Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and control method of ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus

Abstract

This invention provides an ultrasound diagnostic device and a control method for the ultrasound diagnostic device that can easily acquire ultrasound images of a vascular region suitable for insertion. The ultrasound diagnostic device includes: a position sensor (3) for acquiring position information of an ultrasound probe (1); an image acquisition unit (30) for acquiring multiple frames of ultrasound images by transmitting and receiving ultrasound beams using the ultrasound probe (1); a three-dimensional image data generation unit (24) for generating three-dimensional ultrasound image data based on the position information of the ultrasound probe (1) and the multiple frames of ultrasound images representing the short axis image of the blood vessel; a centerline acquisition unit (25) for acquiring the centerline of the blood vessel in three-dimensional space based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data; a serpentine calculation unit (26) for calculating the serpentine degree of the centerline along the transverse diameter direction of the blood vessel; and a guide unit (27) for guiding the ultrasound probe (1) to the range on the centerline based on the serpentine degree.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an ultrasound diagnostic device for observing blood vessels in a subject undergoing puncture and a control method for the ultrasound diagnostic device. Background Technology

[0002] A technique has long been known to involve simultaneously observing blood vessels within a patient's body using an ultrasound diagnostic device while inserting a puncture needle into the vessel. In this technique, suitable puncture sites are typically identified by real-time monitoring of multiple ultrasound images taken along the vessel's course, ensuring the puncture is not serpentine and instead runs perpendicular to the vessel's direction of travel along the patient's body surface. In this case, the ultrasound diagnostic device user, such as a physician, usually identifies suitable puncture sites by alternately capturing short-axis images of the vessel (representing a cross-section perpendicular to the vessel's course) and long-axis images (representing a longitudinal section along the vessel's course).

[0003] In procedures that use ultrasound images to identify suitable vascular areas for puncture, repeated short-axis and long-axis images of the blood vessel are required for confirmation. This can be quite laborious for the user to determine the appropriate vascular area. Therefore, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is possible to generate a three-dimensional ultrasound image of the blood vessel from multiple frames of two-dimensional ultrasound images and then verify the generated three-dimensional ultrasound image to determine the suitable vascular area for puncture.

[0004] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-018195

[0005] However, in the technology of Patent Document 1, although the approximate location of the suitable vascular area for puncture can be determined, in order to accurately capture an ultrasound image of the suitable vascular area for puncture, the user needs to capture multiple frames of ultrasound images representing the short axis and long axis of the blood vessel near the determined approximate location to determine the exact location of the suitable vascular area for puncture, which sometimes requires the user to expend effort. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This invention was made to solve these previous problems, and its purpose is to provide an ultrasound diagnostic device and a control method for the ultrasound diagnostic device that can easily acquire ultrasound images of the vascular region suitable for the insertion of the insert.

[0007] The above objectives can be achieved based on the following structure.

[0008] [1] An ultrasound diagnostic device, comprising:

[0009] Ultrasonic probe;

[0010] Position sensor to acquire position information of ultrasonic probe;

[0011] The image acquisition unit acquires multiple frames of ultrasound images representing the short axis of blood vessels in the subject by using an ultrasound probe to transmit and receive ultrasound beams.

[0012] The three-dimensional image data generation unit generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject based on the position information of the ultrasonic probe obtained by the position sensor and the multiple frames of ultrasonic images obtained by the image acquisition unit.

[0013] The centerline acquisition unit acquires the centerline of the blood vessel in three-dimensional space based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit.

[0014] The serpentineness calculation unit calculates the serpentineness of the blood vessel along the transverse diameter direction of the centerline acquired by the centerline acquisition unit, which is perpendicular to the plane corresponding to the minor axis image; and

[0015] The guide unit guides the ultrasonic probe to the range on the centerline based on the serpentine degree calculated by the serpentine degree calculation unit.

[0016] [2] According to the ultrasonic diagnostic device described in [1], wherein,

[0017] The serpentine degree calculation department performs the following processing:

[0018] Divide the centerline into multiple intervals of a specified length; and

[0019] Calculate the serpentine degree in each of the multiple intervals.

[0020] [3] According to the ultrasonic diagnostic device described in [2], wherein,

[0021] The serpentine degree calculation department performs the following processing:

[0022] Calculate the average position of the centerline in the transverse radial direction; and

[0023] In each of the multiple intervals, the number of inflection points of the center line that are at or above a specified position threshold from the average position is calculated as the serpentine degree.

[0024] [4] According to the ultrasonic diagnostic device described in [2], wherein,

[0025] The serpentine degree calculation unit calculates the reciprocal of the interval between adjacent inflection points of the centerline in multiple intervals as the serpentine degree.

[0026] [5] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein,

[0027] The guide unit guides the ultrasonic probe to the centerline where the meandering calculated by the meandering unit is below the specified meandering threshold.

[0028] [6] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein,

[0029] The guidance department will handle the following:

[0030] By referencing the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit, the depth of blood vessels relative to the surface of the subject is obtained along the entire centerline; and

[0031] The ultrasound probe is guided to a range where the serpentine degree is below a specified serpentine degree threshold and the depth of the blood vessel is below a specified depth threshold.

[0032] [7] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein,

[0033] The guidance department will handle the following:

[0034] The inner diameter of the blood vessel is obtained along the entire centerline by referring to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit; and

[0035] Guide the ultrasound probe to a range where the serpentine degree is below the specified serpentine degree threshold and the inner diameter of the blood vessel is closest to the specified recommended inner diameter value.

[0036] [8] The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to [2] or [3], wherein,

[0037] In two or more of the multiple intervals, the serpentine degree is below the specified serpentine degree threshold.

[0038] The guide unit directs the ultrasonic probe to the zone with the minimum serpentine degree among two or more zones.

[0039] [9] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to [8], comprising a monitor,

[0040] The guide unit displays the guidance of the ultrasonic probe on the monitor.

[0041]

[10] The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to [9], wherein,

[0042] The ultrasonic probe is equipped with markings.

[0043] The position sensor has the following features:

[0044] An optical camera acquires an optical image that reflects the ultrasonic probe; and

[0045] The marker detection unit obtains the position information of the ultrasonic probe by detecting markers projected onto the optical image acquired by the optical camera.

[0046] Based on the position information of the ultrasonic probe obtained by the marker detection unit, the guidance unit superimposes the guidance of the ultrasonic probe onto the optical image obtained by the optical camera and displays it on the monitor.

[0047]

[11] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to

[10] , comprising:

[0048] Ultrasonic probe;

[0049] An optical camera acquires optical images that reflect specific parts of the subject; and

[0050] The relative position information conversion unit converts the position information acquired by the position sensor and the optical image acquired by the optical camera into relative position information relative to a specific part reflected in the optical image.

[0051] The three-dimensional image data generation unit uses the relative position information converted by the relative position information conversion unit as the position information of the ultrasonic probe acquired by the position sensor.

[0052]

[12] An ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to

[11] , wherein,

[0053] Multiple blood vessels are reflected in each of the multiple ultrasound images.

[0054] The ultrasound diagnostic device includes an attention calculation unit, which calculates the attention of each of the multiple blood vessels based on the positions of multiple blood vessels in each of the multiple ultrasound images or the length of the centerline acquired by the centerline acquisition unit for each of the multiple blood vessels.

[0055] The guiding unit guides the ultrasound probe in a blood vessel with the highest attention among multiple attention values ​​calculated by the attention calculation unit, based on the serpentinability calculated by the serpentinability calculation unit.

[0056]

[13] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to any one of [1] to

[11] , wherein,

[0057] Multiple blood vessels are reflected in each of the multiple ultrasound images.

[0058] The ultrasound diagnostic device includes a fit calculation unit that calculates the fit of each of a plurality of blood vessels by referring to three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by a three-dimensional image data generation unit, based on the depth or inner diameter of the blood vessels relative to the body surface of the subject.

