JP2007044074A - Ultrasonic diagnostic device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ultrasonic diagnostic device capable of detecting the rotation position of an ultrasonic vibrator on a flexible shaft distal end side, improving the rotation accuracy of the ultrasonic vibrator and obtaining fine and stable radial images. <P>SOLUTION: The ultrasonic diagnostic device comprises: an ultrasonic probe which can be inserted to a channel 22 for treating implement insertion of an endoscope, is provided with the ultrasonic vibrator 32a for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves to/from the body cavity on the distal end part of a flexible shaft 34, and radially scans the inside of the body cavity by transmitting the rotary force of a motor through the flexible shaft 34; an encoder pattern 41a formed on the distal end side of the flexible shaft 34 for indicating the rotation position of the distal end side of the flexible shaft 34; and an encoder sensor 42 provided on the distal end part 15 of the endoscope for detecting the encoder pattern 41a of the ultrasonic probe inserted to the channel 22 for the treating implement insertion. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus including an ultrasonic probe for mechanically rotating an ultrasonic transducer to scan inside a body cavity.

  In recent years, in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, for example, a small-diameter ultrasonic probe introduced into a body cavity together with an endoscope has been used. Such an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus has an advantage that an ultrasonic tomographic image in a body cavity can be obtained with minimal invasiveness, and observation and diagnosis in the body cavity can be performed.

  Such an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus includes an ultrasonic probe and an ultrasonic observation apparatus as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-340343. An ultrasonic probe used in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus described in this publication is inserted into a treatment tool insertion channel of an endoscope by an operator, and is inserted into a body cavity with a probe tip protruding from the channel opening. .

  The ultrasonic probe repeatedly transmits ultrasonic pulses from a built-in ultrasonic transducer to a biological tissue based on the control of an ultrasonic observation apparatus operated by an operator, and transmits ultrasonic pulses reflected from the biological tissue. An ultrasonic echo signal is obtained by receiving the wave. At the same time, in the ultrasonic probe, the rotational force of the motor disposed outside the body is transmitted to the ultrasonic transducer at the distal end of the shaft by a flexible shaft, and the body cavity can be scanned radially.

The ultrasonic observation apparatus performs signal processing on an ultrasonic echo signal obtained by the ultrasonic probe based on a rotational position signal from a rotary encoder provided on the motor side, and performs a radial ultrasonic tomographic image (radial image). Is generated.
JP 2001-340343 A

  The ultrasonic probe used in the conventional ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is adapted to transmit the rotational force of a motor disposed outside the body to the ultrasonic vibrator provided on the shaft tip side by the flexible shaft. The rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer is detected by the rotary encoder on the proximal side of the flexible shaft.

  For this reason, the conventional ultrasonic probe has a rotational deviation between the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer and the rotational position detected by the rotary encoder, and the rotational accuracy of the ultrasonic transducer is lowered. Therefore, in the conventional ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, it is possible to construct a fine and stable ultrasonic tomographic image (radial image) by processing the ultrasonic echo signal obtained from the ultrasonic probe with an ultrasonic observation apparatus. It has become difficult.

  On the other hand, in order to solve the above problem, even if the ultrasonic probe used in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is configured such that a rotary encoder is arranged at the tip of the flexible shaft, the tip of the probe becomes thicker accordingly. Therefore, it becomes difficult to insert the probe into the treatment instrument insertion channel of the endoscope.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and detects the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer at the distal end side of the flexible shaft to improve the rotational accuracy of the ultrasonic transducer and obtain a fine and stable radial image. An object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus capable of performing the above.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention includes an ultrasonic transducer that can be inserted into a treatment instrument insertion channel of an endoscope and that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves into a body cavity. An ultrasonic probe that transmits the rotational force of the motor through the flexible shaft and radially scans the inside of the body cavity, and is formed on the distal end side of the flexible shaft. And a rotational position detector that detects the encoder pattern of the ultrasonic probe that is provided at the distal end portion of the endoscope and is inserted into the treatment instrument insertion channel of the endoscope. It is characterized by that.

