An apparatus for processing ultrasonic images

Abstract

An embodiment of the present application discloses a processing device for ultrasonic images, which is used to improve the accuracy of lesion matching. Among them, the processing method of ultrasonic images may include: obtaining a first position of a probe and a target cross-sectional image of a target tissue scanned based on the first position; obtaining a second position of the probe and a target longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; determining a first lesion in the target cross-sectional image and a third position of the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image; determining a second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image and a fourth position of the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image; determining whether the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with the application date of October 24, 2019, application number 201911019607.3, and invention title "A Method and Device for Processing Ultrasonic Images". Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of ultrasonic technology, and particularly to a device for processing ultrasonic images. Background Art

[0003] Thyroid nodules are a common clinical disease, especially more common in middle-aged women. At the same time, with the deterioration of the ecological environment and people's irregular living and eating habits, the incidence of thyroid diseases in China has increased significantly. Numerous epidemiological studies have shown that the incidence of thyroid nodules is close to 50%, that is, nearly half of the people have thyroid nodules. Among them, about 10% of thyroid nodules are malignant. Therefore, the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid nodules are particularly important.

[0004] Ultrasonic imaging examination has become the preferred option for routine thyroid examinations, nodule diagnosis, and preoperative examinations due to its non-invasive, simple operation, low cost, and repeatable operation characteristics. As the largest endocrine gland in the human body, thyroid ultrasound examinations are prone to missed diagnoses. Therefore, many technologies for improving the detection rate of thyroid nodules have also emerged.

[0005] Thyroid ultrasound examinations usually require scanning multiple cross-sections and matching the thyroid nodules in different scanned cross-sections, which can help doctors identify the same lesion in multiple scanned cross-sections, provide more comprehensive and accurate information for subsequent diagnosis, and improve the detection rate. However, there are not many solutions for how to match the same nodule in different scanned cross-sections after the nodule is detected. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This application provides a method and device for processing ultrasonic images to improve the accuracy of lesion matching.

[0007] In the first aspect of the embodiments of this application, a method for processing ultrasonic images is provided, including: obtaining the first position of a probe and a target cross-sectional image of a target tissue scanned based on the first position; obtaining the second position of the probe and a target longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; determining a first lesion in the target cross-sectional image and a third position of the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image; determining a second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image and a fourth position of the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image; and determining whether the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position.

[0008] In a second aspect of the embodiments of the present application, a method for processing an ultrasonic image is provided, including: obtaining a first position of a probe and a first cross-sectional image of a target tissue scanned based on the first position; obtaining a second position of the probe and a second cross-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; wherein, a first cross-section corresponding to the first cross-sectional image is perpendicular to a second cross-section corresponding to the second cross-sectional image; determining a first lesion in the first cross-sectional image and a third position of the first lesion in the first cross-sectional image; determining a second lesion in the second cross-sectional image and a fourth position of the second lesion in the second cross-sectional image; and determining whether the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position.

[0009] In a third aspect of the embodiments of the present application, an apparatus for processing an ultrasonic image is provided, including a processor and a storage medium, the storage medium stores computer instructions, and by invoking the computer instructions, the processor is configured to perform the following steps: obtaining a first position of a probe and a target cross-sectional image of a target tissue scanned based on the first position; obtaining a second position of the probe and a target longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; determining a first lesion in the target cross-sectional image and a third position of the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image; determining a second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image and a fourth position of the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image; and determining whether the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position.

[0010] In a fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, an apparatus for processing an ultrasonic image is provided, including a processor and a storage medium, the storage medium stores computer instructions, and by invoking the computer instructions, the processor is configured to perform the following steps: obtaining a first position of a probe and a first cross-sectional image of a target tissue scanned based on the first position; obtaining a second position of the probe and a second cross-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; wherein, a first cross-section corresponding to the first cross-sectional image is perpendicular to a second cross-section corresponding to the second cross-sectional image; determining a first lesion in the first cross-sectional image and a third position of the first lesion in the first cross-sectional image; determining a second lesion in the second cross-sectional image and a fourth position of the second lesion in the second cross-sectional image; and determining whether the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position.

[0011] A fifth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which instructions are stored. When the instructions run on a computer, the computer is enabled to execute the imaging method provided in the first aspect or the second aspect above.