[0059] The guiding unit guides the ultrasound probe in a blood vessel with the highest fit among multiple fits calculated by the fit calculation unit, based on the serpentinability calculated by the serpentinability calculation unit.

[0060]

[14] A control method for an ultrasound diagnostic device, wherein,

[0061] Obtain the position information of the ultrasonic probe;

[0062] Multiple frames of ultrasound images representing the short axis of blood vessels in the subject are acquired by using an ultrasound probe to transmit and receive ultrasound beams.

[0063] Three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject is generated based on the position information of the ultrasound probe and multiple frames of ultrasound images.

[0064] The centerline of blood vessels in three-dimensional space is obtained based on three-dimensional ultrasound image data;

[0065] Calculate the serpentine degree of the centerline along the transverse diameter of the blood vessel, perpendicular to the plane corresponding to the minor axis image of the blood vessel; and

[0066] Guide the ultrasonic probe to the centerline area based on the serpentine motion.

[0067] -Invention Effects-

[0068] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of the present invention comprises: an ultrasound probe; a position sensor for acquiring position information of the ultrasound probe; an image acquisition unit for acquiring multiple frames of ultrasound images representing the minor axis images of blood vessels of a subject by transmitting and receiving ultrasound beams using the ultrasound probe; a three-dimensional image data generation unit for generating three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject based on the position information of the ultrasound probe acquired by the position sensor and the multiple frames of ultrasound images acquired by the image acquisition unit; a centerline acquisition unit for acquiring the centerline of the blood vessel in three-dimensional space based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit; a serpentine calculation unit for calculating the serpentineness of the centerline acquired by the centerline acquisition unit along the transverse diameter direction of the blood vessel perpendicular to the plane corresponding to the minor axis image of the blood vessel; and a guide unit for guiding the ultrasound probe to a range on the centerline based on the serpentineness calculated by the serpentine calculation unit, thereby enabling easy acquisition of ultrasound images of blood vessel regions suitable for insertion of inserts. Attached Figure Description

[0069] Figure 1 This is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the ultrasound diagnostic device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0070] Figure 2 This is a block diagram illustrating the internal structure of the transceiver circuit in Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0071] Figure 3 This is a block diagram showing the internal structure of the image generation unit in Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0072] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram showing an ultrasonic probe moving on the surface of the subject.

[0073] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating an example of an ultrasound image representing a short-axis image of a blood vessel.

[0074] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating an example of an ultrasound image representing the long axis of a blood vessel.

[0075] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of serpentine blood vessels in the wrist of a subject.

[0076] Figure 8 This is a diagram showing the transverse diameter of a blood vessel.

[0077] Figure 9 This is a diagram showing an example of the centerline of a blood vessel and an average line representing the average position of the centerline in the transverse direction.

[0078] Figure 10 This is a diagram showing an example of the distance between the inflection point of the center line of a blood vessel and the average line.

[0079] Figure 11 This is a diagram showing an example of the distance between the inflection points of the center line of a blood vessel.

[0080] Figure 12 This is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the ultrasonic diagnostic device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0081] Figure 13 This is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the ultrasonic diagnostic device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

[0082] Figure 14 This is a diagram illustrating an example of the guidance of an ultrasonic probe superimposed on an optical image.

[0083] Figure 15 This is another example of the guidance of an ultrasonic probe superimposed on an optical image.

[0084] Figure 16 This is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the ultrasonic diagnostic device according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

[0085] Figure 17 This is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the ultrasound diagnostic device according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention.

[0086] Figure 18This is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the ultrasonic diagnostic device according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention.

[0087] Symbol Explanation

[0088] 1. 1A - Ultrasonic probe; 2. 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D - Main body of the device; 3. 53 - Position sensor; 11 - Oscillator array; 12 - Transceiver circuit; 21 - Image generation unit; 22 - Display control unit; 23 - Monitor; 24 - 3D image data generation unit; 25 - Centerline acquisition unit; 26 - Serpentine degree calculation unit; 27 - Guiding unit; 28. 28A, 28B, 28C, 28D - Device control unit; 29 - Input device; 30 - Image acquisition unit; 31. 31A, 31B, 31C, 31D - Processor; 41 - Pulse generator; 42 - Amplification unit; 43 - AD conversion unit; 44. - Beamformer, 45 - Signal Processing Unit, 46 - DSC, 47 - Image Processing Unit, 51 - Marker Detection Unit, 52 - Optical Camera, 54 - Relative Position Information Conversion Unit, 55 - Attention Calculation Unit, 56 - Fitness Calculation Unit, A - Blood Vessel, B - Marker, BS - Body Surface, C - Centerline, D1 - Transverse Diameter Direction, D2 - Course Direction, E - Average Line, F - Arrow, G1, G2, G3, G4 - Interval, H - Hand, J1, J2 - Inflection Point, K1 - Interval, L1, L2 - Distance, M - Wrist, Q - Optical Image, R - Blood Vessel Region, SP - Scanning Surface, U1, U2 - Ultrasound Image. Detailed Implementation

[0089] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0090] The following description of the components is based on a representative embodiment of the invention, but the invention is not limited to this embodiment.

[0091] In addition, in this specification, the numerical range represented by “~” indicates the range included by the values ​​recorded before and after “~” as the lower limit and upper limit values.

[0092] In this specification, "same" or "identical" includes the range of error generally permissible in the technical field.

[0093] Implementation Method 1

[0094] exist Figure 1 The diagram illustrates the structure of an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus includes an ultrasound probe 1 and a device body 2 connected to the ultrasound probe 1. The ultrasound probe 1 and the device body 2 are connected to each other via either wired or wireless communication.

[0095] The ultrasonic probe 1 includes a transducer array 11 and a transceiver circuit 12 connected thereto. A position sensor 3 is installed in the ultrasonic probe 1 to acquire the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1.

[0096] The main body 2 of the device includes an image generation unit 21 connected to the transceiver circuit 12 of the ultrasonic probe 1. A display control unit 22 and a monitor 23 are sequentially connected to the image generation unit 21. Furthermore, the main body 2 includes a three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 connected to the position sensor 3 and the image generation unit 21. A centerline acquisition unit 25 and a serpentine calculation unit 26 are sequentially connected to the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24. A guide unit 27 is connected to the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 and the serpentine calculation unit 26. The guide unit 27 is connected to the display control unit 22. A device control unit 28 is connected to the position sensor 3, the transceiver circuit 12, the image generation unit 21, the display control unit 22, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, the centerline acquisition unit 25, the serpentine calculation unit 26, and the guide unit 27. An input device 29 is connected to the device control unit 28.

[0097] The image acquisition unit 30 is composed of the transceiver circuit 12 and the image generation unit 21. Furthermore, the processor 31 for the device main body 2 is composed of the image generation unit 21, the display control unit 22, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, the center line acquisition unit 25, the serpentine degree calculation unit 26, the guide unit 27, and the device control unit 28.

[0098] The ultrasonic probe 1 is used to capture so-called ultrasonic images representing cross-sections within the subject by transmitting an ultrasonic beam into the subject while in contact with the subject's surface and receiving ultrasonic echoes reflected from the subject.

[0099] The transducer array 11 of the ultrasonic probe 1 has multiple ultrasonic transducers arranged in one-dimensional or two-dimensional order. These ultrasonic transducers transmit ultrasonic waves according to the drive signal supplied from the transceiver circuit 12, and receive ultrasonic echoes from the subject to output signals based on the ultrasonic echoes. Each ultrasonic transducer is constructed, for example, by forming electrodes at both ends of a piezoelectric body made of piezoelectric ceramics such as PZT (Lead Zirconate Titanate), polymer piezoelectric elements such as PVDF (Poly Vinylidene Di Fluoride), and piezoelectric single crystals such as PMN-PT (Lead Magnesium Niobate-Lead Titanate solid solution).

