Ultrasound diagnostic device and operating condition setting method

Abstract

To automatically and speedily optimize transmission and reception conditions and data processing conditions at the time of executing a CFM mode.SOLUTION: A received data string 78 made of a plurality of pieces of received data corresponding to a plurality of transmission and reception conditions is generated. A plurality of data processes according to a plurality of data processing conditions are applied to each of the received data. This generates a blood flow data set 79 from the received data string 78. By evaluating the blood flow data set 79, optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions are determined.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and an operating condition setting method, and in particular to optimization of operating conditions. [Background technology]

[0002] An ultrasound diagnostic device has a number of operation modes. The operation modes generally include a color flow mapping mode (CFM mode). The CFM mode is a mode that displays a composite image in which a color blood flow image is superimposed on a black-and-white tomographic image. The CFM mode is also called a color Doppler mode.

[0003] In order to obtain good blood flow images in CFM mode, it is necessary to optimize the operating conditions set in the ultrasound diagnostic system according to the patient and the purpose of the examination. In particular, it is necessary to optimize both the transmission and reception conditions and the data processing conditions.

[0004] The transmission and reception conditions are conditions for transmitting and receiving ultrasound to obtain Doppler information. The data processing conditions are conditions for processing signals and data to image the Doppler information. An example of a transmission and reception condition is the transmit pulse repetition period (PRT) (transmit pulse repetition frequency (PRF)). An example of a data processing condition is the cutoff frequency of a filter that suppresses clutter components (strong components derived from slow-moving tissues) contained in the received signal.

[0005] For example, when observing veins in the kidneys or the lower limbs, if the transmission / reception conditions and data processing conditions are not set appropriately, the veins may not be shown in color at all on the CFM image, or even the soft tissue may be shown in excessive color.

[0006] It is not necessarily easy for users (doctors, technicians, etc.) to manually optimize transmission and reception conditions and data processing conditions to suit various situations. The problem becomes greater the more parameters there are to be adjusted.

[0007] The ultrasonic diagnostic device disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a function of automatically setting the PRF based on Doppler shift distribution data. The ultrasonic diagnostic device disclosed in Patent Document 2 has a function of automatically setting conditions for removing clutter components. The ultrasonic diagnostic device disclosed in Patent Document 3 has a CFM calculation unit equipped with a decimator. None of the patent documents discloses a technique for simultaneously optimizing transmission / reception conditions and data processing conditions in CFM mode. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-27454 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2004-73672 A [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 8-154935 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0009] In order to obtain good blood flow images, it is necessary to optimize the transmission and reception conditions and the data processing conditions. It is not easy to manually optimize both the transmission and reception conditions and the signal processing conditions at the same time.

[0010] An object of the present disclosure is to reduce the burden on a user by automatically optimizing transmission / reception conditions and data processing conditions, or to automatically and quickly optimize transmission / reception conditions and data processing conditions when executing a CFM mode. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] The ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to the present disclosure is characterized in including: a first generating unit that generates a received data sequence consisting of a plurality of received data corresponding to a plurality of transmission and reception conditions; a second generating unit that applies a plurality of data processing operations according to a plurality of data processing conditions to each of the received data to generate a plurality of blood flow data, thereby generating a blood flow dataset from the received data sequence; an evaluation unit that determines optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions by evaluating the blood flow dataset; and a setting unit that sets the optimal transmission and reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions.

[0012] The method for setting operating conditions for an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a step of generating a received data sequence consisting of a plurality of received data corresponding to a plurality of transmission and reception conditions, a step of applying a plurality of data processing processes according to a plurality of data processing conditions to each of the received data to generate a plurality of blood flow data, thereby generating a blood flow dataset from the received data sequence, a step of determining optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions by evaluating the blood flow dataset, and a step of setting the optimal transmission and reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to the present disclosure, the transmission / reception conditions and the data processing conditions can be automatically optimized to reduce the burden on the user. Alternatively, according to the present disclosure, the transmission / reception conditions and the data processing conditions can be automatically and quickly optimized in the CFM mode. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a blood flow image forming unit. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the filter characteristics of a clutter filter. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the conversion characteristics of a logarithmic converter. [Diagram 5]FIG. 11 illustrates a first received data processing method. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 illustrates a second received data processing method. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 illustrates a third received data processing method. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of the configuration of an optimal condition searching unit. [Figure 9] 13 is a flowchart showing an operation example. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining an effect of optimization. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0016] (1) Overview of the embodiment An ultrasound diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment has a first generating unit, a second generating unit, an evaluating unit, and a setting unit. The first generating unit generates a received data sequence consisting of a plurality of received data corresponding to a plurality of transmission and reception conditions. The second generating unit applies a plurality of data processing according to a plurality of data processing conditions to each received data to generate a plurality of blood flow data, thereby generating a blood flow data set from the received data sequence. The evaluating unit evaluates the blood flow data set to determine optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions. The setting unit sets the optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions.

