Patent Publication Number: US-2009227873-A1

Title: Data visualization method for an ultrasound imaging system

Description:
The present invention relates generally to a method for visualizing data relating to an ultrasound transducer probe of an ultrasound imaging system, and more particularly, to a housing of an ultrasound transducer probe that provides a built-in or integrated dynamic display on which status information about the settings of the transducer of the probe and/or other related information pertinent to the transducer is displayed. 
     In an ultrasound imaging system, ultrasound transducer probes are often used for interoperative imaging of a patient&#39;s internal body parts. The probes, also referred to as an ultrasonic or ultrasound head, include a housing and a transducer arranged in the housing in a position such that ultrasound waves are emitted from an active surface of the transducer toward the body part as the housing is passed over the body part. The transducer then receives ultrasound waves reflected from the body part. A cable is connected to the transducer and passes through an opening in the housing to connect the transducer to a control unit and allow for signal transmission between the transducer and the control unit. Signals representative of the received ultrasound waves are provided by the transducer to the control unit via the cable and processed by the control unit to obtain images of the body part. 
     The control unit includes a display screen on which the images of the body part are visualized and is coupled to one or more user interface devices which enable adjustment of transducer settings. The display screen is typically used to display status information about the transducer settings and/or other information relating to the operation of the transducer. When a user modifies the transducer settings via the user interface devices during an ultrasound imaging procedure, the modifications are reflected by changes in the display. 
     A drawback of such a system is that the user must avert their gaze from the transducer housing, and thus the patient against which the transducer housing is placed, during the ultrasound imaging procedure in order to view the transducer settings and ascertain whether they are correct for the imaging procedure being performed. 
     Ultrasound imaging systems of the type described above exist which include several ultrasound transducer probes coupled to the same control unit. The transducer probes have different imaging characteristics and each is used for a specific imaging procedure. A problem with these systems is that it is difficult to ascertain which probe is activated. It may therefore be necessary to check each probe until the activated probe is located. 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a new transducer probe and method for visualizing data for ultrasound imaging systems, such as general abdominal and obstetric imaging applications. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a new transducer probe for ultrasound imaging systems which enables the probe to be easily identified as being activated when used in conjunction with other probes and coupled to a common control unit. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a new method for visualizing data in an ultrasound transducer probe that eliminates the need for a user to avert their gaze from the transducer housing in order to view transducer settings. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a new housing for an ultrasound transducer probe which includes a built-in or integrated dynamic display capable of showing status information about transducer settings and/or other related information pertinent to the transducer. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new housing for an ultrasound transducer which provides improved ergonomics with integrated technology to display relative transducer settings. 
     In order to achieve these objects and others, in a method for visualizing data in an ultrasound probe system, a display is arranged in a housing of an ultrasound probe in a position in which it is visible and the display is controlled to display data relating to a transducer of the probe and/or the probe itself. By providing a display on the housing of the ultrasound probe, the user can view functional parameters of the transducer or transducer settings and probe settings while maintaining the transducer in a common field of view with the patient or object being examined. Previously, the user was required to look at a control unit coupled by a cable to the housing in order to view the transducer and probe settings. 
     Possible transducer and probe settings include a name or designation of the transducer or the probe, a frequency setting of the transducer, activation status of the probe, a field of view setting, an indication of the orientation of the probe along with the sector in which the probe is operational, temperature of the transducer, angle of operation of the transducer, depth of penetration of waves transmitted by the transducer, needle guide parameters and quadrant settings for scan plan orientation. In addition to functional parameters of the transducer and/or probe, the display could also be used to display data relating to a patient being examined with the probe and status of the probe during test cycles. 
     In one embodiment, the display is controlled to be illuminated differently depending on the activation status of the probe. For example, the display is placed in a blank state when the probe is inactive, a name or designation of the transducer or the probe is displayed when the probe receives power but is not operative, and the display is backlit when the probe is operative. Thus, a user can readily ascertain the status of availability of the probe simply by viewing the display. 
     When a plurality of such probes are included in an ultrasound probe system having a control unit and one or more user interfaces coupled to the control unit, the user can readily ascertain the status of each probe and determine which probe or probes are ready for use. This improves workflow efficiency and productivity. 
    
