Abstract: An object information acquiring apparatus is provided that includes: a plurality of receiving elements which receive an acoustic wave that propagates from an object, and which convert the acoustic wave to a reception signal; an adaptive beamformer that performs adaptive beamforming of adjusting reception directionality in accordance with the reception signal in use of the reception signal; a delay-and-sum beamformer that performs delay-and-sum beamforming having preset directionality in use of the reception signal; an amplitude modulator that uses one output signal of one of the adaptive beamformer and the delay-and-sum beamformer, to perform amplitude modulation on an output signal of the other one of the beamformers; and a generator that, on the basis of a signal outputted by the amplitude modulator, generates image data on the interior of the object.

Abstract: A subject information acquisition apparatus includes an electromechanical conversion element which receives an elastic wave generated by irradiating with an electromagnetic wave an object in a subject and converts the received elastic wave into an electric signal; a moving device moves the electromechanical conversion element; a signal processing device calculates an image value based on the electric signal. The moving device moves the electromechanical conversion element from a first position to a second position, the electromechanical conversion element receives the elastic wave at the first position and converts the received elastic wave into a first electric signal, and receives the elastic wave at the second position and converts the received elastic wave into a second electric signal; when the electromechanical conversion element is situated at the second position, the signal processing device calculates a first image value at a specified position inside the subject based on the first electric signal.

Abstract: Provided is an object information acquiring apparatus including a probe having a plurality of receiving elements that are arrayed along a first direction and receive an acoustic wave generated from an object irradiated with light from a light source and converting the acoustic wave into an electrical signal, a scanner that moves the probe in the first direction, a controller, and a generator that generates image data of inside of the object based on the electrical signal. The controller controls the apparatus such that light is emitted each time the probe is moved by a distance that is either (n+1/k) times or (n?1/k) times an array pitch between the receiving elements, where n is an integer of 1 or more and k is an integer of 2 or more.

Abstract: The present invention employs an object information acquiring apparatus comprising a plurality of receiving elements which receive acoustic waves emitted from an object and convert the acoustic waves into received signals, a delay unit which matches phases of the received signals, a complex converter which converts the received signals into complex signals, a complex covariance matrix calculator which periodically obtains a complex covariance matrix by using a complex signal group configured from a plurality of phase-matched complex signals, an eliminator which eliminates the number of bits of input data configured from at least either the complex signal group or matrix elements, and an electric power calculator which calculates a power of target positions, wherein the eliminator eliminates the number of bits by performing common level conversion processing on all input data relating to one complex covariance matrix.

Abstract: A signal processing circuit respectively transforms complex covariance matrices, which are consecutively inputted at a predetermined period, into upper triangular matrices. The signal processing circuit includes: a storage unit that stores at least N-number of complex covariance matrices; a reading unit that reads matrix elements of the stored complex covariance matrices; a CORDIC calculation circuit that implements a CORDIC algorithm by a pipelined circuit system; and a QR decomposition unit that controls the reading unit and the CORDIC calculation circuit unit to calculate an upper triangular matrix by iteratively using the CORDIC calculation circuit unit on a single complex covariance matrix and that calculates in parallel a transformation of N-number of complex covariance matrices into upper triangular matrices in an interleaved format.

Abstract: There is provided a received data processing apparatus of photoacoustic tomography including a minimum constitution unit data composition unit that sequentially reads receiving digital signals from first storage units and composes minimum constitution unit data of the acoustic wave of the minimum constitution units by performing a delay-and-sum processing. A second storage unit stores the minimum constitution unit data of the entire region of the specimen, and an image construction unit constructs an image of the specimen based on the minimum constitution unit data stored in the second storage unit. A control unit sequentially stores the minimum constitution unit data calculated by the minimum constitution unit data composition unit in the second storage unit and reads the stored minimum constitution unit data of the entire region of the specimen to transmit the minimum constitution unit data to the image construction unit.

