JP2022162853A - Ultrasound diagnostic device and medical analysis device - Google Patents

Abstract

To improve uniformity of display of the velocity and direction of a blood flow while keeping extraction accuracy concerning the power of the blood flow.SOLUTION: An ultrasound diagnostic device 100 according to embodiment comprises a transmission and reception circuit 101, a Doppler processing circuit 104, and an image generating circuit 107. The transmission and reception circuit acquires reflected wave ultrasound data. The Doppler processing circuit extracts intensity information concerning a blood flow by applying first filtering to the reflected wave ultrasound data and extracts phase variation information by applying second filtering. The image generating circuit generates blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the phase variation information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The embodiments disclosed in this specification and drawings relate to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and a medical analysis apparatus.

Conventionally, in ultrasonic diagnostic apparatuses, techniques such as color Doppler, which expresses information on the power and velocity of blood flow by changing colors on ultrasonic image data, are known. In such technology, blood flow information such as blood flow power, velocity, and direction is extracted by suppressing unnecessary signals (clutter) contained in ultrasonic data obtained from received reflected waves using a wall filter. do.

In such a technique, if the extraction accuracy of the information on the power of the blood flow of the wall filter is increased, the change in the velocity and direction of the blood flow will be extracted excessively, resulting in non-uniform display of the blood flow in the ultrasound image data. There was a case to become.

JP 2019-103919 A

One of the problems addressed by the embodiments disclosed herein and in the drawings is to improve the uniformity of the display of blood flow velocity and direction while maintaining extraction accuracy for blood flow power. . However, the problems to be solved by the embodiments disclosed in this specification and drawings are not limited to the above problems. A problem corresponding to each effect of each configuration shown in the embodiments described later can be positioned as another problem.

An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment includes an acquisition unit, a first filter processing unit, a second filter processing unit, and an image generation unit. The acquisition unit acquires reflected wave ultrasound data. The first filter processor extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected ultrasound data. The second filter processor extracts phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasound data. The image generator generates blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the phase change information.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functions of the Doppler processing circuit according to the first embodiment; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of Doppler image data according to a comparative example. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of Doppler image data according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of Doppler image data generation processing according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the Doppler processing circuit according to the second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the flow of Doppler image data generation processing according to the second embodiment. FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the flow of Doppler image data generation processing according to the first modification.

Hereinafter, embodiments of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and a medical analysis apparatus will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 includes an apparatus body 10, an ultrasonic probe 1, an input device 3, and a display 2. As shown in FIG.

The apparatus body 10 includes a transmission/reception circuit 101, a buffer memory 102, a B-mode processing circuit 103, a Doppler processing circuit 104, an output interface 105, an input interface 106, an image generation circuit 107, a display control circuit 108, It comprises an image memory 109 , a storage circuit 110 , a control circuit 111 and a NW (network) interface 112 . Further, the device body 10 is connected to an external device 400 via a network NW.

The ultrasonic probe 1 has, for example, a plurality of elements such as piezoelectric vibrators. These multiple elements generate ultrasonic waves based on drive signals supplied from the transmission/reception circuit 101 of the apparatus body 10 . The ultrasonic probe 1 also receives reflected waves from the subject P and converts them into electrical signals. The ultrasonic probe 1 also has, for example, a matching layer provided on the piezoelectric transducers, and a backing material or the like that prevents the ultrasonic waves from propagating backward from the piezoelectric transducers. The ultrasonic probe 1 is detachably connected to the device body 10 .

When ultrasonic waves are transmitted from the ultrasonic probe 1 to the subject P, the transmitted ultrasonic waves are successively reflected by discontinuous surfaces of acoustic impedance in the body tissue of the subject P, and are reflected as reflected wave signals from the ultrasonic probe. 1 is received by multiple elements. The amplitude of the received reflected wave signal depends on the difference in acoustic impedance at the discontinuity from which the ultrasonic waves are reflected. When the transmitted ultrasonic pulse is reflected by the moving blood flow or the surface of the heart wall, the reflected wave signal depends on the velocity component of the moving object in the ultrasonic transmission direction due to the Doppler effect. subject to frequency shifts. The ultrasonic probe 1 then outputs the reflected wave signal to the transmitting/receiving circuit 101 of the device body 10 .

In this embodiment, the ultrasonic probe 1 is assumed to be a one-dimensional array probe in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducers are arranged along a predetermined direction. However, without being limited to this example, the ultrasonic probe 1 may be a two-dimensional array probe (a probe in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducers are arranged in a two-dimensional matrix) or a mechanical 4D probe capable of acquiring volume data. It may be a probe (a probe capable of performing ultrasonic scanning while mechanically oscillating an array of ultrasonic transducers in a direction orthogonal to the array direction).

The input device 3 is implemented by input means such as a mouse, keyboard, button, panel switch, touch command screen, foot switch, trackball, and joystick. The input device 3 receives various setting requests from the operator of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 and transfers the received various setting requests to the apparatus main body 10 .

The display 2 displays, for example, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) for the operator of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 to input various setting requests using the input device 3, or displays an ultrasonic image generated in the apparatus main body 10. An ultrasound image or the like indicated by the data is displayed. The display 2 is realized by a liquid crystal monitor, a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) monitor, or the like. The display 2 is an example of a display section.

Under the control of the control circuit 111, the transmission/reception circuit 101 causes the ultrasonic probe 1 to transmit ultrasonic waves and causes the ultrasonic probe 1 to receive ultrasonic waves (reflected waves of ultrasonic waves). That is, the transmission/reception circuit 101 performs ultrasonic scanning (ultrasonic scanning) via the ultrasonic probe 1 .

