Diagnostic ultrasound apparatus
First Claim
1. A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus, comprising:
- a displacement image data frame memory for storing, frame by frame, two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a living body;
displacement image data sampling means for sampling displacement image data which is obtained by comparing two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a newest frame with the two-dimensional ultrasound image data of any one of the previous frames stored in the displacement image data frame memory, said displacement image data representing displacement in the living body between said compared frames;
displacement hysteresis image forming means for forming displacement hysteresis image data which represents changes over the thus-formed plural displacement image data by sequentially combining said plural displacement image data with the lapse of time; and
display means for displaying a displacement hysteresis image on the basis of said displacement hysteresis image data.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus includes a displacement image data frame memory for storing, frame by frame, two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a living body to be observed; displacement image data sampling section for sampling displacement image data which is obtained by comparing two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a newest frame with the two-dimensional ultrasound image data of any one of the previous frames stored in the displacement image data frame memory, the displacement image data representing displacement in the living body between the compared frames; displacement hysteresis image forming section for forming displacement hysteresis image data which represents changes between the thus-formed plural displacement image data by sequentially combining the plural displacement image data with the lapse of time; and a display monitor for displaying a displacement hysteresis image on the basis of thus-produced displacement hysteresis image data. When this apparatus is used for diagnosing a heart, the displacement hysteresis image shows the state of movement of the living body such as the heart muscle with the lapse of time for the time interval from peak expansion of the heart ventricle to peak contraction thereof. In this case, since the width of the displayed displacement hysteresis image shows the amount of movement (activity) of the heart muscle, there is improved accuracy in diagnosing such things as abnormal movement in the heat and the position where the abnormal movement occurs.
62 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus, comprising:
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a displacement image data frame memory for storing, frame by frame, two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a living body; displacement image data sampling means for sampling displacement image data which is obtained by comparing two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a newest frame with the two-dimensional ultrasound image data of any one of the previous frames stored in the displacement image data frame memory, said displacement image data representing displacement in the living body between said compared frames; displacement hysteresis image forming means for forming displacement hysteresis image data which represents changes over the thus-formed plural displacement image data by sequentially combining said plural displacement image data with the lapse of time; and display means for displaying a displacement hysteresis image on the basis of said displacement hysteresis image data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus, comprising:
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means for recording, frame by frame, two-dimensional ultrasound image data obtained by transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves to and from an object to be observed of a living body; means for producing displacement image data on the basis of two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a newest frame and the two-dimensional ultrasound image data of any one of the previous frames stored in said recording means, said displacement image data representing the displacement of the object between said newest frame and said previous one frame; means for producing composite image data which represents the amount of the movement of the object to be observed for a certain period, by sequentially combining the thus-obtained plural displacement image data for the certain time period, said composite image data being visible as a single image; and means for displaying said composite imaged data.
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16. A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus, comprising:
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means for recording, frame by frame, plural two-dimensional ultrasound image data of different stages of movement of an object to be observed of a living body; means for producing composite ultrasound image data which can represent as a single image the movement of the object with a lapse of time over a certain period, said composite ultrasound image data being formed by using said plural ultrasound image data recorded in said recording means and two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a newest frame; and means for displaying the thus-produced composite ultrasound image data.
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17. A method of observing an object of a living body with ultrasound waves, comprising the steps of:
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transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves to and from the object of the living body to be observed; recording, frame by frame, two-dimensional ultrasound image data obtained from the received ultrasound waves into a frame memory; producing displacement image data by comparing two-dimensional ultrasound image data of a newest frame with the two-dimensional ultrasound image data of any one of the previous frames stored in said frame memory, thus forming displacement image data constituting a displacement image which represents the displacement amount of the object between these frames; producing displacement hysteresis image data which represents changes of the object between said plural displacement images by sequentially combining said plural displacement image data with the lapse of time; and displaying thus-formed displacement hysteresis image data on a monitor for the purpose of observation. - View Dependent Claims (18)
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19. A method of diagnosing a heart of a patient with ultrasound waves, comprising the steps of:
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producing plurality of B-mode image data of the heart of the patient to be diagnosed, and storing these image data into a frame memory; producing plural displacement image data which represents the displacement of a cardiac muscle of the heart by using B-mode image data of a newest frame and any one of the previous B-mode image data stored in the frame memory; combining thus-obtained plural displacement image data into one image data to form a composite image which represents the movement of the cardiac muscle with a lapse of time for a certain interval, in which a portion of the heart having a small movement is indicated by a small width, and then displaying said composite image as a single image; and inspecting the condition of the heart of the patient on the basis of said displayed composite image.
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20. A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus, comprising:
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means for obtaining B-mode image data by transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves to and from an object of a living body to be observed; means for producing composite image data which represents the sequential displacement of the object with a lapse of time for a certain period, said composite image data being obtained by sequentially combining thus-obtained plural B-mode image data with the lapse of time for the certain period; and means for displaying thus-formed composite image data as a composite image which is displayed in a single image.
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21. A diagnostic ultrasound apparatus comprising:
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means for obtaining B-mode image data by transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves to and from an object of a living body to be observed; means for producing composite image data which represents the displacement of the object for a certain period, said composite image data being obtained by sequentially combining thus-obtained plural B-mode image data with the lapse of time for the certain period; means for displaying thus-formed composite image data as a composite image; and means for thresholding said B-mode image data into binary-coded image data. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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Specification