Yokogawa Medical Systems, Limited

Ge Yokogawa Medical Systems, Limited

Yokogawa Hokushin Electric Corp.

General Electric Company

Yokogawa Electric Works, Ltd.

Yasuhito Takeuchi

Shinichi Sano

Takao Higashiizumi

Keiki Yamaguchi

Toru Shimazaki

Takao Jibiki

Yuichi Hirota

Hideya Akasaka

Yoshiro Tamezumi

Hiroshi Hashimoto

Richard Yung Chiao

Anne Lindsay Hall

Kai Erik Thomenius

Shigeru Inoue

Naoki Seki

Motoyoshi Ando

Shinichi Ishiguro

Toshikatsu Kodama

Tsuyoshi Kakizawa

In performing tissue-generated harmonic imaging using coded excitation, the transmit waveform for acquiring the N-th harmonic signal is biphase (1,&minus;1) encoded using two code symbols of a code sequence, the portions (i.e., chips) of the transmit waveform encoded with the second code symbol each being phase-shifted by 180&deg;/N relative to the chips encoded with the first code symbol. This is implemented by time shifting the portions (i.e., chips) of the transmit sequence which are encoded with the second code symbol by &frac12;N fractional cycle at center frequency relative to the chips of the transmit sequence encoded with the first code symbol. During reception, the desired harmonic signal is isolated by a bandpass filter centered at twice the fundamental frequency and enhanced with decoding.

Enhanced tissue-generated harmonic imaging using coded excitation

In order to choke a capillary vessel of a man with an expanded microballoon, a microballoon,is injected into a blood flow system of a man,, and the microballoon,is expanded by warming a predefined region,in the man to increase the temperature of the region.

Blood flow blocking method and warming apparatus

In order to obtain an image of a microballoon contrast agent with sharpness, the invention comprises means for generating ultrasound 522 by thermally exciting the microballoon contrast agent infused in a subject to cause the microballoons to resonate, and means for producing an image 514 based on the generated ultrasound.

Imaging system and method using thermally excited microballoons

In order to reduce the impedance of an ultrasonic transducer array, an ultrasonic probe is provided in which a plurality of holes 34 are disposed running in the thickness direction of a piezoelectric material plate 32 and electrodes 36 are provided on the internal walls of the holes so as to exploit the ultrasonic vibration of the wall of piezoelectric material between the adjacent holes according to the electromechanical coupling coefficient k.sub.31. An ultrasonic imaging apparatus employing such an ultrasonic probe is also provided.

Method of manufacturing an ultrasonic probe and the ultrasonic probe and

Composite piezo-electric members having an intended structure are fabricated based on the LIGA process which includes the exposure of synchrotron radiation X-rays, development and lithography. With the intention of reducing the cost of the X-ray exposure mask, it is made of wire gauze having a regular pattern and formed by electrocasting.

Method of fabricating composite piezo-electric members and a mask used

An ultrasonic imaging apparatus devised to implement contrast imaging of enhanced S/N ratios. The apparatus comprises: an exciting unit for generating ultrasonic waves by stimulating a contrast medium introduced into a target object; a contrast image creating unit for creating a contrast image based on the ultrasonic waves generated through stimulation; an echo generating unit for generating echoes of the ultrasonic waves transmitted into the target object; an echo image creating unit for creating an echo image based on the generated echoes; and a display unit for superimposing the contrast image and the echo image for display.

Ultrasonic imaging method and apparatus

A method and apparatus for ultrasonically producing 3-dimensional images in real time, wherein a device transmits an ultrasonic wave toward a solid bearing angle obtained by dividing into multiple portions a solid bearing angle subtended by a sonic field to be examined, and receives echoes therefrom, with the transmitted waves being sequential and the received echoes being concurrent multiple waves from each small solid angle, and a device for producing the 3-dimensional images by range gating the received echo signals in the depth direction of the sonic field being examined and then producing direct vision images in the direction of the transmitted ultrasonic waves based on the echo signals, wherein the range gated signals are quadrature detected in one embodiment and/or are subjected to 2-dimensional Fourier transformation in another embodiment.

Method and apparatus for ultrasound imaging

A stereoscopic ultrasonic imaging apparatus for displaying in a short time an ultrasonic image giving a sense of perspective. The apparatus comprises: two two-dimensional ultrasonic receiving element arrays arranged a predetermined distance apart; an orthoscopic image generation unit for generating a plurality of orthoscopic images of an observed surface perpendicularly intersecting an ultrasonic beam applied, the orthoscopic images having a predetermined parallax therebetween and generated on the basis of received ultrasonic data obtained by the element arrays; and a stereoscopic display unit for displaying stereoscopically the orthoscopic images generated by the orthoscopic image generation unit.

Method and apparatus for stereoscopic ultrasonic imaging

The present invention comprises: a search unit; a hollow guide for stabbing a subject; a manipulating device for protruding the search unit out of the tip of the guide and for moving the search unit along a predetermined orbit; device for transmitting/receiving the ultrasound during the movement by the manipulating means along the orbit; and device for producing an image based on the received echo signal by means of an aperture synthesis technique.

Ultrasound imaging methods and apparatus

A method of displaying an ultrasonic image and an apparatus for ultrasonic diagnosis of this invention are capable of displaying C-mode ultrasonic image without the need of a probe moving mechanism and a probe movement controller. The linear images produced from the B-mode image data sampled along the scanning planes P(y1,t1).about.P(y5,t5) and in the constant depth z1 are displayed by being arrayed in the order of sampling times t of each linear image.

Method of displaying ultrasonic image and apparatus for ultrasonic

Pulse doppler MTI system

Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus

Ultrasonic diagnostic system

Ultrasonic transducer

A diagnostic imaging apparatus is disclosed in which an ultrasonic wave transmit/receive apparatus is used in common for both 2-dimensional B-mode imaging and for measurement of pulsed Doppler signals, by time sharing operation. The good real time characteristics of 2-dimensional B-mode imaging are retained, together with a sufficiently high data rate for pulsed Doppler measurement, through use of simple means for performing interpolation in the Doppler signals Ultrasonic wave transmit/receive means (21,23 to 25,27) repetitively execute combinations of ultrasonic wave transmit/receive sequences, each combination consisting of a plurality of pulsed Doppler mode ultrasonic wave transmit/receive sequences and a single 2-dimensional B-mode imaging ultrasonic wave transmit/receive sequence. Demodulator means (38 to 41) demodulate the Doppler signals, based on the received signals that are acquired during the pulsed Doppler mode ultrasonic wave transmit/receive sequences. Sampling means (42 to 44) perform range gate sampling of the demodulated Doppler signals, and interpolation means (45) interpolate sampling values into the Doppler signal to replace sampling values which are lost during execution of the 2-dimensional B-mode imagaing ultrasonic wave transmit/receive sequences. Doppler signal processing means (46 to 48 ) perform processing of the sampling signals following interpolation. 2-dimensional B-mode imaging means process the received signal that is acquired by the 2-dimensional B-mode imaging sequences.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Yasuhito Takeuchi