JPS6316131B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an improvement in an ultrasound probe, particularly an ultrasound probe for diagnosing an eyeball.

2. Description of the Related Art Ultrasonic probes that diagnose the eyeball by transmitting and receiving ultrasound beams into the eyeball are well known and are widely used because they can diagnose the eyeball non-invasively.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional ultrasonic probe.
In the figure, reference numeral 10 denotes a metal case formed into a substantially hollow cylinder shape, and an ultrasonic transducer 1 that transmits and receives an ultrasonic beam toward the front is provided at its tip opening.
On the back side of this vibrator 12, an acoustic absorbing material 14 is laminated to prevent the ultrasonic beam from leaking backward, and on the front side of the vibrator 12, an acoustic matching layer 16 made of quartz or the like is laminated. are layered. 18 is a water capsule in which physiological saline as an ultrasound propagation medium is interposed between the end face of the transducer and the eyeball. For this reason, this water capsule 18 is formed into a substantially cylindrical shape, and its rear end is fitted and fixed into the tip of the case 10, and when in use, the brim 20 formed at the tip opening of the capsule 18 is inserted into the eyeball. Place capsule 1 on
The capsule 18 is filled with physiological saline through an inlet pipe 22 and an outlet pipe 24 provided on the side of the capsule 8 . But like this,
Diagnosis of the eyeball along the eye axis cannot be started simply by applying the probe to the eyeball and filling the inside of the water capsule 18 with physiological saline. In order to diagnose the eyeball along the ocular axis, it is necessary to always align the central axis of the transducer 12 that transmits and receives the ultrasonic beam with the ocular axis of the eyeball during diagnosis. For this reason, in the case of a probe, light is generally incident from the rear of the transducer 12 along the central axis of the transducer 12, and the subject looks directly at the spot of this light. A means for aligning the ophthalmic axis of the eyeball with the central axis of the vibrator 12 is employed. Conventionally, in order to embody this means, a lamp holder 28 holding a lamp 26 as a light source in the center is fitted into the rear end of the case 10, and this lamp 26 is turned on, and at the same time,
In order to emit the light from the lamp 26 in front of the vibrator 12 along the central axis of the vibrator 12, the acoustic absorbing material 14, the vibrator 12, and the acoustic matching layer 16 are thinly matched along the central axis of the vibrator 12. A hole 30 was drilled.

However, forming the pores 30 in the vibrator or the like as described above requires many man-hours in the manufacturing process, which increases costs, and furthermore, physiological saline leaks into the case 10 through the pores 30. This may cause problems such as fear.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its purpose is to provide a simple structure that eliminates the need for providing pores in the vibrator and the members laminated thereon, and allows the central axis of the vibrator to be connected to the axis of the eyeball. The object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic probe that can match the

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an ultrasonic probe for diagnosing the eyeball using an ultrasound beam transmitted and received from the transducer, in which an ultrasound transducer is opposed to the eyeball via an ultrasound propagation medium. The above-mentioned vibrator and each member laminated thereon are formed using a translucent material, and the light transmitted through the above-mentioned vibrator and each member laminated thereon and viewed directly by the eyeball is directed behind the vibrator. It is characterized by making the light incident along the central axis of the vibrator.

Next, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings. Note that the same reference numerals are given to the parts corresponding to the respective members shown in FIG. 1, and the explanation thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of the ultrasonic probe of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 10 denotes a case formed into a substantially hollow cylindrical shape, and an input/output cord 34 is connected to the case 1 through a connector 32 on its side.
0 is guided inside. And this case 10
An ultrasonic transducer 12 that transmits and receives an ultrasonic beam toward the front is provided at the opening at the tip of the An acoustic absorbing material 14 is laminated on the back surface of the child 12, and an electrode 12b
An acoustic matching layer 16 is laminated on the front surface of the vibrator 12 via. The vibrator 12 and each member laminated thereon are each made of a translucent material. For example, in this embodiment,
The vibrator 12 includes a polymer piezoelectric film and an electrode 12.
a, 12b are transparent light guiding films, acoustic absorbing material 14 is transparent silicone rubber, acoustic matching layer 1
6 uses a polyester film.
Note that one electrode 12a of the vibrator 12 is connected to the input/output cord 34, and the other electrode 12b is grounded to the case 10, and the vibrator 12 is driven by a signal applied from the outside via the input/output cord 34. , ultrasonic beams are transmitted and received.

