KR101974484B1 - Intravascular ultrasound transducer assembly for occlusion tunnelling - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly for occlusion lesion tunneling and a manufacturing technique thereof, the ultrasonic transducer assembly is generated using a tube for insertion of blood vessels for IVUS, a housing positioned at the end of the tube, and a piezoelectric element. At least one ultrasonic single device and a micro robot for intravascular tunneling is matched together and includes a rotating unit for rotating the ultrasonic transducer and the ultrasonic transducer installed inside the housing, the ultrasonic single device is rotated through the scanline (scanline) By generating the image, the image of the object in the blood vessel is generated, and the micro robot induces tunneling of the opposing position of the ultrasonic transducer in the blood vessel based on the image.

Description

Intravascular ultrasound transducer assembly for occlusion tunneling

The present invention relates to a device for tunneling vascular occlusion lesions, and in particular, to control micro-robots used for vascular tunneling such as chronic total occlusion (CTO) using an ultrasonic transducer. An implantable ultrasound transducer assembly and a method of manufacturing the same.

Ultrasound (US) image is a structure of the observation region by applying an ultrasonic signal to the observation region in the human body using an ultrasonic probe (probe), receiving the ultrasonic signal reflected back from the tissue and extracting the information contained in the signal And equipment for imaging characteristics. This has the advantage that it is possible to obtain a real-time image without harm to the human body compared to other medical imaging systems such as X-ray, CT, MRI, PET.

Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS) imaging technology refers to a video processing technology and methodology for imaging real-time cross-sections of arteries within a vessel or diseases occurring within the vessels, with population growth with aging populations and chronic diseases such as heart disease supporting market growth. And inexpensive treatment is required worldwide. Under these circumstances, IVUS has tremendous potential for addressing the previously unrecognized requirements for early detection and prevention of coronary artery disease. In addition, the technique is gaining in popularity because it has many advantages over conventional angiography, as evidenced by several international clinical studies. Left main disease, chronic complete occlusion, lower extremity arterial disease, and the use of IVUS to induce angiogenesis are major opportunities in this technology.

On the other hand, a chronic complete occlusion lesion is a lesion that has been completely blocked for over a month, and a thin wire is inserted into the vessel to penetrate it, and when it reaches the blocked portion, it is punctured by the operator's force, and then a stent ( The penetrating procedure is performed using stent). At this time, in order to position the wire at the treatment site, an X-ray based angiography is continuously performed to confirm the position of the treatment wire. For this reason, although the skill level of the operator is a major factor that determines the success of the chronic complete occlusion tunneling procedure, the operator is burdened with continuous X-ray exposure during the procedure.

In order to overcome this problem, a method of inserting a small micro-robot into a blood vessel and controlling the microrobot through a magnetic field outside the human body to perform chronic complete occlusion tunneling may be proposed. Prior art documents presented below introduce a technique for performing lesion tunneling by controlling a micro robot in a blood vessel through such a magnetic field. However, clogged blood vessels consist of various components such as thrombosis, calcification, and blood vessel walls, and it is very difficult to find tunneling parts within a few mm of blood vessels. In particular, if the microrobot breaks through the walls of blood vessels instead of being blocked in the vessels during the tunneling process, the result will be very fatal for the patient.

Therefore, in order to solve the problems that may occur during the treatment of chronic complete occlusion using a micro robot, technical means of inducing the microrobot to penetrate the blocked vessel safely by grasping the substance of the vessel directly inside the vessel rather than outside the vessel. This presentation is necessary.

Korean Patent Publication No. 2014-0026957, published on March 06, 2014

The technical problem to be solved by the embodiments of the present invention, the perforation method through the insertion of wire in the blood vessels for diseases requiring vascular tunneling, such as chronic complete occlusion lesions not only depends on the experience of the operator, but also damage the vessel wall In order to solve the problem, the conventional vascular tunneling method of controlling the microrobot through only the magnetic field inducing means inevitably overcomes the weakness accompanied with the degradation of the procedure accuracy and the risk of accident.

