JPS63122430A - Rotary 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 improvements in rotary ultrasound probes used in ultrasound diagnostic equipment.

Conventional technology Conventionally, the purpose of a conventional rotary ultrasound probe is to focus an ultrasound beam, and in order to focus the ultrasound beam, the ultrasound transducer is placed in front of a substance that has a slower ultrasound transmission speed than that in the living body, such as A configuration in which an acoustic lens made of silicone rubber and having a convex surface is provided is known. The conventional rotary ultrasonic probe will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

As shown in FIG. 3, a back load material 32 is fixed to the back surface of the piezoelectric vibrator a1 using a bonding agent, and a first acoustic matching plate 33 and a second acoustic matching plate 34 are sequentially attached to the front surface of the piezoelectric vibrator 31. A hemispherical acoustic lens 35 made of silicone rubber is fixed to the front surface of the second acoustic matching plate 34 using a bonding agent, thereby forming a single cylindrical acoustic element unit 36 . As shown in FIG. 4, this acoustic element unit 36 is inserted and fixed into several mounting holes 38 formed in the rotor a7.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in the conventional configuration described above, the piezoelectric vibrator 31, the first and second acoustic matching plates 33 and 34, and the acoustic lens 35 are fixed in sequence using a bonding agent. These central axes are likely to shift, making it difficult to keep the convergence direction of the sound waves emitted from the piezoelectric vibrator 31 constant. In particular, since the acoustic lens 35, which is formed into a convex shape from silicone rubber, has a thin outer circumference, it is difficult to maintain the shape, and misalignment occurs during the process of fixing the above-mentioned components. Moreover, when a plurality of acoustic element units 36 having the above-mentioned misalignment are used, there is a problem that it is even more difficult to determine the focusing direction of the sound waves.

Therefore, the present invention makes it possible to align the central axes of the acoustic lens and the ultrasonic transducer to obtain a highly accurate ultrasonic beam, and also to improve productivity, thereby reducing costs. It is an object of the present invention to provide a rotary ultrasonic probe that can be used to perform various functions.

Means for Solving the Problems and Technical Means of the present invention for solving the above problems is to use a polymeric resin material with a concave surface shape, which has a composition in which the ultrasonic transmission speed is faster than the transmission speed in the living body. An acoustic lens is formed, a cylindrical part is integrally formed on the outer periphery of the back surface of this acoustic lens, and an ultrasonic transducer is housed in this cylindrical part,
The cylindrical portion is attached to an attachment hole formed in the rotor.

For production The effect of this technical means is as follows.

That is, the acoustic lens is made of a polymeric resin material to increase its strength, and the ultrasonic transducer is housed in a cylindrical part formed integrally with the acoustic lens, and the ultrasonic transducer is adjusted to the focusing curvature of the acoustic lens. Since the cylindrical portion is installed in the mounting hole of the rotor in parallel with the central axes of both parts aligned, there is no possibility that the central axes of the two parts will shift. Furthermore, by housing the ultrasonic transducer in a cylindrical portion formed integrally with the acoustic lens, the central axes of both can be easily aligned.

Example Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 and 2 show a rotary ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 being a sectional view of an acoustic element unit, and FIG. 2 being a perspective view of the whole. As shown in FIG. 1, the surface of the acoustic lens 10 is formed into a hemispherical concave shape with an arbitrary curvature 11. A circular cylindrical portion 12 is integrally formed on the outer periphery of the back surface of the acoustic lens 1o. The acoustic lens 10 and the cylindrical portion 12 are made of a polymeric resin material having a composition in which the ultrasonic transmission speed is faster than the transmission speed in the living body. A circular ultrasonic transducer 1 is provided in the cylindrical part 12.
3 is stored in a fixed state. The ultrasonic transducer 13 includes, for example, a piezoelectric transducer 14, a back load material 15, a first acoustic matching plate 16, and a second acoustic matching plate 17. A second acoustic matching plate 17, a first acoustic matching plate 16, a piezoelectric vibrator 14, and a back load material 1 are arranged inside the cylindrical portion 12.
・5 are inserted one after another and fixed with bonding agent.

At this time, the inner diameter of the cylindrical part 12, the second acoustic matching plate 17, the first acoustic matching plate 16, the piezoelectric vibrator 14, and the back load material 1
By making the outer diameters of the acoustic lens 10 and the ultrasonic transducer 13 almost equal and increasing the fitting precision, the central axis of the acoustic lens 10 and the hemisphere 11 is
can be aligned with the central axis of Of course, when forming the acoustic lens 10 and the cylindrical part 12, it goes without saying that they should be formed so that they have the same central axis.

The cylindrical portion 12 of the acoustic element unit 18 configured in this manner is inserted and fixed into a plurality of (three in the illustrated example) mounting holes 20 formed in the rotor 19, as shown in FIG. .

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, an acoustic lens having a concave surface is formed from a polymeric resin material having a composition in which the ultrasonic transmission speed is faster than the transmission speed in the living body, and the back surface of this acoustic lens is A cylindrical portion is integrally formed on the outer periphery, an ultrasonic transducer is housed in the cylindrical portion, and the cylindrical portion is attached to a mounting hole formed in the rotor.

In this way, the acoustic lens is made of a polymeric resin material to increase its strength, and the ultrasonic transducer is housed in the cylindrical part formed integrally with the acoustic lens. Since the shaped part is attached to the rotor's mounting hole, there is no risk of the central axes of the two being misaligned. Therefore, a highly accurate ultrasonic beam can be obtained. In addition, by housing the ultrasonic transducer in the cylindrical part formed integrally with the acoustic lens as described above, the central axes of both can be easily aligned, improving productivity and reducing costs. can be achieved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 show a rotary ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an acoustic element unit, FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view, and FIGS. 3 and 4. The figures show a conventional rotary ultrasonic probe, FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an acoustic element unit, and FIG. 4 is an overall perspective view. 10... Acoustic lens, 12... Cylindrical part, 13... Ultrasonic vibrator, 14... Piezoelectric vibrator, 15...・Back load material, 16...
...First acoustic matching body, 17...Second acoustic matching plate, 19...Rotor, 20...Mounting hole. Name of agent: Patent attorney Toshio Nakao (1st person)
Figure 2

Claims (1)

[Claims] An acoustic lens with a concave surface is formed from a polymeric resin material with a composition in which the ultrasonic transmission speed is faster than the transmission speed in the living body, and a cylindrical portion is integrally formed on the outer periphery of the back surface of this acoustic lens. 1. A rotary ultrasonic probe, characterized in that an ultrasonic transducer is housed in a cylindrical portion, and the cylindrical portion is attached to a mounting hole formed in a rotor.