[0012] In the embodiments of the present application, the position of the probe in an inertial navigation coordinate system (such as the world coordinate system) can be obtained, and the position of the lesion in the cross-sectional ultrasound image of the target tissue scanned based on the position of the probe can be obtained. Based on the position of the probe and the position of the lesion in the ultrasound image, the position of the lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system can be determined. When it is necessary to determine whether the lesions in different ultrasound images are the same lesion, it can be determined whether they are the same lesion according to the positions of the lesions in the inertial navigation coordinate system. The embodiments of the present application have a low dependence on the clarity of the image, which is beneficial to improving the accuracy of the matching result. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 is a schematic block diagram of the structure of the ultrasound imaging device according to the embodiments of the present application;

[0014] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the method for processing an ultrasound image according to the present application;

[0015] Figure 3 is Figure 2 a schematic diagram of a specific implementation manner of step 201 in the corresponding embodiment;

[0016] Figure 4 is Figure 2 a schematic diagram of a specific implementation manner of step 202 in the corresponding embodiment;

[0017] Figure 5 is Figure 2 a schematic diagram of another specific implementation manner of step 201 in the corresponding embodiment;

[0018] Figure 6 is Figure 2 a schematic diagram of another specific implementation manner of step 202 in the corresponding embodiment;

[0019] Figure 7 is Figure 2 a schematic diagram of a specific implementation manner of step 205 in the corresponding embodiment;

[0020] Figure 8A is a schematic diagram of the scanning process of a thyroid nodule in the transverse scanning mode;

[0021] Figure 8B is a schematic diagram of the scanning process of a thyroid nodule in the longitudinal scanning mode;

[0022] Figure 9It is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the ultrasonic image processing device of the present application. Detailed implementation manners

[0023] The embodiments of the present application provide a method and a device for processing ultrasonic images, which are used to reduce the dependence of nodule matching on the clarity of ultrasonic images.

[0024] Terms such as "first", "second", "third", "fourth", etc. (if any) in the description, claims and the above-mentioned drawings of the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and do not necessarily have to be used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data used can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances so that the embodiments described herein can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described herein. In addition, the terms "comprising" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product or device comprising a series of steps or units does not necessarily have to be limited to those steps or units clearly listed, but may include other steps or units not clearly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

[0025] Figure 1 It is a schematic block diagram of the ultrasonic imaging device 10 in the embodiments of the present application. The ultrasonic imaging device 10 may include a probe 100, a transmitting circuit 101, a transmit / receive selection switch 102, a receiving circuit 103, a beam synthesis circuit 104, a processor 105, a display 106, and a memory 107. The transmitting circuit 101 can excite the probe 100 to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target area. The receiving circuit 103 can receive the ultrasonic echoes returned from the target area through the probe 100, so as to obtain ultrasonic echo signals / data. After the ultrasonic echo signals / data are subjected to beam synthesis processing by the beam synthesis circuit 104, they are sent to the processor 105. The processor 105 processes the ultrasonic echo signals / data to obtain an ultrasonic image of the target object or an ultrasonic image of the interventional object. The ultrasonic image obtained by the processor 105 can be stored in the memory 107. These ultrasonic images can be displayed on the display 106.

[0026] In one embodiment of the present application, the display 106 of the aforementioned ultrasonic imaging device 10 can be a touch display screen, a liquid crystal display screen, etc., or can also be an independent display device such as a liquid crystal display or a television outside the ultrasonic imaging device 10, or can also be a display screen on an electronic device such as a mobile phone or a tablet computer, and so on.

[0027] In one embodiment of the present application, the memory 107 of the aforementioned ultrasonic imaging device 10 can be a flash card, a solid-state memory, a hard disk, etc.

[0028] In one embodiment of the present application, a computer-readable storage medium is further provided. The computer-readable storage medium stores multiple program instructions. After being called and executed by the processor 105, the multiple program instructions can execute some steps, all steps, or any combination of the steps in the ultrasonic imaging method in various embodiments of the present application.

[0029] In one embodiment, the computer-readable storage medium can be the memory 107, which can be a non-volatile storage medium such as a flash card, solid-state memory, or hard disk.

