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Ultrasound blood flow/tissue imaging system

  • US 5,477,858 A
  • Filed: 07/09/1991
  • Issued: 12/26/1995
  • Est. Priority Date: 07/30/1986
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. A system for ultrasound blood flow imaging, comprising:

  • a transducer having a plurality of transducer elements arranged in a linear array;

    transmitter means having a plurality of respective transmitters connected to a plurality of elements of said transducer, said transmitters selectively generating an ultrasound electric signal in synchronism with each other to cause said transducer to output a beam of ultrasound energy;

    a switch having an input terminal connected to each of said transducer elements, said switch selectively connecting a subset of adjacent transducer elements to respective output ports;

    ultrasound processing means connected to the output ports of said switch, said ultrasound processing means summing the signals from ultrasound elements that are substantially equidistant from the center transducer element in said beam and outputting said sum signals on respective output lines;

    delay line means connected to each output line of said ultrasound processing means, said delay lines of said ultrasound processing means by amounts which increase for delay line means connected to transducer elements toward the center of said beam, thereby focusing said ultrasound return signals at the center of said beam;

    summing means adding the outputs of each channel of said delay line means to each other to generate a delayed output signal;

    clutter canceller means removing components of said delayed output signal corresponding to ultrasound returns from non-moving ultrasound reflectors;

    flow processor means receiving said delayed output signal from said summing means and calculating a single blood flow velocity approximating a range of blood flow velocities that correspond to the frequency spectrum of said delayed output signal;

    image memory means storing each of said data indicative of a single blood flow velocity for a plurality of discrete sample sites in each of a plurality of ultrasound beams;

    display means receiving the output of said image memory means, said display means providing a visual indication of the blood flow at the sample sites beneath said transducer as a function of depth; and

    control means controlling and coordinating the operation of said ultrasound imaging system.

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