KR20090091369A - Ultrasound probe having a plurality of probing sections - Google Patents

Abstract

An ultrasonic probe is provided to consecutively obtain wide 3D images by precisely controlling a converting device through a step motor and a timing belt. A converting device(120) comprises a plurality of ultrasonic vibrators. A holder(130) is arranged inside a housing in order to support the converting device. A supporting member(115) rotatably supports the holder. A driving motor(140) is fixed to the housing. The driving motor has a driving shaft. A delivery unit(150) delivers a driving force by the driving motor to the holder. A control part controls the driving motor in order to rotate the converting device in a different position section according to a probing region selected by user. A sensing unit senses arrival of the converting device into a predetermined position.

Description

ULTRASOUND PROBE HAVING A PLURALITY OF PROBING SECTIONS

The present invention relates to an ultrasonic probe, and more particularly, to an ultrasonic probe having a plurality of probe areas.

In general, an ultrasonic probe has a conversion element consisting of a plurality of ultrasonic vibrators. The ultrasonic probe emits ultrasonic waves to the object under test, and converts the reflected signal into an electrical signal. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus having the ultrasonic probe is particularly useful for medical purposes such as the detection of foreign substances in the living body, the measurement of the degree of injury, the observation of tumors and the observation of the fetus. Recently, in order to make a more accurate medical judgment, a technique of obtaining a 3D image by rotating a conversion device during ultrasound diagnosis has been developed.

An example of a conventional ultrasonic probe is disclosed in US Pat. No. 5,090,414, which is described with reference to FIG. 1 is a horizontal and vertical cross-sectional view of a conventional intraluminal ultrasound probe.

Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional intraluminal ultrasound probe 50 is composed of a long body 10 for insertion into a cavity of a patient and a handle 30 extending from one end of the long body 10.

The elongated body 10 is made of a resin pipe and has a longitudinal axis or a central axis as indicated by reference numeral 5. The cylindrical fixing member 11 is embedded in the elongated body 10. The bearings 12 and 13 are attached to one end and the other end of the fixing member 11, respectively. The rotating shaft 14 extending along the central axis 5 is rotatably supported by the bearings 12, 13. The conversion element 15 is disposed at the other end of the elongated body 10, is mechanically coupled to the other end of the rotary shaft 14 by the link mechanism 20, and is rotatably supported by the fixed shaft 21. The shaft 22 fixed to the converter element 15 is rotatably supported at the end of the U-shaped arm 23. The central portion of the U-shaped arm 23 is rotatably supported by the member 24 fixed to the rotation shaft 14. Therefore, when the member 24 is rotated by the rotation shaft 14, the arm 23 performs the swing of the conversion element 15. Simultaneously with this swing movement, the conversion element 15 emits ultrasonic waves toward the organs in the body cavity and receives the ultrasonic waves reflected from the body cavity. As a result, organs in the body cavity are sector-scanned by ultrasound, and the obtained ultrasound image is displayed on a monitor (not shown).

The motor 31 is disposed inside the handle 30 by being offset from the rotation shaft 14. More specifically, the drive shaft 32 of the motor 31 is not on the same axis as the central axis 5, but is parallel to the central axis 5. Similarly, the handle 30 is not coaxial with the central axis 5 but parallel to the central axis 5.

The drive pulley 33 is attached to the drive shaft 32 of the motor 31, and the driven pulley 34 is attached to one end of the rotation shaft 14. The timing belt 35 is wound around the drive and driven pulleys 33 and 34. The drive and driven pulleys 33 and 34 and the timing belt 35 are torque transmission means for transmitting torque of the motor 31. Therefore, when the motor 31 is driven, the torque is transmitted to the rotation shaft 14 through the drive pulley 33, the timing belt 35, and the driven pulley 34. As a result, the conversion element 15 swings.

At one end of the rotary shaft 14, an encoder 17 is coupled. The encoder 17 detects the swing angle of the conversion element 15 based on the relationship between the swing angle Φ and the rotation angle of the rotation shaft 14. The swing angle of the conversion element 15 determines the direction in which the ultrasound is radiated and received, and the ultrasound image is displayed according to the swing angle Φ.

However, since the conversion element 15 of the conventional ultrasonic probe 50 configured as described above can swing by a predetermined angle Φ relative to the central axis 5, only one portion of a predetermined range can be probed. There is a problem. In order to change the touch area, the user must move or change the direction of the ultrasonic probe 50, and in this process, the patient may feel uncomfortable. In particular, in the intraluminal ultrasound probe such as the uterus, it is very limited to move or change the probe to change the probe area. In addition, due to the discontinuous three-dimensional image acquisition when the direction of the ultrasonic probe 50 changes, there is a problem that the quality of the image is deteriorated because the contrast interval is not constant.