With the above configuration, the light emitted from the lamp 26 passes through the vibrator 12 and the like.
However, since the entire surface of the vibrator 12 and the members laminated thereon are made of a translucent material, the light from the lamp 26 is transmitted not only to the central axis of the vibrator 12 but also to the front of the vibrator 12. It is transmitted to the front through the entire surface. In order to prevent this and limit the light transmitted in front of the vibrator 12 to the light incident along the central axis of the vibrator 12, in this embodiment, the acoustic absorber 14 is placed between the acoustic absorber 14 and the lamp 26. Case 1
A light shielding plate 36 is provided inside the light shielding plate 36, and a through hole 38 that coincides with the central axis of the vibrator 12 is bored in the center of the light shielding plate 36. Thereby, the light emitted from the lamp 26 is limited to the light emitted along the central axis of the vibrator 12 when passing through the through hole 38.

The embodiment of the present invention has the above configuration, and the following:
The operation will be explained based on FIG.

First, the subject places his/her eyeball on the tip of the probe, that is, the brim 20 of the water capsule 18 . after that,
Physiological saline is injected through the introduction tube 22, and overflowing physiological saline is discharged from the outlet tube 24, thereby filling the inside of the water capsule 18 with the physiological saline. Then, the subject is made to look directly at the light visible behind the probe, that is, the light from the lamp 26. Here, the light emitted from the lamp 26 and reaching the eyeball is limited to the light that is incident along the central axis of the vibrator 12 through the through hole 38 of the light shielding plate 36, so that the subject cannot directly look at this light. As a result, the subject's eye axis and the central axis of the vibrator 12 coincide. In this way,
Diagnosis of the eyeball along the eyeball axis is completed by transmitting and receiving an ultrasound beam from the vibrator 12 toward the eyeball with the eyeball axis of the eyeball and the central axis of the vibrator 12 aligned.

Incidentally, in the above embodiment, an ultrasonic probe having a lamp 26 installed therein as a light source is shown. Since such a probe can obtain strong light, it is suitable for diagnosis of subjects with poor eyesight. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and it is also possible to adopt a structure in which the probe and the light source are separated, for example.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of such an ultrasonic probe. That is, in this probe, the rear end opening of the case 10 where the lamp holder 28 was attached in FIG. It has a structure in which 42 holes are bored.

With the above structure, natural light entering the probe from the outside can be directed to the bottom surface 4 of the case 10.
The incident light is limited to the incident light that coincides with the central axis of the vibrator 12 when it enters through the through holes 42 and 38 of both the light shielding plate 36 and the light shielding plate 36. Therefore, in the same manner as in the embodiment described above, the probe is applied to the eyeball and the subject is made to look directly at the incident light, thereby performing diagnosis of the eyeball along the eye axis. put it here,
Since the probe is lighter in weight than the probe shown in FIG. 2 by the amount of the lamp and lamp holder, the feeling of weight when applying it to the eyeball is reduced, and a good feeling of use can be obtained. Furthermore, since natural light is used as a light source,
The subject does not feel any glare.

In addition, if the light intensity is insufficient with natural light alone, as shown in Fig. 4, if a light source 44 such as a desk lamp or a fluorescent lamp is placed outside the probe, the intensity of light can be adjusted to any desired level. can be easily obtained.

As described above, according to the present invention, by using a translucent material for the vibrator and each member laminated thereon, pores are formed in the vibrator and each member laminated thereon, unlike in the past. It is possible to provide an ultrasonic probe capable of aligning the central axis of the transducer and the ophthalmic axis of the eyeball with a simple structure without the need for a transducer.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a structural explanatory diagram of a conventional ultrasonic probe, FIG. 2 is a structural explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of the ultrasonic probe of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing its usage condition.
FIG. 4 is a structural explanatory diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention. Identical members in each figure are given the same reference numerals. 12...
Ultrasonic transducer, 12a, 12b... Electrodes laminated on the transducer, 14... Acoustic absorbing material, 16... Acoustic matching layer, 26, 44... Light source.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An ultrasonic probe for diagnosing the eyeball by an ultrasonic beam transmitted and received from the transducer, in which an ultrasonic transducer is opposed to the eyeball via an ultrasonic propagation medium, wherein the transducer and each member laminated thereon is formed using a translucent material, and the light transmitted through the vibrator and each member laminated thereon and viewed directly by the eyeball is transmitted from behind the vibrator to the vibrator. An ultrasonic probe characterized in that the beam is incident along the central axis of the ultrasonic probe. 2. The ultrasonic probe according to claim 1, characterized in that the ultrasonic probe is equipped with a light source of light that can be viewed directly by the eyeball. 3. The ultrasonic probe according to claim 1, characterized in that light that enters the probe from the outside is used as the light that is viewed directly by the eyeball.