JPH0548693B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, and particularly to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus with a new configuration regarding a vibrating element array for electronically scanning ultrasonic waves into a subject.

[Prior Art] Ultrasonic diagnostic equipment that emits ultrasonic waves into a subject such as a living body, receives reflected echoes, and displays internal information such as a tomographic image or velocity (Doppler) information as an image is well known. be.

FIG. 8 shows a schematic configuration of a probe 10 in such an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, in which a damper material 14 for absorbing ultrasonic waves is provided on the back side of a vibrator 12 in which a plurality of vibrating elements are formed. is pasted. The ultrasonic beam is formed by controlling the excitation of each vibrating element in the vibrator 12, and the damper material 14 prevents the ultrasonic wave from being emitted to the rear surface at this time. Although not shown in the figure, an acoustic matching layer is provided on the front surface of the transducer 12, so that the ultrasonic beam formed by the transducer 12 can be efficiently radiated into the subject. ing.

Conventionally, such a probe 10 performs sector scanning or linear scanning electronic scanning, as shown in FIG. In other words, in the case of sector scanning, the scanning area is sector (fan) shaped as shown in FIG. Since the ultrasonic waves are emitted in the angular direction, the sector scanning can be performed by sequentially changing the delay control.

In addition, in the case of linear scanning, the scanning area is rectangular as shown in FIG. Therefore, the linear scanning is made possible by sequentially shifting the position of the vibrating element that excites the ultrasonic waves.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, the probe 10 can only obtain information on a predetermined tomographic plane within the subject that is electronically scanned, and it is difficult to know the three-dimensional (three-dimensional) structure of the affected area, etc. In order to do this, it is necessary to operate the probe 10 by moving it in each direction. Therefore, the operation to obtain three-dimensional information is complicated.

In addition, multiple diagnostic images may be obtained for internal parts of the subject that have a three-dimensional structure.
Since each image is photographed separately, it is not possible to accurately grasp the relationship between each image, and there is also the problem that it is inconvenient when performing image diagnosis while comparing them later.

Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the applicant proposes a probe in which vibrating elements are arranged two-dimensionally.In this case, the area of the probe in contact with the subject is Since the area becomes wider, there is a problem that the close contact between the radiation surface of the probe and the subject becomes poor. When emitting ultrasound into the subject, it is necessary to maintain good contact with the subject; if the contact is insufficient, the ultrasound will not be emitted efficiently into the subject, resulting in poor image quality. I will do it.

Purpose of the Invention The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its purpose is to provide a superstructure that can easily obtain three-dimensional information and has good adhesion to the surface of a subject. Our objective is to provide a sonic probe.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that can easily and quickly obtain three-dimensional information using the above-mentioned ultrasonic probe.

[Means for Solving the Problems] An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention has a probe surface that comes into contact with a subject as a convex surface bent at a predetermined curvature, and a plurality of vibrating elements are arranged along this convex surface. It has an ultrasonic probe arranged two-dimensionally evenly in the vertical and horizontal directions, and selects one of the vertical and horizontal vibrating element groups within the ultrasonic probe, and uses this vibrating element group to generate a predetermined tomographic plane within the subject. The present invention is characterized in that it performs electronic scanning, and moves and scans in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the vibrating elements are arranged by sequentially selecting vibrating element groups parallel to the vibrating element group and electronically scanning them.

Furthermore, in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to another invention, the probe surface that comes into contact with the subject is formed into a convex surface bent at a predetermined curvature, and a plurality of vibrating elements are arranged two-dimensionally vertically and horizontally along this convex surface. It has an ultrasonic probe arranged evenly, and a predetermined tomographic plane within the subject is scanned in sectors by a group of vibrating elements in the short direction among the vertical and horizontal vibrating elements in this ultrasonic probe, and The present invention is characterized in that moving sectors are scanned in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the vibrating elements are arranged by sequentially selecting groups of parallel vibrating elements.

