JP2011156287A - Ultrasonograph - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve a frame rate by shortening a collection time per frame in an ultrasonograph combinedly executing a plurality of scanning modes. <P>SOLUTION: An ultrasonic probe 10 includes a plurality of transducers disposed in the two dimension. A scanning mode allocation section 20 allocates a plurality of scanning modes with different ultrasonic beam transmission conditions to the plurality of transducers. A transmission section 32 actuates the plurality of transducers in accordance with the plurality of allocated scanning modes and simultaneously transmits the plurality of ultrasonic beams with mutually different transmission conditions to a subject. A receiving section 34 receives ultrasonic reflected waves from the subject as echo signals via the plurality of transducers and generates the plurality of receiving beam signals. A scanning control section 40 controls the transmission section 32 and the receiving section 34 for ultrasonically scanning the subject with the plurality of ultrasonic beams. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that obtains diagnostic information in a subject by transmitting ultrasonic waves into the subject using an ultrasonic probe and receiving reflected waves from the subject. The present invention relates to a method for improving the frame rate in the case where ultrasonic scanning is simultaneously performed by combining these scanning modes.

  For example, as shown in Patent Document 1, a triplex mode is one of modes in which scanning is performed by combining a plurality of scanning modes of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. The triplex mode is executed by combining three scanning modes of the B mode, the color Doppler mode, and the Doppler mode. Image) at the same time. In the triplex mode, ultrasonic beam transmission / reception is sequentially performed in each scanning mode of the B mode, the color Doppler mode, and the Doppler mode. For example, an ultrasonic beam is transmitted / received for a scanning line with B mode, an ultrasonic beam is transmitted / received for a scanning line with color Doppler mode, an ultrasonic beam is transmitted / received for a scanning line with Doppler mode, and Returning to the B mode, ultrasonic beams are transmitted and received in order. As described above, the scanning time per frame in the triplex mode increases as compared with that in the single scanning mode. Therefore, the frame rate in the triplex mode is lower than that in the single scan mode.

JP 2006-116149 A

  An object of the present invention is to realize an improvement in the frame rate per frame in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that performs scanning by combining a plurality of scanning modes.

  An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes an ultrasonic probe having a plurality of transducers arranged two-dimensionally, and a plurality of scanning modes in which the transmission conditions of the ultrasonic beam are different from the plurality of transducers. An allocating unit for allocating, a transmitter for driving the plurality of transducers according to the plurality of allocated scanning modes, and simultaneously transmitting a plurality of ultrasonic beams having different transmission conditions to the subject, and from the subject Receiving a reflected ultrasonic wave as an echo signal through the plurality of transducers, and generating a plurality of received beam signals corresponding to the plurality of ultrasonic beams based on the received echo signal; and In order to ultrasonically scan the subject with a plurality of ultrasonic beams, a control unit that controls the transmission unit and the reception unit, and the plurality of scanning modes based on the generated reception beam signals. Each includes an image generation unit for generating data corresponding plurality of ultrasound images, to.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the improvement of the frame rate per frame is realizable in the ultrasonic diagnosing device which scans combining a some scanning mode.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the example of allocation of the scanning mode to the vibrator | oscillator of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. The figure which shows the example of a display of the B mode image by the display part of FIG. 1, a color Doppler mode image, and a Doppler spectrum image. The figure for demonstrating the scanning order of a triplex mode. The figure which shows the scanning sequence which concerns on this embodiment regarding the triplex mode of FIG. The figure which shows the scanning sequence which concerns on the prior art example regarding the triplex mode of FIG.

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

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes an ultrasonic probe 10, a scanning mode assignment unit 20, a transmission / reception unit 30, a scanning control unit 40, a signal processing unit 50, an image generation unit 60, and a display. Unit 70, input unit 80, storage unit 90, and system control unit 100.

  The ultrasonic probe 10 has a plurality of transducers arranged two-dimensionally. The vibrator receives a transmission drive pulse from the transmission / reception unit 30 and transmits an ultrasonic wave toward the subject. The ultrasonic waves transmitted toward the subject are reflected one after another at discontinuities (echo sources) of the acoustic impedance of the body tissue. The reflected ultrasonic waves are received by the vibrator. The received ultrasonic wave is converted into an echo signal (electric signal) by the vibrator. The echo signal is supplied to the transmission / reception unit 10.