  The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention has an effect that the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer is detected at the distal end side of the flexible shaft to improve the rotational accuracy of the ultrasonic transducer, and a fine and stable radial image can be obtained. Have.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  1 to 6 relate to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the distal end side of the endoscope and ultrasonic probe of FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing the configuration of the probe tip of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. 2, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the endoscope tip of FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is the endoscope tip of FIG. FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a state where the ultrasonic probe is inserted through the treatment instrument insertion channel, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the treatment instrument insertion channel of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 includes an ultrasonic probe 2 having an ultrasonic transducer 32a at a probe tip 2a, an endoscope 3 through which the ultrasonic probe 2 can be inserted, and the endoscope. 3, a light source device 10 that supplies illumination light, a video processor 4 that obtains an endoscopic image by performing signal processing on an imaging device 24 provided in the endoscope 3, and an ultrasonic vibration of the ultrasonic probe 2. An ultrasonic observation device 5 that controls the child 32a to obtain an ultrasonic tomographic image (hereinafter referred to as a radial image), and a monitor that displays an endoscopic image from the video processor 4 or a radial image from the ultrasonic observation device 5 6. The video processor 4, the light source device 10, the ultrasonic observation device 5 and the monitor 6 are placed on a cart 7.

  The ultrasonic observation device 5 is connected to a probe connector 33 provided at the base end of the ultrasonic probe 2 so as to be detachable and rotated to rotate the transducer part 32 of the ultrasonic probe 2 in the radial direction. A motor unit 5a for generating a force, and controlling and driving the motor unit 5a and controlling the ultrasonic transducer 32a via the motor unit 5a, and an ultrasonic echo signal obtained by the ultrasonic transducer 32a And an ultrasonic observation apparatus main body (hereinafter referred to as observation apparatus main body) 5b that constructs a radial image by signal processing.

  The motor unit 5 a is fixed to a support arm 7 a provided on the cart 7. The motor unit 5a is electrically connected by the observation apparatus body 5b and the connection cable 8. The observation apparatus body 5b is connected on the back side by the video processor 4 and a connection cable 9 (not shown), and from an encoder sensor 42 which is a rotational position detection unit (described later) provided in the endoscope 3. The rotation position signal can be acquired via the video processor 4.

First, the endoscope 3 will be described.
The endoscope 3 includes an elongated and flexible insertion portion 11 and an operation portion 12 that is connected to the proximal end side of the insertion portion 11 and also serves as a gripping portion 12a. The endoscope 3 extends a universal cord 13 from the side of the operation unit 12. The connector portion 14 a provided at the end of the universal cord 13 is connected to the light source device 10, and the connector portion 14 b is connected to the video processor 4.

  The insertion portion 11 of the endoscope 3 includes a rigid endoscope distal end portion 15, a bendable bending portion 16, and a long and flexible flexible tube portion 17. ing. The bending portion 16 is provided on the proximal end side of the endoscope distal end portion 15. The flexible tube portion 17 is provided on the proximal end side of the bending portion 16.

  The operation portion 12 of the endoscope 3 has a grip portion 12a on the proximal end side. On the upper side of the operation unit 12, a video switch 18a for remotely operating the video processor 4 is disposed. The operation unit 12 is provided with an air / water supply switch 18b for operating the air / water supply operation and a suction switch 18c for operating the suction operation. The operation unit 12 is provided with a bending operation knob 19. The operator can perform the bending operation of the bending portion 16 by holding the holding portion 12 a and operating the bending operation knob 19.

In addition, the operation unit 12 is provided with a treatment instrument insertion port 21 for inserting a treatment instrument such as a biopsy forceps near the front end of the grasping part 12a. The treatment instrument insertion port 21 communicates with a treatment instrument insertion channel 22 inside thereof.
The surgeon inserts a treatment tool (not shown) such as forceps into the treatment tool insertion port 21, thereby performing treatment from the channel opening 22 a formed in the endoscope distal end portion 15 via the internal treatment tool insertion channel 22. A biopsy or the like can be performed by protruding the distal end side of the device.

  In the present embodiment, the ultrasonic probe 2 is inserted into the treatment instrument insertion channel 22 so that the probe tip 2a protrudes from the channel opening 22a by a predetermined distance and is inserted into the body cavity.

  In the endoscope 3, a light guide (not shown) is inserted through the universal cord 13, the operation unit 12, and the insertion unit 11. The endoscope 3 is supplied with illumination light from the light source device 10 by the light guide. The illumination light supplied from the light guide is guided to the endoscope distal end portion 15 via the universal cord 13, the operation unit 12, and the insertion unit 11, and the illumination optical system 23 disposed at the endoscope distal end portion 15 is guided through the illumination optical system 23. Illuminate the subject such as the affected area.

