Abstract: The present invention realizes a Doppler velocity detecting technique capable of performing velocity detection and analysis with a suppressed error while excellently distinguishing a clutter signal, and provides an ultrasonographic device using the technique.

Abstract: Provided is an ultrasonic imaging apparatus including: a time-gain controller (TGC) that compensates an amplitude fading occurring in the process of propagation inside a living body; a scan converter (SC) that constructs image data; a TIC measurement unit that measures a TIC of each pixel; an evaluation index input unit that inputs an index for evaluating hemodynamics on the basis of a TIC; a mapping parameter estimation unit that estimates a mapping parameter comparable to an evaluation index; a TIC image construction unit that constructs a two-dimensional image on the basis of the mapping parameter; and a pixel detection unit that extracts a region corresponding to a color map from a TIC image, and utilizing a TIC measured with each pixel so as to measure a difference in hemodynamics.

Abstract: A transducer for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves to a diaphragm-based ultrasonic transducer device using silicon as a base material. An electro-acoustic transducer device which can have a first electrode formed on top of, or inside, a substrate and having a thin film provided on top of the substrate. The device can also have a second electrode formed on top of, or inside, the thin film. A void layer can be provided between the first electrode and the second electrode. A charge-storage layer can be provided between the first electrode and the second electrode. A source electrode and a drain electrode can also be provided for measuring a quantity of electricity stored in the charge-storage layer.

Abstract: An echo signal reflected from a microbubble contrast agent is discriminated from an echo signal generated upon reflection of a nonlinearly propagated transmission pulse from the body tissues without degradation of the axial resolution, by performing transmission/reception twice or less which would hardly decrease the imaging speed. By detecting a difference in phase of the second harmonic component based on the fundamental component included in the echo signal, an echo signal generated upon nonlinear reflection from a microbubble contrast agent is discriminated from an echo signal generated upon linear reflection of a nonlinearly propagated transmission pulse from the body tissues. The phase of the second harmonic component is detected through phase sensitive detection in which the square of the fundamental component is used as a reference wave.

Abstract: The present invention aims to stabilize sound-electricity conversion characteristics of a diaphragm-type sound-electricity conversion device as well as to decrease the noise level of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using the sound-electricity conversion device. The sound-electricity conversion device is configured by a capacitor cell including a lower electrode formed on a silicon substrate and an upper electrode over the lower electrode, the lower and upper electrodes sandwiching a cavity. An electrode short-circuit prevention film is formed on the upper electrode on the cavity side. The electrode short-circuit prevention film is formed of a material with an electrical time constant shorter than 1 second and longer than 10 microseconds, such as silicon nitride containing a stoichiometrically excessive amount of silicon.

Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging system is provided that, when a deviation occurs between a predicted tissue moving direction and a displacement searching direction, can decrease an error caused by the deviation and thereby improve the accuracy of an elasticity image. An elastographic image in which a deviation in a displacement direction is corrected is created based on an RF displacement relating to an ultrasonic wave propagation direction that is calculated based on a cross-correlation between RF signals, and an ultrasonic wave propagation direction component map of applied pressure that uses a correction angle map determined based on a vector displacement map obtained by performing block matching between two-dimensional video images. According to this method, an image of an elasticity ratio can be acquired without a decrease in accuracy even if a tissue displacement vector deviates from the orientation of a normal line vector of a wave transmitting surface of an ultrasonic probe.

Abstract: An ultrasonograph capable of generating a transmission beam comprising a main beam having a uniform width over a wide range in an ultrasonic wave propagation direction by one-time transmission of an ultrasonic pulse. A weighted mean value of a plurality of transmission delay time values corresponding to focal lengths of transmission pulse waves having a plurality of focal points which are set in the ultrasonic wave propagation direction is calculated for each of elements constituting a transmission aperture and used as the delay time. The curvature of a transmitted wave front is close to a short focal length in the center portion of the transmit aperture and is close to a long focal length in the peripheral portion. Thus, a transmission beam including a relatively narrow main beam with a uniform width over a wide range in the ultrasonic wave propagation direction can be generated.

Abstract: In a sonodynamic treatment apparatus including: a first ultrasound radiating unit for radiating diagnostic ultrasound; a second ultrasound radiating unit for radiating treatment ultrasound; an echo detection unit for detecting an ultrasound echo; a diagnostic controller for radiating the diagnostic ultrasound with the first ultrasound radiating unit and detecting the ultrasound echo corresponding the diagnostic ultrasound; an echographic controller for processing an echographic image on the basis of the detected ultrasound echo; and a treatment controller for radiating the treatment ultrasound with the second ultrasound radiating unit, radiation of the treatment ultrasound with the second ultrasound radiating unit is controlled to have a predetermined exposure duration and a predetermined pause duration of the treatment ultrasound, and the echographic image is generated on the basis of the ultrasound echo during the pause duration of the treatment ultrasound exposure with the diagnostic image generator.