More specifically, the transmission/reception circuit 101 is controlled by the control circuit 111 to cause the ultrasonic probe 1 to transmit ultrasonic waves. The transmitting/receiving circuit 101 has, for example, a trigger generating circuit, a delay circuit, a pulser circuit, etc., which are not shown. The trigger generation circuit repeatedly generates trigger pulses for forming transmission ultrasonic waves at a predetermined rate frequency fr Hz. Also, in the delay circuit, each trigger pulse is provided with a delay time required to focus the ultrasonic wave into a beam and determine the transmission directivity for each channel. The pulsar circuit applies a drive pulse to the ultrasonic probe 1 at a timing based on this trigger pulse.

Further, the transmission/reception circuit 101 generates reflected wave ultrasound data, which is ultrasound data based on reflected wave signals received by the ultrasound probe 1 . Then, the transmission/reception circuit 101 stores the generated reflected wave ultrasound data in the buffer memory 102 .

More specifically, the reflected wave of the ultrasonic wave transmitted by the ultrasonic probe 1 reaches the piezoelectric vibrator inside the ultrasonic probe 1, and then, in the piezoelectric vibrator, the mechanical vibration is converted to an electrical signal (reflected wave signal ) and input to the transmission/reception circuit 101 . The transmission/reception circuit 101 includes, for example, a preamplifier, an A/D (Analog to Digital) converter, and a quadrature detection circuit, and performs various processing on the reflected wave signal received by the ultrasonic probe 1 to generate a reflected wave. Generate ultrasound data. In the present embodiment, "obtaining ultrasound data" includes obtaining ultrasound data by transmission and reception of ultrasound. The transmission/reception circuit 101 is an example of an acquisition unit in this embodiment.

The reflected wave ultrasound data is composed of a plurality of data of a plurality of sample points arranged along the depth direction on a scanning line (hereinafter referred to as a raster), and a plurality of data of a plurality of sample points arranged along the raster direction for the number of rasters. Dimensional data.

The preamplifier amplifies the reflected wave signal for each channel to perform gain adjustment (gain correction). The A/D converter converts the gain-corrected reflected wave signal into a digital signal by A/D-converting the gain-corrected reflected wave signal. The quadrature detection circuit converts the A/D converted reflected wave signal into a baseband in-phase signal (I signal, I: In-phase) and a quadrature signal (Q signal, Q: Quadrature-phase).

Then, the quadrature detection circuit stores the I signal and the Q signal in the buffer memory 102 as reflected ultrasonic wave data. Hereinafter, when I signal and Q signal are collectively referred to as IQ signal. The IQ signal is also called IQ data because it is A/D-converted digital data.

The buffer memory 102 at least temporarily stores reflected wave ultrasound data (IQ data) generated by the transmission/reception circuit 101 . For example, the buffer memory 102 stores reflected ultrasonic wave data acquired by transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves a plurality of times per raster. Here, a plurality of pieces of reflected ultrasonic wave data of the same raster are obtained by transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves a plurality of times per raster. , the data itself is referred to as ensemble data. The buffer memory 102 stores the ensemble data arranged in the time direction for the number of ensembles in raster order. The buffer memory 102 is realized by semiconductor memory elements such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and flash memory, for example.

The B-mode processing circuit 103 performs processing such as logarithmic amplification, envelope detection, and logarithmic compression on the reflected wave ultrasound data read out from the buffer memory 102 to produce data whose signal strength is represented by the brightness of luminance. (B mode data) is generated.

The Doppler processing circuit 104 frequency-analyzes the reflected wave ultrasound data stored in the buffer memory 102, based on the Doppler effect of moving objects within the ROI (Region Of Interest) set in the scan area. Generate data (Doppler data) from which motion information is extracted. The moving object is blood, for example. For example, Doppler processing circuitry 104 can perform color Doppler techniques, also referred to as Color Flow Mapping (CFM) techniques. Details of the processing of the Doppler processing circuit 104 will be described later.

The output interface 105 outputs the electric signal from the control circuit 111 to the outside. The output interface 105 is connected to the control circuit 111 via a bus, for example, and outputs electrical signals from the control circuit 111 to the display 2 .

The input interface 106 receives various instructions from the operator via the input device 3 . The input interface 106 is connected to the control circuit 111 via, for example, a bus, converts an operation instruction input by an operator into an electric signal, and outputs the electric signal to the control circuit 111 . Note that the input interface 106 is not limited to being connected to physical operation components such as a mouse and keyboard. For example, a circuit that receives an electrical signal corresponding to an operation instruction input from an external input device provided separately from the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 and outputs this electrical signal to the control circuit 111 is also an example of an input interface. included.

The image generation circuit 107 generates ultrasound image data based on the data generated by the B-mode processing circuit 103 and the Doppler processing circuit 104 . The image generation circuit 107 stores the generated ultrasound image data in the image memory 109 .

More specifically, the image generation circuit 107 generates B-mode image data based on the B-mode data generated by the B-mode processing circuit 103 .

The image generation circuit 107 also generates Doppler image data based on the Doppler data generated by the Doppler processing circuit 104 . Doppler image data is an example of blood flow image data in this embodiment. The image generation circuit 107 generates Doppler image data based on the intensity information and phase change information included in the Doppler data generated by the Doppler processing circuit 104 .

