JPS61187844A - Ultrasonic probe - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ultrasonic probe capable of measuring the softness of living tissue.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Recently, the softness of biological tissues has been frequently measured in fields such as dentistry. For example, Inter
national dental journal, V
o121゜pp430-441 (written by W, L, KYDD et al.) K describes the configuration of a system for measuring the softness of periodontal mucosal tissues.

Hereinafter, a conventional measurement system will be explained with reference to FIG. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 101 denotes an ultrasonic transducer made of piezoelectric ceramics or the like.

102 is a cylinder glued to the ultrasonic transducer 101, 103 is a lever connected to the cylinder 102,
104 is a fulcrum provided at the center of gravity of the lever 103. Arrow 106 indicates the position of the load on cylinder 1o2, 1
o6 is periodontal mucosa, and 107 is hard tissue such as alveolar bone.

First, when the load on the cylinder 2 at the arrow 106 is zero, the periodontal mucosa 108 of the cylinder 102
The fulcrum 104 is arranged so that the load on the support is zero. In this case, it is possible to measure the thickness of the periodontal mucosa 106 under no load. That is, the ultrasonic pulses generated by the ultrasonic transducer 101 are transmitted through the cylinder 102.

The cylinder 102 is made of a material such as polystyrene whose acoustic impedance is close to that of biological soft tissue, and there is little reflection of sound waves at the contact surface between the cylinder 102 and the periodontal viscosity J1106. The ultrasound pulses that have passed through the periodontal mucosa 106 are reflected at the interface of the hard tissue 107 and converted into electrical pulses by the ultrasound transducer 101. The interval between these electric pulses is converted into the thickness of the periodontal mucosa 106. This measurement method is widely known in the field of medical ultrasound technology. Next, when a predetermined load is applied at arrow 105, periodontal mucosa 106 is deformed thinly;
Hard tissue 107 hardly deforms. Therefore, it is possible to measure the thickness of the periodontal mucosa 106 when a load is applied, that is, the softness of the tissue.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in the conventional configuration as described above, the overall dimensions of the measurement system become large and the adjustment of the no-load state is difficult.

Alternatively, there are practical problems such as the fact that it is troublesome to move the position of the load indicated by the fulcrum 104 and the arrow 106 to an arbitrary location on the subject.

Therefore, the present invention solves the above-mentioned problems in the conventional technology, and makes it possible to reduce the overall size and to measure the softness at any location on the subject under any load. The aim is to provide an ultrasonic probe with

Means for solving the problems and technical means of the present invention for solving the above problems include a housing, an ultrasonic transducer provided in the housing for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves, and the housing. It has a pressure sensor that is installed on the body and detects the load substantially applied to the subject.

According to the present invention, with the above configuration, thickness changes in the subject's soft tissue can be detected by an ultrasonic transducer, and the load of the ultrasonic probe on the subject's soft tissue can be detected by a pressure sensor. Therefore, the softness of the subject can be measured from the degree of distortion of the subject's soft tissue and the change in thickness when a load is applied.

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIG.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view, in which 1 is the housing of the ultrasonic probe, 2 is the ultrasonic transducer housed in the tip of the housing 1,
Reference numeral 3 denotes a pressure sensor housed in a housing 1. This pressure sensor 3 is equipped with a pressure transmission mechanism 4 and a strain gauge 6, and the pressure transmission mechanism 4 is connected to the tip side, that is, to the soft tissue 7 that is the subject to be examined, which will be described later. is arranged on the contact surface 6 of. 7 is a soft tissue such as periodontal mucosa, and 8 is a hard tissue such as alveolar bone.

To explain the operation of the first embodiment, first, the contact surface 6 is brought into contact with the soft tissue 7. In this state, the ultrasonic pulse generated by the ultrasonic transducer 2 passes through the soft tissue 7 and is reflected by the hard tissue 8, and this reflected wave is converted into an electric pulse in the transducer 2. The thickness of the soft tissue 7 can be determined from the interval between the electric pulses. on the other hand,
The load applied to the soft tissue 7 or the pressure on the contact surface 6 is transmitted to the strain gauge 5 via the pressure transmission mechanism 4 and converted into an electrical output. Soft tissue 7 when a load is applied in this way
The thickness, that is, the softness can be measured.

In this embodiment, the pressure sensor 3 is provided adjacent to one ultrasonic transducer 2, but the ultrasonic transducer 2 may be formed into an annular shape and the pressure sensor 3 may be provided inside it. A pressure sensor 3 may be provided between the plurality of ultrasonic transducers 20.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIG.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view. Reference numeral 11 denotes a housing of an ultrasonic probe, and a membrane 12 is provided on the tip surface. 13 is housing 1
1 is an ultrasonic propagation medium enclosed in the housing 11; 14 is an ultrasonic transducer that is housed in the housing 11 and transmits ultrasonic waves to the contact surface 15 via the propagation medium 13; This is a pressure sensor housed in contact with the 17 is a soft tissue such as periodontal mucosa, and 18 is a hard tissue such as alveolar bone.

