JP2013085565A - Acoustic matching medium unit - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make an acoustic matching medium be surely present between a biological surface and an ultrasonic wave transmission/reception surface.SOLUTION: By a hollow case 104, an acoustic matching medium 106 is held. To put it concretely, by a pair of hook members 126 inside the hollow case 104, both ends of the acoustic matching medium 106 are hooked and held. A lower side opening 100 is formed on the hollow case 104, and when a probe 19 is attached from the upper part, the intermediate part of the acoustic matching medium 106 is pushed in from the upper part by the transmission/reception surface 19A, and thus a swollen part 112 is generated. Since both ends of the acoustic matching medium 106 are positioned at an upper high position and the acoustic matching medium 106 is pushed in by the probe 19, tension is extremely increased on the surface of the swollen part 112, and the shape holding property is improved.

Description

  The present invention relates to an acoustic matching medium unit, and more particularly, to an acoustic matching medium unit used in a knee measuring device used in ultrasonic diagnosis of a knee.

  An increasing number of patients have knee osteoarthritis. In osteoarthritis of the knee, abnormalities (abrasion, deformation, defect, etc.) are found in the cartilage present in the knee (knee joint). For the prevention and diagnosis, there is a strong demand for a simple and non-invasive device and method for evaluating the knee, particularly the cartilage therein.

  In image diagnosis using X-rays, it is difficult to image cartilage existing inside the knee joint. On the other hand, it has been demonstrated that the cartilage can be imaged by diagnostic imaging using ultrasound. As a system for performing such image diagnosis, there are knee measurement systems disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2.

  In the systems disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the ultrasonic probe is brought into contact with the surface of the knee in a bent state, and the ultrasonic probe is mechanically moved along the arcuate path while maintaining the contact state. Scanned. Thereby, a three-dimensional measurement space including cartilage is formed, and ultrasonic volume data is acquired from the space. Based on the ultrasonic volume data, for example, a three-dimensional image of cartilage can be formed.

  In the above system, the ultrasonic wave is transmitted and received in a state where the knee is bent in order to observe the cartilage without being obstructed by the distal end of the femur or the proximal end of the tibia. Further, if the observation is performed in such a bent state, the position of the patella is shifted in the horizontal direction, and the cartilage can be easily observed from the front. Cartilage is present on both the femur side and the tibia side at the joint between the femur and the tibia (see FIGS. 1 and 2 of Patent Documents 1 and 2). Among them, it is known that a defect is likely to occur in the cartilage portion on the femur side, particularly in the cartilage portion on the inner foot side.

  In the above system, a mounting unit attached from the thigh to below the knee is used. Specifically, the mounting unit falls and moves from the front of the subject toward the subject with the lower end as a rotation axis. As a result of the falling-down movement, a part of the load of the wearing unit reaches the subject's foot. In such a state, a measurable state is formed. In addition, the above system utilizes a flat and slender acoustic matching medium that deforms along the bent shape of the knee. The acoustic matching medium is composed of a flat rubber bag and a liquid (for example, water) filled therein. In a state where the acoustic matching medium covers from the upper surface to the front surface of the knee, the ultrasonic probe is brought into contact with the surface of the acoustic matching medium, and mechanical scanning of the ultrasonic probe is performed while maintaining the contact state. ing.

Japanese Patent No. 4378552 Japanese Patent No. 4374470

  In the above-described ultrasonic diagnosis of the knee, there is a problem that the liquid tends to accumulate in the lower part of the rubber bag and the liquid tends to decrease in the upper part of the rubber bag due to the action of gravity. Therefore, in the conventional system, a hard frame that sandwiches the left side and the right side of the rubber bag is used. However, if the shape of such a frame does not match the shape of the body surface, the subject may feel uncomfortable and an air layer is likely to occur. When ultrasonically diagnosing a knee in a bent state, it is necessary to accurately abut the probe not only on the horizontal plane but also on the vertical plane on the body surface. It is required to ensure sound propagation between the two. For this reason, there is a need for a mechanism that can keep unnecessary deformation of the acoustic matching medium to a certain limit even when the gravitational action is applied. This problem can be pointed out even in ultrasonic diagnosis on a region other than the knee, and also in the case where manual scanning is performed instead of mechanical scanning.

  An object of the present invention is to reliably ensure ultrasonic propagation between a transmitting / receiving surface and a living body surface even if the posture of the probe (that is, the contact angle with respect to the living body surface) changes as the probe scans. It is in.