In order to solve the above technical problem, the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention, the tube for insertion of blood vessels (IV) for intravascular ultrasound (IVUS); A housing located at the distal end of the tube; And an ultrasonic transducer in which an ultrasonic single element generated using a piezoelectric element and a micro-robot for intravascular tunneling are matched together and installed inside the housing. When a single device provides information about the constituent material of the blood vessel through the induction of an ultrasonic signal for an object in the blood vessel, the micro robot tunnels the opposing position of the ultrasonic transducer in the blood vessel based on the information on the constituent material. Induce.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to an embodiment, the ultrasonic transducer is in contact with the inside of the housing, the ultrasonic single element is installed, the micro robot through a hole formed through the center of the ultrasonic single element This can be installed.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to an embodiment, the ultrasonic transducer may be installed in contact with the inside of the housing, the micro robot is installed, the ultrasonic single element may be installed through a hole formed in the center of the micro robot.

In an ultrasonic transducer assembly according to an embodiment, the ultrasonic transducer may form an annular array toward an object in the blood vessel by placing a plurality of ultrasonic single elements along a concentric circle.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to an embodiment, the ultrasonic single element and the micro robot may be arranged to have the same center in the housing in a direction parallel to the insertion direction in the blood vessel.

In an ultrasonic transducer assembly according to an embodiment, the ultrasonic single element may form a matching layer on the front side of the piezoelectric element or match the rear surface of the piezoelectric element for acoustic impedance matching with the vascular medium. A backing layer may be formed on the backing layer. In addition, the ultrasonic single device may be generated by cutting a device in which at least one of the matching layer or the rear layer and the piezoelectric device are stacked in a stacking direction to be equal to or less than a threshold size for IVUS.

In order to solve the above technical problem, the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention, the tube for vascular insertion for IVUS; A housing located at the end of the tube; An ultrasonic transducer in which at least one ultrasonic single element generated by using a piezoelectric element and a micro robot for intravascular tunneling are matched together and installed inside the housing; And a rotating unit configured to rotate the ultrasonic transducer, and when the ultrasonic single element obtains scanline data through rotation, the microrobot causes the microrobot to generate an image of the object in the blood vessel based on the image. It induces tunneling to the opposite position of the ultrasound transducer in the blood vessel.

In an ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, the microrobot is installed to be located at the inner center of the housing in a direction parallel to the insertion direction of the blood vessel, and the ultrasonic single element is located at a position outside the inner center of the housing. Arranged or installed so that the opposite direction of the ultrasonic single element is different from the insertion direction in the blood vessel, it is possible to transmit and receive the ultrasonic signal along the scan line through the rotation.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, the ultrasonic transducer, the ultrasonic single element is installed inside the housing so as to form an oblique angle with the insertion direction in the blood vessel, the hole formed through the ultrasonic single element The micro robot can be installed through. In addition, the ultrasonic single element, to form a matching layer on the front surface of the piezoelectric element for matching the acoustic impedance with the medium in the blood vessel, or to form a rear layer on the rear surface of the piezoelectric element, the gradient to the center surface concave Forming or further comprising a convex lens attached to the front can focus the beam on the geometrical focus (geometrical focus) of the ultrasonic transducer. Furthermore, the ultrasonic single device deposits a conductive material on the wrapped surface of the piezoelectric element wrapped according to a predetermined thickness, and casts the front and rear surfaces of the piezoelectric element on which the conductive material is deposited. After directly forming the matching layer or the backing layer on the conductive material and wrapping according to a predetermined thickness, at least one of the matching layer or the backing layer and the piezoelectric element is stacked below the threshold size for IVUS It can be produced by cutting along the lamination direction such that.

In an ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, the ultrasonic transducer may be installed such that the microrobot is installed at the inner center of the housing and the ultrasonic single element is positioned at the side of the microrobot.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, when the ultrasonic transducer includes a plurality of ultrasonic single elements, the ultrasonic transducer may be arranged to maximize the distance between the ultrasonic single elements.