Doppler image data is, for example, velocity image data, variance image data, power image data, or image data combining these. For example, the image generating circuit 107 generates, as Doppler image data, blood flow image data in which blood flow information is displayed in color from Doppler data as blood flow information. In this case, the image generation circuit 107 visualizes the blood flow as Doppler image data by determining the rendering position based on the signal power of the blood flow and the display color based on the speed and direction of the blood flow. The image generation circuit 107 is an example of an image generation unit in this embodiment.

The display control circuit 108 causes the display 2 to display an ultrasonic image based on various types of ultrasonic image data generated by the image generation circuit 107 . Further, the display control circuit 108 may cause the display 2 to display a GUI for the operator to input various setting requests using the input device 3 .

The image memory 109 stores various image data generated by the control circuit 111 . For example, the image memory 109 is realized by a RAM, a semiconductor memory device such as a flash memory, a hard disk, an optical disk, or the like.

The storage circuit 110 is implemented by, for example, a magnetic or optical storage medium, a semiconductor memory device such as a flash memory, a hard disk, or a processor-readable storage medium such as an optical disk. The storage circuit 110 stores programs, various data, and the like for realizing ultrasonic wave transmission/reception. Programs and various data may be stored in advance in the storage circuit 110, for example. Alternatively, for example, it may be stored in a non-transitory storage medium, distributed, read out from the non-transitory storage medium, and installed in the storage circuit 110 . Note that the memory circuit 110 may be an example of the memory unit in this embodiment.

The control circuit 111 controls the overall operation of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 . For example, the control circuit 111 controls ultrasonic scanning by controlling the ultrasonic probe 1 via the transmission/reception circuit 101 .

The NW interface 112 is connected to the external device 400 via the network NW, for example, and performs data communication with the external device 400 .

The external device 400 is, for example, a workstation that executes processing such as post-processing of various data generated by the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 and display of ultrasonic image data. The external device 400 includes, for example, a processing circuit such as a processor, a storage device, a display, an input device, and an NW interface connectable to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 via the network NW. Also, the external device 400 may be a tablet terminal or the like.

Next, the details of the Doppler processing circuit 104 will be described.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of functions of the Doppler processing circuit 104 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the Doppler processing circuit 104 includes a power WF (Wall Filter) function 141, a power estimation function 142, a speed/direction WF function 143, an autocorrelation processing function 144, a speed/direction estimation function. 145, and a packing function 146.

A power WF function 141 and a speed/direction WF function 143 apply wall filters to the ensemble data 600 stored in the buffer memory 102 respectively.

More specifically, the power WF function 141 extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a wall filter for power (intensity) information to the ensemble data 600 . The power WF function 141 uses an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter. The power WF function 141 is an example of a first filter processor in this embodiment. The eigenvalue expansion type wall filter applied to the ensemble data 600 by the power WF function 141 is an example of the first filter in the present embodiment.

The eigenvalue expansion type wall filter is, for example, an adaptive MTI (Moving Target Indicator) filter that uses an eigenvector to change coefficients according to an input signal. Eigenvectors are calculated from the correlation matrix. Specifically, the power WF function 141 calculates a correlation matrix of the scanning range from a data string of reflected wave ultrasound data at the same position collected over a plurality of frames. In this embodiment, the reflected ultrasound data at the same position is the ensemble data 600 . The power WF function 141 calculates eigenvectors from the correlation matrix and determines coefficients to be used for the MTI filter based on the calculated eigenvectors. Note that the adaptive MTI filter using eigenvectors is an example of an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter, and other methods may be employed.

The eigenvalue expansion type wall filter detects, as the main component, those with large energy in the eigenvector dimension of the ensemble data 600, and suppresses the Doppler shift spatially similar to the main component as the clutter component. Such an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter is excellent in clutter suppression ability and extraction of power components of blood flow.

The power estimation function 142 estimates blood flow intensity information from the components extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the power WF function 141 . Power estimator 142 is an example of a power estimator.

The velocity/direction WF function 143 extracts phase change information by applying a velocity/direction wall filter to the ensemble data 600 . The velocity/direction WF function 143 uses a fixed length wall filter. The phase change information includes blood flow velocity information and direction information. The speed/direction WF function 143 is an example of a second filtering unit in this embodiment. Also, the fixed-length wall filter used by the velocity/direction WF function 143 is an example of the second filter in this embodiment.

More specifically, in this embodiment, the velocity/direction WF function 143 uses a polynomial approximation type wall filter. In the polynomial approximation type wall filter, clutter components are removed by a polynomial fitting technique that performs fitting with a predetermined polynomial and specifies low-order components as clutter components. A fixed-length wall filter other than the polynomial approximation wall filter may be employed. For example, the speed/direction WF function 143 may use an IIR (Infinite Impulse Response) filter.

A fixed-length wall filter suppresses a component with a low Doppler shift frequency as clutter. The Doppler shift frequency is lower in reflected ultrasound data from stationary or slow-moving tissue. A fixed length wall filter may have a lower ability to separate clutter and blood flow than an eigenvalue expansion wall filter. However, fixed-length wall filters can stably extract changes in blood flow velocity and direction information.