  The present invention is an acoustic matching medium unit that can be scanned in a direction intersecting the electronic scanning direction defined by the probe in a state where the probe is assembled, and has an extended form in the electronic scanning direction, and has an external force An acoustic matching medium that deforms due to the above, a hollow member that partially extends in the electronic scanning direction, and that partially accommodates the acoustic matching medium, an upper opening that receives the probe, and a living body of the acoustic matching medium A hollow case having a lower opening that generates a bulging portion by allowing partial protrusion to the side, and a holding structure that holds both ends of the acoustic matching medium in the electronic scanning direction. It is characterized by this.

  According to the above configuration, when the probe is inserted from the upper opening, the intermediate portion of the acoustic matching medium is strongly pushed out from above by the wave transmitting / receiving surface, and the portion is externally inserted from the inside of the hollow case through the lower opening. It is forced out and bulges and deforms. As a whole, the tension is increased and a bulge is formed. The acoustic matching medium has a form extending in the electronic scanning direction, and both ends thereof are held by the both ends of the hollow case, so that the acoustic matching medium swells inside the hollow case as a reaction due to the extrusion of the probe. However, since the gap inside the hollow case is limited, as described above, the bulging portion is generated outside the lower opening with a certain elasticity. When the probe is further pressed against the living body in such a state, the bulging portion is further crushed depending on the shape of the gap between the wave transmitting / receiving surface and the living body surface, and the tension or elastic action is further increased. Even if the acoustic matching medium unit is moved on the body surface together with the probe, the bulging portion is surely present on the front surface side of the wave transmitting / receiving surface, so that good acoustic propagation can be ensured in all such moving processes. Under the restriction of the volume by the hollow case and the restriction of the bulging part by the lower opening, the pre-pressing (initial pressing) associated with the probe setting is performed and the pressing action associated with the probe contact is exerted, so the bulge It is possible to sufficiently generate the elastic force (shape maintaining action). Thereby, even if the probe comes into contact in a horizontal posture, sufficient acoustic propagation can be secured. Further, it is possible to prevent gravity from working locally excessively or unbalanced. The above configuration is particularly preferably mounted on the knee measuring device, but can also be used for ultrasonic diagnosis of other parts.

  Preferably, the holding structure is provided in a right case end of the hollow case and is hooked on a right medium end of the acoustic matching medium so that the right medium end is pulled back toward the lower opening. The right side hook is provided in the left case end of the hollow case, and is hooked on the left medium end of the acoustic matching medium so that the left medium end is directed toward the lower opening. And a left-hand hook that prevents it from being pulled back. Various types of acoustic matching media can be used. Preferably, the acoustic matching medium is composed of a bag that elastically deforms the acoustic matching medium and a liquid filled therein. Such a bag is easily deformable and easily hooks into each hook. Moreover, if a durable rubber member or synthetic member is used, it cannot be easily broken. It is desirable to make the hook tip non-sharp.

  Preferably, the hooking level of the right medium end by the right hook and the hooking level of the left medium end by the left hook are set higher than the level of the wave transmitting / receiving surface of the probe in the assembled state. . Thereby, tension | tensile_strength and the return force to the hollow case side (adhesion force to a transmission / reception surface) can be improved.

  Preferably, each of the right hook and the left hook includes an upright portion that stands up from the bottom surface of the hollow case and a protruding portion that protrudes outward from the tip of the upright portion. Preferably, each medium end is sandwiched between the upper surface of each projecting portion and the ceiling surface of the hollow case. It is desirable to configure the acoustic matching medium to be replaceable. In that case, it is desirable to employ a split hollow case structure.

  Desirably, the holder includes a holder connected to the hollow case to hold the probe, and the holder is arranged so that a wave transmitting / receiving surface of the probe protrudes downward from the lower opening when viewed from a lateral direction. Hold. According to this configuration, even if the body surface has a bulge or the like and approaches the wave transmitting / receiving surface, the possibility that the hollow case lower surface or the lower opening edge comes into contact with the living body can be reduced.

  Preferably, the acoustic matching medium unit is mechanically scanned in an arc along the surface of the knee in a bent state in order to ultrasonically diagnose cartilage existing inside the knee. .

  According to the present invention, even when the posture of the probe (that is, the contact angle to the living body surface) changes with the scanning of the probe, it is possible to reliably ensure the ultrasonic wave propagation between the transmission / reception surface and the living body surface. Can do.