In an ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, the rotating unit may be set to rotate the ultrasonic transducer by a value obtained by dividing 360 ° by the number of ultrasonic single elements.

In order to solve the above technical problem, the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention, the tube for vascular insertion for IVUS; A housing located at the end of the tube; And an ultrasonic transducer in which an ultrasonic array element and a micro robot for intravascular tunneling are matched together and installed inside the housing. When the ultrasonic array element generates an image of the subject in the blood vessel, The microrobot induces tunneling of the opposite position of the ultrasound transducer in the blood vessel based on the image.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, the ultrasonic array element may be composed of a plurality of ultrasonic single elements disposed in the form of a one-dimensional array or a two-dimensional array toward an object in the blood vessel.

In an ultrasonic transducer assembly according to another embodiment, the ultrasonic array element is divided by radially cutting an ultrasonic element generated by using a piezoelectric element into individual ultrasonic elements and installing the inner ultrasonic element. The individual ultrasound elements may form an array group toward an object in the blood vessel, and the micro robot may be installed at the center of the array group formed by the divided individual ultrasound elements. In addition, the micro robot may be installed at the center of the array group through a hole formed through the ultrasonic array element.

Embodiments of the present invention, by adopting a signal-guided or image-guided method for vascular subjects through IVUS to more precisely control the microrobot matched with IVUS, the probability of failure of the vascular tunneling procedure depending only on the experience of the operator The risk of accidents can be significantly reduced, and ultrasound guidance information or image information provided in real time enables more intuitive and precise vascular tunneling procedures.

1 is a view for explaining the environment in which embodiments of the present invention are used and the blood vessel insertion instrument.
2 to 4 are diagrams illustrating various structures of an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly using ultrasound signal induction for occlusion tunneling according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5, 8, and 9 illustrate various structures of an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly using ultrasound image guidance with rotation for occlusion tunneling according to another embodiment of the present invention.
6 and 7 are views for explaining a method of manufacturing a single ultrasonic device according to another embodiment of the present invention.
10 and 11 illustrate various structures of an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly using ultrasound image induction through an array device for tunneling occlusion lesions according to another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 12 is a diagram for describing a method of manufacturing the ultrasonic array device of FIG. 11, according to another exemplary embodiment.

In the following description, first of all, a description will be given of a treatment environment in which embodiments of the present invention are implemented and a problem thereof, and then a general idea of the basic ideas adopted by the embodiments of the present invention to solve these problems will be described in detail. To explain.

Previously, a technique for performing chronic complete occlusion tunneling by introducing a micro-robot inserted into a blood vessel through a magnetic field has been introduced. However, with such a micro robot alone, there is a possibility that a problem arises in the case of puncturing the vessel wall rather than the occluded region in the vessel during the tunneling process. In particular, to understand the composition of blood vessels through induction means outside the vessel for control of the micro robot inevitably is accompanied by a drop in precision and the risk of surgical accidents.

Therefore, embodiments of the present invention to identify the constituents of the occluded blood vessels through direct signal induction or image induction inside the vessel using IVUS to solve the problems that may occur during the treatment of chronic complete occlusion lesion using a micro robot, In connection with this, we propose a technical means for the micro robot to safely penetrate the occluded blood vessel. In particular, effective integration and mechanical interworking of the microrobot and the IVUS transducer are essential for introducing this method into the vascular insertion nose.

1 is a view for explaining the environment in which embodiments of the present invention are used and the blood vessel insertion instrument, the proposed instrument is required to secure the diameter that can be inserted into the vessel.

The blood vessel insertion tube 10, which can be implemented as a torque coil or the like, may have a length of about 1.5M, for example, and is preferably made of a flexible material. The housing 20 is connected to the end of the tube 10 and has a length of about 2 mm in length and about 1 mm in diameter, and is preferably made of a rigid material.

Embodiments of the present invention are integrated into the housing 20 is integrated into one of the intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) 30 and the micro-robot 40 that can puncture the occluded area into one housing 20, in various structures that can be utilized in the integrated manner This will be described in detail later with reference to FIGS. 2 to 12. In FIG. 1, the micro robot 40 is positioned inside the IVUS 30, but this is one example of various integration methods, but is not limited thereto.

