JP2006095292A - Ultrasonic probe diagnosing apparatus, ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus and ultrasonic probe diagnosing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate the production of a report to clearly indicate the result of diagnosing of an ultrasonic probe. <P>SOLUTION: A control section 810 inspects a condition of the ultrasonic probe 200 on the basis of a characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe 200. The control section 810 acquires the appearance information of the appearance condition of the ultrasonic probe 200. The control section 810 presents the result of the inspection together with the acquired appearance information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an ultrasonic probe diagnostic apparatus and ultrasonic probe diagnostic method for diagnosing an ultrasonic probe used in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, and an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus having a function of diagnosing an ultrasonic probe.

  A technique for diagnosing an ultrasonic probe based on a signal received by the ultrasonic probe is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

According to the technique of Patent Document 1, a problem is displayed by displaying a waveform indicating a defect. The display device also displays the entire contents including the signal path number, probe identification, transducer element number, and test time.
JP-A-8-238243

  In general, the diagnostic work of the ultrasonic probe is performed by a maintenance worker who is different from the owner or user of the ultrasonic probe. For this reason, diagnosis results are often reported from maintenance workers to owners and users.

  Information presented by the technique of Patent Literature 1 can be used as information for reporting the electrical state of the ultrasonic probe. However, the diagnostic items of the ultrasonic probe include the appearance state. When it is necessary to report them comprehensively, it is necessary for the maintenance worker to create a report manually.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and its purpose is to make it possible to easily create a report showing the diagnostic results of an ultrasonic probe in an easy-to-understand manner. .

  In order to achieve the above object, a first aspect of the present invention is an ultrasonic probe diagnostic apparatus for diagnosing an ultrasonic probe, and an inspection means for inspecting a state of the ultrasonic probe based on a characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe. And obtaining means for obtaining appearance information relating to the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe, and presenting means for presenting the inspection result and the obtained appearance information together.

  In order to achieve the above object, the second aspect of the present invention includes an ultrasonic probe, and obtains information for diagnosing the subject based on reflected ultrasonic waves from the subject received by the ultrasonic probe. In the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, an inspection unit that inspects the state of the ultrasonic probe based on a characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe, an acquisition unit that acquires appearance information regarding the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe, and a result of the inspection And presenting means for presenting the acquired appearance information together.

  In order to achieve the above object, a third aspect of the present invention provides an ultrasonic probe diagnostic method for diagnosing an ultrasonic probe, inspecting a state of the ultrasonic probe based on a characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe, Appearance information regarding the appearance state of the acoustic probe is acquired, and the result of the inspection and the acquired appearance information are presented together.

  According to these aspects of the present invention, it is possible to easily create a report showing the diagnostic results of the ultrasonic probe in an easy-to-understand manner.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus having an ultrasonic probe diagnostic function according to this embodiment. This ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus includes a main unit 800 and an ultrasonic probe 200.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the main unit 800 includes connectors 801, 802, 803, a transmission unit 804, a reception unit 805, a measurement unit 806, a storage medium 807, an interface unit 808, a display processing unit 809, a control unit 810, and a medical diagnosis unit. 811 is included.

  A connector 201 provided in the ultrasonic probe 200 to be diagnosed is attached to the connector 801. The connector 801 has the same number of contacts 801 a as the contacts 201 a provided on the connector 201. The contacts 801a are arranged so as to contact each of the contacts 201a when the connector 201 is attached to the connector 801. An external device (not shown) is connected to the connector 802 via a communication cable (not shown) such as a USB cable. The external device is a printer, a network, a personal computer, a keyboard, a pointing device, a digital camera, or the like.

  The transmission unit 804 transmits an excitation signal for exciting the ultrasonic transducer 202a. The transmission unit 804 can transmit the excitation signals of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers 202a in parallel. The receiving unit 805 receives a signal output from the ultrasonic transducer 202a. The receiving unit 805 can receive signals output from each of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers 202a in parallel. The receiving unit 805 outputs the received signal.

  The measurement unit 806 performs a predetermined measurement process based on the reception signal output from the reception unit 805. The measurement unit 806 outputs measurement information obtained by the above measurement process to the storage medium 807, the interface unit 808, the display processing unit 809, and the control unit 810 under the control of the control unit 810. The storage medium 807 is, for example, a semiconductor memory. The storage medium 807 stores various information such as the above measurement information. The interface unit 808 performs communication processing based on, for example, the USB standard, and realizes communication with an external device connected to the connector 802. The display processing unit 809 generates an image signal for causing the monitor device connected to the connector 803 to display an image based on the measurement information and information given from the control unit 810.

