JPH0571250B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention belongs to the field of medical devices for diagnosis;
More specifically, the present invention relates to an ultrasonic probe adapter for interposing and holding an acoustic medium between the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface of the ultrasonic probe and the surface of a subject.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, medical diagnosis using an ultrasonic probe has been performed on various parts of a subject, such as a living body. However, since the surface shape of a living body varies depending on the region, it is difficult to bring a substantially planar ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface into good contact with those regions. Therefore, water, which is an acoustic medium with low attenuation of ultrasonic waves, is stored in a water bag made of vinyl or the like, and this is interposed between the ultrasonic probe and the surface of the subject to make contact with various surface shapes of the subject. I had secured my sexuality.

However, when performing ultrasonic diagnosis using the above method, the following problems occur.

(1) It is difficult to maintain a water bag interposed between the ultrasound probe and the surface of the subject.

(2) It is difficult to fill and deaerate the water bag.

(3) Water, the acoustic medium, is not completely waterproof and is an obstacle to operation.

(4) An adapter for an ultrasonic probe that can be adapted to various surface shapes by effectively utilizing the properties of a fluid acoustic medium has not been provided.

(5) The device that interposes the acoustic medium is large and the operability of the ultrasound probe is poor.

Due to the drawbacks mentioned above, conventionally,
It has become difficult to use ultrasonic probes on various surface shapes.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and allows for easy attachment and detachment of an ultrasonic probe to the surface of a subject, smooth operation of water injection and deaeration, and good sealing of the acoustic medium. It is an object of the present invention to provide an adapter for an ultrasound probe that is capable of bringing an acoustic medium into good contact with various parts of a subject.

[Summary of the invention]

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an adapter for an ultrasound probe for interposing an acoustic medium between an ultrasound transmission/reception wave surface of an ultrasound probe and a surface of a subject, the opening end of which is connected to the ultrasound transmission/reception surface. A storage bag that is held on the edge of the wave surface and is made of an acoustic transmission member that has at least one of a water inlet or a deaeration port and stores an acoustic medium therein, and the storage bag is separate from the storage bag and is A device characterized by having a holding member that presses and holds the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface, and a locking member that removably locks the holding member to a surface of the ultrasonic probe that faces the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface. It is.

[Embodiments of the invention]

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an ultrasonic probe adapter according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS.
The figure is a parts diagram of members constituting the ultrasonic probe adapter. The ultrasonic probe adapter (hereinafter abbreviated as adapter) includes a rubber frame 2 attached to the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a of the probe body 1;
A storage bag 3 that is arranged such that its open end 3a encompasses the rubber frame 2 and stores an acoustic medium therein, and a storage bag 3 that presses and holds the open end 3a of the storage bag 3 against the rubber frame 2. A separate holding member 4 and a locking member 5 that locks the holding member 4 to the opposing surface 1b of the probe body 1 that faces the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a.
It consists of. The rubber frame 2 is shown in FIG. 2A,
As shown in FIG.
and a side wall portion 2b having a vertically rising portion from the outer edge of the bottom portion 2a so as to come into contact with the side surface 1c of the probe body 1. Reference numeral 2c denotes a relief portion cut out to escape the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a. The storage bag 3 is made of an acoustic transmission member having good ultrasonic permeability, such as natural latex rubber, and has a water inlet 3b and a deaeration port 3c protruding from opposite positions on the circumferential surface near the opening end 3a. It is provided. As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the holding member 4 has a frame shape with a notch in the center, and has a bottom portion 4 that presses the storage bag 3 against the bottom portion 2a of the rubber frame 2.
a, and a side wall portion 4b that presses the storage bag 3 against the side wall portion 2a of the rubber frame 2. Illustrated 4c shows a notch for escape of the storage bag 3. Moreover, the holding member 4
For example, at both ends of the longitudinal direction, the side wall portion 4
Hook portions 4d, 4d are provided at the upper end of b.
This holding member 4 is a rigid member such as SPCC.
It is formed of. As shown in FIGS. 4A, B, and C, the locking member 5 escapes from the cable take-out portion 1d of the probe body 1 and connects to the opposing surface 1b and the side surface 1.
It has a contact surface 5a that follows the shape of the probe body 1 so as to come into contact with the probe body 1. Probe body 1
The contact surfaces 5a, 5a that contact the side surfaces 1c at both ends in the longitudinal direction include hook portions 4d, 4 of the holding member 4.
Locking portions 6, 6 for locking d are provided. The locking parts 6, 6 have shafts 6 ₁ , 6a fixed to the lower ends of the contact surfaces 5a, 5a, and one end of which is rotatably held by the shafts 6a, 6a, so that the locking parts 6, 6 can rotate in the directions A and B shown in the figure. It consists of handles 6b, 6b, and locking shafts 6c, 6c, which are substantially U-shaped and whose both ends are rotatably held in the middle part of the handle 6b. Although not shown, torsion coil springs are attached to the locking parts 6, 6, and the handles 6b, 6b are biased to stabilize their positions at both ends in the directions of arrows A and B in the figure. .