    
     
       The invention, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals identify like elements and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a front view of an ultrasound transducer probe in accordance with the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a side view of the probe shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of the probe shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view taken along the line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded view of the probe shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  is an enlarged view of the display screen of the probe shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of another embodiment of an ultrasound transducer probe in accordance with the invention. 
     
    
    
     Referring to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements,  FIGS. 1-5  show an ultrasound transducer probe in accordance with the invention which is designated generally as  10 . The probe  10  includes a housing  12 , a transducer  14  arranged in the housing  12  and a display unit  16  arranged in the housing  12 . Display unit  16  may be built in or integrated into the housing  12 . 
     Housing  12  has an upper portion  18  having a substantially spherical outer surface and a lower portion  20  having the approximate, general shape of a truncated cone. The upper portion  18  is designed to be easily grippable by a user and includes an opening  22  at a top part thereof. The lower portion  20  includes an opening  24  through which ultrasonic waves are transmitted and received by the transducer  14  during use of the probe  10 . The lower portion  20  also includes a cable conduit  26  through which a cable  28  passes to connect the transducer  14  to a control unit (not shown). Optionally, the probe  10  is weighted to balance it in its neutral position by, e.g., filling a part or all of the available interior of the housing  12  with a loaded, flexible epoxy, or similar material. 
     Cable conduit  26  is designed to lead or orient the cable  28  out of the housing  10  in a particular direction, preferably at an angle of about 0° to about 30° relative to a horizontal plane of the housing  12  perpendicular to a central, vertical axis thereof. By positioning an exit opening of the cable conduit  26  below the top portion  18  of the housing  12  which is gripped by the user, in combination with the specific orientation of the cable conduit  26  at an angle to the horizontal plane of the housing  12 , minimizes the effective weight/torque which arises during movement of the housing  12  and provides improved ergonomics for the user. Additional details relating to the construction of the housing  12  and ergonomic advantages obtained thereby are set forth in U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/526,818 filed Dec. 4, 2003 entitled “Ergonomic Housing For Ultrasound Transducer Probe” incorporated by reference herein. 
     Transducer  14  may be any type of transducer capable of performing imaging. As shown, transducer  14  includes an electronic imaging unit  30  connected to the cable  28  and a crystal/acoustic component assembly  32  which cooperates with the imaging unit  30  to transmit ultrasonic waves having the necessary properties to enable the formation of images from waves reflected by the object being examined. The imaging unit  30  may include a printed circuit board having the necessary electronic components to transmit, receive and process ultrasonic waves. Optionally, an EMI-RFI shield layer may be provided around the transducer  14 . 
     The display unit  16  is arranged above the transducer  14  and includes a display driver unit  34 , a LCD display  36  connected thereto and a display cover  38  arranged in the opening  22  of the upper portion  18  of the housing  12  and above the display  36 . An underside of the display cover  38  includes a recess  40  which receives the display  36  (see  FIG. 5 ). The display cover  38  is made of a transparent material to enable visualization of the display  36  therethrough. Alternatively, the housing  12  can be made of a transparent material with the display  36  arranged therein, in virtually any location, and visible through the transparent housing  12 . In this embodiment, an open window would not have to be formed in the housing  12  to receive the display cover  40 . Also, only part of the housing  12  opposite the display  36  would have to be made of a transparent material and this can be achieved using a process called in-mold decorating which enables the selective positioning of a clear area for viewing of the display  36 . 
     Display driver unit  34  may comprise a printed circuit board on which the necessary components for forming signals to control the display  36  are mounted. Display driver unit  34  is electrically coupled to the imaging unit  30  and receives power and control signals from the control unit via the imaging unit  30 . 
     The display unit  16  is constructed to provide a selectively illuminated display area on display  36  depending on the activation status of the probe  10 . For example, in one embodiment, when the probe is inactive, i.e., the probe is disconnected from the control unit or off, the display area of display  36  will be blank without any illumination. When the probe  10  receives power from the control unit via cable  28 , a name or designation of the probe  10  will be outlined indicating that the probe  10  is ready for use and when the probe  10  is powered on and operating, the display  36  will be backlit. The display  36  can either be independently programmed to accomplish the selective illumination, e.g., via display driver unit  34 , or via the control unit when the probe  10  is coupled thereto. 