It is a figure showing the whole knee measurement system composition concerning the present invention. It is a 1st perspective view of the knee measuring device shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a second perspective view of the knee measuring device shown in FIG. 1. It is a 1st perspective view which shows a usage example. It is a 2nd perspective view which shows a usage example. It is a side view which shows the structure of a measurement mechanism. It is a 1st perspective view of a measurement mechanism. It is a 2nd perspective view of a measurement mechanism. It is a perspective view of an acoustic matching medium unit. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the partial structure in a hollow case. It is a fragmentary sectional view showing an acoustic matching medium unit in the state where a probe is not attached. It is a fragmentary sectional view of the acoustic matching medium unit in the state after a probe was attached. It is a figure for demonstrating the deformation | transformation of the bulging part accompanying rotation of a rotary body. It is a figure for demonstrating the mechanism regarding a shin rest. It is a figure which shows the system configuration example which concerns on other embodiment.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of a knee measurement system according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration thereof. This knee measurement system is used in the medical field, and is a system for ultrasonic diagnosis of cartilage existing inside the knee.

  In FIG. 1, the knee measurement system 10 is roughly divided into a knee measurement device 12 as a measurement unit, a chair 14, and an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus main body (not shown). The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus main body functions as a control unit and a signal processing unit, and an ultrasonic image is formed on the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus main body based on the received signal. In the present embodiment, in particular, three-dimensional measurement is performed on the knee, and a three-dimensional image of cartilage is formed based on the volume data obtained thereby.

  The knee measuring device 12 includes a measuring mechanism 18 that is positioned with respect to any one knee of the subject. In FIG. 1, one of the legs 16 among the subjects sitting on the chair 14 is conceptually depicted. The measuring mechanism 18 is positioned with respect to the knee portion of the foot 16. The knee measuring device 12 further includes an arm mechanism 20 and a base 22. The base 22 is installed on the floor surface. A handle 24 is provided on the base 22.

  The arm mechanism 20 is a mechanism that supports or holds the measurement mechanism 18. The three-dimensional position and posture of the measurement mechanism 18 can be freely adjusted by the arm mechanism 20. The arm mechanism 20 will be described in detail below. The elevating part 26 is provided so as to be slidable in the X direction in the drawing by a slide mechanism provided in the base 22. The elevating unit 26 is a mechanism for positioning the column 32 in the vertical direction, and the handle 28 is operated by the user at that time. In the illustrated example, the lever 30 is for locking the slide position in the X direction of the elevating unit 26, and the positioning of the column 32 by the elevating unit 26 may be locked simultaneously with the operation of the lever 30. A first turning mechanism 34 is provided at the upper end portion of the support column 32, and one end portion of the arm member 36 is connected thereto. The arm member 36 is a member extending in the horizontal direction, and a second turning mechanism 38 is provided at the other end. By operating the lever 40, it is possible to lock the operations of both the first turning mechanism 34 and the second turning mechanism 38. Since the two turning mechanisms 34 and 38 are provided, the horizontal position of the measuring mechanism 18 with respect to the base 22 can be freely and easily adjusted. Further, the height of the measuring mechanism 18 can be freely set by the elevating unit 26.

  Although one horizontal arm member 36 is provided in the arm mechanism 20 in FIG. 1, a plurality of horizontal arm members may be provided, or an arm member or the like that extends obliquely may be used. .

  The second turning mechanism 38 rotatably holds the suspension shaft, and the measurement mechanism 18 is connected to the suspension shaft. It is possible to freely set the rotation angle around the vertical axis of the measurement mechanism 18 with respect to the arm member 36. The measurement mechanism 18 constitutes a measurement head, and a probe 19 is detachably held by the measurement mechanism 18. The probe 19 has an array transducer composed of a plurality of vibrating elements arranged in the electronic scanning direction in the present embodiment. An ultrasonic beam is formed by such an array transducer, and the ultrasonic beam is electronically scanned in the electronic scanning direction. Thereby, a beam scanning surface is formed. A plurality of scanning planes are formed by moving the probe 19 in an arc around a rotation axis parallel to the electronic scanning direction, and a three-dimensional echo data capturing space can be constructed as an aggregate of these. In the present embodiment, the rotation center axis (horizontal axis) of the probe 19 is virtual that penetrates the center of the knee. Incidentally, in FIG. 1, the X direction is the first horizontal direction, and the second horizontal direction is the Y direction. The Y direction is the electronic scanning direction when the measurement mechanism 18 is in the original position and the original posture, and can be considered as the left-right direction of the measurement mechanism 18. The Z direction is the vertical direction.

  The chair 14 is used to place the subject in a sitting posture, and particularly has a function capable of maintaining a state in which a leg to be measured is bent. In FIG. 1, the foot 16 is in a bent state, and the angle θ formed by the central axis in the thigh and the central axis in the portion below the knee is, for example, 45 degrees, and preferably 20 degrees to 90 degrees. Is set within the range. A shin pad 54 is provided to maintain the bending angle of the foot 16 and to prevent the foot 16 from inadvertently moving left and right. The seat portion 48 is a portion on which the buttocks of the subject is placed, and reference numeral 50 indicates a backrest. The seat portion 48 and the backrest 50 can be slid up and down in an oblique direction by the elevating mechanism 52 and can be stopped at an arbitrary position. The elevating mechanism 52 is attached to a frame 46 erected obliquely upward from the base 44. Incidentally, it is possible to perform an ultrasonic diagnosis of the knee using the same knee measuring device 12 for both the right foot and the left foot.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the measuring mechanism 18 is held while being suspended at the working end of the arm mechanism 20. As a result, the foot 16, particularly the front under the knee, is opened. That is, no complicated mechanism or the like exists in the vicinity of the front of the foot 16, and an elevating part or the like exists at a position slightly away from the foot 16. Therefore, it is possible to alleviate the feeling of pressure on the subject. Further, most of the load of the measuring mechanism 18 is supported by the arm mechanism 20, and therefore, an advantage that unnecessary load is not applied to the knee or the foot can be obtained. The arm mechanism 20 can position the measurement mechanism 18 in the air, and can fix the positioned three-dimensional position and posture. In this state, volume data can be acquired by mechanical scanning of the probe 16.

  FIG. 2 shows a first perspective view of the knee measuring device 12 shown in FIG. As described above, the knee measuring device 12 includes the measuring mechanism 18 that is held in the air and the arm mechanism 20 that suspends and supports the measuring mechanism 18. FIG. 3 shows a second perspective view of the knee measuring device 12. 4 and 5 are perspective views showing a state in which the measuring mechanism 18 is positioned with respect to the foot as a reference diagram.

  Next, the measuring mechanism 18 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 6, the measurement mechanism 18 is suspended and held by the arm member 36 via a second turning mechanism 38 provided at the end of the arm member 36. Specifically, the second turning mechanism 38 rotatably holds a suspension shaft, and the measurement mechanism 18 is connected to the lower end side of the suspension shaft. The measuring mechanism 18 has a main body 58 and a rotating body 60 as will be described in detail later. The rotating body 60 performs a relative rotational movement with respect to the main body 58. This is shown as an arrow in the figure. A slide mechanism 70 attached to a base frame, which will be described later, is provided on the upper portion of the main body 58. The slide mechanism 70 is a mechanism for finely adjusting the measurement mechanism 18 in the left-right direction in FIG. 6, that is, the front-rear direction in the measurement mechanism 18, and the knob 70A is operated at that time. Although the three-dimensional position of the measurement mechanism 18 can be set by the arm mechanism described above, such a slide mechanism is used when fine adjustment is required in a specific direction. The rotating body 60 has a rotating frame 100 that rotates around a horizontal rotation axis indicated by reference numeral 56. An acoustic matching medium unit 102 is attached to the rotating frame 100 as will be described later. More specifically, a slide mechanism 80 is provided between the rotating frame 100 and the acoustic matching medium unit 102. The slide mechanism 80 is a mechanism for relatively sliding the acoustic matching medium unit 102 in the left-right direction, that is, the electronic scanning direction in the measurement mechanism 18, and the knob 80A is operated at that time. This slide mechanism 80 is also a fine adjustment mechanism.

  Incidentally, as will be described later, in the present embodiment, when acquiring a plurality of scanning plane data, first, the rotary body 60 is set to the position where the rotary body 60 is tilted downward most, while rotating upward from there. The exercise to get up is executed. At that time, the rotator 60 is temporarily stopped at each predetermined angular position, and one electronic scan of the ultrasonic beam is performed at each temporary stop position, thereby obtaining scan plane data (frame data). The For example, about 100 scan plane data, that is, frame data is acquired in one rising motion of the rotating body 60. Volume data is configured as an aggregate of these. Incidentally, each frame data is constituted by a plurality of beam data arranged in the electronic scanning direction, and each beam data is constituted by a plurality of echo data arranged in the depth direction. In the present embodiment, mechanical concave scanning is realized by the rotational motion of the rotating body 60 as described above. In the rotational operation of the rotating body 60 described above, all the movable mechanisms are locked, and the knee is clamped from the left and right as will be described later. Acquisition is realized.

