JP2012228425A - Ultrasound diagnostic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus capable of obtaining a high-quality ultrasound image while suppressing the temperature rise in an ultrasound probe.SOLUTION: The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus includes: a signal processing means disposed in the ultrasound probe and processing a reception signal outputted from an oscillator array; a battery supplying an electric power to the ultrasound probe; a battery power detecting means detecting the battery power; a heat storage means cooling the signal processing means; and a heat storage remaining capacity detecting means detecting the heat storage remaining capacity of the heat storage means, wherein the apparatus changes the operation mode of the ultrasound probe according to the detection result of the battery power detecting means and the heat storage remaining capacity detecting means.

Description

  The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that performs imaging of an organ or the like in a living body by transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves to generate an ultrasonic diagnostic image used for diagnosis.

  Conventionally, in the medical field, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using an ultrasonic image has been put into practical use. In general, this type of ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus has an ultrasonic probe with a built-in transducer array and an apparatus main body connected to the ultrasonic probe, and ultrasonic waves are directed toward the subject from the ultrasonic probe. , The ultrasonic echo from the subject is received by the ultrasonic probe, and the received signal is electrically processed by the apparatus main body to generate an ultrasonic image.

In such an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, heat is generated from the transducer array by transmitting ultrasonic waves from the transducer array.
However, since the operator usually holds the ultrasonic probe with one hand and makes a diagnosis while the ultrasonic wave transmitting / receiving surface of the transducer array is in contact with the surface of the subject, the ultrasonic probe is easily held by the operator with one hand. It is often housed in a small enough enclosure. For this reason, the temperature of the housing of the ultrasonic probe may rise due to heat generated from the transducer array.

In recent years, an ultrasonic probe has a built-in circuit board for signal processing, and the received signal output from the transducer array is digitally processed and transmitted to the apparatus body by wireless communication or wired communication. There has been proposed an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that reduces the influence and obtains a high-quality ultrasonic image.
In an ultrasonic probe that performs this kind of digital processing, heat is generated from the circuit board even during processing of the received signal, and it is necessary to suppress temperature rise in the enclosure to ensure stable operation of each circuit on the circuit board There is.
An ultrasonic probe that performs digital processing may incorporate a battery in order to supply power to the circuit board. When power is supplied by a battery, it is required to save power in order to extend the driving time of the ultrasonic probe in addition to suppressing heat generation from the circuit board.

For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a battery, a battery power remaining amount measuring unit that measures the remaining amount of power of the battery, a mode setting unit that changes and sets the power saving mode when the remaining power is equal to or less than a threshold, and a power saving mode. Accordingly, there is described an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus including a power supply control unit that limits power supplied to the ultrasonic probe and the apparatus main body.
In addition, as an example of substrate circuit cooling, Patent Document 2 discloses that a battery pack includes a cooling unit formed of a heat storage material amount, and the cooling unit is mounted on an electronic device. It describes that the cooling unit is cooled when the electronic component is cooled and the battery pack is removed from the electronic device and the battery is charged.

JP 2010-167083 A JP 2006-092894 A

However, as in Patent Document 1, when the remaining power of the battery is equal to or less than the threshold value, the heat generation can be reduced when operating in a mode other than the power saving mode only by changing to the power saving mode. Therefore, the temperature of the ultrasonic probe rises.
Further, as in Patent Document 2, when the battery pack has a cooling unit formed of a heat storage material amount, and this cooling unit cools the electronic components of the device, the timing when the power of the battery runs out, There is a possibility that the timing when the remaining heat storage capacity of the cooling unit runs out is different. Therefore, for example, when the remaining heat storage capacity of the cooling unit is exhausted and the battery power remains sufficiently, the electronic components of the device cannot be cooled, so the heat generation cannot be reduced, and the ultrasonic wave The temperature of the probe will rise. On the other hand, even if there is sufficient remaining heat storage capacity in the cooling section, the ultrasonic probe cannot be operated when the battery power is exhausted.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems of the prior art and provide an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus capable of obtaining a high-quality ultrasonic image while suppressing an increase in the internal temperature of the ultrasonic probe. For the purpose.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention transmits an ultrasonic beam from a transducer array of an ultrasonic probe toward a subject and outputs an ultrasonic echo from the subject. In the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that generates an ultrasonic image based on the received signal, a signal processing unit that is disposed in the ultrasonic probe and processes the received signal output from the transducer array, and the ultrasonic probe A battery that is disposed and supplies power to the ultrasonic probe, a battery remaining amount detecting means that detects a remaining battery level of the battery, a heat storage means that is disposed in the ultrasonic probe and cools the signal processing means, A residual heat storage capacity detecting means for detecting a residual heat storage capacity of the heat storage means, and depending on the detection results of the remaining battery capacity detection means and the residual heat storage capacity detection means, To provide an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus characterized by changing the operation mode of the wave probe.

