KR20150000627A - Ultrasonic imaging apparatus and control method for thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are an ultrasonic imaging apparatus and a control method thereof, capable of providing an intuitive ultrasonic image. The ultrasonic imaging apparatus according to one embodiment of the ultrasonic imaging apparatus includes a flexible probe which emits an ultrasonic wave to an object, receives an ultrasonic echo reflected from the object, and has a planar shape, an image processing unit which tracks the gaze of an operator from the image to photograph the operator and generates an ultrasonic image by processing 3D volume data obtained by the ultrasonic echo according to the tracked gaze, and a flexible display which is formed on one side of the flexible probe, displays the ultrasonic image, and has a planar shape.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an ultrasound imaging apparatus and a control method thereof,

An ultrasonic imaging apparatus and a control method thereof are disclosed. And more particularly, to an ultrasound imaging apparatus and a control method thereof that can provide an intuitive ultrasound image.

Medical imaging devices include X-ray imaging devices, X-ray fluoroscopy devices, CT scanners, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Positron Emission Tomography (PET), ultrasound imaging devices And the like.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus is a device that irradiates ultrasonic waves into a target object and non-invasively obtains tomographic images or blood flow images of the internal tissues of the target based on ultrasound echoes reflected from the inside of the target object.

Ultrasonic imaging devices are smaller and cheaper than other medical imaging devices, and are advantageous in that they can be displayed in real time. In addition, there is no risk that the patient is exposed to radiation such as X-rays, which is advantageous in stability. Therefore, ultrasound imaging devices are widely used for diagnosis of heart, breast, abdomen, urinary and obstetrics.

There is provided an ultrasound imaging apparatus and its control method capable of providing an intuitive ultrasound image.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an ultrasonic imaging apparatus including: a planar flexible probe for irradiating ultrasound to a target object and receiving ultrasound echoes reflected from the target object; An image processor for tracking the operator's gaze from the image of the operator and processing the three-dimensional volume data obtained from the ultrasound echo according to the tracked gaze to generate an ultrasound image; And a planar flexible display provided on one surface of the flexible probe for displaying the ultrasound image.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling an ultrasonic imaging apparatus, the method comprising: receiving an ultrasonic echo reflected from the object by irradiating ultrasonic waves to the object using a planar flexible probe; Tracking an operator's line of sight from an image of an operator and generating an ultrasound image by processing the 3D volume data obtained from the ultrasonic echo according to the tracked line of sight; And displaying the ultrasound image through a flexible display on a surface of the flexible probe.

Since the flexible flexible probe and the flexible display are integrated, it is possible to provide an intuitive ultrasound image.

1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of an ultrasound imaging apparatus.
2 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the ultrasound imaging apparatus.
3 is a block diagram of an embodiment of an ultrasound imaging apparatus.
4 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a transmit beamformer.
5 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a receive beamformer.
6 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of the image processing unit.
FIGS. 7A and 7B are views for explaining a cross-sectional image generated in the image processor of FIG.
8 is a diagram for explaining a projection image generated by the image processing unit of FIG.
9 is a configuration diagram of another embodiment of the image processing unit.
10 is a configuration diagram of another embodiment of the image processing unit.
11 is a flowchart showing a control method of the ultrasound imaging apparatus including the image processing unit of FIG.
12 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of the ultrasound imaging apparatus including the image processing unit of FIG.
13 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of the ultrasound imaging apparatus including the image processing unit of FIG.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The advantages and features of the present invention and the manner of achieving them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. To fully disclose the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art, and the invention is only defined by the scope of the claims.

Hereinafter, embodiments of an ultrasound imaging apparatus and a control method thereof will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference numerals designate like elements.

The disclosed ultrasound imaging apparatus irradiates ultrasound to a target site of a target object and converts the ultrasound echo reflected from a target site of the target object into an electrical signal. And obtains an ultrasound image of the target site based on the electrical signal.

1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of an ultrasound imaging apparatus.

As shown in FIG. 1, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 may include a body 201 and a belt 290 provided on the body 201.

The body 201 may be provided with a flexible probe 230, a flexible display 220, and a photographing unit 210.

The flexible probe 230 is a portion that contacts the body surface of the object 10 and may have a planar shape, for example, a rectangular shape. Although not shown in the drawing, the flexible probe 230 may include a flexible substrate and a plurality of ultrasonic elements T provided on a flexible substrate.

The flexible substrate can be bent, folded, or bent. Examples of the material of the flexible substrate include a plastic substrate (polymer film), a metal foi, a thin glass, and the like.