  The scanning mode assignment unit 20 assigns a plurality of scanning modes to a plurality of transducers provided in the ultrasonic probe 10. More specifically, the scanning mode assignment unit 20 divides a plurality of transducers into a plurality of groups. The scanning mode assignment unit 20 assigns a plurality of scanning modes to a plurality of groups. The assignment of the scanning mode to each transducer is either completely automatic or selected by the user from several assignment patterns. The scanning mode is, for example, a B mode for a two-dimensional morphological image (B mode image), a color Doppler mode for a two-dimensional blood flow image (color Doppler mode image), and a Doppler mode for a Doppler spectrum image.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of assigning the scan mode to the transducer 12 by the scan mode assigning unit 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the plurality of transducers 12 are arranged on a two-dimensional arrangement surface defined by a direction parallel to the B-mode scanning plane (X direction) and a direction substantially orthogonal to the B-mode scanning plane (Y direction). Be placed. As described above, the scanning mode assignment unit 20 divides the plurality of transducers 12 into a plurality of groups. The same scanning mode is assigned to the transducers 12 belonging to the same group. The group is, for example, a set of transducers 12 in a line arranged along the Y direction. Hereinafter, a set of the vibrators 12 in one row is referred to as a vibrator row 14. The scanning mode assigning unit 20 arranges the transducer array 14B to which the B mode is assigned, the transducer array 14C to which the color Doppler mode is assigned, and the transducer array 14D to which the Doppler mode is assigned in this order along the Y direction. Assign the B mode, the color Doppler mode, and the Doppler mode.

  The transmission / reception unit 30 repeatedly transmits / receives a plurality of ultrasonic beams via the ultrasonic probe 10 according to control by the scanning control unit 40. The number of ultrasonic beams transmitted at one time corresponds to the number of scanning modes. When there are three scanning modes as described above, the transmission / reception unit 30 transmits three ultrasonic beams simultaneously. Specifically, the transmission / reception unit 30 includes a transmission unit 32 and a reception unit 34.

  The transmission unit 32 repeatedly supplies a transmission drive pulse to each transducer with a delay time according to the scanning mode assigned to each transducer. By supplying the transmission drive pulse, the transmission unit 32 simultaneously transmits a plurality of ultrasonic transmission beams having different transmission conditions to the subject via the plurality of transducers. The transmission conditions are, for example, a transmission direction (ultrasonic scanning line position), a focal position (transmission focus), a depth of field, and the like.

  More specifically, the transmission unit 32 repeatedly generates rate pulses for each channel at a predetermined rate frequency frHz (cycle: 1 / fr second). The transmission unit 32 gives a delay time necessary for generating a transmission beam related to a predetermined transmission direction and transmission focus to each generated rate pulse. This delay time is determined for each transducer by the scanning control unit 40 in accordance with the focal position and the transmission direction. Further, the focal position and the transmission direction differ depending on the scanning mode. Then, the transmission unit 32 generates a transmission drive pulse at a timing based on each delayed rate pulse, and supplies the generated transmission drive pulse to each transducer. Each transducer that receives the transmission drive pulse generates an ultrasonic transmission wave. As a result, each group transmits an ultrasonic transmission beam focused at a predetermined transmission focus position. When viewing the ultrasonic probe 10 as a whole, a plurality of ultrasonic transmission beams having different transmission directions and transmission focus positions are transmitted from the ultrasonic probe 10 at a time. Note that the ultrasonic transmission beams related to the full scan mode are transmitted at the same transmission time interval (pulse repetition frequency). The transmission time interval is set in accordance with, for example, the scanning mode with the deepest depth of field.

  The receiving unit 34 repeatedly receives a plurality of reflected ultrasonic waves reflected by the subject as echo signals via the ultrasonic probe 10 under the control of the scanning control unit 40. At the time of reception, regardless of the assigned scanning mode, an ultrasonic echo signal related to the entire scanning mode is received by all the transducers. When the ultrasonic echo signal is received, the reception unit 34 generates a plurality of reception beams using a parallel simultaneous reception technique.