Further, as the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe, a normal mode and a power saving mode that consumes less energy than the normal mode are set, and a remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit is equal to or less than a predetermined heat storage remaining capacity. It is preferable that the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe is changed to the power saving mode when the remaining battery level of the battery becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined remaining battery level.
In the power saving mode, it is preferable to increase the repetition interval of imaging.
In the power saving mode, it is preferable to reduce the number of transmission / reception channels of the transducer array.
In the power saving mode, it is preferable to reduce a current supplied to the signal processing means.

Further, the remaining heat storage capacity detecting means measures the temperature of the heat storage means, and when the temperature of the heat storage means exceeds a predetermined temperature, the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe is changed to the power saving mode. It is preferable to switch.
Moreover, it is preferable that the said battery is provided in the said ultrasonic probe so that attachment or detachment is possible.
Moreover, it is preferable that the said heat storage means is provided in the said ultrasonic probe so that attachment or detachment is possible.
Or it is preferable that the said battery and the said thermal storage means are provided in the said ultrasonic probe so that attachment or detachment is possible.

Further, the remaining time until the remaining heat storage capacity reaches the predetermined remaining heat storage capacity is calculated from the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage means and the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe, and the remaining battery capacity of the battery Preferably, the remaining time until the remaining battery level reaches the predetermined remaining battery level is calculated from the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe, and the shorter remaining time is displayed on the display means.
Moreover, it is preferable that the phase change temperature of the material of the said thermal storage means is 40-50 degreeC.
Moreover, it is preferable that the ultrasonic probe transmits and receives the reception signal to and from the diagnostic apparatus body by wireless communication.

  According to the ultrasonic image generation method of the present invention having the above-described configuration, the signal processing means for processing the reception signal output from the transducer array, the battery for supplying power to the ultrasonic probe, and the remaining battery level of the battery A battery remaining amount detecting means for detecting, a heat storage means for cooling the signal processing means, and a remaining heat storage capacity detecting means for detecting a remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storing means. Since the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe is changed according to the detection result, heat generation in the ultrasonic probe can be suppressed, and a high-quality ultrasonic image can be obtained.

(A) is a block diagram which shows notionally an example of the ultrasonic probe of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of this invention, (B) is a block diagram which shows conceptually the battery pack and charging device of (A). It is. It is a block diagram showing the structure of the ultrasonic probe shown in FIG. It is a block diagram showing the structure of the diagnostic apparatus main body of the ultrasonic diagnosing device of this invention. (A) is a figure which shows notionally the relationship between temperature and consumption heat storage amount, (B) is a figure which shows notionally the relationship between voltage and power consumption.

  Hereinafter, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail based on a preferred embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1A is a block diagram conceptually showing an example of an ultrasonic probe of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 conceptually shows the configuration of the ultrasonic probe of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram conceptually showing the configuration of the diagnostic apparatus main body of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention.
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 10 shown in FIGS. 1A, 2, and 3 includes an ultrasonic probe 12 and a diagnostic apparatus main body 14. The ultrasonic probe 12 and the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 are connected by wireless communication between the communication means 20 of the ultrasonic probe 12 and the wireless communication unit 60 of the diagnostic apparatus main body 14.