The present invention was devised to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic probe having a plurality of probe areas by rotating the conversion element at two or more positions.

The ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured to change the probe area according to a user's selection.

Ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed to be rotatable, the conversion element consisting of one or more ultrasonic vibrator, and the drive element to control the drive motor to rotate in each different position section according to the user-selected probe area It includes a control unit.

The ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention further includes a sensing means for detecting that the conversion element has reached a predetermined position and generating a signal informing the controller of the ultrasonic wave, wherein the controller is configured to detect the touch zone selected by the user. The drive motor is rotated so that the conversion element is moved to each of the corresponding position sections, and when receiving a signal indicating that the conversion element has reached a predetermined position from each location section, the driving motor is rotated. Stop and control the drive motor to rotate the converter.

The drive motor is a step motor.

Ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention, the drive gear coupled to the drive shaft of the drive motor, the driven gear to rotate in engagement with the drive gear, the driven pulley is coaxially coupled to the driven gear, and both ends of the conversion It includes a belt fixed to both sides of the device and hung on the driven pulley.

The drive gear and driven gear are bevel gears.

The driven pulley is formed with teeth, and the belt is a timing belt.

The sensing means includes two or more sensing objects installed in a holder supporting the conversion element, and a sensor capable of sensing the sensing objects.

The sensing object is a permanent magnet and the sensor is a hall sensor.

According to the ultrasonic probe of the present invention, a plurality of probe areas of the ultrasonic probe can be obtained without moving the housing of the ultrasonic probe, and the inconvenience to the patient can be minimized. In addition, since the conversion element can be precisely controlled by the step motor and the timing belt, a wide range of three-dimensional images can be obtained continuously, and the contrast interval is constant, so that the image quality can be improved.

Hereinafter, an ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the detailed description, "rotation" or "rotation movement" means that the transducer repeatedly pivots alternately clockwise and counterclockwise over a certain angular range. In addition, the "reference position" means the initial position before the start of such rotational movement of the conversion element, and means the position corresponding to the center of each range where the rotational movement is normally performed.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. 2. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion B of FIG. 3.

Referring to FIG. 2, in the illustrated embodiment, the ultrasound probe 100 has a long and thin shape to facilitate insertion as an intracavitary ultrasonic probe. The housing 110 includes an acoustic cover 111, a first housing 112, and a second housing 113. The acoustic cover 111 serves to preserve the acoustic fluid (not shown) filled therein and to protect the conversion element 120 (see FIG. 3), and to smoothly transmit ultrasonic waves generated from the conversion element 120. Direct contact with the human body should be flexible. The first housing 112 is elongated cylindrical for being inserted into the cavity. The second housing 113 has a driving and transmission means therein, and functions as a handle. The first and second housings 112 and 113 should be made of a material having excellent moldability, corrosion resistance, and surface treatment in consideration of weight. The other end of the first housing 112 is coupled to the sound cover 111, and the other end of the second housing 113 is coupled to one end of the first housing 112. However, the first and second housings 112 and 113 may be integrally formed.

3 and 4, the ultrasonic probe 100 includes a housing, a conversion element 120 including a plurality of ultrasonic vibrators, a holder 130 embedded in the housing and supporting the conversion element 120, and a holder ( The support member 115 having the rotation shaft 130a rotatably supporting the 130, the drive motor 140 fixed to the housing and having the drive shaft 151, and the driving force by the drive motor 140, the holder 130 The control unit 180 and the conversion element 120 for controlling the drive motor 140 so that the conversion means for transmitting to the 150, the conversion element 120 is rotated in each different position section in accordance with the user-selected probe area And sensing means 160 for detecting that the predetermined position has been reached and generating a signal informing the controller of the predetermined position.

The support member 115 is located at a coupling portion of the acoustic cover 111 and the first housing 112. The support member 115 includes a rotation shaft 130a for rotatably supporting the holder 130. In addition, the support member 115 functions to seal the oil filled in the acoustic cover 111.

As shown in FIG. 4, both ends of the belt 156 are fixed to the holder 130 as one of the transmission means 150 to be described later. The belt 156 is guided to the holder 130 by the first and second guides 116a and 116b. The belt 156 guided by the first and second guides 116a and 116b is wound around the outside of the holder 130, and both ends of the belt 156 are inserted into and fixed to the holder 130. The conversion element 120 may be mounted on the holder 130 to rotate together with the holder 130. The belt 156 rotates the conversion element 120 repeatedly in a clockwise, counterclockwise and clockwise order over a range determined according to the rotational direction of the drive motor 140.