As a comparative example, when the above-described eigenvalue expansion type wall filter is used to extract blood flow velocity and direction information, the velocity and direction information of blood flow that is spatially similar to the main component is also suppressed. phase change is likely to be extracted. Therefore, in Doppler image data based on the extraction result of the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter, changes in blood flow velocity and direction information may be emphasized. Therefore, when the inter-frame phase change is large, the Doppler image data based on the blood flow velocity and direction information extracted by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter has poor uniformity in the display of the blood flow velocity and direction. sometimes.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of Doppler image data 80a and 80b according to a comparative example. Doppler image data 80a and Doppler image data 80b in FIG. 3 are color Doppler image data representing blood flow based on blood flow information extracted by an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter. Doppler image data 80a and Doppler image data 80b indicate time-series changes in blood flow.

In the Doppler image data 80a, 80b, rendering positions of the blood flows 70a, 70b are determined based on blood flow intensity information included in the blood flow information. Also, in the Doppler image data 80a, 80b, the colors of the blood flows 70a, 70b are determined based on information on the speed and direction of the blood flow. As shown in FIG. 3, in Doppler image data 80a and 80b of the comparative example, changes in blood flow velocity and direction between frames are emphasized, and blood flow 70a and 70b are displayed unevenly. Therefore, the color changes in the blood flows 70a and 70b are large, and the blood flows 70a and 70b are not displayed smoothly.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of Doppler image data 90a and 90b according to the first embodiment. Doppler image data 90a and Doppler image data 90b indicate changes in blood flow over time. In this embodiment, blood flow intensity information is extracted by an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter, while blood flow velocity and direction information is extracted by a fixed length type wall filter. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the color change in the blood flow 71a, 71b depicted on the Doppler image data 90a, 90b is smooth, and the uniformity is improved as compared with FIG.

Hereinafter, in the present embodiment, the individual Doppler image data 90a and 90b will be referred to as Doppler image data 90 when not particularly distinguished.

Returning to FIG. 2, the autocorrelation processing function 144 performs autocorrelation processing on data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the speed/direction WF function 143 . Autocorrelation processing function 144 is an example of an autocorrelation processing unit.

The speed/direction estimation function 145 estimates blood flow speed and direction information based on the results of autocorrelation processing by the autocorrelation processing function 144 . The speed/direction estimation function 145 is an example of a speed/direction estimation unit. Note that the speed/direction estimation function 145 may also estimate the distribution of blood flow.

The packing function 146 combines the blood flow intensity information estimated by the power estimation function 142 and the blood flow velocity and direction information estimated by the velocity/direction estimation function 145 to obtain the blood flow intensity, velocity, and direction information. and generate Doppler data with directional information. Doppler image data 90 is generated by the image generating circuit 107 from the Doppler data generated by the packing function 146 . Packing function 146 is an example of a packing unit.

The B-mode processing circuit 103, Doppler processing circuit 104, image generation circuit 107, display control circuit 108, and control circuit 111 are implemented by a processor. For example, the storage circuit 110 stores a computer-executable program that defines the processes to be executed by these circuits. These circuits read the programs from the storage circuit 110 and execute them, thereby realizing functions corresponding to the respective programs. In FIG. 1, the single memory circuit 110 stores programs corresponding to each processing function. A configuration for reading out a program that

In the above description, an example has been described in which the "processor" reads and executes a program corresponding to each function from the storage circuit 110, but embodiments are not limited to this. The term "processor" includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (for example, a simple programmable logic device (Simple Programmable Logic Device (SPLD), Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), and Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)). When the processor is, for example, a CPU, the processor reads out and executes a program stored in the storage circuit 110 to realize each function shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 . On the other hand, if the processor is an ASIC, instead of storing the program in the memory circuit 110, the relevant functions are directly embedded as logic circuits within the processor's circuitry. Note that each processor of the present embodiment is not limited to being configured as a single circuit for each processor, and may be configured as one processor by combining a plurality of independent circuits to realize its function. good. Furthermore, a plurality of components in FIGS. 1 and 2 may be integrated into one processor to realize its functions.

Next, a flow of processing for generating the Doppler image data 90 executed by the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing for generating Doppler image data 90 according to the first embodiment.

First, the transmission/reception circuit 101 causes the ultrasonic probe 1 to transmit ultrasonic waves and causes the ultrasonic probe 1 to receive reflected waves of the transmitted ultrasonic waves (S101). The transmission/reception circuit 101 generates reflected wave ultrasound data, which is ultrasound data based on reflected wave signals received by the ultrasound probe 1 , and stores the data in the buffer memory 102 .

Next, the power WF function 141 of the Doppler processing circuit 104 applies an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter to the ensemble data 600 (S102).

Then, the power estimation function 142 of the Doppler processing circuit 104 estimates blood flow intensity (power) information from the components extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the power WF function 141 (S103).

Also, the velocity/direction WF function 143 of the Doppler processing circuit 104 applies a polynomial approximation type wall filter to the ensemble data 600 (S104).

Next, the autocorrelation processing function 144 of the Doppler processing circuit 104 performs autocorrelation processing on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the velocity/direction WF function 143 (S105).

Next, the speed/direction estimation function 145 of the Doppler processing circuit 104 estimates blood flow speed and direction information based on the results of autocorrelation processing by the autocorrelation processing function 144 (S106).

Then, the packing function 146 of the Doppler processing circuit 104 combines the blood flow intensity information estimated by the power estimation function 142 and the blood flow velocity and direction information estimated by the velocity/direction estimation function 145 to obtain Doppler data including blood flow intensity, velocity, and direction information is generated (S107).

Next, the image generating circuit 107 generates Doppler image data 90 based on the Doppler data generated by the Doppler processing circuit 104 (S108).