As shown in FIG. 1A and FIG. 2, the ultrasonic probe 12 includes a transducer unit 16 that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves, and a signal processing unit 18 that processes ultrasonic reception signals received by the transducer unit 16. Wireless communication with the diagnostic device main body 14, thereby transmitting the reception signal processed by the signal processing means 18 to the diagnostic device main body 14 and receiving various control signals from the diagnostic device main body 14. Means 20, a power supply unit 22 that supplies power to each unit of the ultrasonic probe 12, and a battery pack 24 including a battery 52. The battery pack 24 has a heat storage unit 54 for cooling each part of the ultrasonic probe 12, and the ultrasonic probe 12 is a heat conductor that thermally connects each part of the heat storage part 54 and the ultrasonic probe 12. 26.
The battery pack 24 is detachably attached to the ultrasonic probe 12, and has a charging means and a cooling means by removing the battery pack 24 from the ultrasonic probe 12, as shown in FIG. By attaching to the charging device, the battery 52 can be charged and the heat storage section 54 can be cooled.

  The transducer unit 16 is for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves, and includes a plurality of transducers 30 that constitute a one-dimensional or two-dimensional transducer array, a transmission drive unit 32, and a transmission control unit 34. doing.

Each of the plurality of transducers 30 transmits an ultrasonic wave according to a drive signal supplied from the transmission drive unit 32 and receives an ultrasonic echo from the subject to output a reception signal. Each transducer 30 includes, for example, a piezoelectric ceramic represented by PZT (lead zirconate titanate), a polymer piezoelectric element represented by PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride), PMN-PT (magnesium niobate / lead titanate solid solution). ), A piezoelectric body made of a piezoelectric single crystal or the like.
When a pulsed or continuous wave voltage is applied to the electrodes of such a vibrator, the piezoelectric material expands and contracts, and pulsed or continuous wave ultrasonic waves are generated from the respective vibrators. As a result, an ultrasonic beam is formed. In addition, each transducer generates an electric signal by expanding and contracting by receiving propagating ultrasonic waves, and these electric signals are output as ultrasonic reception signals.

The transmission drive unit 32 includes, for example, a plurality of pulsars as a plurality of transmission circuits, and ultrasonic waves transmitted from the plurality of transducers 30 are received in the subject based on the transmission delay pattern selected by the transmission control unit 34. The delay amounts of the plurality of drive signals are adjusted and supplied to the plurality of transducers 30 so as to form a wide ultrasonic beam covering the tissue area.
Note that the shape of the ultrasonic beam transmitted from the plurality of transducers 16 is not limited to a wide shape, and a normal method in which the beam is narrowed may be used.

  The signal processing means 18 includes a reception signal processing unit 36 for a plurality of channels, a reception control unit 38, a parallel / serial conversion unit 40, a probe control unit 42, and a mode selection unit 58.

  The reception control unit 38 controls the operation of the reception signal processing unit 36 for a plurality of channels. The reception signal processing unit 36 of each channel generates a complex baseband signal by performing orthogonal detection processing or orthogonal sampling processing on the reception signal output from the corresponding transducer 30, and samples the complex baseband signal. Thus, raw data (sample data) including information on the area of the tissue is generated, and the raw data is supplied to the parallel / serial converter 40. Further, the reception signal processing unit 36 may generate raw data by performing data compression processing for high-efficiency encoding on data obtained by sampling a complex baseband signal. As data compression processing, run-length compression, Huffman coding, or the like can be used.

  The parallel / serial conversion unit 40 converts the parallel sample data generated by the reception signal processing unit 36 of a plurality of channels into serial sample data.

  The mode selection unit 58 corresponds to the voltage measurement result of the battery 52 by the voltmeter 53 to be described later and the temperature measurement result of the heat storage unit 54 by the temperature sensor 56, that is, the battery remaining amount of the battery 52 and the heat storage of the heat storage unit 54 The operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12 is changed according to the remaining capacity.

As an operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12, in addition to a normal mode in which an ultrasonic image is captured under a normal imaging condition, a power saving mode in which an ultrasonic image is captured under an imaging condition with lower power consumption than in the normal mode. Is set.
The mode selection unit 58 determines that the voltage measurement result supplied from the voltmeter 53 is equal to or lower than a predetermined voltage threshold value, or the temperature measurement result supplied from the temperature sensor 56 is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature threshold value. The operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12 is changed to the power saving mode. That is, the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12 is changed to the power saving mode when the remaining battery level of the battery 52 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value or when the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit 54 is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value.