[0100] The image acquisition unit 30, which consists of the transceiver circuit 12 and the image generation unit 21, acquires ultrasonic images by transmitting and receiving ultrasonic beams using the ultrasonic probe 1.

[0101] The transceiver circuit 12, under the control of the device control unit 28, transmits ultrasonic waves from the transducer array 11 and generates an acoustic signal based on the received signal acquired by the transducer array 11. For example... Figure 2 As shown, the transceiver circuit 12 has a pulser 41 connected to the oscillator array 11 and an amplifier 42, an AD (Analog to Digital) converter 43 and a beamformer 44 connected in series from the oscillator array 11.

[0102] The pulse generator 41 includes, for example, multiple pulse generators, and adjusts the delay amount of each drive signal according to the transmission delay mode selected based on the control signal from the device control unit 28, and supplies it to multiple ultrasonic transducers so that the ultrasonic waves transmitted from the multiple ultrasonic transducers of the transducer array 11 form an ultrasonic beam. Thus, if a pulsed or continuous wave voltage is applied to the electrodes of the ultrasonic transducers of the transducer array 11, the piezoelectric element expands and contracts, generating pulsed or continuous wave ultrasonic waves from each ultrasonic transducer, and the composite wave of these ultrasonic waves forms an ultrasonic beam.

[0103] The transmitted ultrasonic beam is reflected, for example, at a part of the subject being examined, and propagates toward the transducer array 11 of the ultrasonic probe 1. The ultrasonic echoes propagating toward the transducer array 11 are received by each ultrasonic transducer constituting the transducer array 11. At this time, each ultrasonic transducer constituting the transducer array 11 expands and contracts by receiving the propagating ultrasonic echoes, thereby generating received signals as electrical signals, and outputting these received signals to the amplification unit 42.

[0104] The amplification unit 42 amplifies the signals input from each ultrasonic transducer constituting the transducer array 11 and sends the amplified signals to the AD converter 43. The AD converter 43 converts the signals sent from the amplification unit 42 into digital received data. The beamformer 44 performs a so-called receiver focusing process by assigning a delay to each received data received from the AD converter 43 and adding them together. Through this receiver focusing process, an acoustic signal with phase-integrated summation of the received data converted by the AD converter 43 and a reduced focus of the ultrasonic echo can be obtained.

[0105] like Figure 3 As shown, the image generation unit 21 has a structure in which the signal processing unit 45, the DSC (Digital Scan Converter) 46 and the image processing unit 47 are connected in series.

[0106] The signal processing unit 45 uses the sound velocity value set by the device control unit 28 and corrects the attenuation caused by distance on the sound signal received from the transceiver circuit 12 according to the depth of the ultrasonic wave reflection position, and then performs envelope detection processing to generate a B-mode image signal as tomographic image information related to the tissue in the subject body.

[0107] DSC46 converts (rasterizes) the B-mode image signal generated by the signal processing unit 45 into an image signal that follows the scanning pattern of a normal television signal.

[0108] After performing various necessary image processing operations, such as grayscale processing, on the B-mode image signal input from the DSC 46, the image processing unit 47 sends the B-mode image signal to the display control unit 22 and the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24. Hereinafter, the B-mode image signal after image processing by the image processing unit 47 will be referred to as an ultrasound image.

[0109] For example, such as Figure 4 As shown, multiple ultrasound images can be acquired while the ultrasound probe 1 is in contact with the body surface BS of the subject, moving along the blood vessel A within the subject. Ideally, in this case, the orientation of the ultrasound probe 1 is fixed such that the scanning plane SP of the ultrasound probe 1 is perpendicular to the direction of travel of the blood vessel A. Thus, for example, as... Figure 5 As shown, a multi-frame ultrasound image U1, representing a so-called short-axis image as a cross-section of blood vessel A, can be acquired.

[0110] Furthermore, ideally, by adjusting the orientation of the ultrasound probe 1, a scanning plane SP parallel to the course of blood vessel A can be obtained, thereby, for example, Figure 6 As shown, it is also possible to acquire an ultrasound image U2, which represents a so-called long axis image as a longitudinal section of blood vessel A.

[0111] Position sensor 3 is a device installed on ultrasonic probe 1 and acquiring position information of ultrasonic probe 1. The position information of ultrasonic probe 1 acquired by position sensor 3 includes not only the position coordinates of ultrasonic probe 1 in three-dimensional space, but also the angular coordinates of ultrasonic probe 1 in three-dimensional space. As position sensor 3, known sensor devices such as accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, and GPS (Global Positioning System) sensors can be used.

[0112] The three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject based on multiple frames of ultrasound images U1 representing the short axis image of blood vessel A acquired by the image acquisition unit 30 during the movement of the ultrasound probe 1 on the body surface BS of the subject while the ultrasound probe 1 is in a fixed orientation, and the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 continuously acquired by the position sensor 3 during the acquisition of the multiple frames of ultrasound images U1. The three-dimensional ultrasound image data contains the three-dimensional structure of blood vessel A.

[0113] When generating three-dimensional ultrasound image data, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 uses algorithms such as binarization processing or template matching to extract the short axis image of blood vessel A from multiple frames of ultrasound images U1, and uses the extraction result to determine the three-dimensional structure of blood vessel A in the three-dimensional ultrasound image data.

[0114] The centerline acquisition unit 25 acquires, for example, three-dimensional ultrasonic image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24. Figure 7 The center line C of blood vessel A is schematically shown in the diagram. Figure 7 In the example shown, a blood vessel A is located within the wrist M of the subject. The centerline acquisition unit 25 performs so-called fine-line processing, for example, on the three-dimensional structure of the blood vessel A determined by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, thereby acquiring the centerline C of the blood vessel A in three-dimensional space.

[0115] The serpentine calculation unit 26 calculates the transverse diameter direction of blood vessel A, perpendicular to the plane corresponding to the minor axis image of blood vessel A, and calculates the serpentine degree of the centerline C along the transverse diameter direction. The serpentine calculation unit 26 can calculate this by referring to three-dimensional ultrasound image data, for example, by treating the body surface BS as a plane. Figure 8 In the schematic diagram shown, on the plane corresponding to the short axis image of blood vessel A and orthogonal to the body surface BS, the direction along the body surface BS is defined as the transverse diameter direction D1 of blood vessel A.

[0116] The direction orthogonal to the transverse diameter direction D1 and the depth direction of blood vessel A is defined as the course direction D2 of blood vessel A. For example, Figure 9 As shown, the serpentine calculation unit 26 can divide the centerline C into multiple intervals G1, G2, G3, and G4 with a predetermined length along the course D2 of the blood vessel A, and calculate the serpentine degree for each of these intervals G1 to G4. The number of intervals is not limited to four; it can be two, three, or more than five, depending on the length of the centerline C. The length of each interval G1 to G4 can be set, for example, to a width orthogonal to the depth direction of the ultrasound image U2 representing the long axis image of the blood vessel A.

[0117] The serpentine degree calculation unit 26 applies the so-called least squares method to each of the multiple intervals G1 to G4 of the centerline C, for example, thus, for example, Figure 10 As shown, an average line E representing the average position of the centerline C in the transverse diameter direction D1 of blood vessel A can be calculated in multiple intervals G1 to G4. In this case, the serpentine degree calculation unit 26 can calculate multiple inflection points J1, J2 of the centerline C, and calculate the distances L1, L2 between the multiple inflection points J1, J2 in the transverse diameter direction D1 and the average line E. For example, the serpentine degree calculation unit 26 can use the number of inflection points J1, J2 in each of the multiple intervals G1 to G4 whose calculated distances L1, L2 are above a predetermined distance threshold as the serpentine degree. The more inflection points J1, J2 whose distances L1, L2 are above the distance threshold, the more parts of blood vessel A can be identified as serpentine; conversely, the fewer inflection points J1, J2 whose distances L1, L2 are above the distance threshold, the fewer parts of blood vessel A can be identified as serpentine.