[0030] In one embodiment of the present application, the processor 105 of the foregoing ultrasonic imaging device 10 can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or a combination thereof. Circuits, single or multiple application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), single or multiple general integrated circuits, single or multiple microprocessors, single or multiple programmable logic devices, or a combination of the foregoing circuits or devices, or other suitable circuits or devices can be used, so that the processor 105 can execute the corresponding steps of the ultrasonic imaging method in various embodiments of the present application.

[0031] Next, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, the method for processing ultrasonic images of the present application will be described.

[0032] In conjunction with Figure 1 the schematic block diagram of the structure of the ultrasonic imaging device 10 shown, the method for processing ultrasonic images provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the following application scenarios:

[0033] When an operator places the probe 100 on the body surface of the part to be detected, for example, when detecting the thyroid gland of a patient to be detected, the probe 100 can be placed on the surface of the patient's neck; thereafter, the operator can observe a certain cross-sectional image of the thyroid gland detected by the probe 100 at the current position through the display 106; by moving the position of the probe 100, the thyroid gland of the patient can be scanned to find ultrasonic images of the same lesion in two mutually perpendicular cross-sections (generally the largest cross-sections) to analyze the lesion. Since there may be multiple lesions in the part to be detected at the same time, in order to improve the accuracy of the analysis result of the lesion, it is necessary to determine whether the lesions in different cross-sectional images correspond to the same lesion to find ultrasonic images of the same lesion in different mutually perpendicular cross-sections. Among them, the lesion can be a nodule, tumor, mass, or other area to be observed, etc.

[0034] Based on the above scenario, please refer to Figure 2 , the method embodiment for processing ultrasonic images provided by the embodiments of the present application can include the following steps:

[0035] 201. Obtain the first position of the probe and the first cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by scanning based on the first position;

[0036] 202. Obtain the second position of the probe and the second cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by scanning based on the second position;

[0037] The first cross-sectional image is an ultrasonic image, such as a B-mode ultrasound image. The first cross-section and the second cross-section are perpendicular to each other. In some embodiments, the first cross-sectional image may be the cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter, and the second cross-sectional image may be the longitudinal cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter.

[0038] It should be noted that the perpendicularity of the cross-sections mentioned throughout this application is not limited to absolute perpendicularity, but also includes approximate perpendicularity; in actual clinical applications, a certain angular deviation is allowed, and within the allowable range of deviation, it should all be considered perpendicular as described in this application.

[0039] Taking the first cross-sectional image as the cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter (abbreviated as the target cross-sectional image) and the second cross-sectional image as the longitudinal cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter (abbreviated as the target longitudinal cross-sectional image) as an example, steps 201 and 202 will be specifically introduced below.

[0040] The method for processing ultrasonic images provided in this application can be applied to the ultrasonic imaging device 10. Refer to Figure 1 At this time, referring to Figure 3 Step 201 may specifically include the following steps:

[0041] 2011A. Drive the probe to send ultrasonic waves to the target tissue in a transverse scanning mode;

[0042] The target tissue can be the part to be detected of the human body, such as the thyroid gland, breast, uterus, etc.

[0043] 2012A. Receive the ultrasonic echoes returned by the target tissue to obtain ultrasonic echo data;

[0044] 2013A. Obtain at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue according to the ultrasonic echo data;

[0045] During the process of using the probe to scan the target tissue, the position of the probe is continuously changed. The ultrasonic imaging device executes steps 2011A and 2012A at each position, and then at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue can be obtained respectively according to the ultrasonic echo data.

[0046] 2014A. Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter among at least one frame of cross-sectional images as the target cross-sectional image;

[0047] After the ultrasonic imaging device acquires at least one frame of section images, one of the frames can be saved as a target cross-sectional image, the target cross-sectional image includes a lesion, and the diameter of the lesion in the target cross-sectional image is greater than the diameter of the lesion in other section images.

[0048] After acquiring at least one frame of cross-sectional images, the ultrasonic imaging device can automatically identify the diameter of the lesion therein, so as to intelligently select and save the target cross-sectional image. Alternatively, the ultrasonic imaging device can display the detected cross-sectional images on a display screen, and the operator can order the selection and saving of the target cross-sectional image by comparing the diameter of the lesion in multiple cross-sectional images.