Abstract: There is used an object information acquiring apparatus including a probe for electrically scanning an object in first direction and mechanically scanning in second direction intersecting with the first direction, a first delay-and-sum unit for operating a delay-and-sum on a received signal, a memory for storing a first delay-and-sum signal for each plane in the second direction, a selecting unit for selecting signals corresponding to M sectional planes from among the stored signals, a second delay-and-sum unit for operating a delay-and-sum on the selected signals in the second direction, and a unit for acquiring image in the object from the second delay-and-sum signal, the second delay-and-sum unit switching, according to the mechanical scanning, a first case in which M signals are fixed and a delay pattern is varied and a second case in which a set of the M signals is varied and the delay pattern is fixed.

Abstract: There is provided a received data processing apparatus of photoacoustic tomography including a minimum constitution unit data composition unit that sequentially reads receiving digital signals from first storage units and composes minimum constitution unit data of the acoustic wave of the minimum constitution units by performing a delay-and-sum processing. A second storage unit stores the minimum constitution unit data of the entire region of the specimen, and an image construction unit constructs an image of the specimen based on the minimum constitution unit data stored in the second storage unit. A control unit sequentially stores the minimum constitution unit data calculated by the minimum constitution unit data composition unit in the second storage unit and reads the stored minimum constitution unit data of the entire region of the specimen to transmit the minimum constitution unit data to the image construction unit.

Abstract: Generally, as the time for mechanical scanning of an acoustic wave receiver increases, the load on an examinee also increases. The present invention provides the calculation of a target speed at which an acoustic wave receiver is caused to move for the measurement of an acoustic wave, using data of an emission period of pulsed light and data of an interval between target measurement positions in a subject being examined. In addition, the acoustic wave receiver is caused to move so as to reach an initial target measurement position at the target speed at a time when initial pulsed light for measuring an acoustic wave is emitted. After the target speed has been reached, the acoustic wave receiver is caused to move at a uniform speed which is equal to the target speed.

Abstract: The present invention enables ultrasonic propagation time values after correction of refraction to be calculated in parallel for each receive channel, by using a recurrence relation in the depth direction. Moreover, accumulation of errors can be avoided by using an accurate propagation time value obtained in advance at a reference depth to correct the propagation time value each time the reference depth is reached. For this error correction, the recurrence relation to calculate the propagation time value can be an approximate expression. For example, the propagation time value can be calculated using the inclination of reference propagation time values between reference depths. In an actual circuit, received signals are sequentially stored in a memory, and a receive beam is formed by calculating an address position corresponding to the propagation time value of the ultrasonic wave, and adding the received signals stored in the calculated addresses.

Abstract: Provided is a measuring apparatus, including: a moving mechanism for moving a probe in an elevation direction; a first delay and sum circuit for performing delay and sum of reception signals at individual positions along the elevation direction to output a first add signal; a signal extraction circuit for letting an output of the first delay and sum circuit to pass through delay circuits to output in parallel first add signals obtained at different positions; a second delay and sum circuit for performing delay and sum of the first add signals output from the signal extraction circuit to output a second add signal; and an image processing circuit for generating image data by using the second add signal. Accordingly, image resolution in the elevation direction may be improved with a simple structure without deteriorating an image obtaining speed in the measuring apparatus for obtaining an ultrasonic image.

Abstract: An object information acquiring apparatus including: a plurality of receiving elements receiving an acoustic wave propagating from an object and converting the acoustic wave into an electrical signal; a delaying unit aligning phases of electrical signals of M (a positive integer) channels outputted from the plurality of receiving elements; an eliminator reducing the electrical signals of the M channels to electrical signals of L channels (L<M); a calculator calculating Nb output signals corresponding to low-frequency components of a complex signal based on the electrical signals outputted from the eliminator; and a signal processor performing beam formation according to adaptive signal processing using output signals outputted from the calculator, where positive integers M, L, and Nb satisfy M>L>=2(Nb?1).

Abstract: An acoustic wave imaging apparatus has a phase aligning unit, which aligns phases of received signals obtained by a plurality of acoustic wave receiving elements. A complex signal acquiring unit generates complex signals out of the phase aligned received signals, and a correlation matrix calculating unit calculates a correlation matrix of the complex signals. An electric power calculating unit calculates constrained minimum power of the received signals, using the correlation matrix and a predetermined constraint vector. The correlation matrix calculating unit calculates the correlation matrix at a predetermined cycle, and sequentially outputs the calculated correlation matrix to the electric power calculating unit at a predetermined cycle, and the electric power calculating unit calculates a plurality of constrained minimum powers in parallel using the calculated correlation matrices, the plurality of constrained minimum powers corresponding to the correlation matrices respectively.