The operation of the ultrasonic probe adapter configured as described above will be explained. To attach the adapter to the probe body 1, as shown in the exploded perspective view of FIG. The storage bag 3 is arranged so as to be in contact with 2b of the storage bag 3. Then, the holding member 4 is attached to the abutting portion of the rubber frame 2 and the storage bag 3 so as to overlap with each other.
Thereafter, with the handles 6b, 6b rotated in the direction B (see FIG. 4), the locking member 5 is attached from the facing surface 1c side of the probe body 1, and the locking shafts 6c, 6c of the locking portion 6 are attached. The hook portions 4d, 4d of the holding member 4
to be locked. Then, by rotating the handles 6b, 6b in the direction of arrow A in the figure, the probe body 1
The installation of the adapter is completed. FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the state after the adapter is attached to the probe body 1. Next, in this state, water, which is an acoustic medium, is stored in the storage bag 3. Water is injected through an inlet 3b provided in the storage bag 3, and air is simultaneously degassed through a deaeration port 3c disposed opposite to the inlet 3b to prevent air from entering. By the above-described operation, the storage bag 3 is sealed with water, and the space between the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a of the probe body 1 and the outer surface of the storage bag 3 can be filled with water as an acoustic medium. In ultrasonic diagnosis, by bringing the outer surface of the storage bag 3 into contact with the surface of the subject, ultrasonic waves can be transmitted and received efficiently on the ultrasonic wave transmitting and receiving surface 1a, similar to the so-called water immersion method. .

By using the adapter described above in the probe body 1, the following effects can be achieved.

The storage bag 3 is integrally attached to the probe body 1, and the shape when the adapter is attached to the probe body 1 is almost the same as the probe body 1 alone, so operability during diagnosis is improved. Very good.

When the storage bag 3 is attached to the probe body 1, the open end 3a of the storage bag 3 is sandwiched between the flexible rubber frame 2 that fits tightly with the probe body 1 and the highly rigid holding member 4. The open end 3a can be reliably attached along the entire circumference of the probe body 1, and there is no fear that the water in the storage bag 3 will leak to the outside.

Since the holding member 4 attached to the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a side is fixed by the locking member 5 so as to be pulled toward the opposing surface 1b side facing the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a, the fixed state is extremely stable. It is stable, and there is no fear that the fixation of the holding member 4 will be released even while the probe body 1 is being operated.

Since the storage bag 3 is highly flexible and water, which is the acoustic medium, is fluid, the acoustic medium can be held in good contact with the surface of the subject having various shapes.

It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and includes various modifications within the scope of the gist of the present invention. For example, the rubber frame 2 attached to the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a is for holding the open end 3a of the storage bag 3 in close contact with the probe body 1. Therefore, if the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a is made of a flexible material such as rubber in advance, the storage bag 3 can be formed without the need for the rubber frame 2.
may be attached directly. Furthermore, the water inlet 3b and deaeration port 3c for supplying the acoustic medium into the storage bag 3 are not necessarily provided in the storage bag 3; for example, the water inlet and deaeration port may be provided in the probe body 1 in advance. ,
Injection and degassing may be performed from the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface 1a side. Furthermore, the holding member 4
The locking member 5 for locking is not limited to the one shown in the above embodiment, but for example, as shown in FIG.
It is made of a linear member with high spring rigidity such as SUS, and locking parts 6, 6 are provided at both ends thereof, and the middle part thereof is in contact with the facing surface 1a of the probe body 1, and the locking parts 6, 6 are It may be configured to be locked to the hook portions 4d, 4d of the holding member 4. Alternatively, the locking member may be formed into a band shape having locking portions at both ends.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an adapter for an ultrasonic probe that allows the probe body to be brought into good contact with the surface of a subject having various shapes via an acoustic medium. Moreover, when the ultrasonic probe adapter is attached to the probe, it can be attached compactly and there is no fear of leakage of the acoustic medium, so the operability of the ultrasonic probe is not impaired.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an ultrasonic probe adapter according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figs. 2A and B are a front view and a sectional view of a rubber frame, and Fig. 3 is a sectional view and a front view of a holding member. , Fig. 4 A, B, and C are front views, top views, and side views of the support member, Fig. 5 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the state in which the adapter is attached to the probe body, and Fig. 6 is a modification of the locking support member. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example. 1... Probe body, 1a... Ultrasonic wave transmission/reception wave surface, 1
b... Opposing surface, 1c... Side surface, 2... Rubber frame, 3... Storage bag, 3b... Inlet, 3c... Deaeration port, 4... Holding member, 4c... Hook portion, 5... Locking member.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In an ultrasonic probe adapter for interposing an acoustic medium between the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving wave surface of the ultrasonic probe and the surface of the subject, the open end is held at the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface, and the opening end is held at the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface, and the opening end is held at the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface, and the a storage bag made of an acoustic transmission member having at least one opening and storing an acoustic medium therein; and a holding member that is separate from the storage bag and presses and holds the storage bag against the edge of the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface. and a locking member that removably locks the holding member to a surface of the ultrasonic probe that faces the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface.