JPH03215250A - Ultrasonic probe and ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To accurately draw two cross/sections crossing each other at a right angle by forming electrodes to the upper and under surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic of an ultrasonic probe having a backing material, piezoelectric ceramic, an acoustic matching layer and an acoustic lens in directions crossing mutually at a right angle and forming a noise shield member at the outside position of the piezoelectric ceramic. CONSTITUTION:An ultrasonic probe 1 is constituted by providing piezoelectric ceramic 3, an acoustic matching layer 4 and an acoustic lens 5 on a backing material 2 in succession. The upper and under surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic 3 are cut into a predetermined number of vibrators mutually crossing at a right angle and electrodes 6, 7 are formed to the upper and under surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic 3 in directions mutually crossing at a right angle corresponding to the vibrators and can be changed over to signal and earth electrodes by a changeover means. A noise shield member 8 is further formed between the acoustic matching layer 4 and the acoustic lens 5 to shield the external unnecessary noise from peripheral machinery. Since the connection state of the signal and earth electrodes can be changed over by the changeover means as mentioned above, the apparatus does not become complicated and two cross sections crossing at a right angle coinciding in a scanning center point can be accurately drawn.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to improvements in an ultrasound probe and an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus using the ultrasound probe.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, two phased array transducers 24 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 are used to depict two orthogonal cross sections.
．． An ultrasonic probe 21 has been proposed in which probes 25 are arranged such that their arrangement directions are orthogonal to each other. However, in the ultrasonic probe 21, the scanning centers of the ultrasonic beams by the two phased array transducers 24, 25 do not match, and two orthogonal cross sections cannot be accurately depicted (see FIG. 8). Furthermore, the size of the ultrasound probe is twice the normal size, making it difficult to obtain a tomographic image of the heart from between the narrow ribs.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) As mentioned above, in the conventional ultrasonic probe, two orthogonal
There are problems such as the inability to accurately visualize the cross section, the problem that the shape of the ultrasound probe becomes large, and in order to accurately depict two orthogonal cross sections, some kind of adjustment means is required. This results in the problem that the configuration becomes complicated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and provides an ultrasonic probe that can accurately visualize two orthogonal cross sections and does not increase in size, as well as an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that does not have a complicated configuration. It is intended for the purpose of providing.

[Configuration of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problem) The configuration of the ultrasonic probe of the present invention includes a backing material, a piezoelectric ceramic provided on the backing material, and an acoustic matching provided on the piezoelectric ceramic. and an acoustic lens provided on the acoustic matching layer, the ultrasonic probe includes electrodes formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic in directions orthogonal to each other, and electrodes formed at positions outside the piezoelectric ceramic. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that it has a backing material, a piezoelectric ceramic provided on the backing material, and a piezoelectric ceramic provided on the piezoelectric ceramic. It has an acoustic matching layer, an acoustic lens provided on the acoustic matching layer, electrodes formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic in directions perpendicular to each other, and electrodes formed at positions outside the piezoelectric ceramic. The present invention is characterized by comprising an ultrasonic probe having a noise shielding member, and a switching means for switching the connection state of the electrodes between a signal electrode and a ground electrode depending on the scanning direction of the ultrasonic probe.

(Function) Since the electrodes were formed in directions perpendicular to each other, 1
An ultrasonic probe can be formed using several phased array transducers, and its shape does not become large. Further, since the connection state between the signal electrode and the ground electrode can be switched by the switching means, two orthogonal cross sections with the same scanning center point can be accurately depicted without complicating the apparatus. Further, the noise shield member shields unnecessary noise.

(Example) An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view for explaining the shape of a vibrator.

As shown in FIG. 1, the ultrasonic probe 1 of the present invention includes a backing material 2, a piezoelectric ceramic 3 formed on the backing material 2, a piezoelectric ceramic 3 formed on the piezoelectric ceramic 3, and a piezoelectric ceramic 3 formed on the piezoelectric ceramic 3. and an acoustic lens 5 provided on the acoustic matching layer 4.

The piezoelectric ceramic 3 has its upper and lower surfaces cut into a predetermined number of mutually orthogonal vibrators, and electrodes 6 (6a, 6b) are cut in the mutually orthogonal directions on the upper and lower surfaces corresponding to the vibrators.
, 6c, 6d) and electrodes 7 (7a, 7b, 7c, 7d) are formed (see Figure 2), and can be switched to both signal electrodes and ground electrodes by a switching means to be described later. .

Further, a noise shield member 8 is formed at a position between the acoustic matching layer 4 and the acoustic lens 5 to shield unnecessary external noise from peripheral devices and the like.

This noise shield member 8 is connected to the ground end of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. Note that 9 in the figure is an exterior case.

Next, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using the ultrasonic probe 1 will be described with reference to the drawings.