[0049] 2015A. Acquire a first position of the probe associated with the target cross-sectional image;

[0050] Assuming that the probe scans and obtains the above-mentioned cross-sectional image when it is in the first position, the ultrasonic imaging device can detect the first position and associate the first position with the cross-sectional image and save it.

[0051] If the cross-sectional image is selected as the cross-sectional image during real-time display on the display screen, the ultrasonic imaging device can detect the position of the probe as the first position when determining the cross-sectional image. Alternatively, the ultrasonic imaging device can detect the position of the probe when scanning each frame of the cross-sectional image, and associate the detected position with the corresponding cross-sectional image and save it.

[0052] Regarding the method for detecting the position of the probe by the ultrasonic imaging device, illustratively, the position of the probe can be detected by using an inertial navigation system, and the ultrasonic imaging device can include an inertial navigation system, or transmit data with the inertial navigation system to obtain the position of the probe detected by the inertial navigation system. The inertial navigation system is an autonomous navigation device, and the inertial measurement device (accelerometer and gyroscope) is directly mounted on the probe. When the carrier rotates, the accelerometer and gyroscope also rotate with it, thereby continuously and in real time providing information such as the characteristics, posture, and speed of the probe.

[0053] refer to Figure 4 , step 202 may specifically include the following steps:

[0054] 2021A, the excitation probe sends ultrasonic waves to the target tissue in a longitudinal scanning mode;

[0055] 2022A. Receive the ultrasonic echo returned by the target tissue to obtain ultrasonic echo data;

[0056] 2023A. Obtain at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue according to the ultrasonic echo data;

[0057] 2024A. Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in at least one longitudinal cross-sectional image as the target longitudinal cross-sectional image;

[0058] 2025A. Obtain the second position of the probe associated with the target longitudinal cross-sectional image;

[0059] Steps 2021A to 2025A can be understood with reference to steps 2011A to 2015A and will not be elaborated here.

[0060] The method for processing ultrasonic images provided in this application can be applied to other computer devices other than the ultrasonic imaging device 10, such as laptop computers, tablet computers, desktop computers, etc. The ultrasonic imaging device can scan the target tissue in the transverse scanning mode and the longitudinal scanning mode respectively to obtain the cross-sectional images of the target tissue, and detect the position of the probe when scanning each frame of the cross-sectional image, and associate and store the detected position with the corresponding cross-sectional image; then, associate and save at least one frame of the cross-sectional image obtained in the transverse scanning mode and the position of the corresponding probe, associate and save at least one frame of the cross-sectional image obtained in the longitudinal scanning mode and the position of the corresponding probe, and transmit them to other computer devices, which are stored in the storage medium by the computer device. At this time, referring to Figure 5 , step 201 may specifically include the following steps:

[0061] 2011B. Read at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by the probe in the transverse scanning mode from the storage medium;

[0062] 2012B. Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in at least one frame of cross-sectional image as the target transverse cross-sectional image;

[0063] The computer device can intelligently search for the cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter in at least one frame of cross-sectional image as the transverse cross-sectional image.

[0064] 2013B. Read the first position associated and stored with the transverse cross-sectional image from the storage medium;

[0065] At this time, referring to Figure 6 , step 202 may specifically include the following steps:

[0066] 2021B. Read at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by the probe in the longitudinal scanning mode from the storage medium;

[0067] 2022B. Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in at least one frame of cross-sectional image as the target longitudinal cross-sectional image;

[0068] 2023B. Read the second position associated and stored with the longitudinal cross-sectional image from the storage medium.

[0069] Steps 2021B to 2023B can be understood by referring to Steps 2011B to 2013B and will not be elaborated here.

[0070] Step 202 can be executed before Step 201, or can also be executed after Step 201. Here, the acquisition order of the cross-sectional image and the longitudinal-sectional image is not limited.

[0071] 203. Determine the first lesion in the first cross-sectional image and the third position of the first lesion in the first cross-sectional image;

[0072] After obtaining the first cross-sectional image, the ultrasonic imaging device 10 can intelligently identify the lesion in the first cross-sectional image. For the sake of convenience of description, the lesion in the first cross-sectional image is called the first lesion. Alternatively, in a possible implementation manner, the first cross-sectional image can be displayed, and the operator can manually mark the lesion in the first cross-sectional image by using a mouse or a touch screen, etc.