The plurality of ultrasound elements T irradiate the inside of the target body 10 with ultrasound waves and receive ultrasound echoes reflected inside the target body 10 and convert them into electrical signals. For example, the ultrasonic element T may include an ultrasonic wave generating element for generating an ultrasonic wave and an ultrasonic receiving element for receiving the ultrasonic wave echo and converting the ultrasonic wave into an electric signal. As another example, both the ultrasonic wave generation and the ultrasonic echo reception may be performed in one ultrasonic wave element T.

The ultrasonic element T may be an ultrasound transducer. A transducer is a device that converts a given type of energy into another type of energy. For example, an ultrasonic transducer can convert electrical energy into wave energy and wave energy into electrical energy. In other words, the ultrasonic transducer can perform both the function of the ultrasonic wave generating element and the function of the ultrasonic wave receiving element.

More specifically, the ultrasonic transducer may include a piezoelectric material or a piezoelectric thin film. If an alternating current is applied to the piezoelectric material or the piezoelectric thin film from an internal power storage device such as a battery or an external power supply device, the piezoelectric material or the piezoelectric thin film vibrates at a predetermined frequency, and ultrasonic waves of a predetermined frequency are generated do. On the other hand, when the ultrasonic echo of a predetermined frequency reaches the piezoelectric material or the piezoelectric thin film, the piezoelectric material or the piezoelectric thin film vibrates according to the frequency of the ultrasonic echo reached. At this time, the piezoelectric material or the piezoelectric thin film outputs an alternating current having a frequency corresponding to the vibration frequency.

Ultrasonic transducers include magnetostrictive ultrasonic transducers that utilize the magnetostrictive effects of magnetic materials, piezoelectric ultrasonic transducers that use the piezoelectric effect of piezoelectric materials, vibrations of hundreds or thousands of microfabricated thin films And a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves using the ultrasonic transducer. In addition, other types of transducers capable of generating ultrasonic waves according to electrical signals or generating electrical signals according to ultrasonic waves can also be used as ultrasonic transducers.

For example, a plurality of ultrasonic transducers may be arranged in a matrix form on a flexible substrate. Since a plurality of ultrasonic transducers are arranged in a matrix form, three-dimensional volume data can be obtained by one ultrasonic transmission.

As another example, a plurality of ultrasonic transducers may be arranged in a line on a flexible substrate, but may be implemented to be movable on a flexible substrate. Specifically, rails (not shown) may be provided at both ends of a plurality of transducers arranged in a row in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which a plurality of transducers are arranged. A plurality of transducers arranged in a row may be moved along the rail in a scanning direction to acquire a plurality of ultrasound images. When a plurality of ultrasound images are acquired, they can be accumulated to acquire three-dimensional volume data.

In the following description, a case where a plurality of ultrasonic transducers are arranged in a matrix form on a flexible substrate will be described as an example.

The flexible display 220 is provided on the upper portion of the flexible probe 230. Like the flexible probe 230, the flexible display 220 may have a planar shape, for example, a rectangular shape. The flexible display 220 may be implemented by, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), or an EPD (Electrophoretic Display).

The flexible display 220 may include a flexible substrate and a thin film transistor array (TFT array) formed on the flexible substrate.

The flexible substrate can be bent, folded, or bent. Examples of the material of the flexible substrate include a plastic substrate (polymer film), a metal foi, a thin glass, and the like.

The TFT array means a plurality of TFTs arranged. A TFT is provided for each pixel of the display screen. A TFT is a kind of a field effect transistor in which a current flowing in a thin film semiconductor is controlled by applying an electric field perpendicular thereto. Although not shown in the figure, the TFT may include a source electrode and a drain electrode formed on a substrate, a semiconductor thin film formed over the source electrode and the drain electrode, an insulating film formed on the semiconductor thin film, and a gate formed on the insulating film. The source electrode and the drain electrode can be made, for example, by depositing aluminum or indium on the substrate. The semiconductor thin film can be made, for example, by depositing cadmium sulfide (CdS) on the electrode. The insulating film can be formed, for example, by depositing silicon oxide (SiO ₂ ) on a semiconductor thin film.

The flexible display 220 may have a display function. For example, the flexible display 220 may display an ultrasound image. Examples of the ultrasound image include a sectional image obtained from three-dimensional volume data, and a projection image obtained by volume rendering of three-dimensional volume data based on a predetermined point in time. The kind of ultrasound image to be displayed through the flexible display 220 can be preset by the operator. The set value may be stored in the storage unit (see 280 in FIG. 3) of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200.