[0017] A plurality of condition combinations are defined based on a plurality of transmission / reception conditions and a plurality of data processing conditions. According to the above configuration, a plurality of blood flow data corresponding to the plurality of condition combinations are automatically generated, and optimal transmission / reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions are automatically determined and set through evaluation of the plurality of blood flow data. Therefore, the quality of blood flow images can be improved without imposing a burden on the user.

[0018] Even if optimal transmission and reception conditions are set, the quality of the blood flow image cannot be improved unless optimal data processing conditions are set. Similarly, even if optimal data processing conditions are set, the quality of the blood flow image cannot be improved unless optimal transmission and reception conditions are set. With the above configuration, the transmission and reception conditions and the data processing conditions can be optimized simultaneously.

[0019] The transmission and reception conditions are generally composed of one or more parameters that define the transmission and reception of ultrasound. The data processing conditions are generally composed of one or more parameters that define data processing. Setting the optimal conditions means enabling the optimal conditions. The optimal transmission and reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions are set for an ultrasound diagnostic device, and more specifically, typically for a transmission and reception unit and a data processing unit in the ultrasound diagnostic device. In order to speed up data processing, each piece of received data may be stored in a memory, and multiple data processing processes may be applied sequentially to the same received data repeatedly read out from the memory.

[0020] In an embodiment, the first generation unit includes a transmission / reception unit and a processing unit. At least one actual transmission / reception condition is set in the transmission / reception unit. The transmission / reception unit outputs at least one actual reception data corresponding to the at least one actual transmission / reception condition. The processing unit processes the at least one actual reception data to generate at least one virtual reception data corresponding to the at least one virtual transmission / reception condition. The above-mentioned multiple transmission / reception conditions are composed of at least one actual transmission / reception condition and at least one virtual transmission / reception condition. The above-mentioned reception data string is composed of at least one actual reception data and at least one virtual reception data.

[0021] If one or more virtual received data can be generated from one actual received data, the number of transmissions and receptions can be reduced. Virtual received data can be called pseudo received data.

[0022] The transceiver and pre-processing unit, which will be described later, correspond to the first processing unit, or the transceiver corresponds to the first processing unit, and the blood flow image forming unit, which will be described later, corresponds to the second processing unit.

[0023] In an embodiment, the at least one actual transmission / reception condition is a plurality of actual transmission / reception conditions. The at least one actual reception data is a plurality of actual reception data. The at least one virtual transmission / reception condition is a plurality of virtual transmission / reception conditions. The at least one virtual reception data is a plurality of virtual reception data. With this configuration, a large number of reception data corresponding to a large number of condition combinations can be easily generated.

[0024] In an embodiment, each of the actual reception data includes a plurality of packets that are obtained under the same actual transmission and reception conditions and are arranged on a time axis. The processing unit applies a packet thinning process to each of the actual reception data, thereby generating one or more virtual reception data from each of the actual reception data.

[0025] In a provisional measurement for searching for an optimal combination of conditions, ultrasonic waves are transmitted and reflected waves are received along one or more sound lines. A plurality of received beam data acquired sequentially from the same sound line constitutes a packet train. In general, motion information is generated by applying an autocorrelation calculation or the like to a Doppler data train extracted from the packet train. Packet thinning processing corresponds to an increase in the transmit pulse repetition period (PRT) (a decrease in the transmit pulse repetition frequency (PRF)). With the above configuration, it is possible to obtain receive data similar to that obtained when the PRT is varied, without actually varying the PRT.

[0026] After the provisional measurement, a final measurement (actual measurement) is performed. The provisional measurement and the final measurement are performed consecutively on the same subject. When an examiner manually searches for an optimal combination of conditions, the search may take a long time, or the optimal combination of conditions may not be identified. The ultrasound diagnostic device according to the embodiment can prevent such problems from occurring, and reduce the burden on both the examiner and the subject.

