Ultrasonic probe and ultrasonic device

• US 20060173321A1
• Filed: 01/29/2004
• Published: 08/03/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hashimoto Electronic Industry Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Medical Corporation (Hitachi, Ltd.), Jikei University
• Inventors: Azuma, Takashi, Sasaki, Akira, Kubota, Jun, Asafusa, Katsunori, Umemura, Shinichiro, Ishida, Kazunari, Furuhata, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,662,098 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/439
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/22004 using mechanical vibrations, e.g. ultrasonic shock waves A61B17/225 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/378 using ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0816 using echo-encephalography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/481 involving the use of contrast agent, e.g. microbubbles introduced into the bloodstream analysis of echo signal exploiting properties of a contrast enhancer in devices for short-range imaging with acoustic waves G01S7/52039
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/546 involving monitoring or regulation of device temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 7/00 Ultrasound therapy lithotripsy A61B17/22, A61B17/225; massage using supersonic vibration A61H23/00 ; using ultrasound for introducing media into the body A61M37/0092

Abstract

An ultrasound probe comprises therapeutic transducers which include a plurality of arrayed first transducer elements and emit therapeutic ultrasounds to a subject, and diagnostic transducers which include a plurality of arrayed second transducer elements and emit diagnostic ultrasounds to the subject and receive the diagnostic ultrasounds, wherein the therapeutic transducers are stacked over the diagnostic transducers.

Claims

1. An ultrasound probe, comprising:

therapeutic transducers, including a plurality of arrayed first transducer elements, for emitting therapeutic ultrasounds to a subject; and

diagnostic transducers, including a plurality of arrayed second transducer elements, for emitting diagnostic ultrasounds to the subject and receiving the diagnostic ultrasounds reflected by the subject, wherein

the therapeutic transducers and the diagnostic transducers are stacked.

2. The ultrasound probe according to claim 1, wherein the diagnostic transducers are so stacked as to be close to the subject than to the therapeutic transducer.

3. The ultrasound probe according to claim 1, wherein at least two of the plurality of second transducer elements are stacked over the ultrasound emitting face of each of the plurality of first transducer elements.

4. The ultrasound probe according to claim 3, wherein the ratio between the array pitch of the plurality of first transducer elements and the array pitch of the plurality of second transducer elements is an integral ratio.

5. The ultrasound probe according to claim 1, further comprising sound insulators between the plurality of first transducer elements, wherein

the plurality of second transducer elements are stacked over the ultrasound emitting faces of the plurality of first transducer elements and the sound insulators;

and

the ratio between the array pitch of the plurality of first transducer elements and the array pitch of the plurality of second transducer elements is not an integral ratio.

6. The ultrasound probe according to claim 1, further comprising a backing material having a thickness of half the wavelength of the therapeutic ultrasounds and disposed superposing over the reverse faces of the therapeutic transducers to the ultrasound emitting faces thereof.

7. The ultrasound probe according to claim 1, further comprising a cooling device or devices joined to at least either of the therapeutic transducers and the diagnostic transducers.

8. The ultrasound probe according to claim 7, wherein the cooling device or devices cover at least one of:

a reverse face to the ultrasound emitting face of at least either of the therapeutic transducers and the diagnostic transducers; and

a side face of at least either of the therapeutic transducers and the diagnostic transducers.

9. The ultrasound probe according to claim 7, further comprising a metallic foil in contact with the cooling device or devices over the ultrasound emitting face of at least either of the therapeutic transducers and the diagnostic transducers.

10. The ultrasound probe according to claim 1, wherein an ultrasound aperture D of the ultrasound probe is computed by:

11. An ultrasound apparatus, comprising:

an ultrasound probe according to claim 1;

a therapeutic transmitting device for generating driving signals for the therapeutic transducers;

a diagnostic transmitting device for generating driving signals for the diagnostic transducers;

an image constructing device for reconstructing ultrasound images on the basis of reflected echo signals received by the diagnostic transducers; and

a detecting means for detecting the state of the therapy of the subject with the therapeutic ultrasounds, wherein

the therapeutic transmitting device has a warning function to output warning information on the basis of the state of the therapy detected by the detecting means.

12. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the therapeutic transmitting device controls driving signals for the therapeutic transducers on the basis of the state detected by the detecting means.

13. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the detecting means detects a temperature correlated to at least either of the therapeutic transducers and the diagnostic transducers and, when the detected temperature surpasses a setpoint, outputs the detected temperature to the therapeutic transmitting device.

14. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the detecting means figures out the blood stream signal from the Doppler shift of reflected echo signals and, when the detected blood stream signal surpasses a setpoint, outputs the blood stream signal to the therapeutic transmitting device.

15. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising an injection control device for controlling the dose of a thrombolytic agent to be injected into the subject, wherein

the injection control device controls the injected dose of the thrombolytic agent on the basis of the blood stream signal detected by the detecting means.

16. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the therapeutic transmitting device so generates driving signals for the therapeutic transducers as to prevent interference between a reflected wave reflected by a region in the subject and an incident wave brought to incidence into the subject from the therapeutic transducers.

17. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the therapeutic transmitting device generates the driving signals of either a pulse wave or a burst wave from a basic waveform by controlling the duration of emission and the duration of rest.

18. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the therapeutic transmitting device generates the driving signals for ultrasounds resulting from modulation of frequencies in the direction of the time axis on the basis of the basic waveform.

19. The ultrasound apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the therapeutic transmitting device so generates the driving signals as to differentiate the emitting direction of ultrasound beams emitted from the therapeutic transducers from the direction of the reflected wave reflected by a region in the subject.