JP2010000220A - Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve such a problem that the performance of a portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is lower compared with that of a truck type apparatus because of the limit of exhaust heat from a heat generation source since the portable apparatus has less interior volume so as to largely raise temperature inside a case body by the increase of package density of an electronic component. <P>SOLUTION: The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus includes: a first board arranged inside the case body and mounting an electric circuit; a second board arranged inside the case body so as to be vertical with respect to the first board, and mounting a probe connector; and an FPC (flexible printed circuit) for electrically and mechanically connecting the first board to the second board and drawing out a pattern from the long side of the second board. Openings are arranged on the side surfaces which are on the same side and the opposite side of the second board, and one of which has cooling fans. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus used in the medical field.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is a device that scans while transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves in a living body and acquires a tomographic image in the living body. An ultrasonic probe suitable for each diagnostic application is connected and used. The most popular ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus can be moved by providing a caster on the bottom surface of the casing, but is basically a large truck type that is basically installed stationary. In the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, ultrasonic echo signals are transmitted and received by a plurality of acoustic sensors arranged in the acoustic transmission / reception window of the probe. Is converted into a digital signal. The digital beamformer that delays and adds these digital signals is scanned, deflected, and converged, but the quality of the ultrasonic beam is determined by the number of channels of the digital beamformer from the low-noise receiving amplifier.

  In recent years, the miniaturization technology has advanced and portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatuses of the desktop type and notebook PC type have become widespread (for example, see Patent Document 1). Has a situation that does not reach the bogie type. This is not only a restriction on the number of electronic components due to a small internal volume, but also a rise in temperature inside the housing due to an increase in the mounting density of electronic components, which makes it difficult to increase beyond a certain mounting density. It depends. In particular, low-noise receiving amplifiers, AD converters, and digital beam formers consume a large amount of power and become heat sources. At present, it is relatively easy to include the number of channels of 128 channels or more in the cart type, but it is difficult to include the number of channels of the same or more in the portable type from the viewpoint of exhaust heat.

  In a conventional portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, a connector for connecting a probe is provided on one of the left and right sides of the housing for ease of use (see, for example, Patent Document 2). For this reason, cooling fans for exhaust heat are provided on the remaining three side surfaces. For efficient ventilation, it is desirable to provide an opening on the opposite side and air-cooled. However, the ventilation on the front and rear sides is directed toward the operator, so hot air or hot air is applied to the operator. There is a sense of discomfort, and there is a risk of electric circuit failure due to foreign matter entering the housing.

On the other hand, since the probe connector is provided on one of the left and right side surfaces, almost no opening for venting can be secured on the side surface on which the probe connector is provided, and efficient exhaust heat cannot be realized.
Japanese National Patent Publication No. 11-508461 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-5221 (FIG. 1)

  As described above, in the conventional portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, the temperature inside the housing is greatly increased due to an increase in the mounting density of electronic components, and the heat source such as a low noise receiving amplifier, an AD converter, and a digital beamformer Due to the limit of exhaust heat, it can be equipped with a smaller number of channels compared to the bogie type, so it was not as good in terms of performance.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the conventional problems, and is improved in the ventilation of the portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, is small in size, and implements a larger number of channels by enhancing the exhaust heat effect. An object of the present invention is to provide a high-quality ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus.

  The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention includes a first substrate provided in a housing, a second substrate provided in a positional relationship within the housing and perpendicular to the first substrate, and the first substrate. And a flexible substrate that electrically and mechanically connects the second substrate and draws a pattern from the long side of the second substrate.

  With this configuration, it is possible to provide a sufficiently large opening on the side surface of the housing to which the probe connector is attached, so that ventilation by the cooling fan is improved and heat can be efficiently exhausted.

  Further, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention is configured such that the flexible substrate draws the pattern from a position inside the long side end surface of the second substrate.

  For this reason, it is not necessary to provide a space for bending the flexible substrate (flexible printed circuit: FPC) in the pattern drawing portion inside the housing.

  Further, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention is configured such that the flexible substrate pulls out the pattern via a connector arranged along the long side of the second substrate.

  Since it can be formed inside the end surface of the second substrate, it is not necessary to provide a space for bending the FPC in the pattern lead-out portion inside the housing.

  In the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of connectors are provided, and the flexible board is branched by a slit between the plurality of connectors, and is provided so as to correspond to the connectors.

  With this configuration, the FPC branched from the plurality of connectors through the plurality of connectors arranged on the long side of the second substrate and branched by the slits between the plurality of connectors is used, so that the second is mounted with the probe connector. Since the bent portion of the FPC drawn out from the long side of the substrate can be inside the second substrate end surface, it is not necessary to provide a space for bending the FPC of the pattern drawing portion inside the housing. A gap in connector position accuracy between the wide FPC through which the pattern passes and the second substrate can be absorbed by the slit.