[0073] Step 203 can be executed after Step 202, or after Step 204, or before Step 202, or executed in parallel with Step 202.

[0074] 204. Determine the second lesion in the second cross-sectional image and the fourth position of the second lesion in the second cross-sectional image;

[0075] After obtaining the second cross-sectional image, the ultrasonic imaging device 10 can intelligently identify the lesion in the second cross-sectional image. For the sake of convenience of description, the lesion in the second cross-sectional image is called the second lesion. Alternatively, in a possible implementation manner, the second cross-sectional image can be displayed, and the operator can manually mark the lesion in the second cross-sectional image by using a mouse or a touch screen, etc.

[0076] 205. Determine whether the first lesion and the second lesion are the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position and the fourth position;

[0077] In a possible implementation manner, in order to reduce the computational amount of obtaining the position of the lesion, the position of the feature point in the lesion can be used to replace the position of the lesion. Then the third position can be the position of the feature point of the first lesion in the cross-sectional image, and the fourth position is the position of the feature point of the second lesion in the longitudinal-sectional image. Exemplarily, the feature points of the lesion can include but are not limited to the center or centroid of the lesion, the four vertices of the circumscribed rectangle of the lesion or other points on the circumscribed rectangle, or points on other circumscribed shapes of the lesion that can represent the position of the lesion, and no exhaustive listing is made here.

[0078] In a possible implementation manner of the present application, with reference to Figure 7 , Step 205 may include the following steps:

[0079] 2051. Use a probe to scan an initial reference plane to establish an inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0080] 2052. Calculate the first coordinate of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system based on the first position and the third position;

[0081] 2053. Calculate the second coordinate of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system based on the second position and the fourth position;

[0082] 2054. Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion based on the first coordinate and the second coordinate;

[0083] The first position and the second position are positions in the same coordinate system (referred to as the inertial navigation coordinate system). For example, they are different positions relative to the same starting point. The third position is the position of the first lesion relative to the first position, and the fourth position is the position of the second lesion relative to the second position. The first coordinate of the first lesion calculated based on the first position and the third position is the position of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system, and the second coordinate of the second lesion calculated based on the second position and the fourth position is the position of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system. Since the first coordinate of the first lesion and the second coordinate of the second lesion are positions in the same coordinate system, the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion can be calculated based on the first coordinate and the second coordinate.

[0084] 2055. When the target distance is less than the preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion;

[0085] 2056. When the target distance is greater than the preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to different lesions;

[0086] The maximum diameter lines of the lesion in different scanning directions usually pass through the center of the lesion. Therefore, the first lesion and the second lesion are respectively the sections with the largest diameters of the lesion in the transverse and longitudinal scanning directions, and the distance between them should be very small. The preset distance can be set according to factors such as the test accuracy and the common size of the lesion.

[0087] Among them, in a possible implementation manner, step 2053 may specifically include the following steps:

[0088] A1. Determine the third coordinate of the centroid or center of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system based on the first coordinate of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0089] A2. Determine the fourth coordinate of the centroid or center of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system based on the second coordinate of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0090] A3. Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the third coordinate and the fourth coordinate;

[0091] Alternatively, in a possible implementation, step 2053 may specifically include the following steps:

[0092] B1. Determine the fifth coordinate of the vertex of the circumscribed rectangle of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the first coordinate of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0093] B2. Determine the sixth coordinate of the vertex of the circumscribed rectangle of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the second coordinate of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0094] B3. Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the fifth coordinate and the sixth coordinate;

[0095] In the embodiments of the present application, the position of the probe in the inertial navigation coordinate system (such as the world coordinate system) can be obtained, and the position of the lesion in the cross-sectional ultrasound image of the target tissue scanned based on the position of the probe can be obtained. Based on the position of the probe and the position of the lesion in the ultrasound image, the position of the lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system can be determined. When it is necessary to determine whether the lesions in different ultrasound images are the same lesion, it can be determined whether they are the same lesion according to the positions of the lesions in the inertial navigation coordinate system. It has a low dependence on the clarity of the image and is beneficial to improving the accuracy of the matching result.