[Operation] According to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention, a predetermined number of vibrating elements arranged vertically or horizontally are selected from among the vibrating elements arranged on a two-dimensional convex surface, and this group of vibrating elements A linear scan is performed,
A single tomographic image or velocity distribution image will be obtained.

Then, another vibrating element group is selected so as to move the vibrating element group in parallel, and linear scanning is performed by this vibrating element group, and this parallel movement scan is sequentially performed a designated number of times. Therefore, tomographic images corresponding to the number of parallel movements are obtained, thereby enabling three-dimensional diagnosis. In this case, the width of the scanning area is limited by the length of the vibrating element groups arranged vertically and horizontally.

Here, since the multiple vibrating elements are two-dimensionally spread and evenly arranged, it is possible to transmit ultrasonic waves evenly in the orthogonal direction from the probe surface. It is possible to import data in a three-dimensional area evenly.

Furthermore, by performing sector scanning using the vibrating element group in the short side direction of the probe, it is possible to obtain information on a wider area than the area limited by the short side in linear scanning. This group of vibrating elements is then moved in parallel and subjected to sector scanning, thereby obtaining a plurality of desired tomographic images. Since each of these pieces of information is obtained in a predetermined relationship, three-dimensional observation of the affected tissue becomes possible. In this case, since multiple tomographic images are formed along the long sides, information on many tomographic planes can be obtained.

[Embodiments] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention relating to an ultrasonic probe.
The configuration of the embodiment is shown, with Figure a showing a cross section of the main part of the front of the probe, and Figure b showing a side view of the probe.

What is unique about the present invention is that three-dimensional information inside the subject can be easily obtained.
To this end, in the present invention, the vibrating elements are arranged two-dimensionally evenly in the vertical and horizontal directions, and the radiation surface formed by the group of vibrating elements is made convex.

That is, as shown in the probe 16 of FIG. 1, the long side of the two-dimensional plane is bent with a predetermined curvature so that the ultrasound emission surface becomes a convex surface. On this convex surface, as shown in FIG. 2, vibrating elements 18 are arranged vertically and horizontally in a matrix, and in the embodiment this is done by cutting or pasting piezoelectric elements into square shapes. In this case, the vibrating elements 18 are arranged in a straight line in the vertical and horizontal directions of the figure.

In this case, the vibrating elements 18 may be arranged in a circular or other polygonal shape.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vibrating element portion constituted by this vibrating element 18 has a damper material 2 on its rear surface that absorbs ultrasonic waves, as in the conventional case.
0 is pasted. Therefore, the ultrasonic waves are emitted only to the front surface of the probe 16 and not to the rear surface. In addition, a surface coating film 22 is provided on the front side of the vibrating element 18, which also serves as a matching layer, so that ultrasonic waves can be efficiently radiated into the subject with less reflection from the body surface. At the same time, it becomes possible to maintain good contact with the surface of the subject. Note that this probe 16 is connected to the cable 2
It is connected to the main body at 4.

FIG. 3 shows another example of the ultrasonic probe according to the present invention, in which the short side of a two-dimensional plane is bent at a predetermined curvature as shown in the figure. Let be the probe radiation surface. According to this,
A scanning area different from that of the probe shown in FIG. 1 is obtained, and the shape of the probe can be selected depending on the diagnostic purpose.

As described above, in the present invention, since the radiation surface of the probe 16 is a convex surface, there is an advantage that the adhesion between the probe radiation surface and the surface of the object to be examined is maintained well. It can enter the subject's body without being reflected on the body surface.

Further, according to the probe 16 of the present invention, since its radiation surface is a convex surface, by performing the same scan as a normal linear scan, a scanning area where the tip is expanded can be obtained, and fewer vibration elements are required. Another advantage is that it is possible to form an image in a wide area at 18.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention relating to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that performs electronic scanning using the ultrasonic probe will be described.