  More specifically, the receiving unit 34 receives echo signals from a plurality of transducers and amplifies the received echo signals. Next, the receiving unit 34 converts the amplified echo signal from an analog signal to a digital signal. Next, the receiver 34 stores the digitally converted echo signal in a digital memory. A digital memory is provided for each transducer. The echo signal from each transducer is a digital memory corresponding to the transducer that has received the echo signal, and is stored at an address corresponding to the reception time of the echo signal. On the other hand, the reception unit 34 previously calculates a reception delay time required for generating a reception beam for each focal position (reception focus position) on the scanning plane for each transducer, and receives the reception focus position and address (or reception). A table in which each time) is associated with each transducer. The receiving unit 34 reads and adds an echo signal from an address associated with a predetermined reception focus position on the table. By repeating this addition process while changing the reception focus position along the transmission beam, a reception beam from a predetermined direction is generated. One reception beam corresponds to one ultrasonic scanning line. A reception beam signal for each ultrasonic scanning line (a set of echo signals constituting the reception beam for each ultrasonic scanning line) is supplied to the signal processing unit 50.

  The scanning controller 40 transmits a plurality of ultrasonic beams (a plurality of ultrasonic transmission beams (parallel simultaneous transmission beams) and a plurality of ultrasonic reception beams (parallel simultaneous reception beams)) for ultrasonic scanning of the subject simultaneously. The unit 32 and the receiving unit 34 are controlled. The scanning control unit 40 performs ultrasonic scanning in the scanning mode assigned to each group by the scanning mode assignment unit 20. Specifically, the scanning control unit 40 calculates the delay time of each transducer for controlling the transmission unit 32 and the reception unit 34. As described above, the delay time is determined for each transducer in accordance with the focal position, the ultrasonic transmission beam direction, and the reception beam direction. Further, the focal position, the ultrasonic transmission beam direction, and the reception beam direction differ depending on the scanning mode.

  The scanning control unit 40 according to the present embodiment performs three-beam simultaneous scanning in the triplex mode. Regarding the B mode, the scanning control unit 40 changes the transmission direction (ultrasonic scanning line position) of the B-mode ultrasonic beam so that the B-mode scanning surface is ultrasonically scanned with the ultrasonic transmission / reception beam. Typically, the B-mode scanning plane is set to a plane defined by the vertical direction of the central transducer array, that is, the X direction and the Z direction (depth, a direction orthogonal to the X direction and the Y direction). The Regarding the color Doppler mode, the scanning control unit 40 sets the transmission direction (ultrasonic scanning line position) of the color Doppler mode ultrasonic beam so that the region of interest in the B-mode scanning plane is ultrasonically scanned with the ultrasonic transmission / reception beam. change. The color Doppler mode ultrasonic beam is repeatedly transmitted and received a predetermined number of times (the number of ensembles) at the same position. Regarding the Doppler mode, the scanning control unit 40 repeatedly transmits an ultrasonic beam on a predetermined ultrasonic scanning line. Details of the three-beam simultaneous scanning in the triplex mode by the scanning control unit 40 will be described later.

  The signal processing unit 50 performs a plurality of ultrasonic signal processes respectively corresponding to a plurality of scanning modes based on the received beam signal from the receiving unit 34. Specifically, the signal processing unit 50 includes a B mode processing unit 52, a color Doppler mode processing unit 54, and a Doppler mode processing unit 56.

  The B mode processing unit 52 performs B mode processing on the received beam signal from the receiving unit 34. Specifically, the B-mode processing unit 52 performs envelope detection on the reception beam signal for each ultrasonic scanning line from the reception unit 34, and logarithmically compresses the echo signal detected by the envelope detection. As a result, reception beam data of a B-mode image that expresses the intensity of the echo signal with luminance is generated. The generated reception beam data of the B-mode image is supplied to the image generation unit 60.