In this embodiment, the power saving mode is a mode in which an ultrasonic image is captured with a larger imaging repetition interval, that is, with a lower frame rate than in the normal mode. For example, the frame rate in the normal mode is set to 30 fps, and the frame rate in the power saving mode is set to 5 fps. Accordingly, in the power saving mode, the frequency of transmission / reception of ultrasonic waves by the transducer unit 16 is reduced, and the frequency of signal processing performed by the signal processing means 18 is also reduced.
In addition, when the mode selection unit 58 changes the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12, it is preferable to notify that the operation mode has been changed. For example, an operation mode change signal may be supplied to the diagnostic apparatus body 14 and a display to the effect that the operation mode has been changed may be displayed on the display unit 70 of the diagnostic apparatus body 14.

As described above, in the present invention, the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54 that cools each part in the ultrasonic probe 12 are provided, and the battery remaining amount of the battery 52 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold or the remaining heat storage of the heat storage unit 54. When the capacity is below a predetermined threshold, the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12 is changed to the power saving mode. Therefore, even when operating in the normal mode, heat generation in the ultrasonic probe 12 is reduced, and the ultrasonic probe is reduced. The temperature of 12 can be prevented from rising. In addition, when the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit 54 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value and the battery 52 has sufficient power remaining, it operates in a power saving mode with less heat generation, thereby suppressing the temperature rise of the ultrasonic probe 12. In addition, even when the remaining battery level of the battery is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, the driving time of the ultrasonic probe 12 can be increased because the battery operates in the power saving mode.
The mode selection unit 58 supplies a mode change instruction to the probe control unit 42.

  The probe control unit 42 controls each unit of the ultrasonic probe 12 based on various control signals transmitted from the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 and a mode change instruction signal from the mode selection unit 58.

The communication unit 20 includes a wireless communication unit 44 and a communication control unit 46.
The wireless communication unit 44 modulates a carrier based on serial sample data to generate a transmission signal, supplies the transmission signal to the antenna, and transmits radio waves from the antenna, thereby transmitting serial sample data. As the modulation scheme, for example, ASK (Amplitude Shift Keying), PSK (Phase Shift Keying), QPSK (Quadrature Phase Shift Keying), 16QAM (16 Quadrature Amplitude Modulation), and the like are used.
The wireless communication unit 44 wirelessly communicates with the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 to transmit sample data to the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 and to receive various control signals from the diagnostic apparatus main body 14. The control signal is output to the communication control unit 46.
The communication control unit 46 controls the wireless communication unit 44 so that the sample data is transmitted with the transmission radio wave intensity set by the probe control unit 42, and performs probe control on various control signals received by the wireless communication unit 44. To the unit 42.

The power supply unit 22 includes a power control unit 48 and a power supply unit 50.
The power supply unit 50 supplies the power charged in the battery 52 to each part of the ultrasonic probe 12 such as the transmission drive unit 32 and the reception signal processing unit 36 under the control of the power control unit 48.
In response to an instruction from the probe control unit 28, the power control unit 40 controls the power supply unit 42 so as to supply desired power to each unit of the ultrasonic probe 12.

The battery pack 24 includes a battery 52, a voltmeter 53, a heat storage unit 54, and a temperature sensor 56.
The battery 52 supplies power to each part of the ultrasonic probe 12 via the power supply unit 22.
The voltmeter 53 measures the voltage of the battery 52.
FIG. 4B is a diagram conceptually showing the relationship between the voltage of the battery 52 and the power consumption.
As shown in FIG. 4B, the remaining battery level of the battery 52 can be obtained by measuring the voltage of the battery 52.
The voltmeter 53 supplies the measurement result to the mode selection unit 58.

The heat storage unit 54 is thermally connected to the respective circuits of the signal processing unit 18, the communication unit 20, and the power supply unit 22 via the heat conductor 26, and the signal processing unit 18, the communication unit 20, and the power supply unit 22. Cool each circuit.
There is no limitation in particular as a material of the thermal storage part 54, What is necessary is just to be able to cool the signal processing means 18, the communication means 20, and the power supply part 22 suitably. It is preferable to use a material having a melting point of about 40 to 50 ° C. as the heat storage unit 54 due to thermal limitations of semiconductor devices used in the circuits of the signal processing unit 18, the communication unit 20, and the power supply unit 22. For example, a low melting point alloy such as wood metal, paraffin or the like can be used.