The reflected light of the illuminated subject is taken in as a subject image from an objective optical system 24a constituting an imaging device 24 arranged adjacent to the illumination optical system 23. The captured subject image is picked up by the image pickup unit 24b, subjected to photoelectric conversion, and converted into an image pickup signal. The imaging signal is transmitted through a signal cable 24c (see FIG. 4) extending from the imaging unit 24b, and is output to the video processor 4 through the operation unit 12 and the connector unit 14b of the universal cord 13. .
The video processor 4 performs signal processing on the imaging signal from the imaging unit 24 b of the endoscope 3 to generate a standard video signal, and displays an endoscopic image on the monitor 6.

Next, the ultrasonic probe 2 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3, the distal end portion 2 a of the ultrasonic probe 2 is disposed at an elongated sheath 31 formed of a flexible resin member such as polyethylene or fluororesin as an outer peripheral member, and the distal end portion in the sheath 31. The ultrasonic transducer 32a is mainly composed of the transducer unit 32 that holds the ultrasonic transducer 32a by the transducer holding unit 32b. The probe tip 2a of the sheath 31 is sealed with a sealing member (not shown).

  A flexible shaft 34 to which the vibrator holding portion 32b is fixed is inserted into the sheath 31. The flexible shaft 34 is formed by a hollow contact coil spring composed of one layer or a plurality of layers, and a signal cable (not shown) extending from the ultrasonic transducer 32a is inserted into the hollow space. Yes. The sheath 31 is filled with an ultrasonic transmission medium 35 such as water or liquid paraffin, which is a medium having good ultrasonic signal transmission.

  The ultrasonic probe 2 is mechanically and electrically connected to the observation apparatus body 5b by connecting the probe connector portion 33 to the motor unit 5a. That is, the motor unit 5a is connected to the probe connector portion 33 to rotate the transducer portion 32 of the ultrasonic probe 2 in a radial direction that is a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal axis direction. The force is transmitted to the flexible shaft 34 of the ultrasonic probe 2.

  Further, the observation device body 5b is connected to the motor unit 5a, and an ultrasonic drive signal generated by a drive signal generation circuit (not shown) of the observation device body 5b is transmitted to the ultrasonic probe 2 via the motor unit 5a. Applied to the ultrasonic transducer 32a. Thereby, the ultrasonic transducer 32a repeatedly transmits ultrasonic pulses into the living tissue, receives the echoes of the ultrasonic pulses reflected from the living tissue, and converts them into electrical signals (ultrasonic echo signals). To do.

  This electrical signal (ultrasonic echo signal) is input to the observation apparatus body 5b via the motor unit 5a. In the observation apparatus body 5b, an ultrasonic echo signal from the ultrasonic transducer 32a is signal-processed by a video signal processing circuit (not shown) to generate a video signal, and a radial image is displayed on the monitor 6.

At this time, the video signal processing circuit constructs a radial image in accordance with the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer 32a (the transducer unit 32) based on the rotational position signal detected by the encoder sensor 42. Yes.
In this embodiment, an encoder pattern 41 a indicating the rotational position of the flexible shaft 34 at the distal end side is formed on the distal end side of the flexible shaft 34.

  More specifically, an encoder pattern member 41 having an encoder pattern 41a is bonded and fixed to the distal end side of the flexible shaft. The encoder pattern member 41 forms a multipolar magnetized encoder pattern 41 a with a magnetic material such as a permanent magnet disposed in the circumferential direction on the distal end side of the flexible shaft 34.

  When the ultrasonic probe 2 is inserted through the treatment instrument insertion channel 22 of the endoscope 3 and the probe distal end portion 2a protrudes from the channel opening 22a by the operator, the encoder pattern member 41 is an encoder described later. It is arranged at a predetermined position that can be detected by the sensor 42.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, an encoder sensor 42 is disposed at the distal end portion 15 of the endoscope 3 in the vicinity of the treatment instrument insertion channel 22. The encoder sensor 42 is embedded in the tip body 15a, and is configured to detect a multipolar magnetized rotational position of the encoder pattern 41a and output an encoder signal that is a rotational position signal. The tip body 15a is made of a nonmagnetic material.

  A signal cable 42 a extends from the encoder sensor 42. The other end of the signal cable 42a is inserted through the insertion portion 11, the operation portion 12, and the universal cord 13, and is connected to the connector portion 14b via the connector portion 14a.

  The encoder sensor 42 has the connector portion 14b connected to the video processor 4 and is connected to the video processor 4 via the connection cable 9 to the observation device main body 5b. The encoder signal is input to the video signal processing circuit of the observation apparatus body 5b. As a result, the video signal processing circuit is based on the encoder signal, which is a rotational position signal substantially coincident with the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer 32a (transducer portion 32), and the ultrasonic transducer 32a (vibrator portion 32). The radial image can be constructed in accordance with the rotation position.