The flexible display 220 may have an input function in addition to the display function. For example, the flexible display 220 may be implemented as a touch display. In this case, a menu such as a picture or a letter may be displayed on the display screen of the flexible display 220. The menu may be displayed in a separate area from the ultrasound image, or superimposed on the ultrasound image. The operator can input an instruction or command for operating the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 by holding a finger or a stylus on the displayed menu. In addition, the operator may mark the lesion area in the ultrasound image using a hand or a stylus.

If the flexible display 220 has only a display function, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 is provided with an input unit (not shown) through which an operator can input an instruction or a command and / or an instruction or command input by the operator from the external apparatus A communication unit (not shown) for receiving data from an external device may be additionally provided. The communication unit can receive an instruction or command from an external device through wired communication and / or wireless communication.

The main components of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 may be accommodated between the flexible probe 230 and the flexible display 220. For example, the control unit 240, the transmission beamformer 250, the reception beamformer 260, the image processing unit 270, and the storage unit 280 shown in FIG. 3 may be accommodated. A detailed description of these components will be given later with reference to FIG.

The photographing unit 210 can photograph an operator and acquire an image for the operator. Specifically, the photographing unit 210 may include an intrafed emitter for projecting infrared light with an operator's eye and a camera for photographing infrared light reflected from the cornea of the operator. The infrared light emitters may be implemented with, for example, an infrared light emitting diode (LED). The image obtained by the camera can be used to track the operator's gaze. Specifically, the degree of reflection of infrared rays changes depending on the direction of the line of sight. Therefore, the direction of the line of sight of the operator can be calculated based on the reflected infrared rays.

The number and position of the photographing unit 210 can be variously modified.

For example, as shown in FIG. 1, two photographing units 210 may be provided on the edge of the flexible display 220. In this case, as shown in FIG. 1, the two photographing units 210 are disposed at the center of the edge of the flexible display 220, and the two photographing units 210 may be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance. Although not shown in the drawing, the two photographing units 210 may be installed at the left and right corners of the flexible display 220, respectively.

As another example, as shown in FIG. 2, one photographing unit 210 may be provided at the edge of the flexible display 220. In this case, the photographing unit 210 may be installed at the center of the edge of the flexible display 220, as shown in FIG. However, the position of the photographing unit 210 is not limited to this, and may be provided at any one of the four corners of the flexible display 220.

As another example, the photographing unit 210 may be equipped with equipment that can be worn on the operator's head, such as glasses, goggles, a headset, and the like. In this case, the image photographed by the photographing unit 210 can be transmitted to the body 201 by wire communication or wireless communication.

The belt 290 may be provided at both ends of the body 201. The belt 290 serves to secure the body 201 to the subject, e.g., the abdomen of the patient. In addition, the belt 290 functions to bring the flexible probe 230 into close contact with the object. The belt 290 can be configured to be adjustable in length. The belt 290 may also be made of a stretchable material.

3 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200. As shown in FIG.

3, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 includes an imaging unit 210, a flexible display 220, a flexible probe 230, a controller 240, a transmission beam paver 250, a reception beam former 260 An image processing unit 270, and a storage unit 280.

The description of the photographing unit 210, the flexible display 220, and the flexible probe 230 has been described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, and a description thereof will be omitted.

The control unit 240 can control the overall operation of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200. Specifically, the control unit 240 controls the transmission beamformer 250, the reception beamformer 260, the image processing unit 270, the storage unit 280, and the flexible display (not shown) corresponding to instructions or commands received from the operator or external device 220). ≪ / RTI > For example, when an operator marks a lesion area using a hand or a stylus, the control section 240 displays a solid line or the like in an area marked by the operator so that the area can be distinguished from other areas.

The transmit beamformer 250 may perform transmit beamforming. The transmission beamforming refers to focusing ultrasound generated from at least one ultrasonic element T at a focal point. That is, it refers to generating ultrasonic waves in the ultrasonic element T by setting an appropriate order in order to overcome the time difference in which the ultrasonic waves generated in the at least one ultrasonic element T reach the focus. For a more detailed description of transmission beamforming, reference is made to Fig.

4 is a block diagram showing the transmission beamformer 250. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the transmission beamformer 250 may include a transmission signal generator 251 and a time delay unit 252.