[0118] Furthermore, the serpentine degree calculation unit 26 can, for example, use the maximum value of the reciprocal of the interval K1 between the inflection points J1 and J2 of the centerline C in each of the multiple intervals G1 to G4 along the course D2 as the serpentine degree. The larger the value of the reciprocal of the interval K1, the narrower the serpentine interval along the course D2, and thus more locations can be identified as serpentine vessels A. Conversely, the smaller the value of the reciprocal of the interval K1, the wider the serpentine interval along the course D2, and thus fewer locations can be identified as serpentine vessels A.

[0119] The guiding unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 to a range on the centerline C suitable for inserting the insert, i.e., the vascular region suitable for inserting the insert, based on the meandering degree calculated by the meandering degree calculation unit 26. For example, the guiding unit 27 can guide the ultrasound probe 1 to a range on the centerline C where the meandering degree calculated by the meandering degree calculation unit 26 is below a predetermined meandering degree threshold, such as the intervals G1 to G4 where the meandering degree is below the meandering degree threshold.

[0120] The guiding unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 by, for example, superimposing a so-called schematic diagram of the human body model and a so-called probe mark on the human body model corresponding to the blood vessel area suitable for insertion onto the monitor 23; displaying the difference between the current position and tilt angle of the ultrasound probe 1 and the position of the blood vessel area suitable for insertion and the recommended tilt angle of the ultrasound probe 1 at that position onto the monitor 23; displaying the direction from the current position of the ultrasound probe 1 to the blood vessel area suitable for insertion onto the monitor 23, etc.

[0121] When the serpentine degree is below the serpentine degree threshold in two or more of the multiple intervals G1 to G4 of the centerline C, the guide unit 27 can, for example, guide the ultrasonic probe 1 to the interval with the minimum serpentine degree.

[0122] In medical settings, sometimes an insert, such as a puncture needle or catheter, is inserted into a blood vessel A of a patient for examination or treatment. To non-invasively confirm the positional relationship between the blood vessel A and the insert, a technique is known to use an ultrasound diagnostic device to capture ultrasound images U1 or U2 of the blood vessel A and the insert. In this technique, short-axis and long-axis images of the blood vessel A are alternately captured to observe the insertion. However, if the blood vessel A meanders in the transverse direction D1, it may appear as an interruption in the long-axis image, leading to problems such as inaccurate assessment of the insert's position within the vessel A. Therefore, it is preferable that the insertion site in the blood vessel A does not meander in the transverse direction D1.

[0123] Since the guide unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 to a region on the transverse D1 where the blood vessel A does not meander or meanders minimally, users of the ultrasound diagnostic device, such as doctors, can accurately grasp the positional relationship between the insert inserted into the patient and the blood vessel A by inserting the insert into the guided position, while advancing the operation technique.

[0124] Furthermore, the guiding unit 27 can, for example, obtain the depth of the blood vessel A from the body surface BS of the subject along the entire centerline C by referring to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, and guide the ultrasound probe 1 to a range where the serpentine degree is below the serpentine degree threshold and the depth of the blood vessel A is below a predetermined depth threshold. Here, the guiding unit 27 can measure the shortest distance along the depth direction between the body surface BS of the subject and the blood vessel A at each point in the course direction D2 of the blood vessel A as the depth of the blood vessel A. If the blood vessel A is located at a deeper position, it is difficult to insert the inserter into the blood vessel A. Therefore, when inserting the inserter into the blood vessel A, it is usually more common to choose the blood vessel A that is located within 2.0 cm, preferably within 1.5 cm, from the body surface BS as the insertion target. Therefore, the depth threshold can be set to 2.0 cm, and preferably 1.5 cm.

[0125] Furthermore, when the insert is a catheter, if the inner diameter of blood vessel A is smaller than the outer diameter of the catheter, the catheter cannot be inserted into blood vessel A. If the inner diameter of blood vessel A is too large compared to the outer diameter of the catheter, the dilation of blood vessel A based on the catheter will be insufficient, and the treatment effect may be worse. Therefore, in medical settings, the recommended inner diameter of the inserted blood vessel A is sometimes specified based on the outer diameter of the catheter. Thus, the guiding unit 27 can, for example, obtain the inner diameter of blood vessel A along the entire centerline C by referring to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, and guide the ultrasound probe 1 to a range where the serpentine degree is below the serpentine degree threshold and the inner diameter of blood vessel A is closest to the specified recommended inner diameter value. The recommended inner diameter value can, for example, be set to approximately three times the outer diameter of the catheter inserted into the patient.

[0126] Under the control of the device control unit 28, the display control unit 22 performs prescribed processing on the ultrasonic images U1 and U2 acquired by the image acquisition unit 30 and the information guided by the guidance unit 27, and displays them on the monitor 23.

[0127] The monitor 23 displays ultrasonic images U1, U2, etc. under the control of the display control unit 22, and has a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or an organic EL (Organic Electroluminescence Display).

[0128] The device control unit 28 controls each part of the device main body 2, the transceiver circuit 12 of the ultrasonic probe 1, and the position sensor 3 according to the pre-stored control program.

[0129] The input device 29 is used by the user to perform input operations, and consists of devices such as a keyboard, mouse, trackball, touchpad, and touch sensor stacked on top of the monitor 23.

[0130] In this embodiment, each process is executed by any computer. Furthermore, any computer can execute these processes via a processor 31 as hardware, a program as software, or a combination thereof. In this case, the processor 31 is configured to cooperate with the program to execute the various processes in this embodiment and can function as a unit or means in this embodiment. Moreover, the execution order of the processes based on the processor 31 is not limited to the order described and can be appropriately varied. Any computer can be a general-purpose computer, a purpose-built computer, a workstation, or other system capable of executing the processes.

[0131] The processor 31 can be composed of one or more hardware components, and the type of hardware is not limited. For example, the processor 31 can be composed of programmable logic devices such as CPUs (Central Processing Units), MPUs (Micro Processing Units), FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), dedicated circuits for performing specific processes such as ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), or NPUs (Neural Processing Units). Furthermore, the type of hardware can also be a combination of different types of hardware. When multiple hardware components are configured to execute one or more processes of the processor 31, these multiple hardware components can exist in physically separate devices or in the same device. Moreover, in any embodiment, the order of the processes based on the processor 31 is not limited to the above order and can be appropriately varied. Additionally, the hardware is composed of circuits, such as those combining semiconductor elements.

[0132] Furthermore, the program can be software such as firmware or microcode. The program can also be, for example, a group of program modules, whose various functions can be implemented by a processor 31 configured to perform their respective functions. The program can also be program code or multiple code segments stored on one or more non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., storage media or other storage devices). The program can be divided and stored on multiple non-transitory computer-readable media existing in physically separate devices. Program code or code segments can represent any combination of procedures, functions, subroutines, routines, subroutines, modules, software packages, classes or commands, data structures, or program statements. Program code or code segments can be connected to other code segments or hardware circuits by sending and receiving information, data, arguments, parameters, or memory contents.

[0133] Next, refer to Figure 12 The flowchart shown illustrates the operation of the ultrasonic diagnostic device according to Embodiment 1.

[0134] In step S1, for example, a pre-scan mode is initiated according to the user's instruction via input device 29. The user moves the ultrasound probe 1 along the blood vessel A while the ultrasound probe 1 is in contact with the body surface BS of the subject.

[0135] In step S2, the position sensor 3 acquires the current position information of the ultrasonic probe 1. The position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 acquired in step S2 is sent to the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24.

[0136] In step S3, the image acquisition unit 30 acquires, for example, an image such as... Figure 5 The image shown is an ultrasound image U1 representing the short-axis image of blood vessel A within the patient's body. At this time, under the control of the device control unit 28, ultrasound waves are transmitted and received from multiple transducers of the transducer array 11 according to the drive signal from the pulser 41 of the transducer circuit 12 of the ultrasound probe 1. The ultrasound echo from the patient's body is received by multiple transducers of the transducer array 11, and the received signal, as an analog signal, is output to the amplification unit 42 and amplified. It is then converted by the AD conversion unit 43 to obtain the received data.