  In the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 configured as described above, as described with reference to FIG. 1, the endoscope 3 is connected to the light source device 10 and the video processor 4, and the ultrasonic probe 2 is connected to the motor unit 5a. The observation apparatus body 5b is connected to the video processor 4 via the connection cable 9.

  First, the operator inserts the insertion portion 11 of the endoscope 3 into the body cavity of the patient as the subject, and guides the endoscope distal end portion 15 of the insertion portion 11 to the target site. At this time, the endoscope 3 is supplied with illumination light from the light source device 10 and illuminates the body cavity through the illumination optical system 23. The endoscope 3 captures reflected light of the illuminated part as a subject image by the objective optical system 24 a and images it by the imaging unit 24 b, and outputs an imaging signal to the video processor 4. The video processor 4 outputs a video signal obtained by performing signal processing on the imaging signal to the monitor 6 and displays an endoscopic image on the monitor 6.

The operator introduces the endoscope distal end portion 15 of the insertion portion 11 into a target site, and then inserts the ultrasonic probe 2 into the treatment instrument insertion port 21 of the endoscope 3 to insert the treatment instrument insertion channel. The probe tip 2a is projected from the channel opening 22a.
The probe tip 2a protrudes a distance located within the imaging range of the imaging unit 24b, for example, 30-40 mm.

  At this time, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the encoder pattern member 41 provided on the ultrasonic probe 2 is positioned facing the encoder sensor 42. As a result, the encoder sensor 42 can detect the multi-pole magnetized encoder pattern 41 a of the encoder pattern member 41.

  The surgeon projects the ultrasonic probe 2 by a predetermined distance, and then operates the observation apparatus body 5b to start ultrasonic diagnosis. The observation apparatus body 5b controls the drive signal generation circuit to generate an ultrasonic drive signal, and applies the generated ultrasonic drive signal to the ultrasonic transducer 32a via the motor unit 5a. At the same time, the observation apparatus body 5b controls the motor unit 5a to rotate the flexible shaft 34 of the ultrasonic probe 2 and rotate the ultrasonic transducer 32a (the transducer unit 32). Thereby, the ultrasonic probe 2 performs a radial scan in the body cavity.

At this time, the encoder sensor 42 detects the rotational position of the encoder pattern 41a magnetized by the multi-polarization of the encoder pattern member 41, and the encoder signal which is the detected rotational position signal is detected via the video processor 4 through the video processor 4. Output to the apparatus main body 5b.
The ultrasonic transducer 32a repeatedly transmits an ultrasonic pulse into the living tissue, receives an echo of the ultrasonic pulse reflected from the living tissue, converts it into an electrical signal (ultrasonic echo signal), and It outputs to the said observation apparatus main body 5b via the motor unit 5a.

  Based on the encoder signal from the encoder sensor 42, the observation device body 5 b generates a video signal by processing the ultrasonic echo signal from the ultrasonic transducer 32 a by the video signal processing circuit, and sends it to the monitor 6. Display a radial image. Thereby, a radial image is displayed on the display screen of the monitor 6 together with an endoscopic image of a desired target part.

As a result, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment can obtain an ultrasonic diagnostic image based on the rotational position signal substantially coincident with the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer 32a (the transducer unit 32).
Therefore, the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 of the present embodiment can detect the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer at the distal end side of the flexible shaft, improve the rotational accuracy of the ultrasonic transducer, and obtain a fine and stable radial image. it can.

  In the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the encoder pattern 42a is configured so that the encoder pattern 41a of the encoder pattern member 41 can be magnetically detected by the encoder sensor 42. The encoder sensor 42 may be configured to optically detect the encoder pattern 41a. In this case, for example, the sheath 31 of the ultrasonic probe 2 between the encoder pattern 41a and the encoder sensor 42, the exterior member or the distal end portion body of the treatment instrument insertion channel 22 of the endoscope distal end portion 15 15a is formed of a transparent member.

  By the way, in the outer sheath of the ultrasonic probe, the tip of the probe is filled with an ultrasonic transmission medium. For this reason, the probe tip in the sheath is sealed to prevent leakage and evaporation of the ultrasonic transmission medium.

The ultrasonic probe needs to be sterilized after being used for ultrasonic diagnosis.
The operator performs sterilization by putting the ultrasonic probe into a sterilization apparatus such as EOG (ethylene oxide gas) for sterilization. First, the sterilizer is evacuated by evacuating the inside of the apparatus, and then sterilized by filling with a sterilizing gas and pressurizing.