Meanwhile, the micro robot 40 may be controlled through a magnetic field, and the IVUS 30 inserts a micro-coaxial cable into the tube 10 to connect a signal and ground to the ultrasonic sensor.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be presented with a more specific structure with reference to the drawings. The ultrasonic transducer assemblies presented below all illustrate a structure inserted into the housing 20 of FIG. 1, and thus, for convenience of description, the tube 10 or the housing 20 is omitted.

As described above, the successful procedure of chronic complete occlusion lesion is limited by the skill of the operator, and since both the operator and the patient bear the burden of X-ray exposure, a micro robot was introduced to overcome this. In addition, IVUS was introduced to provide safe guidelines for tunneling vascular lesions using micro robots. At this time, the occluded blood vessels are composed of various materials, for example, calcification, blood clots, lipid cores (lipid core), blood vessel walls and the like.

Implementing IVUS integrated with micro robots was aimed at the following goals. First, finding an area where intravascular tunneling is relatively easy. Tunneling is difficult because the calcified area is very hard, but it is easier to tunnel because the lipid nucleus and the thrombus are not as hard as the calcified area. Second, to prevent the situation where the micro-robot loses its directivity through the blockage and damages the walls of blood vessels. When the vascular wall is penetrated due to the failure of the procedure, blood flows out of the vascular wall, which can cause a fatal result to the patient. Therefore, the micro robot and the micro robot are placed in a housing with a diameter of about 1 mm for safe tunneling when tunneling a chronic complete obstruction. We will acquire the real-time state information to be tunneled by fusing IVUS and perform tunneling in connection with it.

Embodiments of the present invention described below can be classified into two functions, 'ultrasound signal induction' and 'ultrasound image induction', with slightly different configurations of IVUS. First, in the case of 'ultrasound signal induction', a single element-based IVUS is used to analyze the difference of the ultrasonic signal according to the material of the blocked blood vessel, thereby providing information of the tunneling region. In the case of a single device, its size can be kept relatively small compared to an array element, which is advantageous for a vascular implantable device. Meanwhile, in the case of 'ultrasound image induction', a single device or an array device may be selectively used. In the case of a single device, an ultrasound image may be generated by acquiring scanline data along with rotation. In this case, there is a difference that ultrasonic image generation is possible without involving rotation. It is possible to provide guidelines for safe tunneling of the micro robot through signal induction or image induction using the ultrasonic transducer assembly according to the above-described schemes. Hereinafter, three embodiments will be described sequentially according to the function and configuration of IVUS.

(One) First Example Ultrasonic Signal Induction

2 to 4 are diagrams illustrating various structures of an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly using ultrasound signal induction for occlusion tunneling according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The ultrasonic transducer is matched with an ultrasonic single element 30 generated using the piezoelectric element 31 and a micro-robot 40 for intravascular tunneling. Is installed inside). Therefore, when the ultrasonic single device 30 provides information on the constituent material of the blood vessel by inducing ultrasonic signals to an object in the blood vessel, the microrobot 40 causes the microrobot 40 to be located in the blood vessel based on the information on the constituent material. This will induce tunneling on the opposite position of the ultrasonic transducer.

Referring to FIG. 2, the ultrasonic transducer contacts the inner side of a housing (not shown), and the ultrasonic single element 30 is installed and a hole formed through the center of the ultrasonic single element 30. The micro robot 40 may be installed through. In this case, the ultrasonic single device 30 may be implemented in a cylindrical shape (a) or a hexahedral shape (b), and other columnar shapes. In FIG. 2, only two types are illustrated in consideration of manufacturing convenience. It is not limited. The ultrasonic transducer can identify the components of the clogged blood vessels through signal induction, and visualizes the components of adjacent regions and compares them to the operator so that the operator can tunnel the non-calculation area and perform the procedure smoothly. Can be induced.

