Patent ID: 9575178
Date: 2017-02-21
CPC Classifications: A61B,G01S,G10K

Claim:
1. A beamforming method for generating a beam signal from echo signals generated by a plurality of receiving elements receiving ultrasound signals reflected off a subject, the method comprising: generating a main beam signal by performing a delay and sum operation on receiving echo signals obtained from a first receiving element array composed of a portion of the receiving elements, using, as a focal point, a first region of the subject; generating a second beam signal by performing a delay and sum operation on receiving echo signals obtained from a second receiving element array that is different from the first receiving element array and composed of a portion of the receiving elements, using, as a focal point, a second region of the subject that is different from the first region; generating a third beam signal by performing a delay and sum operation on receiving echo signals obtained from a third receiving element array that is different from the first receiving element array and the second receiving element array and composed of a portion of the receiving elements, using, as a focal point, a third region of the subject that is different from the first region and the second region; generating a sub beam signal by using a differential signal that indicates a difference between the second beam signal and the third beam signal; and generating a narrow beam signal by (i) calculating a coefficient for narrowing an angle of the main beam signal, and (ii) multiplying the main beam signal by the coefficient, the coefficient being determined based on the main beam signal and the sub beam signal.