Referring to FIG. 4, the sensing means 160 may detect two or more sensing objects 161a and 161b and sensing objects 161a and 161b installed in the holder 130 supporting the conversion element 120. It includes a sensor. The first and second sensing objects 161a and 161b are installed in the holder 130, and the sensor 162 is installed in the support member 115. The first sensing object 161a and the second sensing object 161b are positioned on the circumference around the pivot shaft 130a, and the angle formed by the first and second sensing objects 161a and 161b is 90 °. desirable. The sensor 162 is installed near the first guide 116a so as to correspond to the position of the first sensing object 161a. The type of the sensor 162 is determined by the types of the first and second sensing objects 161a and 161b. Preferably, the first and second sensing objects 161a and 161b are permanent magnets, and the sensor 162 is a hall sensor.

Referring to FIG. 5, the transmission means 150 includes a drive gear 152 coupled to the drive shaft 151 of the drive motor 140, a driven gear 154 that rotates in engagement with the drive gear 152, and a driven gear 154. ) And a driven pulley 155 coaxially coupled to both ends, and a belt 156 fixed to the holder 130 and hung on the driven pulley 155.

The drive motor 140 should be able to exhibit sufficient torque and speed to rotate the holder 130, preferably a step motor that is easy to respond quickly and precise angle control. The drive motor 140 is fixed to the second housing. The drive gear 152 is coupled to the drive shaft 151 of the drive motor 140. The driven gear 154 meshes with the drive gear 152 and is coupled to one end of the driven shaft 153 perpendicular to the drive shaft 151. The driven shaft 153 is rotatably installed in the second housing 113, and the driven pulley 155 is coupled to the other end thereof. A belt 156 is hung on the driven pulley 155. The drive gear 152 and the driven gear 154 is preferably composed of a bevel gear. In addition, the belt 156 is preferably a timing belt, and teeth are formed in the driven pulley 155 so as to be engaged with the timing belt. Therefore, the driving force of the driving motor 140 can be accurately transmitted to the holder 130.

6 is a block diagram illustrating control of a driving motor of an ultrasonic probe. As shown, the ultrasonic probe 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, the signal received from the input unit 170, the input unit 170 and the sensing means 160 for receiving information related to the probe area from the user Accordingly, the control unit 180 for controlling the rotation direction and the rotation angle of the drive motor 140.

The input unit 170 includes a first mode button 171, a second mode button 172, and an operation button 173. The input unit 170 may be installed on a control panel (not shown) of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus by a button method, or may be implemented on a image display unit (not shown) by a touch screen method. The controller 180 is electrically connected to the power source 190 and is configured to rotate the driving motor 140 in a predetermined direction by a signal of the input unit 170 and the sensing means 160.

Referring to FIG. 7A, when the first mode is selected through the first mode button 171, the controller 180 determines that the conversion element 120 corresponds to a first reference position corresponding to the position of the center of the first rotation range θ1. The driving motor 140 is controlled to move to 135a). At this time, the first sensing object 161a is sensed by the sensor 162. Thereafter, the conversion element 120 controls the driving motor 140 to rotate (pivot) a predetermined range to each position before and after the center of the first reference position 135a. In this way, the conversion element 120 inspects the first region of the subject.

When the second mode is selected through the second mode button 172, the controller 180 determines that the conversion element 120 corresponds to the position of the center of the second rotation range θ2 as shown in FIG. 7B. The drive motor 140 is controlled to move to the position 135b. At this time, the second sensing object 161b is sensed by the sensor 162. Thereafter, the conversion element 120 controls the driving motor 140 to rotate (pivot) a predetermined range to each position before and after the center of the second reference position 135b. In this manner, the conversion element 120 inspects the second region of the examinee.

Hereinafter, the operation of the ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5, 6, 7A, and 7B.

The rotation of the conversion element 120 is performed as follows. When the driving motor 140 rotates in the direction indicated by arrow a in FIG. 5, the driven gear 154 and the driven pulley 155 rotate in the a direction, and the belt 156 is rotated by the driven pulley 155. Moving in the a direction, the conversion element 120 rotates a predetermined angle in the direction indicated by a in FIG. 7A (hereinafter referred to as a direction rotation). In contrast to the a-direction rotation, when the drive motor 140 rotates in the direction indicated by the arrow b in FIG. 5, the driven gear 154 and the driven pulley 155 rotate in the b direction, and the driven pulley 155 is rotated. By rotation, the belt 156 moves in the b direction, and the conversion element 120 rotates by a predetermined angle in the b direction (hereinafter referred to as b direction rotation).