[0096] In a possible implementation, after step 205, the method for processing the ultrasound image of the present application may further include the following steps:

[0097] Display the matching result in the cross-sectional image and / or the longitudinal-sectional image;

[0098] When the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion, display a first identifier associated with the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image, and display a second identifier associated with the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image; wherein, the first identifier and the second identifier are used to represent that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion. Exemplarily, the same identifier can be added to the position of the first lesion in the cross-sectional image and the position of the second lesion in the longitudinal-sectional image, for example, adding the same number, or a graph with the same shape, etc.

[0099] For ease of understanding, the following takes the ultrasound examination process of the thyroid gland as an example to introduce an application scenario of the method for processing the ultrasound image of the present application:

[0100] Step 1. Use a probe with an inertial measurement device to scan an initial plane, and the position where the probe is located is used as the reference position of the navigation coordinate system;

[0101] Step 2: Scan the patient's thyroid gland, and confirm the coordinate values of the probe in the navigation coordinate system based on the current navigation information and the initial surface navigation information.

[0102] Among them, the steps for obtaining the first cross-sectional image are as follows: Scan the nodule in the thyroid gland ( Figure 8A the area corresponding to the closed curve therein) in the transverse scanning mode, and record the coordinate values of the probe; The probe ( Figure 8A the solid line segment therein) scans the nodule in the thyroid gland uniformly from top to bottom, as Figure 8A shown, to obtain a scanning video sequence, and determine a frame of cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter ( Figure 8A the dashed line segment therein) from it as the first cross-sectional image, or also called the target transverse cross-sectional image.

[0103] The steps for obtaining the second cross-sectional image are similar to those for obtaining the first cross-sectional image. Scan the nodule in the thyroid gland ( Figure 8B the area corresponding to the closed curve therein) in the longitudinal scanning mode, and the probe ( Figure 8B the solid line segment therein) scans the nodule in the thyroid gland uniformly from left to right, as Figure 8B shown, to obtain a scanning video sequence, and determine a frame of cross-sectional image with the largest lesion diameter ( Figure 8B the dashed line segment therein) from it as the second cross-sectional image, or also called the target longitudinal cross-sectional image.

[0104] Step 3: Identify the center of nodule 1 from the first cross-sectional image through an intelligent detection method, and determine the coordinate value C1 of the center of nodule 1 in the inertial coordinate system; Identify the center of nodule 2 from the second cross-sectional image, and determine the coordinate value C2 of the center of nodule 2 in the inertial coordinate system.

[0105] Step 4: Calculate the distance between nodule 1 and nodule 2 in the inertial coordinate system based on C1 and C2, and determine whether nodule 1 and nodule 2 are the same nodule according to this distance. For example, when the distance between the two center points is less than a certain threshold (such as 0.5 mm), it can be considered that the two nodules are the same.

[0106] In addition, it is also possible to calculate the transformation matrix between nodule 1 and nodule 2 through the four vertex coordinates of the largest circumscribed rectangle of the two nodules, and judge whether nodule 1 and nodule 2 are the same nodule based on the translation distance in the transformation matrix.

[0107] The above has described in detail the ultrasonic imaging system and the ultrasonic image processing method provided by the present application. The present application also provides an ultrasonic image processing device. Refer to Figure 9, the processing device for ultrasonic images of the present application may be a computer device, including a processor 901 and a storage medium 902. In a possible implementation, the two may be connected by a bus. The storage medium 902 stores computer instructions. By invoking the computer instructions, the processor 901 is configured to perform the following steps:

[0108] Obtain the first position of the probe and the first cross-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the first position;

[0109] Obtain the second position of the probe and the second cross-sectional image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; wherein, the first cross-section corresponding to the first cross-sectional image is perpendicular to the second cross-section corresponding to the second cross-sectional image;

[0110] Determine the first lesion in the first cross-sectional image and the third position of the first lesion in the first cross-sectional image;

[0111] Determine the second lesion in the second cross-sectional image and the fourth position of the second lesion in the second cross-sectional image;

[0112] Determine whether the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion according to the first position, the second position, the third position and the fourth position.

[0113] In a possible implementation, the first cross-sectional image is the target transverse cross-sectional image, and the second cross-sectional image is the target longitudinal cross-sectional image.