FIG. 4A is a diagram conceptually illustrating the relationship between the temperature of the heat storage unit 54 and the amount of stored heat.
As shown in FIG. 4A, the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit 54 can be obtained by measuring the temperature of the heat storage unit 54.
In the region where the melting point of the material of the heat storage unit 54 is constant, the heat generation amount may be calculated from the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe 12 and integrated to calculate the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit 54.
The temperature sensor 56 measures the temperature of the heat storage unit 54 and supplies the measurement result to the mode selection unit 58.

The heat conductor 26 thermally connects the heat storage unit 54, the signal processing unit 18, the communication unit 20, and the power supply unit 22.
The heat conductor 26 is not particularly limited as long as heat can be suitably transferred between the heat storage unit 54, the signal processing unit 18, the communication unit 20, and the power source unit 22. For example, a heat pipe, a heat transfer sheet, or the like is used. That's fine.

  In the above, the transmission control unit 34, the reception control unit 38, the parallel / serial conversion unit 40, the communication control unit 46, the probe control unit 42, the mode selection unit 58, the power control unit 48, etc. The operation program for performing the above process may be configured by a digital circuit.

On the other hand, the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 has a wireless communication unit 60, a data storage unit 64 is connected to the wireless communication unit 60 via a serial / parallel conversion unit 62, and an image generation unit 66 is connected to the data storage unit 64. Has been. Further, a display unit 70 is connected to the image generation unit 66 via a display control unit 68.
A communication control unit 72 is connected to the wireless communication unit 60, and a main body control unit 74 is connected to the serial / parallel conversion unit 62, the image generation unit 66, the display control unit 68, and the communication control unit 72. Further, an operation unit 76 for an operator to perform an input operation is connected to the main body control unit 74.

  The operation unit 76 is for setting an imaging menu, imaging conditions, and the like and performing an input operation for instructing imaging of the subject. The operation unit 76 can be formed from a keyboard, a mouse, a trackball, a touch panel, or the like for an operator to perform an input operation.

The wireless communication unit 60 transmits various control signals to the ultrasonic probe 12 by performing wireless communication with the ultrasonic probe 12. The wireless communication unit 60 also outputs serial sample data by demodulating a signal received by the antenna.
The communication control unit 72 controls the wireless communication unit 60 so that various control signals are transmitted with the transmission radio wave intensity set by the main body control unit 74.
The serial / parallel converter 62 converts the serial sample data output from the wireless communication unit 60 into parallel sample data. The data storage unit 64 is configured by a memory, a hard disk, or the like, and stores at least one frame of sample data converted by the serial / parallel conversion unit 62.

The image generation unit 66 performs reception focus processing on the sample data for each frame read from the data storage unit 64 to generate an image signal representing an ultrasound diagnostic image. The image generation unit 66 includes a phasing addition unit 78 and an image processing unit 80.
The phasing addition unit 78 selects one reception delay pattern from a plurality of reception delay patterns stored in advance according to the reception direction set in the main body control unit 74, and sets the selected reception delay pattern. Based on this, the reception focus process is performed by adding a delay to each of the plurality of complex baseband signals represented by the sample data. By this reception focus processing, a baseband signal (sound ray signal) in which the focus of the ultrasonic echo is narrowed is generated.

  The image processing unit 80 generates a B-mode image signal that is tomographic image information related to the tissue in the subject based on the sound ray signal generated by the phasing addition unit 78. The image processing unit 80 includes an STC (sensitivity time control) unit and a DSC (digital scan converter). The STC unit corrects the attenuation due to the distance according to the depth of the reflection position of the ultrasonic wave on the sound ray signal. The DSC converts the sound ray signal corrected by the STC unit into an image signal according to a normal television signal scanning method (raster conversion), and performs necessary image processing such as gradation processing to thereby obtain a B-mode image signal. Is generated.