  The control unit 810 includes a microprocessor, for example. The control unit 810 performs overall control of each part of the main unit 800 to realize an operation for diagnosis of the ultrasonic probe 200. Further, the control unit 810 has a function of determining the electrical state of the ultrasonic probe 200 based on the voltage of each channel detected by the receiving unit 805 and the measurement result of the measuring unit 806. The control unit 810 has a function of acquiring the quality of the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe 200 by inputting a designation operation of the maintenance worker. The control unit 810 has a function of acquiring digital photo data from an external device connected to the connector 802. Further, the control unit 810 has a function of creating report data indicating a report representing the electrical state determined by the above function, the quality of the appearance obtained by the above function, and the digital photograph obtained by the above function. have.

  The medical diagnosis unit 811 further includes an imaging control unit 811a, an image generation unit 811b, a memory unit 811c, and a display unit 811d. The imaging control unit 811a controls the transmission unit 804, the reception unit 805, and the image generation unit 811b so that an appropriate imaging process is performed according to the diagnosis content. The image generation unit 811b generates display data representing an image for medical diagnosis based on the signal output from the reception unit 805. The image represented by the display data is a reconstructed image such as a tomographic image or a three-dimensional image related to the organ and blood flow of the subject, or a text image or graph representing a measured value such as blood flow velocity or a change thereof. The memory unit 811c stores the display data. The display unit 811d performs display based on the display data.

  Next, the operation of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus configured as described above will be described.

  When performing medical diagnosis on a subject using the ultrasonic probe 200, the medical diagnosis unit 811 is enabled to present information useful for medical diagnosis in the same manner as a known ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. Can do.

  On the other hand, when it becomes necessary to diagnose the ultrasonic probe 200, the control unit 810 reads the identification information output from the identification information output unit 204. In the control unit 810, the identification information is information for specifying each of the ultrasonic probes 200. The control unit 810 acquires probe information related to the ultrasonic probe 200 from the database based on the identification information. The database may be acquired from an external device connected to the connector 802, or may be stored in the storage medium 807. The probe information includes, for example, information of the user of the ultrasonic probe 200 (for example, hospital name, customer site / family name and address), probe name of the ultrasonic probe 200 and external appearance photograph data of the probe, or a maintenance contract number. Including.

  The controller 810 executes processing for determining the electrical state of the ultrasonic probe 200. The electrical state of the ultrasonic probe 200 can be determined based on the state of a reflected ultrasonic signal that can be received using the ultrasonic probe 200, for example. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, a test object is placed in a medium such as water in a container such as a water tank, and the ultrasonic transducer 202a is excited. The reflected ultrasonic signal from the test object at this time is received by the receiving unit 805 via the ultrasonic transducer 202a, the signal line 203a, the contact 201a, and the contact 801a, and various characteristic values (amplitudes) related to the reflected ultrasonic signal. Measurement unit 806 measures a value, a center frequency value, a frequency band value, a group delay time value, and the like. Then, the control unit 810 determines the electrical state of the ultrasonic probe 200 based on the feature value measured by the measurement unit 806. The determination of the electrical state includes, for example, determination of whether the reception quality of the reflected ultrasonic signal is good, determination of whether the signal line 203a is disconnected, or determination of the quality of the ultrasonic probe 200 that combines them.

  The control unit 810 prompts the maintenance worker to specify the quality of some items related to the appearance state. In the present embodiment, the user is prompted to specify the appearance state of each of the head part (lens surface), the case part, the cable part, and the connector part. The maintenance worker visually inspects the appearance of the ultrasonic probe 200 and determines pass / fail for each of the above items. In determining the quality of the head, for example, lens peeling / loosening, lens discoloration, lens expansion, lens gap generation, lens depression / scratch, and the like are considered. In determining whether the case portion is good or bad, cracks, dirt, scratches, and defects are considered. In determining whether the cable portion is good or bad, scratches, coating peeling, dirt, hardening, and the like are considered. In determining whether the connector is good or bad, contact pin bending, terminal contamination, chipping, and the like are considered. Then, the control unit 810 acquires the quality of the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe 200 by inputting the designation made by the maintenance worker. The appearance state is designated by operating, for example, a keyboard or a pointer connected to the connector 802, so that the control unit 810 inputs this instruction operation.

  Note that the control unit 810 acquires digital photo data from an external device such as a digital camera connected to the connector 802 via the connector 802 and the interface unit 808 when a digital photograph is taken in by a maintenance worker. Is also possible.

  The control unit 810 uses the determination result of the electrical state as described above, the quality of the acquired appearance state, the appearance photograph data corresponding to the probe, or the acquired probe information, for example, as shown in FIG. Create report data indicating the certificate. The report data is output to an external device connected to the connector 802 via the interface unit 808. For example, if the above report data is output to a printer connected as an external device, a report as shown in FIG. 2 is printed by this printer. In FIG. 2, an image I1 shows the determination result of the electrical state. The image I2 shows the quality of the appearance state. The image I3 is a photograph of the appearance of the diagnosed ultrasonic probe 200. Note that this image I3 may be replaced with the photograph when the maintenance worker requests the photograph taken with the digital camera. In this case, if there are scratches, peeling of the coating, dirt, etc., they appear in the image I3, which is useful for diagnosis of the ultrasonic probe 200.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to automatically create a report showing the electrical state and appearance state of the ultrasonic probe 200. By using this report, it is possible to easily and appropriately report from the maintenance worker to the owner or user. In addition, since the appearance photograph of the ultrasonic probe is also presented, it is easier to grasp which ultrasonic probe the report is about than when only the probe model name is presented.