[0114] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0115] Read at least one frame of transverse cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by the probe through transverse scanning from the storage medium;

[0116] Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in the at least one frame of transverse cross-sectional image as the target transverse cross-sectional image;

[0117] Read the first position of the probe associated with the target transverse cross-sectional image from the storage medium.

[0118] In a possible implementation, reference may be made to Figure 1 , the processing device further includes a probe and a transmit / receive sequence circuit;

[0119] The transmit / receive sequence circuit is configured to excite the probe to generate ultrasonic waves;

[0120] The probe is configured to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target tissue and receive the ultrasonic echoes returned from the target tissue to obtain ultrasonic echo data;

[0121] The processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0122] Obtain at least one cross-sectional image of the target tissue based on the ultrasonic echo data;

[0123] Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter among the at least one cross-sectional image as the target cross-sectional image;

[0124] Obtain the first position of the probe associated with the target cross-sectional image.

[0125] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0126] Read at least one longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by the probe through longitudinal scanning from the storage medium;

[0127] Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter among the at least one longitudinal-sectional image as the target longitudinal-sectional image;

[0128] Read the second position of the probe associated with the target longitudinal-sectional image from the storage medium.

[0129] In a possible implementation, reference can be made to Figure 1 , the processing device further includes a probe and a transmit / receive sequence circuit;

[0130] The transmit / receive sequence circuit is used to excite the probe to generate ultrasonic waves;

[0131] The probe is used to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target tissue and receive the ultrasonic echoes returned from the target tissue to obtain ultrasonic echo data;

[0132] The processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0133] Obtain at least one longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue based on the ultrasonic echo data;

[0134] Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter among the at least one longitudinal-sectional image as the target longitudinal-sectional image;

[0135] Obtain the second position of the probe associated with the target longitudinal-sectional image.

[0136] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0137] Use the probe to scan an initial reference plane to establish an inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0138] Determine the first coordinate of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the first position and the third position;

[0139] Determine the second coordinate of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the second position and the fourth position;

[0140] Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the first coordinate and the second coordinate;

[0141] When the target distance is less than the preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion;

[0142] When the target distance is greater than the preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to different lesions.

[0143] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0144] Determine the third coordinate of the centroid or center of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the first coordinate of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0145] Determine the fourth coordinate of the centroid or center of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the second coordinate of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0146] Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the third coordinate and the fourth coordinate.

[0147] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0148] Determine the fifth coordinate of the vertex of the circumscribed rectangle of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the first coordinate of the first lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0149] Determine the sixth coordinate of the vertex of the circumscribed rectangle of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system according to the second coordinate of the second lesion in the inertial navigation coordinate system;

[0150] Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the fifth coordinate and the sixth coordinate.

[0151] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is further configured to perform the following steps:

[0152] When the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion, display a first identifier associated with the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image and a second identifier associated with the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image; wherein, the first identifier and the second identifier are used to represent that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion.

[0153] In a possible implementation, the processor 901 is specifically configured to perform the following steps:

[0154] Determine the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image by image recognition or manual marking;

[0155] Determine the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image by image recognition or manual marking.

[0156] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the displayed or discussed coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between each other can be through some interfaces. The indirect coupling or communication connection of the device or unit can be in electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0157] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated. The components displayed as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place or distributed to multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0158] In addition, each functional unit in various embodiments of the present application can be integrated in a processing unit, or each unit can exist physically alone, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit. The above-mentioned integrated units can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

[0159] If the above-mentioned integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of this technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in various embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical discs, etc., which can store program codes.

[0160] It should be noted that in actual applications, the target tissue can be a human body, an animal, etc. The target tissue can be the face, spine, heart, uterus, thyroid, or pelvic floor, etc., or other parts of the human tissue, such as the brain, bones, liver, or kidneys, etc. The specific details are not limited in the present application.