[0027] In the embodiment, the evaluation unit has a calculation unit and a judgment unit. The calculation unit calculates an evaluation value for each blood flow data based on the blood flow data. The judgment unit judges optimal transmission / reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions based on multiple evaluation values ​​corresponding to multiple blood flow data. Various evaluation methods may be adopted for evaluating each blood flow data, i.e., evaluating each combination of conditions. For example, an evaluation value reflecting the ratio of blood flow signals to non-blood flow signals (SN ratio), an evaluation value reflecting the proportion of the blood flow image in the blood flow region, an evaluation value reflecting the amount of blood flow image protruding from the blood flow region, etc. may be adopted. Note that the optimal condition search unit described later corresponds to the evaluation unit and the setting unit, and also corresponds to the calculation unit and the judgment unit.

[0028] In the embodiment, a reference region is set for the blood flow region on the beam scanning surface. The calculation unit refers to a portion of the blood flow data corresponding to the reference region as blood flow information for each blood flow data, and refers to the entire blood flow data or other portions of the blood flow data as contrast information for each blood flow data. Then, the calculation unit calculates an evaluation value for each blood flow data based on the blood flow information and the contrast information.

[0029] The reference region is set manually or automatically. The reference region is a one-dimensional region, a two-dimensional region, or a three-dimensional region. The reference region may be composed of several or several tens of pixels aligned on a specific sound line. The reference region may be set across multiple sound lines. A control region is set separately from the reference region. The control region is a region to be compared with the reference region, and is a one-dimensional region, a two-dimensional region, or a three-dimensional region. The control region may be set as a region separate from the reference region that does not include the reference region, or the control region may be set as a region that includes the reference region when the reference region is relatively small. Note that the portion of the blood flow data that corresponds to the reference region is the portion of interest, and other portions of the blood flow data are portions other than the portion of interest.

[0030] In an embodiment, each transmission / reception condition includes a transmit pulse repetition period. Each data processing condition includes a filter characteristic. The optimal transmission / reception condition includes an optimal transmit pulse repetition period. The optimal data processing condition includes an optimal filter characteristic.

[0031] An operating condition setting method for an ultrasound diagnostic device according to an embodiment includes a first generating step, a second generating step, an evaluating step, and a setting step. In the first generating step, a reception data sequence consisting of a plurality of reception data corresponding to a plurality of transmission / reception conditions is generated. In the second generating step, a plurality of data processes according to a plurality of data processing conditions are applied to each reception data to generate a plurality of blood flow data. As a result, a blood flow data set is generated from the reception data sequence. In the evaluating step, the blood flow data set is evaluated to determine optimal transmission / reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions. In the setting step, the optimal transmission / reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions are set.

[0032] According to the above method, when the CFM mode is selected, the optimum combination of conditions for the subject can be determined and set quickly prior to the actual measurement of the subject.

[0033] (2) Details of the embodiment FIG. 1 shows an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment. This ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is a medical apparatus for performing ultrasonic examinations on subjects in medical institutions such as hospitals. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus has a number of operation modes including a CFM mode. The CFM mode is a mode in which a color blood flow image is superimposed on a black-and-white tissue tomographic image, and a composite image generated thereby is displayed. In the following, the configuration and operation related to the CFM mode will be mainly described.

[0034] The ultrasonic probe 10 transmits ultrasonic waves into the living body 12 while in contact with the living body 12, and receives reflected waves from the living body 12. The ultrasonic probe 10 has a transducer element array consisting of a plurality of transducer elements arranged in a straight line or an arc. The transducer element array forms an ultrasonic beam 14, and electronically scans the ultrasonic beam 14. Known electronic scanning methods include an electronic linear scanning method and an electronic sector scanning method. By repeatedly electronically scanning the ultrasonic beam, a beam scanning plane 16 is repeatedly formed. A two-dimensional transducer element array may be provided in the ultrasonic probe 10, and volume data may be acquired from within the living body 12.

[0035] The ultrasonic diagnostic device according to the embodiment has a function of performing a provisional measurement prior to the actual measurement when the CFM mode is selected, thereby setting an optimal condition combination. In the provisional measurement, an ultrasonic beam may be repeatedly formed along a specific sound line (specific scanning line), or electronic scanning of the ultrasonic beam may be repeated within a narrow scanning range corresponding to a reference range described later. The actual measurement corresponds to an examination process in which an ultrasonic examination is performed on a subject, and the provisional measurement corresponds to a preparation process (or tuning process) before the actual measurement.

[0036] In the illustrated example, the beam scanning plane 16 includes a cross section of a blood vessel 18. The blood vessel 18 is, for example, a vein in the kidney or a vein in the lower limb. When imaging the blood flowing in these blood vessels, it is necessary to optimize a large number of parameters. Such an operation is generally difficult and time-consuming. In order to eliminate or reduce such problems, a function for setting the above-mentioned optimal combination of conditions is provided.