Meanwhile, the ultrasonic single element 30 forms a matching layer 32 on the entire surface of the piezoelectric material 31 for matching the acoustic impedance with the medium in the blood vessel, or A backing layer 33 may be formed on the rear surface of the piezoelectric element 31, and the piezoelectric element 31 may also be manufactured in a composite form. The ultrasonic single device 30 is a threshold size (eg, at least 1 mm ×) for the IVUS of at least one of the matching layer 32 or the back layer 33 and the piezoelectric element 31 stacked thereon. It is preferably produced by cutting along the lamination direction so that the size is 1 mm or less.

Ultrasonic transducers for IVUS are thin and small in size, making it difficult for the consumer to obtain the desired transducer characteristics (small size and high frequency) when using a typical single device transducer fabrication method. In particular, the most important factor in the high frequency implementation is the thickness of each material. Since the adhesive can act as a layer, there is a concern that the performance of the IVUS transducer may be degraded according to a conventional process. Therefore, in the ultrasonic single device 30 used in the embodiments of the present invention, each material of the matching layer 32, the piezoelectric element 31, and the matching layer 33 is first manufactured to a desired thickness to perform matching. Next, we adopted an efficient and economical process technology that allows the fabrication of several individual IVUS transducers in one step by dicing.

FIG. 3 is another structure of a signal induced IVUS transducer for safe intravascular guide of the micro robot 40. Unlike FIG. 2, the coupling form of the ultrasonic single element 30 and the micro robot 40 is reversed. That is, a hole is formed to penetrate the center of the micro robot 40 installed in contact with the inside of the housing (not shown), and the ultrasonic single element 30 is disposed in the hole to perform signal induction. .

3, the ultrasonic single device 30 may use a back layer (not shown) or a matching layer (not shown) for matching an acoustic impedance with a medium, and may also manufacture a piezoelectric element in a composite form. Through signal induction, the constituents of the blocked blood vessels can be identified. By visualizing the constituents of adjacent regions and providing them to the operator, the operator can induce a smooth procedure by tunneling an area that is not a calcification. .

4 shows a plurality of ultrasonic single elements 30a, 30b, 30c arranged along a concentric circle to form an annular array toward an object in a blood vessel, and the micro robot 40 is positioned at the innermost center of the annular array. An ultrasonic array assembly having a structure is shown. Through such an annular array transducer, signal induction can be performed to identify the constituents of the blocked portion in the blood vessel. In this case, each of the plurality of ultrasonic single devices 30a, 30b, and 30c may be implemented to have different focusing points, and thus, may have a relatively better spatial resolution than a single focusing point using one ultrasonic single transducer. As a result, more information may be provided about the vascular constituents and the distance information on the vascular wall.

In the ultrasonic transducer assembly illustrated through FIGS. 2 to 4, the ultrasonic single element 30 and the micro robot 40 may be arranged to have the same center in the housing in a direction parallel to the direction of insertion into the blood vessel, such as The precise alignment of the vessels enables precise and intuitive vascular tunneling.

(2) 2nd Example : Ultrasound Image Induction with Rotation

5, 8, and 9 illustrate various structures of an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly using ultrasound image guidance with rotation for occlusion tunneling according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The ultrasonic transducer is matched with the at least one ultrasonic single element 30 generated using the piezoelectric element 31 and the micro robot 40 for intravascular tunneling and installed inside the housing (not shown). At this time, by further including a rotating unit (not shown) for rotating the ultrasonic transducer, it is possible to obtain image information despite having an ultrasonic single element. That is, when the ultrasonic single element 30 obtains scanline data through rotation by driving a rotating unit (not shown) to generate an image of the object in the blood vessel, the micro robot 40 causes Based on the image, tunneling for the opposite position of the ultrasound transducer in the blood vessel is induced. More specifically, the micro robot 40 is installed to be located at the inner center of the housing (not shown) in a direction parallel to the insertion direction into the vessel, while the ultrasonic single element 30 is the housing (not shown) Disposed at a position outside the inner center of the c) or installed so that an opposite direction of the ultrasonic single element 30 is different from the insertion direction of the blood vessel, thus transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic signal along a scan line that is changed through rotation. .