FIG. 4 shows an outline of the system circuit of the second embodiment, in which an excitation signal generation circuit 26, a transmission vibration element selection circuit 27, and a transmission/reception switch 28 are connected to the probe 16. The signal generation circuit 26 and the transmission vibration element selection circuit 27 are controlled by a scanning control circuit 29, and the excitation signal generation circuit 26 outputs an ultrasonic excitation signal of a predetermined frequency at a predetermined period.

The transmission vibration element selection circuit 27 performs control based on the scanning control circuit 29 to select the vibration elements 18 arranged on a two-dimensional convex surface, which is a feature of the present invention.

In actual image diagnosis, it is necessary that a plurality of screens be formed in a predetermined relationship in order to easily observe information inside a three-dimensional object. Therefore, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that a plurality of screens are electronically scanned in a manner that enables three-dimensional diagnosis.

That is, as shown in FIG. 5a, it is possible to select a group of vibrating elements in the lateral direction (long side direction) and perform electronic scanning using these vibrating element groups in the same manner as in the conventional convex type. In this case, the interval between the fault planes is determined by the interval between the vibrating element arrays,
Therefore, in order to obtain images of tomographic planes with desired spacing, it is only necessary to select a group of vibrating elements according to the desired spacing.

For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the range in which the probe 16 can transmit and receive ultrasonic waves is 100
If the scanning area is, for example, parallel planes indicated by s ₁ , s ₂ , and s ₃ at intervals of several mm (or several cm) can be electronically scanned.

In this case, the transmission vibration element selection circuit 28 selects a group of vibration elements 18 linearly arranged in the probe 16 corresponding to the parallel surfaces s ₁ , s ₂ , s ₃ , and the vibration The element group performs electronic scanning of the surface within the subject.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 5b, it is possible to select a group of vibrating elements in the vertical direction (in the short side direction) and perform conventional linear scanning using these vibrating element groups.

Furthermore, in the present invention, as shown in FIG. The degree of utilization of the ultrasonic probe can be increased. That is, the vertical vibrating element array is arranged for sector scanning, and the vertical vibrating elements are used to obtain image information of a sector area similar to the conventional technique. On the other hand, by arranging the vibrating elements in the lateral direction (long side direction) at predetermined intervals, ultrasonic waves can be transmitted and received on a plurality of tomographic planes.

Further, in FIG. 4, in order to form a tomographic image, a receiving circuit 30 is connected to the probe 16, and this receiving circuit 30 is provided with vibrations to which ultrasonic waves are transmitted from the transmitting vibration element selection circuit 27. The information of the element 18 is supplied via the transmitter/receiver switch 28, and the ultrasonic wave is also received by the same transducer element 18 that transmitted it.
It will be held at An image storage processing circuit 32 is connected to this receiving circuit 30, and a CRT display unit 34 is connected to the image storage processing circuit 32, and the received signal obtained by the receiving circuit 30 is subjected to predetermined processing. , will be displayed on the CRT display section 34 as a tomographic image or the like.

The second embodiment has the above configuration, and its operation will be explained below.

First, the probe 16 is brought into contact with, for example, the abdominal surface of the subject to determine its position. However, in the present invention, since a plurality of tomographic images are formed in association with each other, once the probe 16 is positioned, it can be repeated many times as in the conventional method. There's no need.

Then, the conditions for obtaining a tomographic image, such as the position of a tomographic plane, the interval between a plurality of tomographic planes, and the number of tomographic planes, are set using an operating section provided in the main body of the apparatus.
For example, as shown in FIG. 6, when ultrasonic waves are transmitted and received on parallel planes s ₁ , s ₂ , and s ₃ that cut the scanning area 100 at intervals of several mm, as shown in FIG. number
This means that tomographic images S ₁ , S ₂ , and S ₃ of the tomographic planes obtained when the diagnostic site is sliced at mm intervals are obtained.

These tomographic images of S ₁ , S ₂ , and S ₃ are formed with a predetermined relationship as shown in the figure, so the size and shape of the affected area can be grasped, and the 3D image of the diagnosed area can be understood. diagnosis becomes possible. In an embodiment, the information regarding the position of the tomographic plane is
The information is displayed on the CRT display 34 and also recorded in the photographed photograph, so that the positional relationship between the tomographic images can be easily known later.