[0037] The transmitting / receiving unit 19 is composed of a transmitting unit 20 and a receiving unit 22. The transmitting unit 20 is an electronic circuit that supplies multiple transmission signals in parallel to multiple transducer elements during transmission. A transmission beam is formed by supplying multiple transmission signals. The receiving unit 22 is an electronic circuit that generates reception beam data by processing multiple reception signals output in parallel from multiple transducer elements during reception. The processing in the receiving unit 22 includes phasing addition (delay addition), quadrature detection, etc.

[0038] A plurality of reception beam data for forming a tomographic image are sequentially output from the receiving unit 22 to the tomographic image forming unit 30. The tomographic image forming unit 30 has a digital scan converter (DSC) that forms a tomographic image based on the plurality of reception beam data. The DSC has a coordinate conversion function, a pixel interpolation function, a frame rate conversion function, etc. A tomographic image is an image that represents a soft tissue structure in a living body. Data representing the tomographic image is sent from the tomographic image forming unit 30 to a display processing unit 38.

[0039] During the actual measurement, the pre-processor 32 does not function, and multiple pieces of receive beam data for forming a blood flow image are output from the receiver 22 to the blood flow image forming unit 36. The blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​forms a blood flow image based on the multiple pieces of receive beam data. The blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​has a clutter filter, an autocorrelator, a DSC, etc.

[0040] Specifically, during the measurement, multiple reception beam data (multiple packets) are continuously acquired for each sound ray. In other words, one packet train is acquired for each sound ray. Acquisition of packet trains is repeated while switching sound ray addresses along the electronic scanning direction. Based on the multiple packet trains thus obtained, the blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​generates a received blood flow image.

[0041] The blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​according to the embodiment has a function of forming a plurality of types of blood flow images. The plurality of types of blood flow images include a blood flow image showing a velocity distribution (two-dimensional distribution of blood flow velocity) on the beam scanning surface, an auxiliary blood flow image showing a variance distribution (two-dimensional distribution of variance of blood flow velocity) on the beam scanning surface, a blood flow image showing a power distribution (two-dimensional distribution of blood flow power) on the beam scanning surface, and the like. A specific blood flow image selected by the user is displayed. A blood flow image showing a velocity distribution and a variance distribution may also be displayed. Data showing the blood flow image is sent to the display processing unit 38.

[0042] In the calculation of blood flow information, one packet train constitutes one data unit. In the following, the packet train may be referred to as received data.

[0043] During the provisional measurement, a plurality of pieces of received data (a plurality of packet trains) corresponding to a plurality of transmission and reception conditions are generated, and a plurality of data processing conditions are applied to each piece of received data (packet trains), thereby generating a plurality of pieces of blood flow data corresponding to a plurality of combinations of conditions.

[0044] For example, when optimizing only PRT as a transmission / reception condition, at least one reception data is acquired from a specific sound ray passing through a reference region described later. When optimizing PRT and wave number as transmission / reception conditions, at least two reception data are acquired from a specific sound ray. In either case, multiple packet trains may be acquired from multiple sound rays passing through the reference region.

[0045] The pre-processor 32 has a function of executing packet thinning processing. By the packet thinning processing, one or more pieces of reception data (virtual reception data) corresponding to one or more virtual PRTs can be generated from reception data (actual reception data) actually acquired under an actually set PRT (actual PRT).

[0046] For example, by thinning out the packets by 1 / 2, a PRT of 1 / 2 is virtually realized, and by thinning out the packets by 1 / 3, a PRT of 1 / 3 is virtually realized. A virtual packet sequence can also be called an artificial packet sequence or a pseudo packet sequence. By thinning out the packets as described above, the number of transmissions and receptions can be reduced when searching for the optimal combination of conditions, thereby shortening the provisional measurement time.

[0047] The pre-processor 32 has a memory 34. The memory 34 stores actual reception data. It also stores one or more pieces of virtual reception data that have been generated. Each of the stored reception data is repeatedly read out. Note that multiple PRTs may be set in sequence without using packet thinning processing.

[0048] During the provisional measurement, a reception data string consisting of actual reception data and one or more virtual reception data is generated. In the blood flow image forming unit 36, a plurality of data processing operations are applied to each of the reception data constituting the reception data string. As a result, a blood flow data set consisting of a plurality of blood flow data is generated. Each of the blood flow data constituting the blood flow data set is sent to the optimal condition searching unit 28.