To explain the operation of the second embodiment, first, the membrane 12 having the subject contacting surface 16 is deformed along the outer shape of the soft tissue 17 and brought into contact with it. In this state, the ultrasonic pulse generated by the ultrasonic transducer 2 passes through the soft tissue 17 and is reflected at the hard tissue 18, and this reflected wave is converted into an electric pulse by the ultrasonic transducer f14.

The thickness of the soft tissue 17 can be determined from the interval between the electric pulses. On the other hand, the pressure on the contact surface 16 is
is transmitted to the pressure sensor 16 via. In this way, the thickness of the soft tissue 17 relative to the load value, that is, the softness can be measured.

Note that the membrane 12 may be made thinner at the portion through which the ultrasonic pulse passes; by doing so, the membrane 12
(It is possible to suppress the absorption and scattering of ultrasonic waves at C. Furthermore, when scanning the ultrasonic transducer 14, the thin portion of the membrane 12 may be enlarged in accordance with the scanning.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view, 21 is the housing of the ultrasonic probe, 2
2 is an ultrasonic transducer housed in the tip of the housing 21, 23 is a pressure sensor installed between the upper surface of the housing 21 and the lower surface of the housing 24, and 25 is a contact surface. 26 is a soft tissue such as periodontal mucosa, and 27 is a hard tissue such as alveolar bone.

The operation of the third embodiment will be explained. First, contact surface 25 is brought into contact with soft tissue 26 . In this state, the ultrasonic pulse generated by the ultrasonic transducer 22 passes through the soft tissue 26 and is reflected by the hard tissue 27, and this reflected wave is converted into an electric pulse by the ultrasonic transducer 22.

The thickness of the soft tissue 26 can be determined from the interval between the electric pulses. On the other hand, the load applied to the housing 24 is transmitted to the cylinder 21 via the pressure sensor 23 and applied to the soft tissue 26 via the contact surface 26. Although the load on the soft tissue 26 is the addition of the weight of the casing 21, the ultrasonic transducer 22, etc., the true load can be determined by correcting the output of the pressure sensor 23. With the above configuration, it is possible to measure the tissue thickness, ie, the softness, relative to the load value. According to this embodiment, since the mounting position of the pressure sensor 23 is separated from the contact surface 25,
It has the advantage that it can be made smaller.

As the pressure sensor of these embodiments, a metal resistance strain gauge type pressure sensor, a semiconductor strain gauge type pressure sensor, a differential transformer type pressure sensor, a capacitance type pressure sensor, etc. can be used.

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above explanation, according to the present invention, since the ultrasonic transducer and the pressure sensor are provided in the housing,
The softness of any part of the subject can be measured, and the size of the ultrasonic probe can also be reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a first embodiment of the ultrasonic probe of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the ultrasonic probe in a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an ultrasonic probe in the third embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a conventional measurement system. 1... Housing, 2... Ultrasonic transducer, 3... Pressure sensor, 4... Pressure transmission mechanism, 6-... Strain Total, 7... Soft tissue, 8... Hard tissue, 11... Housing, 1
2... Membrane, 13... Propagation medium, 1
4... Ultrasonic transducer, 16...
-・Pressure sensor, 17... Soft tissue, 18...
...Hard tissue, 21...Housing, 22...
- Ultrasonic transducer, 23... pressure sensor, 26... soft tissue, 27... hard tissue. Name of agent: Patent attorney Toshio Nakao and 1 other person21
．． 5' No. 41! I Procedural amendment (method) % formula % l Display of the case 1985 Patent Application No. 29542 2 Name of the invention Ultrasonic probe 3 Person making the amendment Relationship with the case Patent application Colonel Location Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture 1006 Oaza Kadoma Name (582) Representative of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
Toshihiko Yamashita 4 Agent 571 Address 1006 Oaza Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Column for detailed explanation of the invention in the specification ＼ A. Contents of the amendment Page 2, line 8 of the specification ~9th line r International~ (W, L, K
International Dental Journal. Vol. 21, pages 430-441 (Double, L. Kid et al.)
t&l Journal VOL21, PP430-4
41 (W, L, KYDD et al.) Correct with others.

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) a casing, an ultrasonic transducer provided in the casing that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves, and an ultrasonic transducer provided in the casing,
An ultrasonic probe comprising a pressure sensor that detects a load substantially applied to a subject. (2) The ultrasonic probe according to claim 1, wherein the pressure sensor is provided on the contact surface with respect to the subject. (3) The ultrasonic probe according to claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic transducer is provided in a propagation medium within the housing, and the pressure sensor is provided in contact with the propagation medium. (4) The ultrasonic probe according to claim 1, wherein the pressure sensor is provided in a casing that supports the ultrasonic transducer at a position separated from a contact surface with the subject.