  The measurement mechanism 18 will be further described in detail with reference to FIGS. As described above, the measurement mechanism 18 includes the main body 58 and the rotating body 60. The main body 58 has a base frame 62. The base frame 62 has a horizontal plate 64 provided at the top, a right plate 66 as a vertical plate connected to the right side thereof, and a left plate 68 as a vertical plate connected to the left side of the horizontal plate 64. . The base frame 62 has a bridge shape or an arch shape that straddles both sides of the knee.

  The horizontal plate 64 functions as an intermediate platform that connects the two plates 66 and 68, and the above-described slide mechanism 70 is mounted on the horizontal plate 64. The above-described suspension shaft is connected to the center of the horizontal plate 64. The position of the center of gravity of the measuring mechanism 18 is set at a point where the center line of the hanging shaft is extended.

  A clamp member 78 is provided on the living body side, that is, the inner surface of the left plate 68. On the other hand, a clamp member is also provided on the side surface of the living body, that is, the inner surface of the right plate 66. However, it does not appear in FIG. The clamp member 78 has an abutment surface 78A that performs a movement that can be brought into and out of contact with a living body. The contact surface 78A is formed of a hard member or an elastic body, and moves forward and backward by a pantograph mechanism provided inside the clamp member 78. Similarly, the clamp member provided on the right plate 66 also has an abutting surface, which also performs extension and retraction.

  When setting the measurement mechanism 18 to the knee to be measured, the knee is inserted between the base frames 62, the three-dimensional position and posture of the measurement mechanism 18 are adjusted, and then they are locked. It is possible to clamp the knee from both the left and right sides of the knee by moving the abutment surface 78A upward, specifically by advancing. In other words, the measuring mechanism 18 can be properly positioned by the clamp, in other words, the measuring mechanism 18 and the knee can be integrated to suppress unnecessary relative movement of the knee. The positions of the two contact surfaces in the front-rear direction can be determined independently, and the positions of the contact surfaces may be determined so that the center of the transmission / reception region is located at the main portion of interest in the cartilage. However, as shown in FIG. 6, the rotating body 60 is provided with a slide mechanism that performs a sliding motion in the left-right direction. Therefore, such a slide is obtained after positioning the two contact surfaces. It is also possible to adjust the position of the probe, that is, the scanning plane with respect to the knee using the mechanism.

  In FIG. 7, the contact surface 78A is depicted as a flat surface, but it may be configured as a spherical surface or a surface having another shape. It is better not to employ a very soft member as a member constituting the surface. As long as it does not give pain or discomfort to the subject, it is desirable to form the contact surface 78A with a hard member.

  A drive mechanism 76 described below is mounted on the left plate 68. A bearing 72 is provided outside the right plate 66. The bearing portion 72 has an encoder which is a sensor for detecting the rotation angle of the rotating body 60. The output signal of the encoder is sent to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus main body and used in transmission / reception and data processing.

  The rotating body 60 has the rotating frame 100 as described above, and the rotating frame 100 has the acoustic matching medium unit 102 mounted thereon. The acoustic matching medium unit 102 is equipped with a probe. From another point of view, the acoustic matching medium unit 102 is attached to the probe.

  FIG. 8 shows an enlarged perspective view of the measuring mechanism 18 as seen from another angle. In FIG. 8, a clamp member 80 provided on the inner surface of the right plate appears, and the clamp member 80 has a contact surface 84. The abutting surface 84A is movable in the approaching / separating direction with respect to the knee, and exhibits a positioning action of pressing the knee from the left and right in cooperation with the other clamp member. The drive mechanism 76 is attached to the outside of the left plate. Specifically, the drive mechanism 76 includes a clutch 82, a rotating plate 84 as a handle, a ratchet mechanism 86, and the like. Inside the case of the drive mechanism 76 are provided a spring member that stores elastic force, a damper mechanism that adjusts the speed, and the like.