  The ultrasonic probe undergoes a rapid volume change with respect to the bubbles present in the sheath due to the pressure increase / decrease of the sterilization apparatus, and the sealed ultrasonic transmission medium may flow out to the outside. For this reason, when sterilizing, an ultrasonic probe capable of preventing the ultrasonic transmission medium from flowing out due to a change in volume of bubbles present in the sheath is desired.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing the distal end portion of the ultrasonic probe.
As shown in FIG. 7, the ultrasonic probe 100 includes an ultrasonic transmission medium 103 that is not shown on the probe distal end portion 100a in the sheath 102 in which the ultrasonic transducer 101a (the transducer unit 101) is disposed. It is in the state sealed by.

  The ultrasonic probe 100 is provided with a distal elastic membrane portion 104 formed of an elastic membrane on the sheath distal surface 102a. The distal elastic membrane portion 104 is configured to be inflatable by flowing the ultrasonic transmission medium 103 through a flow passage 102b formed in the sheath distal surface 102a.

As a result, the ultrasonic probe 100 is subjected to pressure increase / decrease on the bubbles in the sheath 102, and even if there is a change in volume of the bubbles, the ultrasonic transmission medium 103 flows into the tip elastic membrane portion 104 and expands. The pressure inside the sheath 102 can be adjusted.
Therefore, the ultrasonic probe 100 can prevent the ultrasonic transmission medium 103 from flowing out even if it is put into a sterilization apparatus and sterilized.
Note that embodiments configured by partially combining the above-described embodiments also belong to the present invention.

[Appendix]
According to the embodiment of the present invention described in detail above, the following configuration can be obtained.

(Additional item 1)
An ultrasonic transducer that can be inserted into a treatment instrument insertion channel of an endoscope and that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves to and from the body cavity is provided at the distal end of the flexible shaft, and the motor rotates through the flexible shaft. An ultrasonic probe that transmits force and radially scans the body cavity;
An encoder pattern formed on the flexible shaft tip side, and indicating a rotational position of the flexible shaft tip side;
A rotational position detection unit that is provided at a distal end portion of the endoscope and detects the encoder pattern of the ultrasonic probe inserted into the treatment instrument insertion channel of the endoscope;
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

(Appendix 2)
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotational position detection unit is disposed in the vicinity of the treatment instrument insertion channel opening of the endoscope.

(Additional Item 3)
The encoder pattern is formed by multipolar magnetization in the circumferential direction of the flexible shaft tip side,
The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the rotational position detection unit detects a rotational position where the encoder pattern is multipolarized.

  The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of the present invention can detect the rotational position of the ultrasonic transducer at the distal end side of the flexible shaft to improve the rotational accuracy of the ultrasonic transducer and obtain a fine and stable radial image. It is suitable for acquiring the radial image inside.

1 is an overall configuration diagram illustrating an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is the front end side enlarged view of the endoscope and ultrasonic probe of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the probe front-end | tip part of the ultrasonic probe of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the endoscope front-end | tip part of FIG. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which an ultrasonic probe is inserted through a treatment instrument insertion channel at the distal end portion of the endoscope in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the treatment instrument insertion channel of FIG. 5. It is explanatory drawing which shows the front-end | tip part of an ultrasonic probe.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus 2 Ultrasonic probe 2a Probe front-end | tip part 3 Endoscope 4 Video processor 5 Ultrasonic observation apparatus 5a Motor unit 5b Observation apparatus main body 6 Monitor 11 Insertion part 15 Endoscope front-end | tip part 15a Front-end | tip part main body 22 Treatment tool Insertion channel 22 Channel opening 31 Sheath 32 Transducer unit 32a Ultrasonic transducer 34 Flexible shaft 35 Ultrasonic transmission medium 41 Encoder pattern member 41a Encoder pattern 42 Encoder sensor

Claims (2)

An ultrasonic transducer that can be inserted into a treatment instrument insertion channel of an endoscope and that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves to and from the body cavity is provided at the distal end of the flexible shaft, and the motor rotates through the flexible shaft. An ultrasonic probe that transmits force and radially scans the body cavity;
An encoder pattern formed on the flexible shaft tip side, and indicating a rotational position of the flexible shaft tip side;
A rotational position detection unit that is provided at a distal end portion of the endoscope and detects the encoder pattern of the ultrasonic probe inserted into the treatment instrument insertion channel of the endoscope;
An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising: The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotational position detection unit is disposed in the vicinity of the treatment instrument insertion channel opening of the endoscope.

Images