[0049] The contents of data processing in the blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​are determined by a plurality of parameters. The plurality of parameters include, for example, a parameter that determines the characteristics of a clutter filter, a parameter that determines a threshold level in threshold processing, a parameter that determines the gain of blood flow data, a parameter that determines the characteristics of logarithmic transformation, etc. All or a part of these parameters are the subject of optimization.

[0050] The display processing unit 38 has an image synthesis function, a color calculation function, and the like. During the actual measurement, the display processing unit 38 generates a CFM image by superimposing a color blood flow image on a black and white tomographic image. The CFM image is displayed on the display 40. During the provisional measurement, for example, the blood flow information is not displayed, and only the tomographic image is displayed as a still image. However, each blood flow data generated during the provisional measurement may be displayed. For example, a list of multiple blood flow images corresponding to multiple condition combinations may be displayed.

[0051] The arithmetic control unit 24 is configured, for example, by a CPU that executes a program. The arithmetic control unit 24 controls the operation of each component shown in Fig. 1. The arithmetic control unit 24 has a plurality of functions. In Fig. 1, two representative functions among those functions are represented as a transmission / reception control unit 26 and an optimal condition search unit 28.

[0052] The transmission / reception control unit 26 sets transmission / reception conditions for the transmission unit 20 and the reception unit 22. The transmission / reception conditions include the transmission pulse repetition period (PRT), wave number (the number of waves that make up a transmission pulse), transmission voltage, reception gain, etc. All of these are parameters, and all or part of them are the subject of optimization.

[0053] The optimal condition searching unit 28 controls the provisional measurement, specifically, during the provisional measurement, it controls the transmission and reception of ultrasound via the transmission and reception control unit 26, and also controls data processing in the blood flow image forming unit 36. The optimal condition searching unit 28 functions as an evaluation unit and a setting unit. Specifically, the optimal condition searching unit 28 calculates a plurality of evaluation values ​​based on a plurality of blood flow data, and determines optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions based on the plurality of evaluation values. Thereafter, the optimal condition searching unit 28 instructs the transmission and reception control unit of optimal transmission and reception conditions, and also instructs the blood flow image forming unit of optimal data processing conditions. After that, the actual measurement is performed.

[0054] The operation panel 42 has a trackball, a plurality of switches, a keyboard, etc. The operation panel 42 includes a button for instructing the start of an optimal condition search. The display 40 is configured, for example, by an organic EL device, a liquid crystal display, etc. The tomographic image forming unit 30, the pre-processing unit 32, the blood flow image forming unit 36, and the display processing unit 38 may each be configured by a processor. The tomographic image forming unit 30, the pre-processing unit 32, the blood flow image forming unit 36, and the display processing unit 38 may be realized as functions of an arithmetic and control unit (CPU).

[0055] Fig. 2 shows an example of the configuration of the blood flow image forming unit 36. Fig. 2 shows a clutter filter 44, a threshold processor 48, a blood flow information calculator 52, and a DSC 54. The operations of these are controlled by an arithmetic control unit. The blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​further includes a gain adjuster, a logarithmic converter, etc., but these are not shown.

[0056] The clutter filter 44 is a filter that removes or suppresses clutter components contained in the blood flow data (specifically, individual received beam data) 46. The clutter components are components that are generated by echoes from soft tissues that move at a slow speed. The clutter filter 44 is also called a wall filter. The cutoff frequency is changed by changing a first parameter given to the clutter filter 44, and the steepness of the filter characteristics is changed by changing a second parameter given to the clutter filter 44.

[0057] The threshold processor 48 applies threshold processing to the blood flow data output from the clutter filter 44. For example, components below a threshold are removed, or components above a threshold are removed. The threshold is changed by changing the parameters given to the threshold processor 48.

[0058] The blood flow information calculator 52 includes an autocorrelator, a velocity calculator, a variance calculator, a power calculator, etc. In the blood flow information calculator 52, blood flow data 56 is generated from the received data. The blood flow data 56 includes velocity information v, variance information σ, and power information P.

[0059] During the actual measurement, the DSC 54 generates blood flow image data 58 based on a plurality of blood flow data arranged spatially. The blood flow image data is sent to a display processing unit. The blood flow image data is, for example, data showing a two-dimensional distribution of velocity, data showing a two-dimensional distribution of velocity and variance, or data showing a two-dimensional distribution of power.

[0060] During provisional measurement, blood flow data 60 output from the blood flow information calculator 52 or blood flow image data 62 output from the DSC 54 is sent to the optimal condition searching unit 28. For example, if a gain adjuster and a logarithmic converter are provided after the DSC 54 and the processing performed by them is also subject to optimization, the blood flow image data 62 that has passed through them is sent to the optimal condition searching unit 28.