  According to the present invention, a sufficiently large opening can be provided on the side surface of the housing to which the probe connector is attached, the ventilation by the cooling fan is improved, and heat can be efficiently exhausted. The mounting density can be increased to include a larger number of channels. As a result, the present invention has an effect that it is possible to provide a portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that realizes performance and image quality comparable to a cart type.

Hereinafter, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention includes a circuit printed circuit board 1 which is a first board on which main signal processing and control circuits are mounted (in this embodiment, a horizontal circuit within a housing). The probe side probe connector 2 connected with a probe (not shown) for transmitting / receiving ultrasonic waves in the living body with a cable, the body side probe connector 3 for connecting the probe side probe connector 2, and the body side An FPC (Flexible Printed Circuit) 5 which is a flexible board for connecting the probe connector 3 and the circuit printed board 1, an FPC connector 6 mounted on the circuit printed board 1 and connected to the FPC 5, and each of the above A housing 7 for housing the components, an opening 8 for exhaust heat on the side of the body-side probe connector 3 on the side of the housing 7, and an opening on the side facing the opening 8 of the housing 7. And parts 9, and a cooling fan 10 for the heat.

  In many FPC configurations, a flexible portion on which a copper foil pattern is drawn and a resin plate made of a glass epoxy plate or the like that reinforces and supports the terminal portion in order to connect it to a terminal of a mounting component by soldering or the like. It consists of In the present embodiment, a resin plate 5b (second substrate) is provided at a portion where the main body side probe connector 3 of the FPC 5 is connected. The resin board 5b as the second substrate is installed in a vertical state as shown in FIG. 1 while the circuit printed board 1 as the first substrate is placed horizontally.

  Specifically, FIG. 1 is a front oblique view, the arrow 7a is on the front side of the casing and on the operator side, the arrow 7b is on the back side of the casing, and the main body side probe connector 3 is on the arrow 7c side on the right side of the operator. Arranged on the surface. The cooling fan 10 for exhaust heat is on the surface on the side of the arrow 7d. This is because the exhaust heat is warm air, which makes it uncomfortable when hitting an operator or a patient. For this reason, it arrange | positions on the left side 7d and the back side 7b away from the operator and the patient. A display unit including a liquid crystal panel for displaying a diagnostic image is provided on the liquid upper surface 7e.

  In the configuration of FIG. 1, the FPC 5 is disposed so as to crawl the inner bottom surface of the housing 7, and a part thereof rises from the bottom of the circuit printed board 1 and is connected to the FPC connector 6. The other part rises from the bottom along the vertical side surface 7c provided with the probe connector 3 of the housing 7 and is supported by the reinforcing plate 5b.

  Thereby, it is possible to provide the opening 8 in the remaining portion of the side surface 7c. Thus, when it pulls out from the short side of the reinforcement board 5b, it is set as the structure which avoided that the side surface 7c was covered with the drawn-out FPC5.

  As described above, according to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the embodiment of the present invention, the FPC 5 in which a pattern is drawn out from the long side of the probe connector 3 is provided. An opening having a size capable of efficiently ventilating can be provided on the side surface of the housing 7 to which the connector 3 is attached, so that ventilation by the cooling fan 10 is improved and heat can be efficiently exhausted. For this reason, it is possible to increase the mounting density of the internal electric circuit to include a larger number of channels, and to provide a portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that realizes performance and image quality comparable to a cart type. It has the effect of being able to.

In the description of the embodiment, a typical portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is taken as an example.
Even if the arrow 7e side is the front surface, the arrow 7a side is the bottom surface, or the arrow 7c side is the front surface, and the arrow 7d side is the back surface, there is no change to the above-described effects.

  Next, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 2 shows in detail the structure of the peripheral portion of the FPC 5 of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The same components as those in FIG.

  FIG. 2A shows a case where a general FPC is used. In a general FPC method, FPC is drawn out from the end face of a glass epoxy plate (reinforcing plate). In this case, the FPC 5 drawn out from the reinforcing plate 5b is drawn out toward the bottom surface. However, by adding a bend 5a having a small radius of curvature in the vicinity of the end surface of the reinforcing plate 5b so as to reduce the height of the casing, the FPC 5 can crawl the bottom surface. Become.

  FIG. 2B is a further improvement of FIG. 2A, and the height of the housing 7 can be further reduced. The reinforcing plate 5b needs to be firmly fixed to the housing 7 together with the probe connector 3 with screws 11 or the like. This is because an unreasonable force may be applied by the user. For this purpose, it is desirable that the casing 7 and the reinforcing plate 5b ensure the maximum fixing area. Although the FPC 5 is flexible, there is a possibility that disconnection may occur unless a certain degree of curvature is left. For this reason, a space for the bend 5a is required in the housing. In FIG. 2B, the drawing position of the FPC 5 is provided inside the end face of the reinforcing plate 5b as compared to FIG. As a result, the dimension below the position of the circuit printed circuit board 1 can be kept short, and the reinforcing plate 5b and the housing 7 ensure the necessary fixing strength, and the space in the height direction of the bending 5a is specially dedicated. Can be made smaller (thinner).