  When the positioning and position fixing of the measurement mechanism with respect to the knee is completed and the clamp of the knee is also completed, the rotating plate 84 is rotationally driven by the user. Then, the rotating frame and the acoustic matching medium unit constituting the rotating body perform a rotating motion that falls down. When the clutch 82 is operated in a state where it has fallen to a predetermined inclination angle, specifically, when an operation for releasing the force accumulated in the spring is performed, the rotating body rises and rotates while the speed is adjusted by the damper mechanism. Start. At that time, the ratchet mechanism 86 temporarily stops the rotational motion of the rotating body intermittently at a predetermined angular pitch. Electronic scanning is performed once at each temporary stop position. The angular pitch is, for example, 0.8 degrees. For example, when a rotational movement of 60 to 120 degrees is performed, several tens to hundreds of frames of frame data are captured. Of course, the rotational motion may be continuously performed without intermittent pause while repeatedly performing high-speed electronic scanning. The ratchet mechanism 86 described above includes a pin provided in the vertical direction and a rotating plate having a large number of notches into which the tip of the pin fits. The top plate is not shown. By selecting the position where the knob in the clutch 82 is inserted, the rotation angle range can be freely set by the user. The configuration example illustrated in FIG. 8 is an example, and the rotating body may be driven to rotate by another mechanism. For example, an electric motor or the like may be used. However, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, an advantage is obtained in that safety is enhanced because the return action of the spring is used. That is, problems such as electrical errors or runaways do not occur.

  Next, the acoustic matching medium unit will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 9, the acoustic matching medium unit 102 constitutes a part of the rotating body described above. The acoustic matching medium unit 102 includes a hollow case 104, an acoustic matching medium 106, and the like. The hollow case 104 is a cylindrical hollow body that extends in the electronic scanning direction, and includes an upper case 114 and a lower case 116. In addition, it has side plates 118,120. An upper opening 108 is formed at the center of the upper case 114, and the head of the probe 19 can be inserted into the hollow case 104 through the upper opening 108. The probe 19 is held by a holder (not shown), and the holder is connected to the rotating frame described above. A hollow case 104 is connected to the holder. The probe 19 is an electronic linear probe, but other types of probes can also be used.

  Specifically, the acoustic matching medium 106 includes a flat bag-like rubber bag and a liquid (for example, water) filled therein. The rubber bag has a flat plate shape in its original state, and its length in the longitudinal direction is substantially equal to the length of the hollow case 104 in the axial direction. Of course, it can be set shorter than that. The length of the rubber bag in the short direction may be determined as appropriate, and it is desirable to set the width and thickness of the rubber bag so that the bulging portion 112 is sufficiently formed as will be described later. It is desirable to set the liquid filling amount under the same conditions.

  A lower opening 110 having a size larger than that of the upper opening 108 is formed in the lower case 116. Since the rubber bag is filled with a large amount of liquid, a part of the acoustic matching medium 106 protrudes downward from the lower opening 110, thereby generating a bulging portion 112. Further, as will be described later, a pair of hook members are provided in both end portions of the hollow case 104, and they are hooked while lifting both end portions of the acoustic matching medium 106 upward. In addition, since the probe 19 is inserted from above and the intermediate portion of the acoustic matching medium 106 is pushed downward, a bulging portion 112 bulging downward is generated. The tension of the rubber bag as a whole is increased around the bulging portion 112, and the elasticity of the bulging portion 112 is sufficiently enhanced. That is, the shape retaining property of the bulging portion 112 is improved. At the same time, the adhesion between the probe 19 and the wave transmitting / receiving surface is improved.

  FIG. 10 shows an exploded perspective view of the lower case 116. As described above, the lower case 116 has the relatively large lower opening 110. Side plates 118 and 120 are attached to both ends via members 122 and 124, respectively. It should be noted that a pair of hook members 126 and 130 are provided inside the hollow case. Each hook member 126 is fixedly disposed on the inner bottom surface of the lower case 116. Each hook member 126, 130 has lower end portions 126A, 130A, upright portions 126B, 130B connected thereto, and upper end portions 126C, 130C connected thereto. The lower end portions 126A and 130A are fixed on the inner bottom surface described above, and the end portions of the upright portions 126B and 130B that stand up from the upper end portions 126C and 130C constitute the upper end portions 126C and 130C. They have an outwardly protruding form. As a result, the end of the rubber bag can be hooked.