  The color Doppler mode processing unit 54 performs color Doppler mode processing on the reception beam signal from the reception unit 34 to generate reception beam data of a color Doppler mode image in the region of interest. Specifically, the color Doppler mode processing unit 54 performs quadrature detection on the received beam signal from the receiving unit 34. Next, the color Doppler mode processing unit 54 frequency-analyzes the echo signal subjected to quadrature detection by the autocorrelation method. Based on the frequency analysis, the color Doppler mode processing unit 54 calculates an average velocity value and a variance value of the blood flow at each point of the sample. The color Doppler mode processing unit 54 generates reception beam data of a color Doppler mode image that expresses the calculated average flow velocity value and dispersion value in color. Further, the color Doppler mode processing unit 54 calculates the power value of the blood flow based on the received beam signal subjected to the quadrature detection. Then, the color Doppler mode processing unit 54 generates reception beam data of a color Doppler mode image that expresses the calculated power value in color. The generated reception beam data of the color Doppler mode image is supplied to the image generation unit 60.

  The Doppler mode processing unit 56 performs Doppler mode processing on the received beam signal from the receiving unit 34 and generates received beam data of a Doppler spectrum image in the range gate. Specifically, the Doppler mode processing unit 56 performs quadrature detection on the received beam signal from the receiving unit 34. Then, the Doppler mode processing unit 56 extracts a reception beam signal in a preset range gate from the reception beam signals subjected to quadrature detection. Then, the Doppler mode processing unit 56 performs spectrum analysis on the received beam signal in the range gate by FFT (fast fourier transform), and calculates a flow velocity value (flow velocity spectrum). Then, the Doppler mode processing unit 56 generates reception beam data of a Doppler spectrum image indicating a change with time of the flow velocity spectrum. The reception beam data of the generated Doppler spectrum image is supplied to the image generation unit 60 and the storage unit 90.

  The image generation unit 60 is configured by a DSC (digital scan converter). The image generation unit 60 converts the received beam data of the B mode image from the B mode processing unit 52 into image data that can be displayed on the display unit 70. Similarly, the image generation unit 60 converts the received beam data of the color Doppler mode image from the color Doppler mode processing unit 54 into image data that can be displayed on the display unit 60, and receives the Doppler spectrum image from the Doppler mode processing unit 56. The beam data is converted into image data that can be displayed on the display unit.

  The display unit 70 superimposes the B-mode image, the color Doppler mode image, and the Doppler spectrum image from the image generation unit 60 and simultaneously displays them on the display device. As the display device, for example, a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, a plasma display, or the like can be used.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a B-mode image, a color Doppler mode image, and a Doppler spectrum image by the display unit 70. As shown in FIG. 3, a B-mode image I1 is displayed on the display screen. The B-mode image I1 is a two-dimensional morphological image related to the B-mode scanning plane. The color Doppler mode image I2 is displayed so as to overlap the region of interest ROI of the B mode image I1. The color Doppler mode image I2 is a two-dimensional blood flow image in the region of interest ROI. A mark MR indicating the position of the Doppler range gate is displayed superimposed on the B-mode image I1. On the other hand, a Doppler spectrum image I3 is displayed below the B-mode image I1. The Doppler spectrum image I3 depicts the Doppler spectrum in the range gate indicated by the mark MR. The Doppler spectrum image is a graph constructed by defining the blood flow velocity on the vertical axis and the time on the horizontal axis. Typically, a B-mode image, a color Doppler mode image, and a Doppler spectrum image are generated and displayed in real time.

  The input unit 80 inputs various commands and information input from the user via an input device to the system control unit 100. Specifically, the input unit 80 inputs a start instruction and an end instruction for ultrasonic scanning. The input unit 80 also inputs the position of the region of interest for the color Doppler mode and the position of the range gate for the Doppler mode. As an input device, a keyboard, a mouse, various buttons, a touch panel, and the like can be used as appropriate.

  The storage unit 90 stores a control program for performing scanning unique to the present embodiment, that is, three-beam simultaneous scanning in the triplex mode.

  The system control unit 100 functions as the center of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1. Specifically, the system control unit 100 reads out a control program from the storage unit 90 and develops it in its own memory in order to perform three-beam simultaneous scanning in the triplex mode, and controls each unit according to the developed control program. To do.