  Next, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 2C shows the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The same components as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

In FIG. 2C, the probe connector 3 is not directly mounted on the reinforcing resin plate 5b integrated with the FPC 5, but a low stacking connector 12 is provided between the probe connector printed board 4 and the resin plate 5b. It can be reduced in size as in FIG. 2B. Since the probe connector printed circuit board 4 and the probe connector 3 are fixed to the housing 7, external stress is not transmitted to the FPC 5. For this reason, the FPC 5 does not require a fixed portion and can be realized with a size smaller than that of the probe connector printed board 4. As shown in the figure, since the bend 5a can be provided inside the end face of the probe connector printed board 4, it is not necessary to provide a space for the case internal bend 5a, and the size (thinness) can be made smaller.
With this configuration, it is possible to provide a sufficiently large opening on the side surface of the housing to which the probe connector is attached while being small in size, so that ventilation by the cooling fan 10 is improved and heat can be efficiently exhausted. . For this reason, it is possible to increase the mounting density of internal electric circuits and to include a larger number of channels, and to provide a portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that realizes performance and image quality comparable to a cart type. Has the effect of being able to.

  Next, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 3 shows an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus in the case where the embodiment of FIG. The same components as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  FIG. 2C shows an example in which two connectors 12 are arranged side by side in the height direction. Since the FPC 5 is interposed between the two connectors 12, the positional accuracy deviation between the connectors 12 can be absorbed. This is effective when it is necessary to add connectors in the long side direction in order to increase the number of channels. As shown in FIG. 3 (a), a pattern is drawn through a plurality of connectors 12 arranged on the long side of the probe connector printed circuit board 4, and slits 13 are provided between the plurality of connectors, so that the connector corresponding to each connector. By using an FPC with a branched side tip, the bent portion 5a of the FPC 5 drawn out from the long side of the probe connector printed board 4 on which the probe connector 3 is mounted can be placed inside the end face of the probe connector printed board 4. It is not necessary to provide a special bending space for the FPC 5 at the pattern drawing portion inside the casing, and the slit 13 can absorb a deviation in the connector position accuracy between the wide FPC 5 through which many patterns pass and the probe connector printed circuit board 4. it can. FIG. 3B briefly shows the FPC 5 of FIG. 3A, the reinforcing plates 5c and 5d attached thereto, and the connector 12 extracted. In this way, the FPC 5 can be provided with a higher number of channels while realizing a lower casing height, that is, a thinner shape, and a high-performance, high-quality portable ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. Can be provided.

  As described above, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention, a sufficiently large opening can be provided on the side surface of the housing to which the probe connector is attached. Since it can be heated, the mounting density of the internal electric circuit is increased to include a larger number of channels, and it is a portable ultrasound diagnostic device that realizes performance and image quality comparable to a cart type It is useful as an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and the like used in the medical field.

FIG. 1 is a basic structural diagram of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Structure diagram for realizing a thinner ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention Second structural diagram for realizing thinner and more multi-channel ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention

Explanation of symbols

1 Circuit printed circuit board
2 Probe-side probe connector 3 (Main body side) Probe connector 4 Printed circuit board on which the probe connector is mounted (probe connector printed circuit board)
5 FPC
5a FPC bending part 5b, 5c, 5d FPC reinforcing plate (resin plate for reinforcement)
6 FPC connector 7 Housing 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d, 7e Arrows indicating the direction of each side of the housing 8 Opening 9 Opening 10 Cooling fan 11 Screw 12 Connector 13 Slit

Claims (8)

A first substrate provided in the housing;
A second substrate provided in a positional relationship within the housing and perpendicular to the first substrate;
A flexible substrate that electrically and mechanically connects the first substrate and the second substrate and draws a pattern from a long side of the second substrate;
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising: The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible substrate draws a pattern from a position inside the long side end surface of the second substrate. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible substrate draws out a pattern via a connector arranged along a long side of the second substrate. 4. The ultrasonic wave according to claim 3, wherein the connector includes a plurality of connectors, and the flexible substrate is branched by a slit between the plurality of connectors, and is provided so as to correspond to each of the connectors. Diagnostic device. The second substrate is provided on a surface of a first opening portion that is provided in a housing and allows ventilation, and is attached at a position that does not hinder ventilation of the first opening portion. Item 5. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 4. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a second opening is provided on a side surface opposite to the side surface on which the first opening is provided. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 6, wherein an air cooling fan is provided in at least one of the first opening and the second opening. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first opening is a ventilation intake side.

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