noise amplifying circuits, and the low-noise amplifying circuit includes: an attenuator which attenuates an electric signal from the transducer; a first amplifying circuit which sets the first bias signal as a bias and amplifies an output signal of the attenuator to be gradually increased with the elapse of time; a second amplifying circuit which sets the second bias signal as a bias and amplifies the output signal of the attenuator to be gradually reduced with the elapse of time; and a subtractor which subtracts an output of the first amplifying circuit and an output of the second amplifying circuit.

Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and probe used for the same

An object of the present invention is to provide a technique of quantitatively measuring physical properties including both of viscosity and elasticity. A viscoelasticity measurement system includes a measurement apparatus, a processor, and a display apparatus. The measurement apparatus includes a movable unit continuously pressed against a measurement object, a first sensor outputting acceleration information corresponding to an acceleration of pressing-directional movement of a contact portion of the movable unit with respect to the measurement object, and a second sensor outputting reactive force information corresponding to a reactive force applied to the contact portion of the movable unit with respect to the measurement object. The processor calculates first information on an elasticity component of the measurement object and second information on a viscosity component of the measurement object based on the acceleration information and the reactive force information. The display apparatus displays the first information and the second information.

Provided is a probe which transmits an ultrasonic wave to a diagnostic site and receives a reception signal which is a reflected wave. The probe includes: a plurality of transducers; a plurality of low-noise amplifying circuits respectively corresponding to the plurality of transducers; and a single differential converter which converts a control signal rising with the elapse of time to a first bias signal rising with the elapse of time and a second bias signal falling with the elapse of time to control the plurality of low-noise amplifying circuits, and the low-noise amplifying circuit includes an attenuator which attenuates: an electric signal from the transducer; a first amplifying circuit which sets the first bias signal as a bias and amplifies an output signal of the attenuator to be gradually increased with the elapse of time; a second amplifying circuit which sets the second bias signal as a bias and amplifies the output signal of the attenuator to be gradually reduced with the elapse of time; and a subtractor which subtracts an output of the first amplifying circuit and an output of the second amplifying circuit.

An amplifier circuit includes a potential relation between a common emitter amplifier circuit (amplifier circuit body) including an NPN transistor (bipolar transistor) and a clamp circuit which maintains a potential relation between a base-collector of the NPN transistor of the common emitter amplifier circuit. The clamp circuit includes a level shift circuit and a clamp diode for suppressing a decrease in the collector potential of the NPN transistor of the common emitter amplifier circuit.

Amplifier circuit

An ultrasound diagnosis device includes: an ultrasound probe which transmits an ultrasound wave toward a examinee and receives a reflected wave from the examinee; and a main device which controls the transmitting and receiving of the ultrasound waves from the ultrasound probe and is operated to receive a receiving signal obtained by receiving the reflected wave from the examinee by the ultrasound probe, to generate an ultrasound image of the examinee, and to display the ultrasound image on a display screen, wherein the ultrasound probe includes a plurality of subarrays having a plurality of element circuits transmitting and receiving ultrasound signals and a plurality of reference voltage sources, and the plurality of subarrays and the plurality of reference voltage sources have a one-to-one correspondence.

Ultrasound probe and ultrasound diagnosis device using the same

Provided is a gyroscope including: a first inertial body that is displaceable in a first direction and a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; a second inertial body that is displaceable in the first direction and the second direction; a third inertial body that is displaceable in the first direction and the second direction; a fourth inertial body that is displaceable in the first direction and the second direction; a first connection unit that supports the first inertial body; a second connection unit that supports the second inertial body; a third connection unit that supports the third inertial body; a fourth connection unit that supports the fourth inertial body; and a connection body that is provided among the first inertial body, the second inertial body, the third inertial body, and the fourth inertial body and connects the first inertial body, the second inertial body, the third inertial body, and the fourth inertial body.

Vibratory gyroscope including a plurality of inertial bodies

A compact delay circuit that can dynamically change delay time is configured. A probe includes an analog memory unit that accumulates electric charges corresponding to a reflected wave of an ultrasonic wave produced by a difference between the acoustic impedances on a plurality of capacitorsand in turn outputs the electric charges accumulated on the capacitorsto an analog memory unit. In accumulating electric charges, when a control signal Ctls_l that increases delay time of the reflected wave is inputted, the analog memory unitaccumulates the same electric charges on two or more of the capacitorsfor a preset period, or in outputting electric charges, when a control signal Ctlo_l is inputted, the analog memory unitoutputs the electric charges accumulated on one of the capacitorsfor a preset period.

Ultrasound probe and ultrasound imaging apparatus using the same

A test for screening defects of a transmission/reception circuit in an IC is enabled at low cost, without withstand voltage violation, and without carrying out electrical contacts with many terminals connected to oscillators. In a transmission/reception separation switch circuit using transistors as switch elements, a potential of a gate is lowered in a test more than the potential in a case of reception to avoid gate-source withstand-voltage violation when a large-amplitude signal is input, and an internal-signal loopback test is carried out without destroying a reception circuit.

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Tokyo, Japan

Shinya Kajiyama