[0061] FIG. 3 shows filter characteristics 68 of the clutter filter. The horizontal axis is the velocity axis, and the vertical axis is the intensity axis. In the two-dimensional space defined by these two axes, the intensity of the blood flow component 64 is much smaller than the intensity of the clutter component 66. Therefore, it is required to effectively suppress the clutter component 66. For example, the cutoff frequency is raised (see reference numeral 68A) according to the blood flow component 64 and the clutter component 66. Also, for example, the steepness of the filter characteristic (the gradient angle of the rise) is increased (see reference numeral 68B). Such adjustments can be made by changing the first and second parameters.

[0062] 4 shows the characteristics of the logarithmic converter 70. The horizontal axis is the input axis, and the vertical axis is the output axis. When the characteristics are defined by the illustrated formula, parameters a and c included in the formula are changed according to circumstances.

[0063] Although all of the parameters given to the blood flow image forming unit 36 ​​may be the targets of optimization, it is better to optimize only a part of them from the viewpoint of shortening the provisional measurement time. The remaining parameters may be manually adjusted as necessary.

[0064] Next, the received data processing method will be described. A first received data processing method is shown in Fig. 5. In the first received data processing method, packet thinning processing is not performed.

[0065] (A) shows the setting of a reference region 74. For example, a one-dimensional reference region 74 is set within a beam scanning plane 72 by a user while referring to a tomographic image. An acoustic ray (scanning line, beam direction) passing through the reference region 74 is indicated by θ1. The reference region 74 may be set automatically. In the illustrated example, control regions 76A, 76B are automatically set before and after the reference region 74 on the acoustic ray θ1. They may also be set by the user. The entire acoustic ray θ1 may be the control region. The reference region 74 and the control regions 76A, 76B may each be a two-dimensional region.

[0066] (B) shows a number of mutually different transmission and reception conditions. In the illustrated example, m transmission and reception conditions, from transmission and reception condition 1 to transmission and reception condition m, are set in order. (C) shows m pieces of received data acquired sequentially under m transmission and reception conditions, i.e., received data 1 to received data m. These constitute a received data sequence 78. (D) shows n pieces of data processing conditions, i.e., data processing condition 1 to data processing condition n, which are mutually different and are applied to each piece of received data. Here, m and n are each integers of 2 or greater.

[0067] (E) shows m×n pieces of blood flow data, i.e., blood flow data 1 to blood flow data mn, generated by applying n data processing operations to each of the m pieces of received data, which constitute the blood flow data set 79. (F) shows m×n pieces of evaluation values, i.e., evaluation value 1 to evaluation value mn, calculated based on the m×n pieces of blood flow data.

[0068] The blood flow data that produces the best evaluation value is determined from among the m×n blood flow data, and the optimal combination of conditions is determined based on the blood flow data, i.e., the optimal transmission / reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions are determined.

[0069] A second reception data processing method is shown in Fig. 6. In the second reception data processing method, a packet thinning process is performed. In the illustrated example, the only transmission and reception parameter to be changed is the PRT.

[0070] (A) shows the setting of a reference region 74. On the acoustic ray θ1 in the scan plane 72, contrast regions 76A and 76B are set before and after the reference region 74. One piece of receive beam data obtained from the acoustic ray θ1 constitutes one packet. (C0) shows an actual packet train (actual receive data) obtained from the acoustic ray θ1. The actual packet train is made up of multiple packets 80' lined up on the time axis.

[0071] By applying packet thinning processing to a real packet sequence, one or more virtual packet sequences are generated. (C1) shows a virtual packet sequence generated when a thinning rate of 1 / 2 is adopted, (C2) shows a virtual packet sequence generated when a thinning rate of 1 / 3 is adopted, and (C3) shows a virtual packet rate reproduced when a thinning rate of 1 / 4 is adopted. A thinning rate of 1 / i corresponds to a PRT multiplied by i (a PRF of 1 / i). i is an integer of 2 or more.

[0072] The actual packet sequence and a plurality of virtual packet sequences generated therefrom constitute a received data sequence 82. The received data sequence 82 is composed of m pieces of received data. n data processing operations are applied to each piece of received data. As a result, m×n pieces of blood flow data are generated, and the optimal PRF and optimal data processing conditions are determined by individually evaluating the pieces of blood flow data.