Next, the display control circuit 108 causes the display 2 to display a Doppler image based on the Doppler image data 90 generated by the image generation circuit 107 (S109). Here, the processing of this flowchart ends.

As described above, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment provides blood flow intensity information based on the data extracted by the wall filter for extracting intensity information from the reflected ultrasonic wave data, and velocity/velocity information from the reflected ultrasonic wave data. Doppler image data is generated based on blood flow velocity and direction information based on the data extracted by the directional wall filter.

In this embodiment, the power of the blood flow and the information on the speed and direction of the blood flow are obtained from separate filtering results suitable for their respective characteristics. The uniformity of the display of flow velocity and direction can be improved.

Further, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the blood flow power is obtained from the data extracted by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter. In addition, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, information on the velocity and direction of blood flow is obtained from data extracted by a fixed-length wall filter. Therefore, according to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the power and clutter of blood flow can be separated with high precision, and changes in the velocity and direction of blood flow can be displayed smoothly.

In addition, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, information on the velocity and direction of blood flow is obtained from data extracted by a polynomial approximation type wall filter. As a result, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment can stably extract information on the velocity and direction of blood flow.

(Second embodiment)
In the first embodiment described above, fixed-length wall filters were always used for blood flow velocity and direction information. In this embodiment, an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter and a fixed length type wall filter are selectively used according to the phase change.

The overall configuration of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment described with reference to FIG. An ultrasound diagnostic apparatus 100 includes an apparatus body 10 , an ultrasound probe 1 , an input device 3 and a display 2 . The apparatus main body 10 also includes a transmission/reception circuit 101, a buffer memory 102, a B-mode processing circuit 103, a Doppler processing circuit 104, an output interface 105, an input interface 106, an image generation circuit 107, and a display control circuit 108. , an image memory 109 , a storage circuit 110 , a control circuit 111 and a NW interface 112 .

Ultrasonic probe 1, input device 3, display 2, transmission/reception circuit 101, buffer memory 102, B-mode processing circuit 103, output interface 105, input interface 106, image generation circuit 107, display control circuit 108, image memory 109, storage circuit 110, control circuit 111, and NW interface 112 have the same functions as in the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of functions of the Doppler processing circuit 104 according to the second embodiment. The Doppler processing circuit 104 of this embodiment includes a power WF function 141, a power estimation function 142, a first speed/direction WF function 143a, a second speed/direction WF function 143b, and a first autocorrelation processing function. 144a, a second autocorrelation processing function 144b, a first speed/direction estimation function 145a, a second speed/direction estimation function 145b, a packing function 146, a phase change detection function 147, and a selection function 148.

The power WF function 141 and the power estimation function 142 are the same functions as in the first embodiment. The power WF function 141 uses an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter as in the first embodiment. The eigenvalue expansion type wall filter is an example of the first filter in the present embodiment. Also, the power WF function 141 is an example of a first filtering unit in this embodiment.

The first velocity/direction WF function 143a multiplies the ensemble data 600 by the first velocity/direction WF to extract first phase change information on the blood flow. The first speed/direction WF function 143a is an example of a second filter processor in this embodiment. The first speed/direction WF is an example of the second filter in this embodiment. The first velocity/direction WF is a fixed length wall filter, particularly a polynomial approximation wall filter.

The second velocity/direction WF function 143b multiplies the ensemble data 600 by the second velocity/direction WF to extract second phase change information on the blood flow. The second speed/direction WF function 143b is an example of a third filtering unit in this embodiment. The second speed/direction WF is an example of a third filter in this embodiment. The second velocity/direction WF is an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter.

The first phase change information and the second phase change information are blood flow velocity information and direction information.

The first autocorrelation processing function 144a performs autocorrelation processing on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the first speed/direction WF function 143a. The first autocorrelation processing function 144a is an example of a first autocorrelation processing section.

The second autocorrelation processing function 144b performs autocorrelation processing on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the second speed/direction WF function 143b. The second autocorrelation processing function 144b is an example of a second autocorrelation processing section.

The first speed/direction estimation function 145a estimates blood flow speed and direction information based on the result of autocorrelation processing by the first autocorrelation processing function 144a. For example, the first speed/direction estimation function 145a calculates the blood flow speed based on the result of autocorrelation processing by the first autocorrelation processing function 144a. The first speed/direction estimation function 145a is an example of a first speed/direction estimation unit and a first speed calculation unit.

The second speed/direction estimation function 145b estimates blood flow speed and direction information based on the result of the autocorrelation processing by the second autocorrelation processing function 144b. For example, the second speed/direction estimation function 145b calculates the blood flow speed based on the result of autocorrelation processing by the second autocorrelation processing function 144b. The second speed/direction estimation function 145b is an example of a second speed/direction estimation unit and a second speed calculation unit.

The phase change detection function 147 detects a phase change of the reflected ultrasound data based on at least one of the first phase change information and the second phase change information. In this embodiment, the phase change detection function 147 detects a phase change faster than a prescribed standard based on the difference between the filtering results of the fixed length wall filter and the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter. The difference between the filtering results of the fixed-length wall filter and the eigenvalue expansion wall filter increases when the phase change is fast. Therefore, the phase change detection function 147 uses the difference to detect phase changes faster than the prescribed standard.