  The display control unit 68 causes the display unit 70 to display an ultrasound diagnostic image based on the image signal generated by the image generation unit 66. The display unit 70 includes a display device such as an LCD, for example, and displays an ultrasound diagnostic image under the control of the display control unit 68.

The main body control unit 74 controls each unit of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 10 in accordance with an operator operation using the operation unit 76.
In such a diagnostic apparatus main body 14, the serial / parallel conversion unit 62, the image generation unit 66, the display control unit 68, the communication control unit 72, and the main body control unit 74 are used for causing the CPU and the CPU to perform various processes. Although composed of operation programs, they may be composed of digital circuits.

Next, the operation of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 10 will be described.
When the operator makes contact with the ultrasonic probe 12 on the surface of the subject and starts imaging, the transmission control unit 34 controls the transmission driving unit 32 based on a control signal from the main body control unit 74. The transmission drive unit 32 drives the transducer 30 based on the control signal, and an ultrasonic beam is transmitted from each transducer 30, and each transducer 30 receives an ultrasonic echo from within the subject and outputs a received signal. .

  The reception signals output from the transducers 30 that have received ultrasonic echoes from the subject are supplied to the corresponding reception signal processing units 36. The reception signal supplied to the reception signal processing unit 36 is sequentially converted into sample data, serialized by the parallel / serial conversion unit 40, and then wirelessly transmitted from the wireless communication unit 44 to the diagnostic apparatus body 14. Sample data received by the wireless communication unit 60 of the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 is converted into parallel data by the serial / parallel conversion unit 62 and stored in the data storage unit 64. Further, sample data for each frame is read from the data storage unit 64, an image signal is generated by the image generation unit 66, and an ultrasonic diagnostic image is displayed on the display unit 70 by the display control unit 68 based on the image signal. Is done.

Here, in the present invention, the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54 that cools each part in the ultrasonic probe 12 are measured, the voltage of the battery 52 is measured, and the temperature of the heat storage unit 54 is measured, and the battery When the remaining battery capacity of 52 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, or when the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit 54 is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value, the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe 12 is changed to the power saving mode.
Therefore, when operating in the normal mode, the heat generation in the ultrasonic probe 12 can be reduced and the temperature of the ultrasonic probe 12 can be prevented from rising. In addition, when the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage unit 54 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value and the battery 52 has sufficient power remaining, it operates in a power saving mode with less heat generation, thereby suppressing the temperature rise of the ultrasonic probe 12. In addition, even when the remaining battery level of the battery is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, the driving time of the ultrasonic probe 12 can be increased because the battery operates in the power saving mode.

The present invention is basically as described above.
Although the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various improvements and modifications may be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  For example, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus shown in the figure, the power saving mode reduces the frame rate. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe 12 is lower than that in the normal mode. Good. For example, the setting may be made to reduce the number of channels (opening size of the transducer unit) when transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves. Alternatively, in a configuration in which the reception signal processing unit includes a low noise amplifier that amplifies the reception signal from the transducer, the bias current supplied to the low noise amplifier may be set to be small. Moreover, it is good also as a setting which combined these.

Further, the battery remaining amount is obtained from the voltage of the battery 52 measured by the voltmeter 53, and the operation time until the battery remaining amount reaches a predetermined threshold from the obtained battery remaining amount and the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe 12. May be calculated and displayed on the display unit of the diagnostic apparatus main body.
Alternatively, the remaining heat storage capacity is obtained from the temperature of the heat storage section 54 measured by the temperature sensor 56, and the operation until the remaining heat storage capacity reaches a predetermined threshold from the obtained heat storage remaining capacity and the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe 12. The time may be calculated and displayed on the display unit of the diagnostic apparatus main body.
In addition, the operation time obtained from the remaining battery capacity and the operation time obtained from the remaining heat storage capacity may be displayed, respectively, or the shorter operation time may be displayed.
By displaying the operation time, the ultrasonic probe 12 can be used more efficiently.