The ultrasonic transducer assembly shown in FIG. 5 proposes a structure employing an IVUS transducer based on image induction for safe guidance in a blood vessel of the microrobot 40, and forms an ultrasonic single element 30 in a depth direction of a blood vessel. It was installed inside the housing 20 to form an oblique angle with the direction of insertion into the blood vessel. In order to form an oblique angle, a support (not shown) may be attached to the rear surface of the ultrasonic single element 30, and the ultrasonic single unit having a length larger than the diameter of the housing 20 inserted into the blood vessel through this installation method. Implementation of the device 30 is possible. Since the diameter of the vessel is limited in reality, the size of the IVUS is usually limited to the diameter of the vessel. To overcome this limitation, the size of the device is made larger in the depth direction of the vessel to focus the beam at a desired image point. As a result, the quality of the ultrasound image may be improved.

Now, the micro robot 40 is installed through the hole formed through the ultrasonic single element 30, and when the ultrasonic single element 30 provides an image in the blood vessel by rotation, accordingly in conjunction with the confirmation of the image information The micro robot 40 moves in the hole and safely tunnels.

Meanwhile, the ultrasonic single element 30 forms a matching layer 32 on the front surface of the piezoelectric element 31 or matches the back surface of the piezoelectric element 31 for acoustic impedance matching with the vascular medium. The back layer 33 may be formed. In addition, by further comprising a convex lens (not shown) that forms a gradient or is attached to the front surface such that the central surface of the ultrasonic single element 30 is concave, thereby easily beaming to the geometrical focus of the ultrasonic single element 30. You can focus.

6 and 7 are views for explaining a method of manufacturing a single ultrasonic device according to another embodiment of the present invention, the threshold size (for example, at least 1mm × 1mm or less preferred) for IVUS or less In consideration of the practical difficulty of fabricating the ultrasonic single device 30 so as to be, the large structure in which the matching layer 32, the piezoelectric element 31, and the back layer 33 are stacked is placed in the stacking direction below a predetermined threshold. The manufacturing method is shown in which the ultrasonic single device 30 is obtained by cutting along.

Referring to FIG. 7, a piezoelectric element wrapped according to a predetermined thickness is formed through S110, a conductive material is deposited on the wrapped surface of the piezoelectric element through S120, and the conductive through S130. Forming the matching layer or the back layer directly on the conductive material by casting the front and back of the piezoelectric element on which the material is deposited, and wrapping according to a predetermined thickness, the matching layer or the through the step S140 At least one of the back layers and the piezoelectric element are stacked to form a single element by cutting along the lamination direction to be below a threshold size for IVUS.

FIG. 8 shows various embodiments in which the micro robot 40 is installed at the inner center of the catheter in the housing 20 and the ultrasonic single element 30 is positioned at the side of the micro robot 40. The ultrasonic transducer assembly of FIG. 8 provides a guide for safe tunneling of the micro robot 40 by acquiring an ultrasound image in a blood vessel while varying the scanline through rotation. In this case, the installation position and angle of the ultrasonic single element 30 may be variously determined according to an implementation environment, and the installation position and angle may be selected in consideration of a target area for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic signal by rotation.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a case in which the ultrasonic transducer includes a plurality of ultrasonic single elements, and is installed such that the micro robot 40 is positioned at the inner center of the housing 20 or the catheter. By using the dog to be positioned on both sides of the micro-robot 40, it shows a structure to obtain an intravascular ultrasound image by rotating only 180 ° instead of 360 °.

As such, when the ultrasonic transducer includes a plurality of ultrasonic single elements, it is preferable that the ultrasonic transducers are disposed so as to maximize the spacing between the ultrasonic single elements 30. In this case, the rotating unit (not shown) is sufficient to rotate the ultrasonic transducer by a value obtained by dividing 360 ° by the number of the ultrasonic single elements 30.