[0137] The beamformer 44 performs receiving and focusing processing on the received data, and the resulting acoustic signal is sent to the image generation unit 21 of the device body 2, whereby the image generation unit 21 generates an ultrasound image U1. At this time, the signal processing unit 45 of the image generation unit 21 performs attenuation correction and envelope detection processing on the acoustic signal corresponding to the depth of the ultrasound reflection position, and the DSC 46 converts it into an image signal following the scanning method of a normal television signal. The image processing unit 47 then performs various necessary image processing such as grayscale processing. Thus, the ultrasound image U1 representing the short-axis image of blood vessel A generated in step S3 is not only sent to the display control unit 22 and displayed on the monitor 23, but also sent to the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24.

[0138] In step S4, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject body based on the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 obtained in step S2 and the ultrasound image U1 representing the short-axis image of blood vessel A obtained in step S3. At this time, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 extracts the short-axis image of blood vessel A reflected in the ultrasound image U1 obtained in step S3 and determines the three-dimensional structure of blood vessel A in the three-dimensional ultrasound image data.

[0139] In step S5, the device control unit 28 determines whether to end the preparatory scan. For example, if the device control unit 28 determines that the user has sufficiently acquired the ultrasound image U1 representing the short axis image of blood vessel A and has input an instruction to end the preparatory scan via the input device 29, the device control unit 28 can determine to end the preparatory scan. For example, if the device control unit 28 determines that the user has not sufficiently acquired the ultrasound image U1 and has not specifically instructed via the input device 29, the device control unit 28 can determine to continue the preparatory scan.

[0140] If it is determined in step S5 that the preparatory scan should continue, the process returns to step S2. Thus, whenever it is determined in step S5 that the preparatory scan should continue, the processing of steps S2 to S5 is repeated. Therefore, while the ultrasound probe 1 moves along the blood vessel A on the body surface BS of the subject, the position sensor 3 continuously acquires the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 and acquires multiple consecutive frames of ultrasound images U1. Each time the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 is acquired and an ultrasound image U1 is acquired, in step S4, data related to the three-dimensional structure within the subject body corresponding to the newly acquired ultrasound image U1 is cumulatively added to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data, constructing three-dimensional ultrasound image data representing the three-dimensional structure within the subject body.

[0141] If the pre-scan is determined to be terminated in step S5, then proceed to step S6. In step S6, the centerline acquisition unit 25 acquires, for example, the three-dimensional ultrasound image data acquired in step S4. Figure 7 The centerline C of blood vessel A is schematically shown in the diagram. The centerline acquisition unit 25 can acquire the centerline C of blood vessel A in three-dimensional space, for example, by performing fine-line processing on the three-dimensional structure of blood vessel A determined by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 in step S4.

[0142] In step S7, the serpentine calculation unit 26 calculates the serpentine degree of the centerline C obtained in step S6 along the transverse diameter direction D1 of the blood vessel A. The serpentine calculation unit 26 treats the body surface BS of the subject as a plane, for example, as... Figure 8 As shown, on any plane that is parallel to the short axis image of blood vessel A in the three-dimensional ultrasound image data and orthogonal to the body surface BS, the direction parallel to the body surface BS can be defined as the transverse diameter direction D1.

[0143] Moreover, for example, such as Figure 9 As shown, the serpentine calculation unit 26 can divide the centerline C into multiple intervals G1 to G4 with a predetermined length along the travel direction D2 of the blood vessel A, and calculate the serpentine degree in each interval. The length of each interval G1 to G4 can be set, for example, to a width that is orthogonal to the depth direction of the ultrasound image U2 representing the long axis image of the blood vessel A.

[0144] The serpentine degree calculation unit 26 applies the least squares method to each of, for example, multiple intervals G1 to G4 of the centerline C, such as... Figure 10As shown, the mean line E is calculated at each point on the centerline C in the travel direction D2, representing the average position of the centerline C in the lateral direction D1. The serpentine calculation unit 26 can also calculate multiple inflection points J1, J2 of the centerline C, and calculate the distances L1, L2 between each of the multiple inflection points J1, J2 and the mean line E. For example, the serpentine calculation unit 26 can calculate the number of inflection points J1, J2 whose distances L1, L2 are above a predetermined distance threshold for each of the multiple intervals G1 to G4 as the serpentine degree.

[0145] Furthermore, the serpentine degree calculation unit 26 can, for example, calculate the maximum value of the reciprocal of the interval K1 of the inflection points J1 and J2 along the course direction D2 of blood vessel A for each of the multiple intervals G1 to G4 as the serpentine degree.

[0146] In step S8, position sensor 3 acquires the current position information of ultrasonic probe 1 in the same manner as in step S2.

[0147] In step S9, the image acquisition unit 30 acquires an ultrasound image U1 representing the short axis image of blood vessel A or an ultrasound image U2 representing the long axis image of blood vessel A in the same manner as in step S3. The ultrasound image U1 or U2 acquired in step S9 is displayed on the monitor 23.

[0148] In step S10, the guide unit 27 guides the ultrasonic probe 1 to a range on the centerline C based on the serpentine degree of the centerline C calculated in step S7. At this time, the guide unit 27 can, for example, guide the ultrasonic probe 1 to a range on the centerline C where the serpentine degree is below a serpentine degree threshold among multiple intervals G1 to G4. The guide unit 27 can, for example, display the guidance of the ultrasonic probe 1 on the monitor 23. By confirming the guidance based on the guide unit 27, the user can move the ultrasonic probe 1 so that the ultrasonic probe 1 is positioned in an interval where the serpentine degree is below the serpentine degree threshold.

[0149] In step S11, the device control unit 28 determines whether the ultrasound probe 1 is appropriately positioned in a blood vessel region suitable for inserting the insert. For example, the device control unit 28 refers to the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 obtained in step S8. If the ultrasound probe 1 is positioned in the blood vessel region guided in step S10, the device control unit 28 can determine that the ultrasound probe 1 is appropriately positioned. Furthermore, if the ultrasound probe 1 is not positioned in the blood vessel region guided in step S10, the device control unit 28 can determine that the ultrasound probe 1 cannot be appropriately positioned.

[0150] If it is determined in step S11 that the ultrasound probe 1 cannot be properly configured, the process returns to step S8. Thus, whenever it is determined in step S11 that the ultrasound probe 1 cannot be properly configured, the process of steps S8 to S11 is repeated. During this period, while the user confirms the guidance in step S10, the ultrasound probe 1 is moved toward the position of the blood vessel area guided in step S10.

[0151] If it is determined in step S11 that the ultrasonic probe 1 can be properly configured, then the process is completed according to... Figure 12 The flowchart illustrates the operation of the ultrasound diagnostic device. This allows the user to easily acquire ultrasound images U1 and U2 of the vascular region suitable for inserting the insertion device. The user can then accurately and safely insert the insertion device into blood vessel A while simultaneously confirming these ultrasound images U1 and U2.

[0152] As can be seen from the above, in the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 1 of the present invention, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data based on the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 obtained by the position sensor 3 and the multi-frame ultrasound image U1 representing the short axis image of the blood vessel A obtained by the image acquisition unit 30. The centerline acquisition unit 25 acquires the centerline C of the blood vessel A in three-dimensional space based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data. The serpentine degree calculation unit 26 calculates the serpentine degree of the centerline C along the transverse diameter direction D1. The guiding unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 to the range on the centerline C based on the serpentine degree. Therefore, it is possible to easily acquire ultrasound images U1 and U2 of the blood vessel area suitable for inserting the insert.

[0153] Furthermore, the case where the transceiver circuit 12 is included in the ultrasonic probe 1 has been described, but the transceiver circuit 12 can also be included in the main body 2 of the device.

