Surgery – Diagnostic testing – Detecting nuclear – electromagnetic – or ultrasonic radiation
Patent
1998-02-02
1999-08-03
Jaworski, Francis J.
Surgery
Diagnostic testing
Detecting nuclear, electromagnetic, or ultrasonic radiation
600443, 128916, A61B 806
Patent
active
059317841
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which can effectively diagnose a specified region of a living body including its moving parts such as blood flows. More particularly, the invention relates to an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which enables simultaneous observation of a B-mode picture in which obtained data is displayed in accordance with echo intensities and a color picture in which information on movements of blood, walls of blood vessels and heart muscle, for instance, is displayed in colors.
DESCRIPTION OF THE BACKGROUND ART
One known example of the prior art is an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which can display a B-mode image representing echo intensities and a color flow mode image depicting directions and velocities of blood flows. This ultrasound diagnostic apparatus was constructed in such a way that it could display only the B-mode image or the color flow mode image of any given area, allowing an operator to specify a desired area in the B-mode image to present the color flow mode image within that area.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
With conventional ultrasound diagnostic apparatuses, no color flow mode image was displayed in an area where B-mode information was displayed, while no B-mode image was displayed in an area where a color flow mode image was displayed. Thus, the conventional apparatuses have been associated with a problem that there was no alternative but to present diagnostic information in only one display mode for any given area, omitting information in the other display mode. One approach to the solution of this problem would be to use a mixed display method in which a B-mode image and a color flow mode image are superimposed. It has however been confirmed that both images are blurred in superimposed presentation according to the mixed display method and become difficult to discriminate.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which can display a superimposed picture of both B-mode and color flow mode images without loosing information of either image.
It is another object of the invention to provide an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which displays a picture by performing a translucent display operation on a B-mode image display signal obtained from B-mode image display signal acquisition means and on a color flow mode image display signal obtained from color now mode image display signal acquisition means.
It is still another object of the invention to provide an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which displays a picture by performing a translucent display operation on a B-mode image display signal obtained from B-mode image display signal acquisition means and on a power Doppler image display signal obtained from power Doppler image display signal acquisition means.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which displays a picture by performing a translucent display operation on a B-mode image display signal and on a signal representative of the variance of blood flows.
A first feature of the invention is that an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus which transmits an ultrasonic pulse signal to a specified region of a living body including its moving parts such as a blood flow and displays a status within that region of the living body based on reflected ultrasonic waves which have been received comprises B-mode image display signal acquisition means for acquiring a B-mode image display signal derived from the scanned region, color flow mode image display signal acquisition means for acquiring a color flow mode image display signal which represents information on movements of blood and other moving parts in colors, translucent display processing means which performs a translucent display operation on the B-mode image display signal fed from the B-mode image display signal acquisition means and the color flow mode image display signal fed from the color flow mode image display signal acquisition means, and display means which displays
REFERENCES:
patent: 4794932 (1989-01-01), Baba
patent: 5105817 (1992-04-01), Uchibori et al.
patent: 5720291 (1998-02-01), Schwartz
Ishihara Shinji
Kajiwara Souichi
Furuno Electric Co. Ltd.
Jaworski Francis J.
LandOfFree
Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-844182