More specifically, the phase change detection function 147 detects the first velocity of blood flow calculated by the first velocity/direction estimation function 145a and the second velocity/direction estimation function 145b. A degree of similarity between the velocity of blood flow and . If the difference between the first blood flow velocity and the second blood flow velocity is greater than a threshold based on the similarity calculation result, the phase change detection function 147 detects that the phase change is greater than the prescribed standard. judged to be fast. Also, when the difference between the first blood flow velocity and the second blood flow velocity is less than or equal to the threshold value, the phase change detection function 147 determines that the phase change is less than or equal to the prescribed standard. Note that the threshold for the difference between the first blood flow velocity and the second blood flow velocity is not particularly limited.

Note that the phase change detection method is not limited to this. Changes may be detected. The phase change detection function 147 is an example of a phase change detection section.

The selection function 148 selects either the first phase change information or the second phase change information based on the phase change of reflected ultrasound data. More specifically, the selection function 148 selects data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the first speed/direction WF function 143a and data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the second speed/direction WF function 143b. is selected as the data used to generate Doppler data. Selection function 148 is an example of a selection unit.

Specifically, the selection function 148 selects the first phase change information if the phase change is faster than a defined criterion and selects the second phase change information if the phase change is less than or equal to the defined criterion. . The degree of phase change that serves as a prescribed reference is not particularly limited.

In other words, when the phase change detection function 147 detects a phase change faster than a prescribed criterion, the selection function 148 selects the blood flow based on the data extracted by the fixed-length wall filter from the ensemble data 600. Velocity and direction information are selected as the data used to generate Doppler data. The selection function 148 also uses the blood flow velocity and direction information based on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter to generate the Doppler data when the phase change is below a specified standard. data to be selected.

The packing function 146 stores the blood flow intensity information estimated by the power estimation function 142 and the blood flow velocity and direction estimated by the first speed/direction estimation function 145a and the second speed/direction estimation function 145b. Combining the information with those selected by selection function 148 produces Doppler data that includes blood flow intensity, velocity, and direction information.

Doppler image data 90 is generated by the image generating circuit 107 from the Doppler data generated by the packing function 146 . In other words, the image generation circuit 107 of the present embodiment generates a blood flow image based on the intensity information and the first phase change information or the second phase change information selected by the selection function 148. Generate data.

Next, a flow of processing for generating the Doppler image data 90 executed by the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing for generating Doppler image data 90 according to the second embodiment.

The processing from ultrasonic transmission/reception processing in S101 to power estimation processing in S103 is the same as in the first embodiment.

The first velocity/direction WF function 143a of the Doppler processing circuit 104 applies a polynomial approximation type wall filter to the ensemble data 600 (S201).

Next, the first autocorrelation processing function 144a performs autocorrelation processing on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the first speed/direction WF function 143a (S202).

Next, the first speed/direction estimation function 145a estimates blood flow speed and direction information based on the result of the autocorrelation processing by the first autocorrelation processing function 144a (S203).

The second velocity/direction WF function 143b applies an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter to the ensemble data 600 (S204).

Next, the second autocorrelation processing function 144b performs autocorrelation processing on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the second velocity/direction WF function 143b (S205).

Next, the second speed/direction estimation function 145b estimates blood flow speed and direction information based on the result of the autocorrelation processing by the second autocorrelation processing function 144b (S206).

Then, the phase change detection function 147 determines whether or not an abrupt phase change is detected (S207). The phase change detection function 147 determines that an abrupt phase change has been detected when the phase change is faster than a prescribed standard. More specifically, the phase change detection function 147 detects the first velocity of blood flow calculated by the first velocity/direction estimation function 145a and the second velocity/direction estimation function 145b. A degree of similarity between the velocity of the blood flow and the velocity of the blood flow is obtained, and if the difference between the velocity of the first blood flow and the velocity of the second blood flow is greater than a threshold value, it is determined that the phase change is faster than the prescribed standard. .

If an abrupt phase change is detected ("Yes" in S207), the selection function 148 selects the result of processing by the first speed/direction WF function 143a (S208). That is, the selection function 148 selects the blood flow velocity and direction information based on the data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the polynomial approximation type wall filter as the data used to generate the Doppler data.

If no abrupt phase change is detected ("No" in S207), the selection function 148 selects the result of processing by the second speed/direction WF function 143b (S209). In other words, the selection function 148 selects blood flow velocity and direction information based on data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter as data to be used for generating Doppler data.

The packing function 146 then combines the blood flow intensity information estimated by the power estimation function 142 with the blood flow velocity and direction information selected by the selection function 148 to obtain the blood flow intensity, velocity, and direction information. Doppler data including directional information is generated (S107). The image generation process of S108 to the image display process of S109 are the same as those of the first embodiment.

As described above, according to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, by dynamically changing the type of wall filter for velocity/direction based on the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data, the first Appropriate blood flow information can be extracted according to the phase change while having the effect of the embodiment.

For example, in the Doppler image data 80 based on the data extracted by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter, generally, when the phase change is fast, the velocity and direction of blood flow are not displayed as in the comparative example described with reference to FIG. tend to be uniform. For this reason, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, when the phase change is fast, a fixed-length wall filter is used to extract information on the velocity and phase of the blood flow. and to reduce non-uniformity in the display of orientation. Further, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, when the phase change is slow, an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter is used for extracting information on the velocity and direction of blood flow. The superior clutter resolution of the filter can be exploited.

Further, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the first blood flow velocity calculated based on the data extracted by the fixed length wall filter and the data extracted by the eigenvalue expansion wall filter Based on the difference from the second blood flow velocity calculated based on , it is determined whether the phase change is faster than a specified reference. Therefore, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the difference in the filtering results between the fixed-length wall filter and the eigenvalue expansion wall filter is used to easily detect a phase change faster than the prescribed standard. be able to.