[0154] Furthermore, the case where the image generation unit 21 is provided in the main body 2 of the device has been described, but the image generation unit 21 may also be provided in the ultrasonic probe 1.

[0155] The main body 2 of the device can be either a fixed type or a portable type that is easy to carry, such as a handheld type consisting of a smartphone or tablet. Thus, the types of devices constituting the main body 2 are not particularly limited.

[0156] Furthermore, the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 acquired by the position sensor 3 can be composed solely of the position coordinates of the ultrasonic probe 1 in three-dimensional space. However, the position information includes not only the position coordinates of the ultrasonic probe 1 in three-dimensional space but also the angular coordinates of the ultrasonic probe 1 in three-dimensional space. Therefore, compared to the position information being composed solely of position coordinates, high-precision three-dimensional ultrasonic image data can be generated in the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24.

[0157] Furthermore, when acquiring multiple frames of ultrasound images U1 for generating three-dimensional ultrasound image data, it is ideal for the ultrasound probe 1 to be in perpendicular contact with the body surface BS of the subject in order to generate accurate three-dimensional ultrasound image data. Therefore, for example, the device control unit 28 determines whether the ultrasound probe 1 is in approximately perpendicular contact with the body surface BS of the subject by referring to the angular coordinates of the ultrasound probe 1 in three-dimensional space contained in the position information of the ultrasound probe 1. If the ultrasound probe 1 is not in approximately perpendicular contact with the body surface BS of the subject, the user can be alerted by the monitor 23. Here, approximately perpendicular means that the ultrasound probe 1 is in a certain angular range centered at 90 degrees, for example, within the range of 85 degrees to 95 degrees, relative to the body surface BS.

[0158] The method of guiding the ultrasonic probe 1 by the guide unit 27 and displaying the guidance content of the ultrasonic probe 1 on the monitor 23 has been described, but the guidance method is not particularly limited to this. For example, if the ultrasonic diagnostic device is equipped with a speaker (not shown), the guide unit 27 can guide the ultrasonic probe 1 by sound through the speaker.

[0159] Implementation Method 2

[0160] The case where the position sensor 3 is installed on the ultrasonic probe 1 has been described, but as long as the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 can be obtained, the position sensor 3 can also be independent of the ultrasonic probe 1.

[0161] The ultrasonic diagnostic device of the second embodiment is in Figure 1 The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus shown includes an ultrasound probe 1A that replaces the ultrasound probe 1 and is equipped with a marker that can be used as an AR (Augmented Reality) marker, such as ArUco (Augmented Reality University of Cordoba). It also includes a device body 2A that replaces the device body 2 and has an additional marker detection unit 51. Furthermore, it includes a position sensor 53 that replaces the position sensor 3 mounted on the ultrasound probe 1 and consists of an optical camera 52 that is separately arranged from the ultrasound probe 1A and the marker detection unit 51 of the device body 2A.

[0162] In the second embodiment, the device main body 2A, in addition to the marker detection unit 51, also includes a device control unit 28A that replaces the device control unit 28. The marker detection unit 51 is connected to the optical camera 52. Furthermore, the marker detection unit 51 is connected to the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 and the device control unit 28A. The processor 31A for the device main body 2A is composed of the image generation unit 21, the display control unit 22, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, the centerline acquisition unit 25, the serpentine calculation unit 26, the guide unit 27, the device control unit 28A, and the marker detection unit 51.

[0163] The optical camera 52 is connected to the device body 2A via wired or wireless communication and acquires optical images reflecting the ultrasonic probe 1A under the control of the device control unit 28A. The optical camera 52 may include, for example, a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) image sensor or a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) image sensor. The optical camera 52 may be fixedly positioned at a location where it can clearly capture the mark on the ultrasonic probe 1A. Furthermore, the optical camera 52 may also be fixedly positioned on a part of the user's body, such as the user's head. The optical image acquired by the optical camera 52 is sent to the mark detection unit 51.

[0164] The marker detection unit 51 acquires the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1A by detecting markers projected onto the optical image acquired by the optical camera 52. The marker detection unit 51 can detect markers and acquire the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1A by using known algorithms for reading graphics used as AR markers. For example, if the marker represents ArUco, the algorithm for ArUco included in OpenCV (registered trademark), a library, can be used to detect the marker and acquire the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1A.

[0165] The three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject body based on the multi-frame ultrasound image U1 representing the short axis image of blood vessel A acquired by the image acquisition unit 30 and the position information of ultrasound probe 1A acquired by the position sensor 53.

[0166] The centerline acquisition unit 25 acquires the centerline C of blood vessel A based on three-dimensional ultrasound image data, the serpentine calculation unit 26 calculates the serpentine degree of the centerline C, and the guiding unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1A based on the serpentine degree.

[0167] The guide unit 27 can also superimpose the guidance of the ultrasonic probe 1A onto the optical image acquired by the optical camera 52 based on the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1A obtained by the mark detection unit 51, and display it on the monitor 23. In this case, for example, as Figure 14 As shown, the guide unit 27 can superimpose an arrow F indicating the direction in which the ultrasound probe 1A should be moved toward the blood vessel region suitable for insertion onto the optical image Q. Additionally, Figure 14 An example is shown where an ultrasonic probe 1A, marked with a label B and held on the subject's hand H, is positioned on the subject's wrist M. Furthermore, for example, as... Figure 15 As shown, as a guide for the ultrasound probe 1A, the guide section 27 can also highlight the vascular region R suitable for inserting the insert on the optical image Q.

[0168] By confirming the guidance of the ultrasound probe 1A superimposed on the optical image Q, the user can easily position the ultrasound probe 1A in the vascular region R suitable for inserting the object.

[0169] As can be seen from the above, even when the position sensor 53 is composed of an optical camera 52 and a marker detection unit 51, as in the case where the position sensor 3 is installed on the ultrasound probe 1 as in the case of embodiment 1, the guide unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1A to the range on the center line C according to the serpentine degree, so it is also possible to easily obtain ultrasound images U1 and U2 of the blood vessel region R suitable for inserting the insert.

[0170] Furthermore, as an example of a position sensor independent of the ultrasonic probe 1A, a position sensor 53 consisting of a marker detection unit 51 and an optical camera 52 has been described. However, the types of position sensors independent of the ultrasonic probe 1A are not particularly limited to this. For example, although not shown, a position sensor may also consist of a so-called range sensor independent of the ultrasonic probe 1A and an analysis unit that analyzes the signals acquired by the range sensor. The analysis part can, for example, use "ZHAO, Mingmin, et al. Through-wall human pose estimation using radio signals. In: Proceedings of the IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition. 2018. p. 7356-7365.", "VASILEIADIS, Manolis; BOUGANIS, Christos-Savvas; TZOVARAS, Dimitrios. Multi-person 3D pose estimation from 3D clouddata using 3D convolutional neural networks. Computer Vision and ImageUnderstanding, 2019, 185: 12-23.", "JIANG, Wenjun, et al. Towards 3D humanpose construction using WiFi. In: Proceedings of the 26th AnnualInternational Conference on Mobile Computing and Networking. 2020. p. 1-14." or "WANG, Fei, et al. Person-in-WiFi: Fine-grained person perception usingWiFi. The method described in "Proceedings of the IEEE / CVF International Conference on ComputerVision. 2019. pp. 5452-5461" is used to obtain the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1A.

[0171] Implementation Method 3

[0172] To acquire high-precision three-dimensional ultrasound image data and accurately guide the ultrasound probe 1 to the suitable vascular region R for insertion, ideally, the patient's posture should remain unchanged from the start of acquiring multiple frames of ultrasound images U1 to the insertion of the probe into the patient. However, sometimes the patient's posture may change for various reasons. Therefore, to accommodate changes in the patient's posture, the ultrasound diagnostic device can use the relative position of the ultrasound probe 1 based on the location of the patient as position information.