The transmission signal generator 251 can generate a transmission signal (high frequency AC current) to be applied to at least one ultrasonic element T according to a control signal of the controller 240. [ The transmission signal generated by the transmission signal generator 251 is provided to the time delay unit 252.

The time delay unit 252 can adjust the time for each transmission signal to reach each ultrasonic element T by applying a time delay to each transmission signal generated by the transmission signal generator 251. [ When a transmission signal delayed by the time delay unit 252 is applied to the ultrasonic element T, the ultrasonic element T generates an ultrasonic wave corresponding to the frequency of the transmission signal. The ultrasonic waves generated in each ultrasonic element T are focused at a focal point. The position of the focal point at which the ultrasonic wave generated from the ultrasonic element T is focused may vary depending on what type of delay pattern is applied to the transmission signal.

More specifically, in Fig. 4, five ultrasonic elements t1 to t5 are illustrated. Three delay patterns that can be applied to the transmission signals are illustrated by bold solid lines, medium-thick solid lines, and thin solid lines.

If a delay pattern of a thick solid line is applied to the transmission signals generated by the transmission signal generation unit 251, the ultrasonic waves generated in the respective ultrasonic elements t1 to t5 are transmitted to the first focus F ₁ , Lt; / RTI >

If a delay pattern having the same shape as a solid thick solid line is applied to each transmission signal generated by the transmission signal generation unit 251, the ultrasonic waves generated in each of the ultrasonic elements t1 to t5 are transmitted to the first focal point F ₁₎ than is focused in a distant second focus (F _2).

If, when applying the form of delay patterns such as a thin solid line for each transmission signal generated in transmission signal generation unit 251, the ultrasonic waves generated from each ultrasound element (t1 ~ t5) to the second focus (F ₂₎ And focused at a third focus F ₃ farther away.

As described above, the position of the focus is changed according to the delay pattern applied to the transmission signal generated in the transmission signal generating unit 251. Therefore, when only one delay pattern is applied, the ultrasonic waves irradiated to the object 10 are fixed-focused. If different delay patterns are applied, the ultrasound emitted to the object 10 is multi-focused.

As described above, the ultrasonic waves generated from the respective ultrasonic elements T are fixedly focused at one point or multi-focused at several points. The focused ultrasound is irradiated into the object 10. Ultrasonic waves irradiated into the object 10 are reflected at the target site in the object 10. The ultrasonic echo reflected at the target site is received by the ultrasonic element (T). Then, the ultrasonic element T converts the received ultrasonic echo into an electric signal. Hereinafter, the converted electric signal is called a reception signal (ultrasonic echo signal). The received signal output from the ultrasonic element T is amplified and filtered, and then converted into a digital signal and provided to the reception beamformer 260.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the receive beamformer 260 may perform receive beamforming on the received signal converted into a digital signal. The reception beamforming means that the parallax existing between the reception signals output from the respective ultrasonic elements T is corrected and focused. For a more detailed description of receive beamforming, reference is made to Fig.

5 is a block diagram illustrating a receive beamformer 260. In FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the reception beamformer 260 may include a time correction section 262 and a focusing section 261.

The time difference corrector 262 delays the received signals output from the respective ultrasonic elements T for a predetermined time so that the received signals can be transmitted to the focusing unit 261 at the same time.

The focusing unit 261 can converge the received signals whose parallax is corrected by the time difference correction unit 262 into one. The focusing unit 261 may add a predetermined weighting factor, for example, a beam forming coefficient to each of the received signals to emphasize or attenuate the predetermined received signal as compared with other received signals. The focused received signal may be provided to the image processing unit 270.

The image processing unit 270 may obtain the three-dimensional volume data from the received signal focused by the focusing unit 261 of the reception beam former 260. [ In addition, the image processing unit 270 can track the line of sight of the operator from the image acquired by the photographing unit 210. The ultrasound image can be generated by processing the 3D volume data according to the gaze of the tracked operator. Examples of the ultrasound image include a sectional image acquired from three-dimensional volume data, and a projection image obtained by volume rendering of three-dimensional volume data based on a predetermined viewpoint. Here, for a more detailed description of the image processing unit 270, FIG. 6 will be referred to.

FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of the image processing unit 270. FIG. 6, the image processing unit 270 may include a volume data acquisition unit 271, a line-of-sight tracing unit 272, a cross-sectional image generation unit 273, and a volume rendering unit 274.