Abstract: An ultrasonograph is provided which, when a difference occurs between an expected tissue displacement direction and a displacement estimation direction, minimizes errors caused by the difference to improve accuracy of an elasticity image. The ultrasonograph includes: an ultrasound probe to emit an ultrasound in a plurality of mutually crossing directions against a subject; an ultrasound transmit and receive part to control the ultrasound probe to perform a plurality of transmissions and receptions of the ultrasound in each of the plurality of directions; a displacement vector processor to calculate a displacement vector in each of the plurality of directions from a result of the plurality of transmissions and receptions; a strain processor to calculate strain information of the subject based on the displacement vectors; an image data generator to create image data based on the calculated strain information; and a display to display an image based on the image data.

Abstract: Blood-flow image display equipment for displaying a CFM image that is not affected by a motion of a tissue in an object area during capturing of images or is affected in a reduced manner.

Abstract: There is provided an ultrasound image picking-up device that can correct a positional shift from a reference image before therapy even with insufficient clarity of an ultrasound image.

Abstract: A high-quality image pickup is performed even when there is a strong reflector, and image pickup and therapy are performed without reducing overall sound pressure even when there is a site which should not be exposed to a high sound pressure. Data for setting a desired beam is acquired, the position and intensity of a site to be avoided are detected from the data, the position and intensity are converted into a desired beam shape, focus data to form a beam along the desired beam shape is calculated, and the focus data is used to perform image generation or treatment.

Abstract: In an ultrasonic contrast imaging method in which signals specific to a contrast agent are extracted to form an image, imaging is performed with the following three well-balanced properties: frame rate, spatial resolution, and contrast-agent selectivity. A first chirp signal whose frequency increases with time and a second chirp signal obtained by inverting the first chirp signal about the time axis are used, and they are individually transmitted and received. A decoder having decode filters each adapted for a coded sequence, which is obtained when the chirp signal is decomposed into a pulse signal and a coded sequence, is provided. The decode filters are adapted for echo signals received in response to two chirp signals, respectively, and outputs of the two decode filters are input to a subtractor, whereby the difference therebetween is determined. Thus, contrast-agent selectivity is balanced with spatial resolution.

Abstract: Ultrasonic treatment equipment is provided which repeats therapeutic ultrasound exposure while measuring a degree of vessel constriction on a therapeutic ultrasound exposure basis.

Abstract: An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, including a first imaging unit for configuring plural pieces of first-image data based on reception signals received by an ultrasound probe, a velocity vector detector for measuring blood and tissue velocity vectors based on the plural pieces of first-image data inputted from the first imaging unit, a blood-flow image extracting unit for configuring a blood-flow image based on the velocity vectors measured, a histogram unit for calculating number of pixels for each brightness with respect to the blood-flow image configured, a threshold controller for inputting a brightness threshold value, an information processing unit for color-mapping pixels whose brightness are higher than the brightness threshold value, and configuring second-image data by adding the pixels to at least the one piece of first-image data, and a display for displaying the second-image data configured.

Abstract: The present invention makes it possible to provide an ultrasonogram having a preferable spatial resolution and signal/noise ratio. A signal dynamic range is measured to determine a position either for adaptively switching between linear interpolation and sinc function interpolation or for employing a weighted average of interpolated values according to these interpolation methods. In the former case, a depth point for switching between linear interpolation and sinc function interpolation may be previously stored in a depth storage unit 21, and an interpolation method for use may be switched between these two methods at the interpolation method transition depth.

Abstract: The present invention provides an ultrasonic imaging device which narrows the width of annular areas to be established, without increasing the number of channels, thereby enabling enhancement of a focused sound pressure. The controller establishes the annular areas 421 to 42p the number of which is larger than the number of signal lines, along the line intersections between the wave surfaces 51 to 54 of reflective waves and a two-dimensional surface of the probe 1. The controller selects multiple annular areas (0, 0), (0, 1), and (0, 2) with focal depths differing by an integral multiple of the ultrasonic wavelength ?, out of the multiple annular areas being established, and connects the transducer elements positioned within the selected multiple annular areas with an identical signal line. Accordingly, the received signals from the selected multiple annular areas arrive at multiple time points shifted by the time corresponding to the wavelength, and the signals do not cancel one another out.

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.

Abstract: Non-linear processing is performed in which noise reduction (smoothing) is serially performed for original data to reduce high-frequency noise components, the edge enhancement processing is performed for the smoothed image and, after that, noise components are reduced again. Finally, the created image is weighted-combined with the original image.

Abstract: An ultrasonic transducer (100) includes a substrate (1) having a first electrode therein or on a surface thereof and a diaphragm (5) having a second electrode therein or on a surface thereof, with a cavity (4) therebetween. Further, at least one beam (7) is provided on a surface or inside of the diaphragm (5) or the second electrode.