[0073] A third received data processing method is shown in Fig. 7. In the third received data processing method, packet thinning processing is performed. In the illustrated example, the transmission and reception parameters to be optimized are PRT and wave number. The wave number is the number of waves that make up a transmission pulse, and corresponds to the wave train length. (B1) indicates wave number 1 to wave number j, where j is an integer of 2 or more.

[0074] By repeating transmission and reception while changing the wave number while fixing the PRF, j real packet sequences from real packet sequence 84-1 to real packet sequence 84-j shown in (C0) are obtained.

[0075] By applying packet thinning processing to j real packet sequences, one or more virtual packet sequences are generated for each real packet sequence. (C1) shows j virtual packet sequences generated when a thinning rate of 1 / 2 is adopted, (C2) shows j virtual packet sequences generated when a thinning rate of 1 / 3 is adopted, and (C3) shows j virtual packet sequences generated when a thinning rate of 1 / 4 is adopted.

[0076] The actual packet sequence and a plurality of virtual packet sequences generated therefrom constitute a received data sequence 86. The received data sequence 86 is composed of m pieces of received data. n data processing operations are applied to each piece of received data. As a result, m×n pieces of blood flow data are generated, and the optimal transmission and reception conditions (optimum PRF and optimum wave number) and optimal data processing conditions are determined by individually evaluating the data.

[0077] 8 is a schematic diagram showing the operation of the optimal condition searching section 28. The optimal condition searching section 28 performs switching settings of m transmission / reception conditions, switching control of n data processing, evaluation of m×n blood flow data, judgment of the optimal condition combination, and setting of the optimal condition combination during the provisional measurement.

[0078] FIG. 8 shows blood flow data 86-1 to 86-mn corresponding to condition combinations #1 to #mn. Each blood flow data is composed of a plurality of pixel data 88. Each pixel data 88 includes velocity information, dispersion information, power information, etc. A portion of each blood flow data within a reference region 74 is extracted as reference information. The reference region 74 is set within the blood flow region. The reference region 74 has a size of, for example, several pixels or several tens of pixels. Control regions 76A, 76B are set separately from the reference region 74, and control information is extracted from them. The control regions 76A, 76B are set within the non-blood flow region.

[0079] The optimum condition searching unit 28 includes an evaluation value calculator 90, a determiner 98, and a setter 100. The evaluation value calculator 90 has a first calculator 92, a second calculator 94, and a third calculator 96. The first calculator 92 calculates a first coefficient S B The second calculator 94 calculates a second coefficient S for each blood flow data based on the contrast information. C The first coefficient S B and the second coefficient S C When calculating, all or some of the velocity information, dispersion information, power information, etc. may be referenced. Note that p1 to pk indicate k parameters. The k parameters include one or more parameters that define transmission and reception conditions and one or more parameters that define data processing conditions.

[0080] The third calculator 96 is, for example, S B / S C The evaluation value E is calculated by calculating E=Evaluation value E=Evaluation value E. The evaluation value E is a value indicating the degree of quality of the blood flow image. As the evaluation value, various evaluation values ​​may be adopted. An evaluation value indicating the signal to noise ratio, an evaluation value indicating the ratio of the blood flow image to the blood flow region, an evaluation value indicating the amount of the blood flow image protruding from the blood flow region, etc. may be adopted. An overall evaluation value may be calculated based on multiple evaluation values.

[0081] The determiner 98 determines the best evaluation value, for example the maximum evaluation value, from among the m×n evaluation values. The transmission / reception conditions and data processing conditions that produced the maximum evaluation value are determined to be the optimal transmission / reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions. The setter 100 indicates the optimal transmission / reception conditions to the transmission / reception control unit, and indicates the optimal data processing conditions to the blood flow image forming unit. Then, the actual measurement is started.

[0082] FIG. 9 shows an example of the operation of the ultrasound diagnostic device. S10 corresponds to a provisional measurement step, and S24 corresponds to a main measurement step. In S12, a reference region is set by a user who has referred to a tomographic image. In S14, it is determined whether or not the automatic optimization button has been operated. If the operation has been performed, in S14, ultrasonic transmission and reception are performed, and m pieces of received data are generated. At that time, packet thinning processing is performed as necessary. In S16, n pieces of data processing are applied to each of the m pieces of received data, thereby generating m×n pieces of blood flow data. In S18, m×n evaluation values ​​are calculated based on the m×n pieces of blood flow data. In S20, the best evaluation value is determined from the m×n evaluation values, and an optimal combination of conditions is determined. In S22, optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions, which are the optimal combination of conditions, are set in the ultrasound diagnostic device. Then, the main measurement is performed.