(Modification 1)
In each of the above-described embodiments, the generation processing of the color Doppler image data 90 by the color flow mapping method was taken as an example, but the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 may be provided with a mode for generating other types of ultrasonic image data. good.

For example, the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus 100 may generate ultrasound image data called a monochromatic map that represents the velocity of blood flow by changing the density of a single color.

For example, the input device 3 selects either the generation mode of the color Doppler image data 90 representing the velocity and the direction of blood flow by changing the plurality of colors exemplified in each of the above-described embodiments, or the generation mode of the monochrome map. accepts the user's operation. The input device 3 is an example of a reception unit.

Also, the color Doppler image data 90 is an example of the first blood flow image data of this modified example. A monochromatic map is an example of the second blood flow image data in this modified example.

The Doppler processing circuit 104 of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of this modified example includes, for example, a power WF function 141, a power estimation function 142, a first velocity/direction WF function 143a, a third 2 speed/direction WF function 143b, first autocorrelation processing function 144a, second autocorrelation processing function 144b, first speed/direction estimation function 145a, second speed/direction estimation function 145b, packing function 146 , a phase change detection function 147 and a selection function 148 .

In monochromatic maps, there is no color variation according to blood flow velocity and direction, so there is no need to consider non-uniformity in the display of blood flow velocity and direction.

Therefore, the selection function 148 of this modified example has the function of the second embodiment, and when a single-color map is selected as the blood flow image data to be generated, regardless of the magnitude of the phase change, , to select the second phase change information.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the flow of Doppler image data generation processing according to the first modification.

The ultrasonic transmission/reception processing in S101 to the power estimation processing in S103, and the first velocity/direction wall filter processing in S201 to the blood flow velocity and direction estimation processing in S206 are the same as those in the second embodiment. is.

Then, the selection function 148 of this modification determines whether or not a single-color map is selected as blood flow image data to be generated (S301). If a single-color map is selected as the blood flow image data to be generated (S301 "Yes"), the selection function 148 selects the result of processing by the second velocity/direction WF function 143b (S209). In other words, the selection function 148 selects blood flow velocity and direction information based on data extracted from the ensemble data 600 by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter as data to be used for generating Doppler data.

Further, when a single-color map is not selected as the blood flow image data to be generated (S301 "No"), the selection function 148 proceeds to the process of S207, and similarly to the second embodiment, Select either the data extracted by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter or the data extracted by the polynomial approximation type wall filter. Subsequent processing is the same as in the second embodiment.

As described above, according to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 of the present modification, when a single-color map is selected as blood flow image data to be generated, a color display is performed by adopting an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter. Otherwise, we can take advantage of the superior clutter separation capabilities of eigenvalue expansion type wall filters.

Note that the timing of processing for determining whether or not a single-color map is selected as blood flow image data to be generated is not limited to the example shown in FIG. For example, the process of determining whether a monochrome map is selected may be performed before the wall filter process. In this case, when a single-color map is selected as the blood flow image data to be generated, the processes of S201 to S203 need not be executed.

In addition, in this modified example, determination is made based on both whether or not a single-color map is selected and phase change, but a configuration that does not selectively use wall filters according to phase change may be adopted. In this case, the selection function 148 selectively uses an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter and a fixed length type wall filter depending on whether or not a monochromatic map is selected. That is, when a single-color map is selected as the blood flow image data to be generated, the selection function 148 converts the blood flow velocity and direction information based on the data extracted by the eigenvalue expansion type wall filter into Doppler data. Select as the data to use for Then, if a monochromatic map is not selected, the selection function 148 selects the data extracted by the fixed-length wall filter as the data used to generate Doppler data.

Also, the configuration of this modified example may be combined with the first embodiment. For example, if the user selects a monochromatic map for generation, a single eigenvalue expansion type wall filter can be used without separating the wall filter for power and the wall filter for velocity and direction. good. When adopting this configuration, if the user selects color Doppler image data 90 as a generation target, an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter for power and a fixed length type wall filter for velocity and direction are used. use.

Also, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 may have a mode for generating other types of ultrasonic image data. For example, the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus 100 may generate ultrasound image data representing power and dispersion without displaying blood flow velocity. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 may also have a shear wave elastography (SWE) function that displays a hardness image by measuring the propagation speed of a shear wave generated by a push pulse. Also, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 may use fixed-length wall filters and eigenvalue expansion type wall filters selectively when generating ultrasonic image data other than color Doppler image data.

(Modification 2)
In each of the above-described embodiments, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 100 is described as generating color Doppler image data 90 by the color flow mapping method. processing may be performed. When adopting this configuration, the processing circuit of the external device 400 may have the same function as the Doppler processing circuit 104 described with reference to FIG. 2 or FIG. The external device 400 is an example of a medical analysis device in this modified example.

Also, in this case, the NW interface of the external device 400 acquires the ensemble data 600 from the ultrasonic diagnostic device 100 . The NW interface is an example of an acquisition unit in this modified example. Note that part or all of the functions of the external device 400 may be implemented in a cloud environment.

Various data handled in this specification are typically digital data.

According to at least one embodiment described above, it is possible to improve the uniformity of the display of the velocity and direction of blood flow while maintaining the extraction accuracy of blood flow power.

While several embodiments have been described, these embodiments are provided by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, changes, and combinations of embodiments can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as the scope of the invention described in the claims and equivalents thereof.