The present embodiment can be variously modified as follows.
The specification of the location and content of the abnormality in the digital photograph is input. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the graphics indicating the location and content of the abnormality are combined with the digital photograph and shown in the report. May be.

  Only one of the quality of the appearance and the digital photograph may be shown in the report. Alternatively, other information such as a character string indicating the findings of the maintenance worker may be input and this information may be shown in the report.

  By providing a matrix switch having a multiplexer configuration, the transmission unit 804 and the reception unit 805 may have a single channel configuration. In this way, the circuit scales of the transmission unit 804 and the reception unit 805 can be reduced.

  A variety of appearance information of various failure cases (actually listed cases) related to the head portion, case portion, cable portion, and connector portion is stored in a storage medium in association with probe information and appearance state determination information. deep. Then, according to the selection of the probe information / appearance state determination by the maintenance worker, the appearance information stored in the storage medium may be obtained by retrieving / specifying and reading. In reality, one or more representative failure appearance information is stored in association with probe information / determination items for each part such as the head portion, case portion, cable portion, and connector portion, and the probe selected by the maintenance worker Appropriate appearance information is obtained by reading according to the information / judgment item (processing the graphic if necessary). As the appearance information, computer graphics indicating the appearance state can be used.

  Display based on the signal generated by the display processing unit 809 may be performed by the display unit 811d. For example, the display processing unit 809 and the image generation unit 811b are connected. Then, the image generation unit 811b generates display data corresponding to the signal generated by the display processing unit 809, and writes this into the memory unit 811c.

  It is also possible to omit the medical diagnostic unit 811 and realize an ultrasonic probe diagnostic apparatus.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of components disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment.

The figure which shows the structure of the ultrasonic diagnosing device provided with the ultrasonic probe diagnostic function which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows an example of the report produced by the ultrasound diagnosing device shown in FIG. The figure which shows the modification of the image represented on the report shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 200 ... Ultrasonic probe, 800 ... Main unit, 801, 802, 803 ... Connector, 804 ... Transmission part, 805 ... Reception part, 806 ... Measurement part, 807 ... Storage medium, 808 ... Interface part, 809 ... Display processing part, 810: Control unit, 811 ... Medical diagnosis unit.

Claims (9)

In an ultrasonic probe diagnostic apparatus for diagnosing an ultrasonic probe,
Inspection means for inspecting the state of the ultrasonic probe based on the characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe;
Acquisition means for acquiring appearance information relating to the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe;
An ultrasound probe diagnostic apparatus, comprising: a presentation unit that presents the result of the examination and the acquired appearance information together. Storage means for storing the appearance information relating to each of a plurality of ultrasonic probes in association with the identification information of the ultrasonic probes;
The ultrasonic probe diagnosis apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the acquisition unit acquires the appearance information stored in association with identification information of the ultrasonic probe to be diagnosed from the storage unit.   The ultrasonic probe diagnosis apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the appearance information indicates a result of visually determining the appearance state.   The ultrasonic probe diagnosis apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the appearance information is digital photograph data obtained by photographing an appearance state of the ultrasonic probe.   The ultrasonic probe diagnosis apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the presenting unit performs the presenting according to an instruction from an operator. In an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising an ultrasonic probe and obtaining information for diagnosing the subject based on reflected ultrasound from the subject received by the ultrasonic probe,
Inspection means for inspecting the state of the ultrasonic probe based on the characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe;
Acquisition means for acquiring appearance information relating to the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe;
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising: a presentation unit that presents the result of the examination and the acquired appearance information together. The ultrasonic probe is one in which one of a plurality of ultrasonic probes is selectively attached,
Storage means for storing the appearance information relating to each of the plurality of ultrasonic probes in association with the identification information of the ultrasonic probe;
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the acquisition unit acquires the appearance information stored in association with identification information of the mounted ultrasonic probe from the storage unit. In an ultrasonic probe diagnostic method for diagnosing an ultrasonic probe,
Inspecting the state of the ultrasonic probe based on the characteristic value of the ultrasonic probe,
Obtaining appearance information regarding the appearance state of the ultrasonic probe,
An ultrasonic probe diagnostic method comprising presenting the inspection result and the acquired appearance information together. Storing the appearance information relating to each of a plurality of ultrasonic probes in association with the identification information of the ultrasonic probes;
The ultrasonic probe diagnosis method according to claim 8, wherein the appearance information stored in association with identification information of the ultrasonic probe to be diagnosed is acquired from the storage unit.

Images