The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 10, 2012
Filed:
Feb. 18, 2009
Hideki Kosaku, Nasushiobara, JP;
Akinori Shigihara, Otawara, JP;
Takashi Kubota, Nasushiobara, JP;
Yutaka Oonuki, Otawara, JP;
Hideki Kosaku, Nasushiobara, JP;
Akinori Shigihara, Otawara, JP;
Takashi Kubota, Nasushiobara, JP;
Yutaka Oonuki, Otawara, JP;
Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Tokyo, JP;
Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, Otawara-shi, JP;
Abstract
The present invention provides an ultrasound probe in which bend of a tip part is fixed only in a state that it is not bent in a direction orthogonal to a direction in which ultrasonic waves are emitted from an ultrasound generation source. To be specific, the ultrasound probe includes: a rod-like tip part inserted into a body cavity; an ultrasound emitting part placed at the tip part to emit ultrasonic waves to a subject; a first bending part for bending the tip part in a direction substantially orthogonal to the emission direction; and a fixing part configured to, when the first bending part is not bending the tip part toward any side of the direction orthogonal to the emission direction, lock a rotation member of the first bending part and inhibit the first bending part from bending the tip part in the direction substantially orthogonal to the emission direction.