  Next, details of the three-beam simultaneous scanning in the triplex mode by the scanning control unit 40 will be described in comparison with the conventional example. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the scanning order in the triplex mode. B0 in FIG. 4 means that an ultrasonic beam is transmitted / received to / from the B-mode ultrasonic scanning line of number 0. The B-mode ultrasonic scanning line is set on the B-mode scanning plane PB. In FIG. 4, the number of B-mode ultrasonic scanning lines is 120. C0.1 means that an ultrasonic beam is transmitted / received to / from the number 0 color Doppler mode ultrasonic scanning line. The color Doppler mode ultrasonic scanning line is set on the region of interest ROI on the B-mode scanning plane PB. In the color Doppler mode, ultrasonic beams are transmitted / received by the number of ensembles with respect to one ultrasonic scanning line in order to obtain blood flow information. In FIG. 4, the number of ultrasonic scanning lines in the color Doppler mode is 60, and the number of ensembles is 10. D. 1 means that the first ultrasonic beam is transmitted / received to / from the Doppler mode ultrasonic scanning line in which the range gate is set. In FIG. 4, ultrasonic beam transmission / reception in the Doppler mode is continuously performed at regular time intervals until transmission / reception for one frame in the B mode and the color mode is completed.

  The scanning control unit 40 scans the B-mode scanning plane PB with the B-mode ultrasound beam while sequentially switching the B-mode ultrasound scanning lines from 0 to 119 using the transducers belonging to the group assigned to the B mode. To do. In this case, the ultrasonic beam is transmitted and received once for one ultrasonic scanning line. That is, in order to obtain one B-mode image, transmission / reception of an ultrasonic beam for B mode is performed 120 times. In addition, the scanning control unit 40 uses the transducers belonging to the group assigned to the color Doppler mode, and sequentially switches the color Doppler mode ultrasonic scanning line from 0 to 59 while changing the region of interest ROI to the color Doppler mode ultrasonic wave. Scan with a beam. In this case, the ultrasonic beam is transmitted and received 10 times for one ultrasonic scanning line. That is, in order to obtain one frame of a color Doppler mode image, transmission / reception of the color Doppler mode ultrasonic beam is performed 600 times. Further, the scanning control unit 40 repeatedly scans the same Doppler mode ultrasonic scanning line with the Doppler mode ultrasonic beam using the transducers belonging to the group assigned to the Doppler mode. In this case, transmission / reception of an ultrasonic beam for one ultrasonic scanning line is repeated at regular time intervals until transmission / reception for one frame in the B mode and the color Doppler mode is completed. That is, in order to obtain a Doppler spectrum image, transmission / reception of an ultrasonic beam for Doppler mode is repeated at regular time intervals until transmission / reception for one frame in the B mode and the color Doppler mode is completed.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a scanning sequence according to the present embodiment relating to the triplex mode of FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a scanning sequence according to the conventional example relating to the triplex mode of FIG. The transmission / reception numbers shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 indicate the number of times of transmission / reception of the ultrasonic beam performed by the transmission / reception unit 30 via the ultrasonic probe 10.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the conventional example, three ultrasonic transmission beams respectively corresponding to the three scanning modes of the B mode, the color Doppler mode, and the Doppler mode are transmitted for each mode. That is, ultrasonic transmission beam transmission in the three scanning modes is not performed at the same rate timing. In other words, triggered by receiving supply of a plurality of transmission drive signals based on a plurality of rate pulses generated at different timings, the plurality of transducers transmit three ultrasonic transmission beams at different rate timings. is doing. Therefore, conventionally, in order to obtain data for one frame related to the triplex mode, 120 times of ultrasonic beam transmission / reception in the B mode, 600 times of ultrasonic beam transmission / reception in the color Doppler mode, and 720 times of ultrasonic beam transmission / reception in the Doppler mode are performed. It is necessary to perform a total of 1440 ultrasonic beam transmissions / receptions. Note that the time interval of transmission and reception of the ultrasonic beam in the triplex mode according to the conventional example differs depending on the visual field depth in each scanning mode, in other words, the repetition frequency.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, ultrasonic transmission beams in the three scanning modes of the B mode, the color Doppler mode, and the Doppler mode are simultaneously transmitted in parallel. That is, transmission of ultrasonic transmission beams in the three scanning modes is performed at the same rate timing. In other words, the plurality of transducers simultaneously transmit three ultrasonic beams triggered by the supply of a plurality of drive signals based on a plurality of rate pulses generated at the same rate timing. . Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to obtain data for one frame related to the triplex mode, ultrasonic beam transmission / reception is performed only 600 times in accordance with the number of transmissions in the color Doppler mode with the largest number of transmissions. The transmission time interval of the ultrasonic beam in the triplex mode according to the present embodiment is set to the transmission time interval in the scanning mode with the deepest depth of field among the three scanning modes. In this case, since the depth of field is the deepest in the B mode, the transmission time interval of the ultrasonic beam in the triplex mode is set as the transmission time interval related to the B mode.