The volume data obtaining unit 271 can obtain the three-dimensional volume data from the received signal focused by the focusing unit 261 of the receiving beam former 260. [

The gaze tracking unit 272 can track the operator's gaze from the image acquired by the photographing unit 210. [ Specifically, when the infrared light emitting unit of the photographing unit 210 projects infrared light to the operator, the projected infrared light is reflected by the cornea of the operator's eye. The reflected light (hereinafter, referred to as 'cornea light') is photographed by the camera of the photographing unit 210. The gaze tracking unit 272 can detect the position of the cornea light and the position of the pupil in the image obtained by the photographing unit 210 and track the operator's gaze based on the detection result. The gaze tracking result may be provided to the sectional image generating unit 273 and the volume rendering unit 274, which will be described later.

The sectional image generating unit 273 can generate a sectional image corresponding to a predetermined plane from the three-dimensional volume data based on the gaze tracking result. Specifically, the cross-sectional image generating unit 273 can generate a cross-sectional image corresponding to a plane perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator from the three-dimensional volume data. Figs. 7A and 7B are views schematically showing an operation of generating a sectional image. Fig.

7A shows a case in which a sectional image corresponding to the yz plane is generated from three-dimensional volume data located on a three-dimensional space represented by x, y, and z axes. Although not shown in the drawing, a sectional image corresponding to the operator's xy plane or a sectional image corresponding to the yz plane may be generated.

FIG. 7B shows a case where a sectional image corresponding to a plane other than the xy plane, the yz plane, and the zx plane is generated.

7A and 7B, a plurality of planes perpendicular to the operator's line of sight may exist depending on the distance from the viewpoint. In such a case, of the planes perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator, the plane for generating the sectional image can be selected in various ways.

As an example, a plane for generating a sectional image among the planes perpendicular to the operator's line of sight can be automatically selected. For example, when the operator's gaze and the areas of the planes perpendicular to each other are the same, as shown in FIG. 7A, a plane that is closest to the operator's viewpoint among the planes perpendicular to the operator's gaze can be automatically selected . Or a plane that is the farthest from the operator's viewpoint among the planes perpendicular to the operator's line of sight can be automatically selected. For example, as shown in FIG. 7B, when the operator's gaze and the areas of the planes perpendicular to each other are different, a plane having the largest area among the planes perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator can be automatically selected.

As another example, of the planes perpendicular to the operator ' s line of sight, a plane for creating a sectional image can be manually selected. First, a cross-sectional image corresponding to an arbitrary plane is generated from the planes perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator, and then displayed on the flexible display 220. Thereafter, when an instruction or command for changing the cross-section image is inputted from the operator, the cross-sectional image generating unit 273 can select a plane corresponding to the inputted instruction or command, and generate a cross-sectional image corresponding thereto.

Referring again to FIG. 6, the volume rendering unit 274 may perform volume rendering of the 3D volume data based on the gaze tracking result. Volume rendering refers to projecting three-dimensional volume data on a two-dimensional plane based on a predetermined point in time. Volume rendering can be categorized into surface rendering and direct volume rendering.

Surface rendering refers to a method of extracting surface information based on a constant scalar value and spatial variation from volume data and converting it into a geometric element such as a polygon or a surface patch, and applying the existing rendering method. Examples of surface rendering include the marching cubes algorithm and the dividing cibes algorithm.

Direct volume rendering is a method of rendering volume data directly without intermediate steps that convert volume data into geometric elements. Direct volume rendering can visualize the internal information of an object as it is, and is useful for expressing a translucent structure. Direct volume rendering can be categorized into an object-order method and an image-order method, depending on how the volume data is accessed.

The object ordering method is a method of searching volume data according to a storage order and synthesizing each voxel into a pixel corresponding thereto. As a representative example, there is a splatting method.

The image ordering method is to sequentially determine each pixel value in the order of the scan lines of the image. Examples of image ordering methods include ray-casting and ray-tracing.

As shown in FIG. 8, the ray projection method emits a virtual ray from a viewpoint toward a predetermined pixel on a display screen. Then, among the voxels of the volume data, the voxels through which the light passes are detected. Then, the brightness values of the detected voxels are accumulated to determine a brightness value of the corresponding pixel of the display screen. Alternatively, the average value of the detected voxels may be determined as the brightness value of the corresponding pixel of the display screen. Alternatively, the weighted average value of the detected voxels may be determined as the brightness value of the corresponding pixel of the display screen.

Ray tracing is a method of tracking the path of an incoming beam of light into an observer's eye. Unlike the ray projection method, in which only the intersection of rays meet the volume data, ray tracing can also track phenomena such as reflection and refraction of rays by tracking the irradiated rays.