[0173] exist Figure 16 The structure of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 3 is shown in the figure. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 3 is... Figure 1 In the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 1 shown, a device body 2B is provided instead of the device body 2, and an optical camera 52 is further added. This optical camera 52 is the same as the optical camera 52 in Embodiment 2. In Embodiment 3, the device body 2B, in addition to the device body 2 of Embodiment 1, also provides a relative position information conversion unit 54, and a device control unit 28B is provided instead of the device control unit 28.

[0174] A relative position information conversion unit 54 is connected to the position sensor 3 and the optical camera 52. The relative position information conversion unit 54 is connected to the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 and the device control unit 28B. Furthermore, the processor 31B for the device main body 2B is composed of the image generation unit 21, the display control unit 22, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, the centerline acquisition unit 25, the serpentine calculation unit 26, the guidance unit 27, the device control unit 28B, and the relative position information conversion unit 54.

[0175] The relative position information conversion unit 54 converts the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 acquired by the position sensor 3 into relative position information relative to a specific part reflected in the optical image Q, based on the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 acquired by the position sensor 3 and the optical image Q acquired by the optical camera 52. The relative position information conversion unit 54 may pre-store multiple specific parts of the human body, such as the wrist, as reference parts. It can detect one reference part and the ultrasonic probe 1 reflected in the optical image Q acquired by the optical camera 52, and convert the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 into relative position information based on the detected positional relationship between the reference part and the ultrasonic probe 1 and the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1.

[0176] The relative position information conversion unit 54 can detect a specific body part and the ultrasonic probe 1 from an optical image Q, for example, by using a template matching method or a learning completion model in machine learning that has been pre-learned from multiple optical images Q that reflect a specific body part and multiple optical images Q that reflect the ultrasonic probe 1. Furthermore, the relative position information conversion unit 54 can, for example, convert the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 into relative position information by using a learning completion model that has learned the relationship between the positional relationship between a specific body part in the optical image Q and the ultrasonic probe 1, and the relationship between the positional information of the ultrasonic probe 1 in three-dimensional space.

[0177] The three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 uses the relative position information converted by the relative position information conversion unit 54 as the position information of the ultrasonic probe 1 to generate three-dimensional ultrasonic image data of the subject.

[0178] The centerline acquisition unit 25 acquires the centerline C of blood vessel A based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated in this way, and the serpentine calculation unit 26 calculates the serpentine degree of the centerline C.

[0179] The guide unit 27 determines the suitable vascular region R for inserting the insert based on the serpentine motion, and guides the ultrasound probe 1 to the determined vascular region R based on the relative position information of the ultrasound probe 1.

[0180] As can be seen from the above, according to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 3, the relative position information conversion unit 54 converts the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 into the relative position information of the ultrasound probe 1 relative to the position of a specific part of the human body captured in the optical image Q. The guide unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 to the blood vessel region R suitable for insertion of the insert based on the serpentine degree and the relative position information. Therefore, even if the posture of the subject changes midway, the ultrasound probe 1 can be guided to the blood vessel region R with good accuracy.

[0181] Furthermore, while the case where the relative position information conversion unit 54, a feature of Embodiment 3, can be added to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 1 has been described, it can also be added to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 2, which has a position sensor 53 consisting of a marker detection unit 51 and an optical camera 52 that replaces the position sensor 3.

[0182] Implementation Method 4

[0183] In embodiments 1 to 3, the method in which only one blood vessel A is reflected in the ultrasound images U1 and U2 was described. However, depending on the observation site, sometimes multiple blood vessels A are reflected in the ultrasound images U1 and U2.

[0184] exist Figure 17The structure of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 4 is shown in the figure. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 4 is... Figure 1 In the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 1 shown, a device body 2C is provided to replace the device body 2. In Embodiment 4, the device body 2C adds an attention calculation unit 55 to the device body 2 of Embodiment 1, and provides a device control unit 28C to replace the device control unit 28.

[0185] In the main body 2C of the device, an attention calculation unit 55 is connected to the image generation unit 21 and the center line acquisition unit 25. The attention calculation unit 55 is connected to the guidance unit 27 and the device control unit 28C. Furthermore, the processor 31C for the main body 2C is composed of the image generation unit 21, the display control unit 22, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, the center line acquisition unit 25, the serpentine calculation unit 26, the guidance unit 27, the device control unit 28C, and the attention calculation unit 55.

[0186] The image acquisition unit 30 acquires a multi-frame ultrasound image U1 representing short-axis images of multiple blood vessels A.

[0187] The three-dimensional image data generation unit 24 generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject containing a three-dimensional structure of multiple blood vessels A based on the multiple frames of ultrasound images U1 acquired by the image acquisition unit 30 and the position information of the ultrasound probe 1 acquired by the position sensor 3.

[0188] The centerline acquisition unit 25 acquires the centerline C of each of the multiple blood vessels A based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24.

[0189] The attention calculation unit 55 calculates the attention level of each of the multiple blood vessels A based on the positions of the multiple blood vessels A in each of the multiple frames of ultrasound images U1 acquired by the image acquisition unit 30, or the length of the centerline C acquired by the centerline acquisition unit 25 for each of the multiple blood vessels A. Here, attention level refers to an index representing the degree of attention a user pays to each of the multiple blood vessels A.

[0190] For example, the closer the location of blood vessel A in ultrasound image U1 is to the center of ultrasound image U1, the higher the attention it receives from the user. Therefore, the attention calculation unit 55 calculates, for example, the average position of each of the multiple blood vessels A in multiple frames of ultrasound images U1, and the blood vessel A whose average position is closer to the center of ultrasound image U1 can be assigned a higher attention.

[0191] Furthermore, the user typically moves the ultrasound probe 1 along the surface BS of the subject's body along the blood vessel A of interest to acquire multiple frames of ultrasound images U1. Therefore, for example, the longer the centerline C of blood vessel A is in the direction D2 of blood vessel A, the higher the user's attention level can be determined. Thus, for example, the blood vessel A with a longer centerline C in the direction D2, the attention calculation unit 55 can assign a higher level of attention.

[0192] The guiding unit 27 designates the vessel A with the highest attention among multiple attention values ​​calculated by the attention calculation unit 55 for multiple vessel A as the vessel A to be guided. The guiding unit 27 further guides the ultrasound probe 1 in the designated vessel A according to the serpentine degree calculated by the serpentine degree calculation unit 26.

[0193] As can be seen from the above, according to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 4, the attention calculation unit 55 calculates the attention of each of the multiple blood vessels A reflected in the ultrasound image U1, and the guiding unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 in the blood vessel A with the highest attention. Therefore, even when multiple blood vessels A are reflected in the ultrasound image U1, it is possible to obtain ultrasound images U1 and U2 of the blood vessel region R suitable for inserting the insert.

[0194] Furthermore, regarding the device structure of the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus in Embodiment 4, the structure in which an attention calculation unit 55 is added to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus in Embodiment 1 has been described, but the attention calculation unit 55 can also be added to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus in Embodiments 2 and 3.

[0195] Implementation Method 5

[0196] In Implementation 4, the case where multiple blood vessels A are reflected in the ultrasound image U1, the case where the blood vessel A of the guiding object is specified according to the degree of attention is described. However, for example, it is also possible to calculate the suitability of the object as an insertion object for each of the multiple blood vessels A, and specify the blood vessel A of the guiding object according to the calculated suitability.

[0197] exist Figure 18 The structure of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 5 is shown in the figure. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 5 is... Figure 1 The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of Embodiment 1 shown includes a device body 2D that replaces the device body 2. In Embodiment 5, the device body 2D adds a fit calculation unit 56 to the device body 2 of Embodiment 1, and includes a device control unit 28D that replaces the device control unit 28.

[0198] In the main body 2D of the device, a fit calculation unit 56 is connected to the image generation unit 21 and the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24. The fit calculation unit 56 is connected to the guide unit 27 and the device control unit 28D. Furthermore, the image generation unit 21, the display control unit 22, the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, the center line acquisition unit 25, the serpentine calculation unit 26, the guide unit 27, the device control unit 28D, and the fit calculation unit 56 constitute the processor 31D for the main body 2D of the device.