  Thus, while the number of transmission / reception is 1440 in the conventional example, the number of transmission / reception is only 600 in the present embodiment. That is, according to the present embodiment, the number of times of transmission / reception can be reduced to 41.7% of the conventional one.

  According to the above configuration, the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment assigns a plurality of scanning modes to a plurality of transducers. A plurality of ultrasonic transmission beams respectively corresponding to a plurality of scanning modes are transmitted simultaneously. In other words, ultrasonic transmission beams in a plurality of scanning modes are performed at the same rate timing. In reception, a plurality of echo signals respectively corresponding to a plurality of scanning modes are received using all the transducers without being distinguished, and a reception beam corresponding to each scanning mode is generated by a parallel simultaneous reception technique. Therefore, the number of scans per frame can be reduced as compared with the conventional case. Accordingly, the scanning time per frame in the triplex mode can be shortened.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, an improvement in the frame rate per frame can be realized in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that collectively performs a plurality of scanning modes.

  In the present embodiment, the B mode, the color Doppler mode, and the triplex mode in which the Doppler mode is performed collectively have been described as an example. However, this embodiment is not limited to this. The present embodiment can be applied to any composite mode as long as it is a composite mode in which a plurality of scanning modes are combined. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a composite mode in which the B mode and the color Doppler mode are collectively performed, and a composite mode in which the B mode and the Doppler mode are collectively performed.

  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. Furthermore, constituent elements over different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

  As described above, according to the present invention, an improvement in the frame rate can be realized in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that combines a plurality of scanning modes.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, 10 ... Ultrasonic probe, 20 ... Scanning mode allocation part, 30 ... Transmission / reception part, 32 ... Transmission part, 34 ... Reception part, 40 ... Scanning control part, 50 ... Signal processing part, 52 ... B Mode processing unit 54 ... Color Doppler mode processing unit 56 ... Doppler mode processing unit 60 ... Image generating unit 70 ... Display unit 80 ... Input unit 90 ... Storage unit 100 ... System control unit

Claims (6)

An ultrasonic probe having a plurality of transducers arranged two-dimensionally;
An assigning unit for assigning a plurality of scanning modes having different ultrasonic beam transmission conditions to the plurality of transducers;
A transmitter that drives the plurality of transducers according to the plurality of assigned scanning modes and simultaneously transmits a plurality of ultrasonic beams having different transmission conditions to the subject;
Ultrasonic reflected waves from the subject are received as echo signals via the plurality of transducers, and a plurality of reception beam signals corresponding to the plurality of ultrasonic beams are generated based on the received echo signals. A receiver,
A control unit that controls the transmission unit and the reception unit to ultrasonically scan the subject with the plurality of ultrasonic beams;
An image generation unit that generates data of a plurality of ultrasonic images respectively corresponding to the plurality of scanning modes based on the generated reception beam signal;
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit configured to simultaneously display the plurality of generated ultrasonic images.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transmission condition is at least one of a transmission direction, a focal position, and a depth of field of the transmitted ultrasonic beam.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the assigning unit divides the plurality of transducers into a plurality of groups, and assigns one of the plurality of scanning modes to each of the plurality of divided groups.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 4, wherein each of the plurality of groups is a set of transducers arranged in a row in a direction substantially parallel to the scanning plane.   The ultrasonic wave according to claim 1, wherein the reception unit generates a plurality of reception beams respectively corresponding to the plurality of scanning modes by performing parallel simultaneous reception processing on echo signals received via the plurality of transducers. Diagnostic device.

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