In the illustrated example, the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54 are integrally provided as the battery pack 24 so as to be detachable from the ultrasonic probe 12, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54 may be separately provided so as to be detachable from the ultrasonic probe 12, or may be provided integrally with the ultrasonic probe 12.
Management becomes easy by integrating the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54. On the other hand, by separately providing the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54, the battery 52 and the heat storage unit 54 can be exchanged / charged (heat storage) more efficiently.

In the illustrated example, the voltage of the battery 52 is measured to determine the remaining battery level. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various known methods for measuring the remaining battery level can be used.
Similarly, in the illustrated example, the temperature of the heat storage unit 54 is measured to determine the remaining heat storage capacity. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various known methods for measuring the remaining heat storage capacity can be used.

In the illustrated example, the mode selection unit 58 is arranged on the ultrasonic probe 12. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the mode selection unit 58 may be arranged on the diagnostic apparatus main body 14.
In addition, even when operating in the power saving mode, it may be configured to operate in the normal mode in response to an input instruction from the operator.

  In the illustrated example, the ultrasound probe 12 and the diagnostic apparatus main body 14 are configured to transmit and receive signals by wireless communication. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and signals are transmitted and received by wired communication means. It is good also as a structure.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 12 Ultrasonic probe 14 Diagnostic apparatus main body 16 Transducer unit 18 Signal processing means 20 Communication means 22 Power supply part 24 Battery pack 26 Thermal conductor 30 Transducer 32 Transmission drive part 34 Transmission control part 36 Reception signal processing part 38 Reception control unit 40 Parallel / serial conversion unit 42 Probe control unit 44, 60 Wireless communication unit 46, 72 Communication control unit 48 Power control unit 50 Power supply unit 52 Battery 53 Voltmeter 54 Heat storage unit 56 Temperature sensor 58 Mode selection unit 62 Serial / Parallel conversion unit 64 data storage unit 66 image generation unit 68 display control unit 70 display unit 74 main body control unit 76 operation unit 78 phasing addition unit 80 image processing unit

Claims (12)

An ultrasonic beam is transmitted from the transducer array of the ultrasonic probe toward the subject, and an ultrasonic image is generated based on the reception signal output from the transducer array that has received the ultrasonic echo from the subject. In ultrasonic diagnostic equipment,
A signal processing unit disposed in the ultrasonic probe and processing a reception signal output from the transducer array;
A battery disposed on the ultrasound probe and supplying power to the ultrasound probe;
A battery level detecting means for detecting a battery level of the battery;
Heat storage means disposed on the ultrasonic probe for cooling the signal processing means;
A heat storage residual capacity detection means for detecting a heat storage residual capacity of the heat storage means,
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, wherein an operation mode of the ultrasonic probe is changed according to detection results of the remaining battery level detection means and the remaining heat storage capacity detection means. As an operation mode of the ultrasonic probe, a normal mode and a power saving mode with less energy consumption than the normal mode are set,
When the remaining heat storage capacity of the heat storage section is less than or equal to a predetermined remaining heat storage capacity, or when the remaining battery capacity of the battery is less than or equal to a predetermined remaining battery capacity, the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe is changed. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is changed to the power saving mode.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the imaging repetition interval is increased in the power saving mode.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein in the power saving mode, the number of transmission / reception channels of the transducer array is reduced.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein in the power saving mode, a current supplied to the signal processing unit is reduced.   The heat storage residual capacity detection means measures the temperature of the heat storage means, and the operation mode of the ultrasonic probe is switched to the power saving mode when the temperature of the heat storage means exceeds a predetermined temperature. Item 6. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to any one of Items 2 to 5.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the battery is detachably provided on the ultrasonic probe.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heat storage unit is detachably provided on the ultrasonic probe.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the battery and the heat storage unit are integrally provided to be removable from the ultrasonic probe.   From the heat storage remaining capacity of the heat storage means and the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe, calculate the remaining time until the heat storage remaining capacity reaches the predetermined heat storage remaining capacity, and the remaining battery capacity of the battery, The remaining time until the remaining battery level reaches the predetermined remaining battery level is calculated from the power consumption of the ultrasonic probe, and the shorter remaining time is displayed on the display means. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein a phase change temperature of a material of the heat storage means is 40 to 50 ° C.   The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic probe transmits and receives the received signal to and from the diagnostic apparatus main body by wireless communication.

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