The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 10 shown in the figure has the electrodes 6 (6a, 6b, 6C, 6d) in order to match the scanning center point with the ultrasonic probe 1 and switch the operating direction by 90 degrees.
, a switching means 11 for switching the electrodes 7 (7a, 7b, 7c, 7d), and a transmitting/receiving circuit 12 for transmitting ultrasonic pulses to the subject and receiving echo signals reflected from the subject as received signals, A phasing adder 13 for phasing and adding received signals
, a signal processing circuit 14 that processes the phased and summed signals and converts them into a TV signal, etc., and a CR that displays the TV signal, etc.
It is generally composed of a TV monitor 15 such as a T-display, and a system controller 16 is in charge of overall control operations.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the electrodes 6 (6a, 6b, 6
c. 6d), electrode 7 (7a, 7b, 7c, 7
d) is the switch mechanism 11a, 1lb of the switching means 11;
, llc. It is connected to the lid, and the scanning direction switching signal enables switching between the ground electrode and the signal electrode.
The switch mechanisms 11a, 1lb, lie, and lid are as follows:
For example, coaxial cable 17a. 17b, 17c, and 17d, the transmitting/receiving sections 12a, 12b,
12c and 12d.

Next, the operation of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 10 described above will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

First, the operator scans the switch mechanisms 11a, llb. 11c, lid
is located on the S w side in FIG. 4, and the electrode 6 is a signal electrode and the electrode 7 is a ground electrode. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the scanning direction switching signal is at a high level (position 3 in FIG. 5). Next, when scanning in the y1-y2 direction with the center points aligned and the operating direction 90 degrees, the operator transmits a frame signal, and uses the electrode 7 as the signal electrode and the electrode 6 as the ground electrode. The connection state of each electrode is switched, and the signal electrode and the ground electrode are reversed. At this time, the switch mechanism 11a, ll
b, llc, and lid are located on the Sw2 side in FIG. 4, and as shown in FIG. 5, the scanning direction switching signal is located at a low level (position 2 in FIG. 5). Thereafter, the same operation is repeated (position ■■ in Fig. 5). Further, at this time, the noise shield member 8 can shield unnecessary external noise from peripheral equipment etc. during scanning of the ultrasound probe 1, accurately depict two orthogonal cross sections with the same scanning center point, and It is displayed on the monitor 15.

Furthermore, this noise shield member 8 is connected to the electrode 6 on the subject side.
When operated as a signal, it has a function of preventing the drive current from flowing from the acoustic matching layer 4 to the subject through the acoustic lens 5, and has the effect of improving safety. In this way, one electrode is used for signals and grounding (
(pipe lane type), the effect brought about by the noise shielding member is great.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and that various modifications can be made within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

For example, since the noise shielding member 8 exhibits its effect between the probe's body surface contact surface and the electrode 6, it is not limited to the case where it is provided outside the acoustic matching layer 4 as in the above embodiment; It may be provided between the acoustic matching layer 4 and the acoustic matching layer 4. In short, it is sufficient if it is provided at a position outside the piezoelectric ceramic 3.

Further, it is possible to alternately scan each frame by the switching operation, and the switching means can be attached not only to the probe but also to a panel or the probe.

Further, as a scanning method, scanning is performed alternately using the same number of rusks. Alternatively, it is possible to alternately scan with different numbers of rasks to avoid frame loss. For example, when examining the heart, ■. Long sleeve side, wide angle, BD simultaneous display (B mode, Doppler simultaneous display), BDF display (color Doppler display of blood flow is displayed overlapping with B mode) ■. Scanning methods such as short axis plane, narrow angle, and B mode become possible.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an ultrasonic probe that can accurately visualize two orthogonal cross sections and whose shape does not become large, and also provides an ultrasonic diagnostic probe whose configuration does not become complicated. equipment can be provided.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an ultrasonic probe according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view for explaining the shape of a transducer, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram explaining the connection state of the electrodes, FIG. 5 is an operation timing chart of an embodiment of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention. Diagram for explaining the scanning section. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a conventional example, and FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a scanning section according to the conventional example. 1... Ultrasonic probe, 2... Backing material, 3.
... Piezoelectric ceramic, 4 ... Acoustic matching layer, 5 ... Acoustic lens, 6 (6a, 6b, 6c, 6d) ... Electrode, 7 (
7a, 7b. 7c. 7d) - Electrode, 8... Noise shielding member, 10... Ultrasonic diagnostic device, 11... Switching means.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) In an ultrasonic probe having a backing material, a piezoelectric ceramic provided on the backing material, an acoustic matching layer provided on the piezoelectric ceramic, and an acoustic lens provided on the acoustic matching layer. An ultrasonic probe comprising: electrodes formed on upper and lower surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic in directions orthogonal to each other; and a noise shield member formed outside the piezoelectric ceramic. (2) comprising a backing material, a piezoelectric ceramic provided on the backing material, an acoustic matching layer provided on the piezoelectric ceramic, and an acoustic lens provided on the acoustic matching layer; An ultrasonic probe has electrodes formed on upper and lower surfaces of a ceramic in directions orthogonal to each other, and a noise shield member formed outside the piezoelectric ceramic; An ultrasonic diagnostic device comprising a switching means for switching the connection state between a signal electrode and a ground electrode.