When the user presses the operation button 173 in the state shown in FIG. 7A, the controller 180 controls the driving motor 140 to repeat the a-direction rotation-b-direction rotation-a-direction rotation. It is possible to inspect the specific region of the subject by the rotation of the conversion element 120.

When the user presses the second mode button 172 to change the probe area in the state shown in FIG. 7A, the controller 180 rotates the driving motor 140 in the direction indicated by the arrow a in FIG. 5 to convert the element. 120 is configured to rotate in the direction indicated by arrow a in FIG. 7A. When the conversion element 120 rotates in the a direction, the controller 180 is configured to stop the rotation of the driving motor 140 when the second sensing object 161b is detected by the sensor 162. As a result, the conversion element 120 is in the state of FIG. 7B.

When the user presses the operation button 173 in the state of FIG. 7B, the controller 180 is configured to rotate the conversion element 120 in the same manner as when the operation button 173 is pressed in the state of FIG. 7A. In this way, it is possible to probe another region of the subject without moving or changing the direction of the probe itself.

When the user presses the first mode button 171 in the state of FIG. 7B, the controller 180 rotates the driving motor 140 in the direction indicated by the arrow b in FIG. 5 so that the conversion element 120 has the arrow in FIG. 7A. and rotate in the direction indicated by b. When the conversion element 120 rotates in the b direction, the controller 180 is configured to stop the rotation of the driving motor 140 when the first sensing object 161a is detected by the sensor 162. As a result, the conversion element 120 is in the state of FIG. 7A.

In the embodiment described, the reference positions of the conversion elements are arranged at intervals of 90 degrees, but it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the conversion elements may be configured at different angles for the efficiency of the probe operation.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the rotational movement of the conversion element 120 starts after the operation button 173 is pressed, but the conversion element 120 is pressed by the first and second mode buttons 171 and 172. It may be configured to automatically start the rotational movement after a suitable time after moving to the reference position of the selected mode.

The present invention described above is not limited to the above-described embodiment and the accompanying drawings, and it is common in the field of the present invention that various substitutions, modifications, and changes can be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. It will be evident to those who have knowledge of.

1 is a horizontal and vertical cross-sectional view of a conventional intraluminal ultrasound probe.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. 2.

4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. 3.

5 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion B of FIG. 3.

6 is a block diagram illustrating control of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. 2.

7A and 7B are perspective views illustrating a rotation state of the conversion element of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. 2, respectively. FIG. 7A illustrates a first mode and FIG. 7B illustrates a second mode.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: ultrasonic probe 110: housing

120: conversion element 130: holder

140: drive motor 150: transmission means

160: detection means 170: input unit

180: control unit 190: power

Claims (9)

Ultrasonic probe configured to change the probe area according to the user's choice. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic probe, A conversion element rotatably installed and composed of at least one ultrasonic vibrator, and And a control unit for controlling the driving motor to rotate the conversion element in different position sections according to the user-selected probe region. According to claim 2, It further comprises a sensing means for detecting that the conversion element has reached a predetermined each position and generates a signal to inform the control unit, The control unit rotates the driving motor to move the conversion element to each location section corresponding to the touch zone selected by the user, and indicates that the conversion element has reached a predetermined position in the location section from the sensing means. Receiving a signal to inform, stopping the rotation of the drive motor and controlling the drive motor to rotate the conversion element Ultrasonic probe, characterized in that. The ultrasonic probe of claim 2, wherein the driving motor is a step motor. According to claim 2, Drive gear coupled to the drive shaft of the drive motor, A driven gear rotating in engagement with the drive gear; A driven pulley coupled coaxially with the driven gear, and Ultrasonic probe comprising a belt fixed to both sides of the conversion element on both ends and hanging on the driven pulley. The ultrasonic probe of claim 5, wherein the driving gear and the driven gear are bevel gears. The ultrasonic probe according to claim 5, wherein the driven pulley is formed with a tooth, and the belt is a timing belt. The method of claim 3, wherein the sensing means, Two or more sensing objects installed in a holder supporting the conversion element, and Ultrasonic probe comprising a sensor for sensing the sensing object. The ultrasonic probe of claim 8, wherein the sensing object is a permanent magnet and the sensor is a hall sensor.

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