Furthermore, in addition to the electronic scanning of the parallel planes s ₁ , s ₂ , and s ₃ , it is also possible to form a tomographic plane that intersects this tomographic plane at right angles, thereby allowing three-dimensional visualization of the affected area within the subject from different angles. It becomes possible to conduct observations.

Next, when performing sector scanning as shown in FIG. 5, delay control for sector scanning is performed on the vertical vibration elements. According to this,
There is an advantage that the length of the probe 16 in the vertical direction can be made extremely short, and that three-dimensional information inside the subject can be easily obtained using the compact probe 16.

Moreover, according to such an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus, by performing predetermined processing on the information obtained by scanning not only the surface in the ultrasound radiation direction but also the entire area of the probe 16, the ultrasound radiation direction and the ultrasound radiation direction can be determined. It is also possible to obtain a tomographic image in a vertical plane (plane at the same depth).

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, the radiation surface of the probe is a two-dimensional convex surface, and the vibrating elements are arranged vertically and horizontally on this two-dimensional convex surface, so that the diagnosis site can be easily Three-dimensional information can be easily obtained, and at the same time, the close contact between the probe and the surface of the subject can be maintained, and the ultrasonic wave transmission and reception can be performed satisfactorily.

Further, according to the present invention, since a plurality of tomographic images (or tomographic planes) are formed based on a predetermined relationship, it becomes easy to understand the relationship between each tomographic image and collect three-dimensional information. There is an advantage. Therefore, the size and shape of the affected area can be diagnosed three-dimensionally, making it possible to provide useful information that can contribute to image diagnosis.

Furthermore, according to an apparatus that performs sector scanning using a group of vibrating elements on short sides, it becomes possible to obtain a plurality of tomographic images necessary for three-dimensional diagnosis using a compact probe.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing a first embodiment of the present invention regarding an ultrasonic probe, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the arrangement of the vibrating elements in the first embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the arrangement of the vibrating elements in the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a circuit block diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention relating to an ultrasonic diagnostic device, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing another example of the configuration of an ultrasound probe according to the second embodiment Explanatory diagram showing fault plane, No. 6
The figure is an explanatory diagram showing the position of the tomographic plane within the actual subject, Fig. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the tomographic image of the tomographic plane shown in Fig. 6, and Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of the configuration of a conventional probe. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing electronic scanning using a conventional probe. 10... Probe, 12... Vibrator, 14, 20
... Damper material, 16 ... Probe of the present invention, 18 ...
... Vibration element, 22 ... Surface coating film, 26
...excitation signal generation circuit, 27 ... transmission vibration element selection circuit, 29 ... scan control circuit, 30 ... reception circuit, 32 ... image storage processing circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. The probe surface that comes into contact with the subject is a cylindrical convex surface bent at a predetermined curvature, and a plurality of vibrating elements are two-dimensionally arranged evenly in the vertical and horizontal directions along this convex surface. Select one of the vertical and horizontal vibrating element groups in this ultrasonic probe, electronically scan a predetermined tomographic plane within the subject with this vibrating element group, and at the same time An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus characterized in that a group of vibrating elements parallel to the element group are sequentially selected and electronically scanned to move and scan in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the vibrating elements are arranged, and to capture data in a three-dimensional area. 2. An ultrasonic probe in which the probe surface that comes into contact with the object is a cylindrical convex surface bent at a predetermined curvature, and a plurality of vibrating elements are two-dimensionally arranged evenly in the vertical and horizontal directions along this convex surface. Among the vertical and horizontal vibrating elements in this ultrasound probe, a group of vibrating elements in the short direction scans a predetermined tomographic plane inside the subject in sectors, and
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus characterized in that by sequentially selecting a vibrating element group parallel to the vibrating element group, a moving sector scan is performed in a direction perpendicular to the vibrating element array direction, and data in a three-dimensional area is captured.