  FIG. 11 shows an initial state in which the acoustic matching medium 106 is mounted in the hollow case 104. Both ends of the acoustic matching medium 106 are hooked in the both ends of the hollow case 104 by the hook member described above. In FIG. 11, since the right end portion is shown as a cross-sectional view, the operation of the hook member 126 will be described on behalf of the right end portion. The right end portion 134 of the acoustic matching medium 106 extends over the hook member 126 and into the right end portion 132 of the hollow case 104. A hook member 126 is provided between the middle portion of the hollow case 104 and the right end portion 132, and the gap between the upper surface of the upper end portion and the inner surface of the upper case 114 is extremely small, and the right end portion 132 is effectively in the gap. It will be in the state where it was pinched. Since the upper end portion of the hook member 126 protrudes outward, and the right end portion 134 of the acoustic matching medium 106 contains a small amount of liquid, the portion is enlarged. Due to the shape of 126, the right end portion 134 of the medium 106 is hooked and fixed by the hook member 126. A similar effect is exhibited at the left end of the hollow case 104. In the above state, the upper surface portion of the acoustic matching medium 106 bulges slightly upward via the upper opening 108, and the lower portion of the acoustic matching medium 106 is relatively large downward via the lower opening 110. It bulges out, and that portion constitutes a bulging portion 112. Since the end of the acoustic matching medium is pulled upward by the hook member 126 and the intermediate portion is pushed downward, the tension in the acoustic matching medium 18, particularly the rubber bag, is increased.

  Incidentally, a plurality of pins 136 are provided on the periphery of the upper opening 108 of the upper case 114. These pins are pins for positioning a holder described below. The vertically standing pin 136 is an operation pin for moving the lateral pin 140 in the left-right direction. When the lateral pin 140 is inserted into the lateral hole of the holder, the hollow case 104 and the holder are fixedly connected. However, both are detachable from each other.

  FIG. 12 shows a state where the probe 19 is attached to the hollow case 104. A holder 142 is connected to the hollow case 104, and the holder 142 includes a frame 144 and a cover 146 that closes one side opening. The probe 19 is securely held by the holder 142. In positioning the holder 142, the plurality of pins 136 described above function, and a plurality of lateral pins 140 are inserted into a plurality of lateral holes formed in the holder 142.

  The lower surface of the probe 19, that is, the transmission / reception surface 19 </ b> A strongly pushes the center of the upper surface portion of the acoustic matching medium 106 downward from above, and as a result, a large bulging portion 112 is generated. If the middle part of the acoustic matching medium is pushed downward from above as described above in a state where both ends of the acoustic matching medium are clipped by the plurality of hook members, the bulging part 112 bulges larger and at the same time The tension of the rubber bag that wraps the bag is greatly increased. In this state, the degree of adhesion between the upper surface of the acoustic matching medium 106 and the wave transmitting / receiving surface 19A is sufficiently increased. If necessary, an acoustic matching material such as jelly may be provided between the two. In such a state, when the bulging portion 112 is brought into contact with the surface of the knee 150 in ultrasonic diagnosis of the knee, the bulging portion 112 is deformed along the surface shape of the knee 150 and at the same time itself. The elastic matching medium 106 partially bulges inside the hollow case 104 (see 134A), and the tension of the rubber bag is further increased. Since the inside of the hollow case is finite and the space size in which the acoustic matching medium 106 protrudes is limited, the tension concentrates exclusively on the bulging portion 112. As a result, regardless of the posture of the probe 19, it is possible to reliably interpose the acoustic matching medium between the wave transmitting / receiving surface 19A and the knee surface. That is, even when gravity is working, the shape maintaining action of the bulging portion 112 is enhanced, so that the liquid can be sufficiently filled on the ultrasonic wave propagation path.

  Incidentally, in FIG. 12, the height at which both ends of the acoustic matching medium 106 are hooked is set higher than the height of the wave transmitting / receiving surface 19 </ b> A in the probe 19. The height of the transmission / reception surface 19A is located below the lower opening when viewed from the side direction, that is, the level of the transmission / reception surface is lower than the level of the lower opening. As a result, even when the distance between the lower opening and the living body becomes small, the opening edge of the lower opening collides with the living body or the other part of the hollow case 104 collides with the living body. It can be effectively prevented.

  FIG. 13 shows a side view. The holder 142 includes a frame 144 having a U-shape when viewed from above, and a cover 146 that closes one side of the frame. As indicated by reference numeral 152, when the probe 19 rotates on the surface of the knee, the bulging portion 112 is further deformed from the initial deformed state (reference numeral 112B), but the shape is maintained as described above. Since the action is sufficiently enhanced, the liquid can be sufficiently filled on the ultrasonic beam path between the living body and the wave transmitting / receiving surface.