The ray tracing method can be divided into forward ray tracing method and reverse ray tracing method. The forward ray tracing method is a technique of modeling the reflection, scattering, and transmission phenomenon by the light source irradiated from the virtual light source to the data of the ball, and finally finding the light ray entering the observer's eye. Reverse ray tracing is a technique that tracks the path of light entering the observer's eye in the reverse direction.

Referring again to FIG. 6, the volume rendering unit 274 may render volume rendering of the 3D volume data using one of the volume rendering methods described above. In this case, when the volume rendering of the three-dimensional volume data is performed based on one viewpoint, a two-dimensional projection image can be obtained. If two-dimensional projection images, that is, a left image and a right image, are obtained by volume rendering three-dimensional volume data at two points corresponding to the right and left eyes of a person, respectively. When a left image and a right image are combined, a three-dimensional stereoscopic image can be obtained.

Meanwhile, the two-dimensional projection image, the three-dimensional image obtained by the volume rendering unit 274, and the sectional image generated by the sectional image generating unit 273 may be displayed through the flexible display 220. [ Of the illustrated images, what kind of image to display through the flexible display 220 can be preset by the operator. Even if an image of a predetermined type is being displayed through the flexible display 220, when an instruction or command for changing the type of the image to be displayed is received, the changed type of image can be displayed.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the storage unit 280 may store data and algorithms necessary for the ultrasonic imaging apparatus 200 to operate. For example, an algorithm necessary for tracking an operator's gaze from an image obtained through the photographing unit 210, an algorithm necessary for generating a sectional image from the three-dimensional volume data, and an algorithm necessary for rendering volume rendering of the three-dimensional volume data Can be stored.

In addition, the storage unit 280 may store the values set by the operator in advance. For example, the storage unit 280 selects the type of the ultrasound image to be displayed through the flexible display 220, the automatic generation of the sectional image, and the plane for generating the sectional image from the planes perpendicular to the operator's gaze Criteria, and so on.

The storage unit 280 may be a ROM, a random access memory (RAM), a programmable read only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM) A random access memory (RAM), a hard disk drive, an optical disk drive, or a combination thereof. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described example, and it goes without saying that the storage unit 280 may be implemented in any other form known in the art.

3 to 8, a configuration diagram of an embodiment of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 has been described above. In the above-described embodiment, the case where the image processing unit 270 includes both the sectional image generating unit 273 and the volume rendering unit 274 has been described as an example.

According to another embodiment, the image processing unit 270 may include a volume data obtaining unit 271, a gaze tracking unit 272, and a cross-sectional image generating unit 273, as shown in FIG. The description of these constituent elements has been given above with reference to FIG. 6, FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B, and thus a duplicate description will be omitted. 9, the sectional image can be automatically generated from the three-dimensional volume data without receiving any instruction or command from the operator.

According to another embodiment, the image processing unit 270 may include a volume data acquisition unit 271, a gaze tracking unit 272, and a volume rendering unit 273, as shown in FIG. The description of these constituent elements has been given above with reference to FIG. 6 and FIG. 8, so that redundant description will be omitted. When the image processing unit 270 has a configuration as shown in FIG. 10, a two-dimensional projection image or a three-dimensional image can be obtained from the three-dimensional volume data. Of these images, what kind of image to display through the flexible display 220 can be preset by the operator. In addition, even when an image of a preset kind is displayed, when an instruction or command for changing the type of the image to be displayed is received, the changed kind of image can be displayed.

11 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 including the image processing unit of FIG.

It is assumed that the flexible probe 230 of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 is in a state of being fixed to the object 10 in a state of being in contact with the object 10. [

When the position of the flexible probe 230 is fixed, the ultrasonic wave is irradiated to the object 10, and the ultrasonic echo reflected from the object 10 is received (S710). The ultrasonic irradiation and the ultrasonic echo reception may be performed by at least one ultrasonic element (T), for example, an ultrasonic transducer. The ultrasonic element T can convert the received ultrasonic echo into an electric signal and output the received signal. The received signal output from the ultrasonic element T can be amplified and filtered, and then converted into a digital signal. The received signal converted into a digital signal can be received-focused by the receiving beam former 260. [

Thereafter, the three-dimensional volume data may be obtained based on the reception signal focused by the reception beam former 260 (S720). The three-dimensional volume data may be generated by the volume data acquisition unit 271 of the image processing unit 270.