[0199] The fit calculation unit 56 calculates the fit of each of the multiple blood vessels A by referring to three-dimensional ultrasound image data containing a three-dimensional structure of multiple blood vessels A generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit 24, based on the depth of each of the multiple blood vessels A relative to the body surface BS of the subject or the inner diameter of each of the multiple blood vessels A. Here, fit is an index indicating the degree to which a blood vessel A is suitable for inserting an inserter.

[0200] For example, generally, the shallower the blood vessel A is, the easier it is to insert the insert into blood vessel A, and thus blood vessel A can be judged as having a high fit for insertion. Therefore, the fit calculation unit 56 calculates the average depth of blood vessel A along the corresponding centerline C for each of the multiple blood vessels A, and the smaller the average depth of the calculated blood vessel A, the higher the fit can be assigned.

[0201] Furthermore, when the insert is a catheter, if the inner diameter of vessel A is smaller than the outer diameter of the catheter, the catheter cannot be inserted into vessel A. If the inner diameter of vessel A is too large compared to the outer diameter of the catheter, the dilation of vessel A based on the catheter will be insufficient, and the treatment effect may be worse. Therefore, the fit calculation unit 56 calculates the average inner diameter of each of the multiple vessels A along the corresponding centerline C. The closer the calculated average inner diameter is to the recommended inner diameter value, the higher the fit can be assigned to the vessel A. The recommended inner diameter value can be set, for example, to about three times the outer diameter of the catheter.

[0202] The guiding unit 27 designates the vessel A with the highest fit among the multiple fits calculated by the fit calculation unit 56 for multiple vessels A as the vessel A to be guided. The guiding unit 27 further guides the ultrasound probe 1 in the designated vessel A according to the serpentine degree calculated by the serpentine degree calculation unit 26.

[0203] As can be seen from the above, according to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus of embodiment 5, the fit calculation unit 56 calculates the fit of each of the plurality of blood vessels A reflected in the ultrasound image U1, and the guide unit 27 guides the ultrasound probe 1 in the blood vessel A with the greatest fit. Therefore, even when the plurality of blood vessels A are reflected in the ultrasound image U1, it is possible to obtain ultrasound images U1 and U2 of the blood vessel region R suitable for inserting the insert.

[0204] Furthermore, regarding the device structure of the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus in Embodiment 5, the structure in which a fit calculation unit 56 is added to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus in Embodiment 1 has been described, but a fit calculation unit 56 can also be added to the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus in Embodiments 2 and 3.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic diagnostic device, comprising: Ultrasonic probe; A position sensor is used to acquire the position information of the ultrasonic probe; The image acquisition unit acquires multiple frames of ultrasound images of the blood vessels of the subject by using the ultrasound probe to transmit and receive ultrasound beams. The three-dimensional image data generation unit generates three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject based on the position information of the ultrasound probe obtained by the position sensor and the multiple frames of ultrasound images representing the short-axis image of the blood vessel obtained by the image acquisition unit. The centerline acquisition unit acquires the centerline of the blood vessel in three-dimensional space based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit. The serpentineness calculation unit calculates the serpentineness of the centerline acquired by the centerline acquisition unit along the transverse diameter direction of the blood vessel, which is perpendicular to the plane corresponding to the minor axis image of the blood vessel; and The guiding unit guides the ultrasonic probe to the range on the centerline based on the serpentine degree calculated by the serpentine degree calculation unit.

2. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 1, wherein, The serpentine degree calculation unit performs the following processing: Divide the centerline into multiple intervals of a specified length; and The serpentine degree is calculated in each of the plurality of intervals.

3. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 2, wherein, The serpentine degree calculation unit performs the following processing: Calculate the average position of the centerline in the transverse radial direction; and In each of the plurality of intervals, the number of inflection points of the centerline at a distance of more than a predetermined position threshold from the average position is calculated as the serpentine degree.

4. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 2, wherein, The serpentine degree calculation unit calculates the reciprocal of the interval between adjacent inflection points of the center line in the plurality of intervals as the serpentine degree.

5. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 1, wherein, The guide unit guides the ultrasonic probe to a range on the center line where the serpentine degree calculated by the serpentine degree calculation unit is below a predetermined serpentine degree threshold.

6. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 1, wherein, The guide section performs the following processing: By referring to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit, the depth of the blood vessels relative to the body surface of the subject is obtained along the entire centerline; and The ultrasound probe is guided to a range where the serpentine degree is below a specified serpentine degree threshold and the depth of the blood vessel is below a specified depth threshold.

7. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 1, wherein, The guide section performs the following processing: The inner diameter of the blood vessel is obtained along the entire centerline by referring to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit; and The ultrasound probe is guided to a range where the serpentinization is below a specified serpentinization threshold and the inner diameter of the blood vessel is closest to a specified recommended inner diameter value.

8. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 2, wherein, In two or more of the multiple intervals, the serpentine degree is below a specified serpentine degree threshold. The guide unit guides the ultrasonic probe to the interval with the smallest serpentine degree among the two or more intervals.

9. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a monitor. The guide unit displays the guidance of the ultrasonic probe on the monitor.

10. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 9, wherein, The ultrasonic probe is equipped with markings. The position sensor includes: An optical camera acquires an optical image reflecting the ultrasonic probe; and The marker detection unit obtains the position information of the ultrasonic probe by detecting the markers reflected in the optical image acquired by the optical camera. The guiding unit superimposes the guidance of the ultrasonic probe onto the optical image acquired by the optical camera and displays it on the monitor based on the position information of the ultrasonic probe obtained by the marker detection unit.

11. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, comprising: The ultrasonic probe; An optical camera acquires an optical image reflecting a specific part of the subject; and The relative position information conversion unit converts the position information acquired by the position sensor and the optical image acquired by the optical camera into relative position information relative to the specific part reflected in the optical image. The three-dimensional image data generation unit uses the relative position information converted by the relative position information conversion unit as the position information of the ultrasonic probe acquired by the position sensor.

12. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 1, wherein, In each of the multiple ultrasound images, multiple blood vessels are reflected. The ultrasound diagnostic device includes an attention calculation unit, which calculates the attention of each of the plurality of blood vessels based on the position of the plurality of blood vessels in each of the plurality of ultrasound images or the length of the centerline obtained by the centerline acquisition unit for each of the plurality of blood vessels. The guiding unit guides the ultrasound probe in a blood vessel having the largest of a plurality of attention values ​​calculated by the attention calculation unit, based on the serpentinability calculated by the serpentinability calculation unit.

13. The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to claim 1, wherein, In each of the multiple ultrasound images, multiple blood vessels are reflected. The ultrasound diagnostic device includes a fit calculation unit that calculates the fit of each of the plurality of blood vessels by referring to the three-dimensional ultrasound image data generated by the three-dimensional image data generation unit, based on the depth of the blood vessels relative to the body surface of the subject or the inner diameter of the blood vessels. The guide unit guides the ultrasound probe in a blood vessel having the largest fit among a plurality of fits calculated by the fit calculation unit, based on the serpentinability calculated by the serpentinability calculation unit.

14. A control method for an ultrasonic diagnostic device, wherein, Obtain the position information of the ultrasonic probe; By using the ultrasonic probe to transmit and receive ultrasonic beams, multiple frames of ultrasonic images representing the short axis images of the blood vessels of the subject are acquired. The three-dimensional ultrasound image data of the subject is generated based on the position information of the ultrasound probe and the multiple frames of ultrasound images. The centerline of the blood vessel in three-dimensional space is obtained based on the three-dimensional ultrasound image data; Calculate the serpentine degree of the centerline along the transverse diameter direction of the blood vessel, perpendicular to the plane corresponding to the minor axis image of the blood vessel; and The ultrasonic probe is guided to the range on the center line according to the described serpentine degree.

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