  Next, a mechanism related to the shin pad 54 will be described with reference to FIG. The shin pad 54 is provided below the seat 48 in FIG. Specifically, a plate positioned in an inclined state and two pads 158 and 160 provided on the plate 154 and having a semi-cylindrical shape are provided. A virtual valley is formed between the two pads 158 and 160. A shin is positioned in the valley. The plate 154 is mounted on the rotating shaft 156, and the rotating shaft 156 is mounted on the rotating shaft 162. The rotation shaft 162 is provided at the lower center of the seat portion 48 and extends in the forward direction from the back side. The rotation shaft 156 can move to the right and left sides around the rotation shaft 162, and the state of the rotation shaft 156 falling to the right side is depicted by a solid line in FIG. When the rotating shaft 156 is tilted to the left and the plate 160 is inverted, a measurement state for the left foot can be constructed as indicated by reference numeral 54A. That is, the shin pad 54 is used for both left and right. You may comprise so that the angle of the plate 158 can be adjusted. The shaft 160 is attached to the seat portion 48, and the shaft 160 also moves up and down as the seat portion 48 moves up and down. You may make it utilize what has structures other than the knee pad 54 shown in figure.

  FIG. 15 shows a configuration example of a knee measurement system according to another embodiment. The system 164 includes a knee measuring device 166 and a chair 168, and the knee measuring device 166 includes an arm mechanism 172 and a measuring mechanism 174. Their configurations are the same as those shown in FIG. The arm mechanism 172 is mounted on a base 170 that is enlarged in the front-rear direction.

  On the other hand, the chair 168 is mounted on a base 176, and the base 176 and the base 170 are connected to each other by two slide poles 178 for connection. As described above, the measuring device 166 and the chair 168 may be integrated. As a configuration example other than the above, a mode in which the measurement mechanism 174 is suspended from the ceiling can be considered. Or the aspect which hold | maintains the measurement mechanism 174 with an arm via the upper space from the back side of the chair 168 can be considered. You may make it hold | maintain the measurement mechanism 174 from a horizontal direction. In any case, it is possible to reduce the psychological pressure on the subject by releasing the front space of the knee as much as possible. Moreover, it is possible to significantly reduce the load burden on the subject by suspending the measuring mechanism 174 or by supporting it by an arm mechanism.

  The acoustic matching medium unit shown in the above-described embodiment can be used in measurement of a part other than the measurement of the knee. In the above-described embodiment, the probe is mechanically scanned, but the above-described unit can be used even when the probe is manually scanned.

  10 knee measurement system, 12 knee measurement device, 14 chair, 18 measurement mechanism, 19 probe, 20 arm mechanism, 102 acoustic matching medium unit, 104 hollow case, 126, 130 hook member.

Claims (7)

An acoustic matching medium unit that can be scanned in a direction crossing an electronic scanning direction in the probe in a state where the probe is assembled,
An acoustic matching medium having a shape elongated in the electronic scanning direction and deformed by an external force;
A hollow member that partially extends in the electronic scanning direction and that partially accommodates the acoustic matching medium, the upper opening for receiving the probe, and a partial protrusion of the acoustic matching medium to the living body side A hollow case having a lower opening that causes a bulging portion by allowing, and a holding structure that holds both ends of the acoustic matching medium in the electronic scanning direction;
An acoustic matching medium unit comprising: The unit of claim 1, wherein
The holding structure is
A right hook provided in the right case end of the hollow case and hooked to the right medium end of the acoustic matching medium to prevent the right medium end from being pulled back toward the lower opening; ,
A left hook that is provided in the left case end of the hollow case and is hooked to the left medium end of the acoustic matching medium to prevent the left medium end from being pulled back toward the lower opening; ,
An acoustic matching medium unit comprising: The unit of claim 2, wherein
The hook level of the right medium end by the right hook and the hook level of the left medium end by the left hook are set higher than the level of the wave transmitting / receiving surface of the probe in the assembled state.
An acoustic matching medium unit. The unit according to claim 2 or 3,
Each of the right hook and the left hook has an upright portion that stands up from the bottom surface of the hollow case, and a protruding portion that protrudes outward from the tip of the upright portion.
An acoustic matching medium unit. The unit of claim 4, wherein
Each medium end is sandwiched between the upper surface of each protruding portion and the ceiling surface of the hollow case,
An acoustic matching medium unit. The unit according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A holder connected to the hollow case to hold the probe;
The holder holds the probe so that the wave transmitting / receiving surface of the probe protrudes downward from the lower opening when viewed from the front direction.
An acoustic matching medium unit. The unit according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The acoustic matching medium unit is mechanically scanned in an arc shape along the surface of the knee placed in a bent state in order to ultrasonically diagnose cartilage existing inside the knee. A characteristic acoustic matching medium unit.

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