On the other hand, when the photographing unit 210 photographs the operator and acquires an image, the operator's eyes can be tracked from the obtained image (S730). The step of tracking the operator's eyes (S730) includes, for example, projecting infrared rays to the operator, photographing the cornea light reflected by the cornea of the operator, locating the cornea light from the image obtained by the photographing result, Detecting the position, and tracking the operator's gaze based on the detection result.

Thereafter, it may be determined whether volume rendering is necessary (S740). This determination can be made based on the type of the image to be displayed. For example, if it is set to display a sectional image as a result of checking the type of an image to be displayed, it can be determined that volume rendering is not necessary. If it is set to display a two-dimensional projection image or a three-dimensional stereoscopic image as a result of checking the type of an image to be displayed, it can be determined that volume rendering is necessary.

As a result of the determination, if volume rendering is required (S740, YES), volume rendering of the 3D volume data may be performed according to the operator's line of sight (S750). For example, the volume rendering step S750 may include generating a two-dimensional projection image by volume rendering the three-dimensional volume data at a predetermined point in time. As another example, the volume rendering step S750 may include generating a left image and a right image by respectively performing volume rendering at two viewpoints, and generating a three-dimensional image by synthesizing a left image and a right image .

When the volume rendering is completed, the volume rendering result may be displayed on the flexible display 220 (S760). For example, if the two-dimensional projection data is acquired in the volume rendering step S750, the obtained two-dimensional projection image can be displayed on the flexible display 220. [ If the three-dimensional stereoscopic image is acquired in the volume rendering step S750, the obtained three-dimensional stereoscopic image can be displayed through the flexible display 220. [

As a result of the determination, if volume rendering is not required (S740, No), a sectional image corresponding to a plane perpendicular to the operator's line of sight can be generated from the three-dimensional volume data from the three-dimensional volume data (S770). The step of creating a sectional image S770 may include selecting a predetermined plane among the planes perpendicular to the operator's line of sight and generating a sectional image corresponding to the selected plane. The selection of a predetermined plane from a plurality of planes perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator may be performed automatically or manually according to an instruction or command input by the operator.

The generated sectional image can be displayed through the flexible display 220 (S780).

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 including the image processing unit of FIG.

First, the operator touches the flexible probe 230 in the body 201 of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 with the object 10 and then uses the belt 290 to move the position of the flexible probe 230 to the object 10 ).

When the position of the flexible probe 230 is fixed, the ultrasonic wave is irradiated to the object 10, and the ultrasonic echo reflected from the object 10 is received (S810). The ultrasonic irradiation and the ultrasonic echo reception may be performed by at least one ultrasonic element (T), for example, an ultrasonic transducer. The ultrasonic element T can convert the received ultrasonic echo into an electric signal and output the received signal. The received signal output from the ultrasonic element T can be amplified and filtered, and then converted into a digital signal. The received signal converted into a digital signal can be received-focused by the receiving beam former 260. [

Thereafter, the 3D volume data may be obtained based on the received signal focused by the receiving beam former 260 (S820). The three-dimensional volume data may be generated by the volume data acquisition unit 271 of the image processing unit 270.

On the other hand, when the photographing unit 210 photographs the operator and the image is acquired, the operator's eyes can be tracked from the obtained image (S830). The step of tracking the operator's eyes (S830) includes projecting infrared rays to the operator, photographing the cornea light reflected by the cornea of the operator, detecting the position of the cornea light and the position of the pupil from the image obtained as a result of the photographing And tracking the operator's gaze based on the detection result.

If an operator's line of sight is tracked, a cross-sectional image corresponding to a plane perpendicular to the operator's line of sight can be generated from the three-dimensional volume data (S870). The step of creating a sectional image (S870) may include a step of selecting a predetermined plane among the planes perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator, and a step of generating a sectional image corresponding to the selected plane. The selection of a predetermined plane from a plurality of planes perpendicular to the line of sight of the operator may be performed automatically or manually according to an instruction or command input by the operator.

The generated sectional image can be displayed through the flexible display 220 (S880).

13 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 200 including the image processing unit of FIG.

The operator first touches the flexible probe 230 to the object 10 in the body 201 of the ultrasound imaging device 200 and then fixes the position of the flexible probe 230 to the object 10 using a belt .

