Patent ID: 9642594
Date: 2017-05-09
CPC Classifications: A61B,G01B

Claim:
1. A blood vessel diameter measurement device comprising: at least three ultrasonic arrays arranged on a probe configured and arranged to touch a living body, each of the ultrasonic arrays having a linear array structure in which a plurality of ultrasonic elements are arranged apart from each other with a first pitch in a single direction, the ultrasonic arrays being arranged such that the ultrasonic arrays have a same single scan plane and being arranged, in the single direction, apart from each other with a second pitch that is greater than the first pitch; and a central processing unit computing at least one of an outside diameter and an inside diameter of a blood vessel in the living body based on an arrival time between transmission of ultrasonic waves from the ultrasonic arrays and arrival of the ultrasonic waves at the ultrasonic arrays after the ultrasonic waves are reflected by the blood vessel, each of the ultrasonic arrays transmitting the ultrasonic waves from the plurality of ultrasonic elements by delaying transmitting timings of the ultrasonic waves to have a transmission angle of the ultrasonic waves such that the ultrasonic waves pass through a center of the blood vessel, each of the ultrasonic arrays receiving a first reflected wave at a first arrival time and a second reflected wave at a second arrival time after the first arrival time within a range of a predetermined time, the central processing unit computing at least one of the outside diameter of the blood vessel based on the first arrival time for each of the ultrasonic arrays and the inside diameter of the blood vessel based on the second arrival time for each of the ultrasonic arrays, the central processing unit computing at least one of the outside diameter and the inside diameter of the blood vessel further based on the second pitch of the ultrasonic arrays.