Regarding the above embodiment, the following appendices are disclosed as one aspect and optional features of the invention.

(Appendix 1)
an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generator that generates blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the phase change information;
Ultrasound diagnostic device comprising.

(Appendix 2)
The first filter may be an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter. Also, the second filter may be a fixed-length wall filter.

(Appendix 3)
The second filter may be a polynomial approximation wall filter.

(Appendix 4)
an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts first phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a third filter processing unit that extracts second phase change information by applying a third filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a selection unit that selects either the first phase change information or the second phase change information based on the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generation unit configured to generate blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the first phase change information or the second phase change information selected by the selection unit;
Ultrasound diagnostic device comprising.

(Appendix 5)
The first filter and the third filter may be eigenvalue expansion type wall filters.
Also, the second filter may be a fixed-length wall filter.

(Appendix 6)
The selection unit selects the first phase change information when the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data is faster than a prescribed reference, and the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data is less than or equal to the prescribed reference. case, the second phase change information may be selected.

(Appendix 7)
a first autocorrelation processing unit that performs autocorrelation processing on the first phase change information;
a second autocorrelation processing unit that performs autocorrelation processing on the second phase change information;
a first velocity calculator that calculates the velocity of the first blood flow based on the first autocorrelation processor;
a second velocity calculator that calculates a velocity of a second blood flow based on the result of processing the second phase change information;
a phase change detection unit that determines that the phase change is faster than the specified reference when the difference between the first blood flow velocity and the second blood flow velocity is greater than a threshold value. may

(Appendix 8)
wherein said blood flow image data is first blood flow image data representing velocity and direction of said blood flow with variations of a plurality of colors, or second blood flow image data representing velocity of said blood flow with variations in density of a single color. a receiving unit that receives a user's selection as to whether the blood flow image data is
The selection unit may select the first phase change information when the second blood flow image data is selected.

(Appendix 9)
an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generator that generates blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the phase change information;
Medical analysis equipment.

(Appendix 10)
an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts first phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a third filter processing unit that extracts second phase change information by applying a third filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a selection unit that selects either the first phase change information or the second phase change information based on the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generation unit configured to generate blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the first phase change information or the second phase change information selected by the selection unit;
Medical analysis equipment.

1 Ultrasound Probe 2 Display 3 Input Device 10 Device Main Body 90, 90a, 90b Doppler Image Data 100 Ultrasound Diagnostic Device 101 Transmission/Reception Circuit 102 Buffer Memory 103 B Mode Processing Circuit 104 Doppler Processing Circuit 105 Output Interface 106 Input Interface 107 Image Generation Circuit 108 display control circuit 109 image memory 110 storage circuit 111 control circuit 112 NW interface 141 power WF function 142 power estimation function 143 speed/direction WF function 143a first speed/direction WF function 143b second speed/direction WF function 144 Autocorrelation processing function 144a First autocorrelation processing function 144b Second autocorrelation processing function 145 Speed/direction estimation function 145a First speed/direction estimation function 145b Second speed/direction estimation function 146 Packing function 147 phase change detection function 148 selection function 400 external device 600 ensemble data P subject

Claims (10)

an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generator that generates blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the phase change information;
Ultrasound diagnostic device comprising. The first filter is an eigenvalue expansion type wall filter,
wherein the second filter is a fixed length wall filter;
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1. wherein the second filter is a polynomial approximation wall filter;
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts first phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a third filter processing unit that extracts second phase change information by applying a third filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a selection unit that selects either the first phase change information or the second phase change information based on the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generation unit configured to generate blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the first phase change information or the second phase change information selected by the selection unit;
Ultrasound diagnostic device comprising. The first filter and the third filter are eigenvalue expansion type wall filters,
wherein the second filter is a fixed length wall filter;
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 4. The selection unit selects the first phase change information when the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data is faster than a prescribed reference, and the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data is less than or equal to the prescribed reference. if so, selecting the second phase change information;
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 4 or 5. a first autocorrelation processing unit that performs autocorrelation processing on the first phase change information;
a second autocorrelation processing unit that performs autocorrelation processing on the second phase change information;
a first velocity calculator that calculates the velocity of the first blood flow based on the first autocorrelation processor;
a second velocity calculator that calculates a velocity of a second blood flow based on the result of processing the second phase change information;
a phase change detection unit that determines that the phase change is faster than the specified reference when the difference between the first blood flow velocity and the second blood flow velocity is greater than a threshold value. ,
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 6. wherein said blood flow image data is first blood flow image data representing velocity and direction of said blood flow with variations of a plurality of colors, or second blood flow image data representing velocity of said blood flow with variations in density of a single color. a reception unit that receives a user's selection as to whether the blood flow image data is
The selection unit selects the first phase change information when the second blood flow image data is selected.
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 7. an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generator that generates blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the phase change information;
Medical analysis equipment. an acquisition unit that acquires reflected wave ultrasound data;
a first filtering unit that extracts intensity information about blood flow by applying a first filter to the reflected wave ultrasound data;
a second filter processing unit that extracts first phase change information by applying a second filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a third filter processing unit that extracts second phase change information by applying a third filter to the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
a selection unit that selects either the first phase change information or the second phase change information based on the phase change of the reflected ultrasonic wave data;
an image generation unit configured to generate blood flow image data based on the intensity information and the first phase change information or the second phase change information selected by the selection unit;
Medical analysis equipment.

Images