Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi Medical Corporation

Tomoko Takenaka

Akifumi Sako

Kazunari Ishida

Hiroki Tanaka

Kunio Hashiba

Chizue Ishihara

Mikio Izumi

Even when electroacoustic conversion elements with high nonlinearity are employed, a nonlinear imaging is carried out with extracting more nonlinear components. An ultrasonic wave beam is transmitted twice from the transmitter to an identical position on the imaging target, and the signal processor performs computation on the reception signals obtained in every transmission performed twice, thereby extracting a nonlinear component included in the reception signals. In one transmission out of the transmission performed twice, the transmitter delivers the transmission signal to all of multiple electroacoustic conversion elements for driving the electroacoustic conversion elements, and in the other transmission, the transmission signal is delivered selectively only to a part of the multiple electroacoustic conversion elements for driving the electroacoustic conversion elements.

Ultrasound imaging apparatus

In order to reduce the variation of transmitting and receiving sensitivity among a plurality of CMUT cells, an ultrasound diagnostic device comprises: a plurality of CMUT cells each having a vibrating membrane that vibrates when ultrasound is transmitted to or received from a subject; an upper electrode and a lower electrode disposed facing each other on mutually opposite sides of each of the CMUT cells to apply a bias voltage to each of the CMUT cells by a bias power supply; and transmitting and receiving correction units for each correcting the voltage supplied from the bias power supply by using a function using at least one parameter of the thickness and resonance frequency of the vibrating membrane of each of the CMUT cells.

Ultrasound diagnostic device and ultrasound probe

Disclosed is an ultrasonic probe comprising: CMUT cells () that mutually convert ultrasonic waves and electrical signals; a semiconductor substrate () that has a plurality of the CMUT cells () formed on the surface thereof; an acoustic lens () that is provided on the front face side of the CMUT cells (); and a backing layer () that is provided on the rear face side of the semiconductor substrate (). The backing layer () is formed by a first backing layer () that makes contact with the semiconductor substrate, and a second backing layer () that is provided on the rear face side of the backing layer (). The acoustic impedance of the backing layer () is set based on the sheet thickness of the semiconductor substrate (). The backing layer () is formed by attenuating material capable of attenuating ultrasonic waves transmitted through the backing layer (). Multiple reflection of reflection echoes is suppressed by setting the acoustic impedance of the backing layer () to match the acoustic impedance of the backing layer ().

Ultasound probe providing dual backing layer

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Tomoko Takenaka