(3) 3rd Example Ultrasonic Image Induction without Rotation

10 and 11 illustrate various structures of an implantable ultrasound transducer assembly using ultrasound image induction through an array device for tunneling occlusion lesions according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The ultrasonic transducer is matched with the ultrasonic array element 30 and the micro robot 40 for intravascular tunneling and installed inside the housing 20. When the ultrasound array device 30 generates an image of the object in the blood vessel, the micro robot 40 induces tunneling of the opposite position of the ultrasound transducer in the blood vessel based on the image.

FIG. 10 shows a structure in which an IVUS transducer is configured by using the ultrasonic array device 30 and the micro robot 40 is positioned on one side of the ultrasonic array device 30 to acquire an intravascular image. The ultrasound array device 30 is composed of a plurality of ultrasound single devices arranged in the form of a one-dimensional array or a two-dimensional array toward an object in the blood vessel, thereby obtaining an intravascular image without additional rotation.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a cylindrical or hexahedral ultrasonic element 30 generated by using a piezoelectric element, radially cutting, divided into a plurality of individual ultrasonic elements, and installed inside the housing (not shown). The ultrasonic transducer assembly forms an array group toward the object in the blood vessel, and the ultrasonic transducer assembly having the micro robot 40 installed in the inner center of the array group formed by the divided individual ultrasonic elements. Shows. By operating a plurality of individual ultrasonic elements radially arranged around the micro robot 40 as one array element 30, it is possible to obtain an intravascular image without rotation, tunneling the occluded vessel through the obtained image Can guide.

FIG. 12 is a view illustrating a method of manufacturing the ultrasonic array device of FIG. 11 in time series, in which a single ultrasonic device is radially cut to form a plurality of individual ultrasonic devices, and penetrates the ultrasonic array device 30. The process of installing the micro robot 30 in the center of the array group through the holes formed by forming the holes is shown.

According to the embodiments described above, by adopting a signal-guided or image-guided method for vascular subjects through IVUS to more precisely control the micro robot matched with IVUS, the probability of failure of the vascular tunneling procedure depending only on the experience of the operator The risk of accidents and accidents can be significantly reduced, and ultrasound guidance information or image information provided in real time enables more intuitive and precise vascular tunneling procedures.

The present invention has been described above with reference to various embodiments thereof. Those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention can be implemented in a modified form without departing from the essential features of the present invention. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments should be considered in descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation. The scope of the present invention is shown in the claims rather than the foregoing description, and all differences within the scope will be construed as being included in the present invention.

10: tube
20: housing
30, 30a, 30b, 30c: ultrasonic transducer (single element or array element)
31: piezoelectric element
32: matching layer
33: back layer
40: micro robot

Claims (19)