[0083] 10 shows several CFM images. In the CFM image shown in (A), the blood flow image 104 is hardly displayed within the blood vessel 102, resulting in an under-display state. On the other hand, in the CFM image shown in (C), the blood flow image 110 is displayed beyond the blood vessel 102, resulting in an over-display state. To eliminate the under-display state or the over-display state, in other words, to obtain a good CFM image, it is cumbersome and time-consuming to manually adjust multiple parameters.

[0084] According to the method of the embodiment, an optimal combination of conditions is automatically set in a short time, and a good CFM image shown in FIG. 10 (B) can be obtained. In the CFM image, a clear image 108 of blood flow is displayed in the blood vessel 102. According to the embodiment, the burden on the examiner can be reduced, and at the same time, the burden on the subject can be reduced. For example, if m×n is kept within 500 or within several thousand, the provisional measurement can be completed within one second or within several seconds, and the delay in starting the actual measurement becomes no problem. Since the provisional measurement and the actual measurement are performed on the same subject, there is also the advantage that the optimal combination of conditions can be set for each subject. [Explanation of symbols]

[0085] 10 ultrasound probe, 20 tomographic image forming section, 28 optimal condition searching section, 32 preprocessing section, 34 memory, 36 blood flow image forming section, 38 display processing section, 44 clutter filter, 48 threshold processing section, 52 blood flow information calculator, 78 received data sequence, 79 blood flow data set, 82 received data sequence, 86 receiver sequence, 89 evaluation section, 20 evaluation value calculator, 98 judger, 100 setter.

Claims

1. A first generation unit that generates a received data sequence consisting of m pieces of received data corresponding to m (where m is an integer of 2 or more) different transmission and reception conditions; a second generating unit that applies n data processing according to n (n is an integer of 2 or more) different data processing conditions to each of the m pieces of received data to generate m×n pieces of blood flow data, thereby generating a blood flow data set consisting of the m×n pieces of blood flow data from the received data sequence; an evaluation unit that evaluates the blood flow data set to determine an optimal combination of optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions; a setting unit for setting the optimal transmission / reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions; 1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

2. 2. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, The first generation unit is a transmitting / receiving unit in which at least one actual transmitting / receiving condition is set and which outputs at least one actual reception data; a processing unit that processes the at least one actual reception data to generate at least one virtual reception data corresponding to at least one virtual transmission / reception condition; Including, the m transmission / reception conditions are configured by the at least one actual transmission / reception condition and the at least one virtual transmission / reception condition, the received data sequence is composed of the at least one actual received data and the at least one virtual received data; 1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

3. 3. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 2, the at least one actual transmission / reception condition is a plurality of actual transmission / reception conditions, the at least one actual reception data is a plurality of actual reception data, the at least one virtual transmission / reception condition is a plurality of virtual transmission / reception conditions, The at least one virtual reception data is a plurality of virtual reception data.

1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

4. 3. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 2, The at least one actual reception data includes a plurality of packets obtained under the same actual transmission / reception conditions and arranged on a time axis, the processing unit applies a packet thinning process to the at least one actual received data, thereby generating the at least one virtual received data from the at least one actual received data; 1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

5. 2. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, The evaluation unit is a calculation unit that calculates an evaluation value for each of the m×n blood flow data based on the blood flow data; a determination unit that determines the optimal combination of the optimal transmission / reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions based on m×n evaluation values ​​corresponding to the m×n blood flow data; 1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

6. 6. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 5, A reference region is set for the blood flow region on the beam scanning plane, The calculation unit is A portion of the blood flow data corresponding to the reference region is referred to as blood flow information for each of the blood flow data; For each of the blood flow data, refer to the entire blood flow data or another portion of the blood flow data as control information; calculating the evaluation value for each of the blood flow data based on the blood flow information and the control information; 1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

7. 2. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, each of the transmission and reception conditions includes a transmission pulse repetition period; each of the data processing conditions includes a filter characteristic; the optimal transmission and reception conditions include an optimal transmission pulse repetition period; The optimal data processing conditions include optimal filter characteristics.

1. An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

8. A step of generating a received data sequence consisting of m pieces of received data corresponding to m (where m is an integer of 2 or more) transmission and reception conditions; applying n data processing conditions (n: n is an integer of 2 or more) to each of the m received data to generate m×n blood flow data, thereby generating a blood flow data set consisting of the m×n blood flow data from the received data string; evaluating the blood flow data set to determine an optimal combination of optimal transmission and reception conditions and optimal data processing conditions; setting the optimal transmission / reception conditions and the optimal data processing conditions; 11. A method for setting operating conditions in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, comprising:

Images