When the position of the flexible probe 230 is fixed, the ultrasound echo is irradiated to the target object 10 and the ultrasound echo reflected from the target object 10 is received (S910). The ultrasonic irradiation and the ultrasonic echo reception may be performed by at least one ultrasonic element (T), for example, an ultrasonic transducer. The ultrasonic element T can convert the received ultrasonic echo into an electric signal and output the received signal. The received signal output from the ultrasonic element T can be amplified and filtered, and then converted into a digital signal. The received signal converted into a digital signal can be received-focused by the receiving beam former 260. [

Thereafter, three-dimensional volume data may be obtained based on the received signal focused by the receiving beam former 260 (S920). The three-dimensional volume data may be generated by the volume data acquisition unit 271 of the image processing unit 270.

On the other hand, when the photographing unit 210 photographs the operator and acquires an image, the operator's eyes can be tracked from the obtained image (S930). The step of tracking an operator's sight (S930) includes projecting an infrared ray to the operator, photographing the cornea light reflected by the cornea of the operator, detecting the position of the cornea light and the position of the pupil from the image obtained as a result of the photographing And tracking the operator's gaze based on the detection result.

If the viewer's line of sight is tracked, the 3D volume data can be volume-rendered (S950). For example, the volume rendering step S950 may include generating a two-dimensional projection image by volume rendering the three-dimensional volume data at a predetermined point in time. As another example, the volume rendering step S950 may include generating a left image and a right image by respectively rendering volume at two viewpoints, and synthesizing a left image and a right image to generate a three-dimensional image.

When the volume rendering is completed, the volume rendering result may be displayed on the flexible display 220 (S960). For example, if the two-dimensional projection data is acquired in the volume rendering step S950, the obtained two-dimensional projection image can be displayed on the flexible display 220. [ If the three-dimensional stereoscopic image is acquired in the volume rendering step S950, the obtained three-dimensional stereoscopic image can be displayed through the flexible display 220. [

Embodiments of the disclosed invention have been described with reference to the drawings exemplified above. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive.

200: Ultrasonic imaging device
201: Body
210:
220: Flexible display
230: Flexible probe
240:
250: transmission beam former
260: Receive beamformer
270:
271: Volume data acquisition unit
272:
273:
274: Volume rendering unit
280:
T: Ultrasonic device

Claims (12)

A planar flexible probe for irradiating ultrasonic waves to a target object and receiving ultrasonic echoes reflected from the target object;
An image processor for tracking the operator's gaze from the image of the operator and processing the three-dimensional volume data obtained from the ultrasound echo according to the tracked gaze to generate an ultrasound image; And
And a flexible display provided on one surface of the flexible probe for displaying the ultrasonic image. The method according to claim 1,
And a belt for fixing the position of the body including the flexible probe and the flexible display to the object. The method according to claim 1,
And a photographing unit for photographing the operator. The method of claim 3,
Wherein the photographing unit includes an infrared ray illuminator for projecting infrared rays to the operator and a camera for photographing infrared rays reflected by the cornea of the operator. The method according to claim 1,
The image processing unit
And a sectional image generating unit for generating a sectional image corresponding to a selected one of the planes perpendicular to the tracked line from the three-dimensional volume data. The method according to claim 1,
The image processing unit
And a volume rendering unit for rendering the volume of the 3D volume data according to the tracked line of sight. The method according to claim 1,
The image processing unit
A sectional image generating unit for generating a sectional image corresponding to a plane selected from planes perpendicular to the tracked line from the three-dimensional volume data; And
And a volume rendering unit that generates a two-dimensional projection image or a three-dimensional image by volume rendering the three-dimensional volume data according to the tracked line of sight. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the flexible display is a touch display. Irradiating ultrasonic waves to a target object using a planar flexible probe and receiving ultrasound echoes reflected from the target object;
Tracking an operator's line of sight from an image of an operator and generating an ultrasound image by processing the 3D volume data obtained from the ultrasonic echo according to the tracked line of sight; And
And displaying the ultrasound image through a surface-shaped flexible display provided on one surface of the flexible probe. 10. The method of claim 9,
The step of generating the ultrasound image
And generating a cross-sectional image corresponding to a plane selected from the planes perpendicular to the tracked line from the three-dimensional volume data. 10. The method of claim 9,
The step of generating the ultrasound image
And generating a two-dimensional projection image or a three-dimensional image by volume rendering the three-dimensional volume data according to the tracked line of sight. 10. The method of claim 9,
The step of generating the ultrasound image
Confirming the type of ultrasound image to be displayed through the flexible display; And
Generating a sectional image from the three-dimensional volume data or rendering a volume of the three-dimensional volume data according to the determination result.

Images