Vascular insertion tubes for intravascular ultrasound (IVUS);
A housing located at the distal end of the tube; And
Ultrasonic single element generated by using a piezoelectric element and a micro-robot for intravascular tunneling is matched together and includes an ultrasonic transducer which is installed inside the housing,
The other is installed and aligned through a hole formed through the center of any one of the ultrasonic single element and the micro robot, so that the ultrasonic single element and the micro robot are parallel to the insertion direction of the blood vessel in the housing. Are arranged to have the same center within,
When the ultrasonic single element provides information on the constituent material of the blood vessel through the induction of an ultrasonic signal to an object in the blood vessel, the microrobot causes the microrobot to be located at an opposite position of the ultrasonic transducer in the blood vessel based on the information on the constituent material. And an ultrasonic transducer assembly for inducing tunneling. The method of claim 1,
The ultrasonic transducer,
The ultrasonic single element is installed in contact with the inside of the housing,
And the micro robot is installed through a hole formed through the center of the ultrasonic single device. The method of claim 1,
The ultrasonic transducer,
The micro robot is installed in contact with the inside of the housing,
The ultrasonic transducer assembly, characterized in that the ultrasonic single device is installed through the hole formed in the center of the micro robot. The method of claim 1,
The ultrasonic transducer,
And a plurality of ultrasonic single elements arranged along concentric circles to form an annular array toward an object in the blood vessel. delete The method of claim 1,
The ultrasonic single device,
Ultrasonic transducer, characterized in that to form a matching layer on the front of the piezoelectric element for matching the acoustic impedance with the medium in the blood vessel, or to form a backing layer on the back of the piezoelectric element Assembly. The method of claim 6,
The ultrasonic single device,
And a piezoelectric element in which at least one of the mating layer or the back layer and the piezoelectric element are stacked along the stacking direction to be below a threshold size for IVUS. Vascular insertion tubes for IVUS;
A housing located at the end of the tube;
An ultrasonic transducer in which at least one ultrasonic single element generated by using a piezoelectric element and a micro robot for intravascular tunneling are matched together and installed inside the housing; And
It includes a rotating unit for rotating the ultrasonic transducer by a value obtained by dividing 360 ° by the number of ultrasonic single elements,
When the ultrasonic single device obtains scanline data through rotation to generate an image of the object in the blood vessel, the microrobot performs tunneling on the opposite position of the ultrasonic transducer in the blood vessel based on the image. And an ultrasonic transducer assembly. The method of claim 8,
The micro robot is installed to be located at the inner center of the housing in a direction parallel to the insertion direction of the blood vessel,
The ultrasonic single element is disposed at a position outside the inner center of the housing or installed so that an opposite direction of the ultrasonic single element is different from the insertion direction of the blood vessel, thereby transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic signal along a scan line through rotation. And an ultrasonic transducer assembly. The method of claim 8,
The ultrasonic transducer,
The ultrasonic single element is installed inside the housing to form an oblique angle with the direction of insertion into the blood vessel,
And the microrobot is installed through a hole formed through the ultrasonic single element. The method of claim 10,
The ultrasonic single device,
Forming a matching layer on the front of the piezoelectric element or a rear layer on the back of the piezoelectric element for matching the acoustic impedance with the medium in the blood vessel,
And a beam converging to the geometrical focus of the ultrasonic transducer by further comprising a convex lens attached to the front surface to form a gradient such that the central surface is concave. The method of claim 11,
The ultrasonic single device,
Depositing a conductive material on the wrapped side of the piezoelectric element wrapped according to a predetermined thickness, and casting the front and rear surfaces of the piezoelectric element on which the conductive material is deposited to form the matching layer on the conductive material. Or directly forming the back layer and wrapping the back layer according to a predetermined thickness, and cutting at least one of the matching layer or the back layer and the piezoelectric element in which the piezoelectric elements are stacked according to the stacking direction so as to be less than or equal to a threshold size for IVUS. ultrasonic transducer assembly, characterized in that it is produced by dicing). The method of claim 8,
The ultrasonic transducer,
The micro robot is installed in the inner center of the housing,
The ultrasonic transducer assembly, characterized in that the ultrasonic single element is installed so as to be located on the side of the micro robot. The method of claim 8,
And the ultrasonic transducer has a plurality of ultrasonic single elements, wherein the ultrasonic transducers are arranged to have a maximum distance between the ultrasonic single elements. delete Vascular insertion tubes for IVUS;
A housing located at the end of the tube; And
An ultrasonic array element and an ultrasonic transducer that are matched together and installed inside the housing to match the micro robot for intravascular tunneling,
The ultrasonic array element is divided into individual ultrasonic elements by radially cutting an ultrasonic element generated using a piezoelectric element and installed inside the housing so that the individual ultrasonic elements are divided toward an object in the blood vessel. Forming an array group to operate as an array element of the array, and installing the micro robot at the center of the array group formed by the divided individual ultrasonic elements,
And when the ultrasonic array element generates an image of the object in the blood vessel, the microrobot induces tunneling of the opposite position of the ultrasonic transducer in the blood vessel based on the image. The method of claim 16,
The ultrasonic array device,
An ultrasonic transducer assembly comprising a plurality of ultrasonic single elements disposed in the form of a one-dimensional array or a two-dimensional array toward the object in the blood vessel. delete The method of claim 16,
And installing the microrobot at the center of the array group through a hole formed through the ultrasonic array element.

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