Abstract: A bioinformation acquisition apparatus to input a signal having uniform sensitivity and a high SN ratio at a high speed is provided. It includes a moving device moving an element group into the arrangement direction of the elements, and moves the element group situated at a first position at first time point to be situated at a second position at second time point. The element group receives an elastic wave emitted from a test object at the first time point at the first position, and the elastic wave from the test object at the second time point at the second position. The electric signal of a specified position of a test body from a first element of the elastic waves received at the first time point and the electric signal of the specified position from a second element received at the second time point are added to each other.

Abstract: Provided is an object information acquiring apparatus including a probe having a plurality of receiving elements that are arrayed along a first direction and receive an acoustic wave generated from an object irradiated with light from a light source and converting the acoustic wave into an electrical signal, a scanner that moves the probe in the first direction, a controller, and a generator that generates image data of inside of the object based on the electrical signal. The controller controls the apparatus such that light is emitted each time the probe is moved by a distance that is either (n+1/k) times or (n?1/k) times an array pitch between the receiving elements, where n is an integer of 1 or more and k is an integer of 2 or more.

Abstract: An object information acquiring apparatus including: a plurality of receiving elements receiving an acoustic wave propagating from an object and converting the acoustic wave into an electrical signal; a delaying unit aligning phases of electrical signals of M number of channels outputted from the plurality of receiving elements; an eliminator reducing the electrical signals of M number of channels to electrical signals of L number of channels; a calculator calculating Nb number of output signals corresponding to low-frequency components of a complex signal based on the electrical signals outputted from the eliminator; and a signal processor performing beam formation according to adaptive signal processing using output signals outputted from the calculator, wherein positive integers M, L, and Nb satisfy M>L>=2(Nb?1).

Abstract: An exposure apparatus which draws a pattern on a substrate with a charged particle beam is disclosed. The exposure apparatus includes a blanker which controls, in accordance with a dose pattern including a plurality of pulses, whether to allow a charged particle beam to strike the substrate, and a controller which executes calibration for correcting the dose pattern to obtain a pattern having the target line width.

Abstract: An object information acquiring apparatus is provided that includes: a plurality of receiving elements which receive an acoustic wave that propagates from an object, and which convert the acoustic wave to a reception signal; an adaptive beamformer that performs adaptive beamforming of adjusting reception directionality in accordance with the reception signal in use of the reception signal; a delay-and-sum beamformer that performs delay-and-sum beamforming having preset directionality in use of the reception signal; an amplitude modulator that uses one output signal of one of the adaptive beamformer and the delay-and-sum beamformer, to perform amplitude modulation on an output signal of the other one of the beamformers; and a generator that, on the basis of a signal outputted by the amplitude modulator, generates image data on the interior of the object.

Abstract: A signal processing circuit respectively transforms complex covariance matrices, which are consecutively inputted at a predetermined period, into upper triangular matrices. The signal processing circuit includes: a storage unit that stores at least N-number of complex covariance matrices; a reading unit that reads matrix elements of the stored complex covariance matrices; a CORDIC calculation circuit that implements a CORDIC algorithm by a pipelined circuit system; and a QR decomposition unit that controls the reading unit and the CORDIC calculation circuit unit to calculate an upper triangular matrix by iteratively using the CORDIC calculation circuit unit on a single complex covariance matrix and that calculates in parallel a transformation of N-number of complex covariance matrices into upper triangular matrices in an interleaved format.

Abstract: The present invention employs an object information acquiring apparatus comprising a probe including a plurality of conversion elements which receive acoustic waves emitted from an object and convert the acoustic waves into received signals, a delay unit which matches phases of the plurality of received signals output from the plurality of conversion elements, a signal adder which adds the plurality of received signals output from the delay unit, for each group to obtain latter input signals, and an adaptive signal processor which generates internal image data of the object by performing adaptive signal processing on the plurality of latter input signals output from a plurality of the signal adders.