[0161] As described above, it is only the specific implementation manner of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present application can easily think of changes or substitutions, which should all be covered within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claimed rights.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic image processing device, characterized in that, Comprising a processor and a storage medium, the storage medium stores computer instructions, and by invoking the computer instructions, the processor is configured to perform the following steps: Obtain the first position of the probe and the target cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by scanning based on the first position; Obtain the second position of the probe and the target longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by scanning based on the second position; Determine the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image and the third position of the first lesion in the target cross-sectional image; Determine the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image and the fourth position of the second lesion in the target longitudinal-sectional image; Determine the first coordinate of the first lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the first position and the third position; Determine the second coordinate of the second lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the second position and the fourth position; Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the first coordinate and the second coordinate; When the target distance is less than a preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion; When the target distance is greater than the preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to different lesions.

2. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein The processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Read at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by the probe through cross-sectional scanning from the storage medium; Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in the at least one frame of cross-sectional image as the target cross-sectional image; Read the first position of the probe associated with the target cross-sectional image from the storage medium.

3. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein The processing device further includes a probe and a transmit / receive sequence circuit; The transmit / receive sequence circuit is configured to excite the probe to generate ultrasonic waves; The probe is configured to transmit the ultrasonic waves to the target tissue and receive the ultrasonic echoes returned from the target tissue to obtain ultrasonic echo data; The processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Obtain at least one frame of cross-sectional image of the target tissue according to the ultrasonic echo data; Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in the at least one frame of cross-sectional image as the target cross-sectional image; Obtain the first position of the probe associated with the target cross-sectional image.

4. The processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that The processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Read at least one frame of longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue obtained by the probe through longitudinal scanning from the storage medium; Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter in the at least one frame of longitudinal-sectional image as the target longitudinal-sectional image; Read the second position of the probe associated with the target longitudinal-sectional image from the storage medium.

5. The processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that The processing device further includes a probe and a transmit / receive sequence circuit; The transmit / receive sequence circuit is configured to excite the probe to generate ultrasonic waves; The probe is configured to transmit the ultrasonic waves to the target tissue and receive the ultrasonic echoes returned from the target tissue to obtain ultrasonic echo data; The processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Obtain at least one frame of longitudinal-sectional image of the target tissue according to the ultrasonic echo data; Determine the frame with the largest lesion diameter among the at least one longitudinal section image as the target longitudinal section image; Obtain the second position of the probe associated with the target longitudinal section image.

6. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein The processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Determine the third coordinate of the centroid or center of the first lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the first coordinate of the first lesion in the navigation coordinate system; Determine the fourth coordinate of the centroid or center of the second lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the second coordinate of the second lesion in the navigation coordinate system; Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the third coordinate and the fourth coordinate.

7. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein The processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Determine the fifth coordinate of the vertex of the circumscribed rectangle of the first lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the first coordinate of the first lesion in the navigation coordinate system; Determine the sixth coordinate of the vertex of the circumscribed rectangle of the second lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the second coordinate of the second lesion in the navigation coordinate system; Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the fifth coordinate and the sixth coordinate.

8. The processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The processor is further configured to perform the following steps: When the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion, display a first identifier associated with the first lesion in the target transverse section image, and display a second identifier associated with the second lesion in the target longitudinal section image; wherein, the first identifier and the second identifier are used to represent that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion.

9. The processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the processor is specifically configured to perform the following steps: Determine the first lesion in the target transverse section image by image recognition or manual marking; Determine the second lesion in the target longitudinal section image by image recognition or manual marking.

10. An apparatus for processing an ultrasonic image, characterized in that, Comprising a processor and a storage medium, the storage medium stores computer instructions, and by invoking the computer instructions, the processor is configured to perform the following steps: Obtain the first position of the probe and the first section image of the target tissue scanned based on the first position; Obtain the second position of the probe and the second section image of the target tissue scanned based on the second position; wherein, the first section corresponding to the first section image is perpendicular to the second section corresponding to the second section image; Determine the first lesion in the first section image and the third position of the first lesion in the first section image; Determine the second lesion in the second section image and the fourth position of the second lesion in the second section image; Determine the first coordinate of the first lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the first position and the third position; Determine the second coordinate of the second lesion in the navigation coordinate system according to the second position and the fourth position; Determine the target distance between the first lesion and the second lesion according to the first coordinate and the second coordinate; When the target distance is less than a preset threshold, determine that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to the same lesion; When the target distance is greater than the preset threshold, it is determined that the first lesion and the second lesion belong to different lesions.

11. The processing device according to claim 1 or 10, characterized in that, The target tissue includes the thyroid or breast.

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