     As such, when a plurality of similar probes  10  in accordance with the invention are connected to the same control unit, it can be readily ascertained which probe is activated because the display  36  of the activated probe  10  will be operative and the name or designation of the transducer or probe will be shown. The user can therefore reach immediately for the activated probe instead of handling each probe from among the plurality of similar probes to ascertain whether it is the activated probe. This saves time during ultrasound examinations and improves productivity and efficiency. Moreover, when switching between different probes, i.e., deactivating one probe and activating another probe, the newly activated probe can be readily picked up for immediate use. 
     Another advantage arising from the presence of display unit  16  on the housing  12  is the ability to display information relating to the transducer  14  on the display  36 . Specifically, in addition to the name or designation of the transducer or probe, settings of the transducer  14  can be shown on display  36  so that the user does not have to avert their gaze from the housing  12  which would typically be placed against the patient being examined. Since the user can maintain their view of the examining area of the patient while simultaneously viewing transducer settings, workflow efficiency is improved. The display of the transducer settings in display  36  would be instead of or in addition to the display of such transducer settings on a screen of the control unit. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , the transducer settings which can be displayed on display  36  during an examination procedure are key functional parameters including, but not limited to, the transducer name or designation (in display area  44 ), the frequency settings (in display area  46 ), activation status such as inactive, ready, active (in display area  48  with an icon indicative of the status), field of view (FOV) setting (in display area  50 ), orientation of the probe along with the sector in which the probe is operational (in display area  52 ), temperature, angle, depth, needle guide parameters and quadrant settings for scan plan orientation. The display  36  can be designed to display data over its entire active surface with the different parameters being displayed in designated portions of the active surface area such as shown in  FIG. 6 . The location and size of the designated display areas  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50 ,  52 , and the content thereof, can be determined as desired. 
     The specific parameters to be displayed on the display  36  can be programmed via the control unit and user interface devices coupled thereto. The parameters can thus be varied for different probes and for different examination procedures as desired. 
     Display of parameters relating to the transducer  14  is primarily useful prior to the beginning of the actual ultrasound examination of the patient. That is, prior to placing the probe  10  against a patient, the settings of the transducer  14  must be within a predetermined operating range to enable the generation of useful ultrasound images. 
     The display  36  can also be programmed to display data relating to the patient being examined. The display  36  can also be used to communicate the status of the ultrasound probe  10  to the user during test cycles. However, the display  36  is not used to display the images being formed from the returned ultrasonic waves received by the transducer  14 . The display driver unit  34  therefore receives signals indicative of parameters relating to the transducer  14 , and optionally the patient, and does not receive any video display signals 
     The probe  10  also includes a lens  42  arranged in the opening  24  in the lower portion  22  of the housing  12  and through which ultrasonic waves pass to and from the active surface of the transducer  14  (see  FIG. 4 ). Lens  42  is attached to the housing  12  by any means known in the art, such as by an adhesive agent. In the alternative, the lens  42  may be attached to or formed in connection with the transducer  14 . 
     In addition, an orientation marker  54  is connected to the housing  12  to enable the orientation of the housing  12  to be determined relative to a predetermined or designated reference line and displayed on the display  36 . 
     To assemble the probe  10 , the electronic imaging unit  30  is connected to cable  28  and the display driver unit  34  is connected to the electronic imaging unit  30 . The display  36  is connected to the display driver unit  34  and the crystal/acoustic component assembly  32  is connected to the electronic imaging unit  30 . The display cover  38  is arranged over the display  36 . Any of the foregoing components might be formed integral with one another so that separate assembly step would not be required to form this subassembly. The housing  12  may be formed as a two part housing  12  so that the subassembly is mounted into one housing component with the cable  28  passing through the cable conduit  26  and then the housing components are attached to one another with the subassembly and the lens  42  therebetween. If the lens  42  is part of the housing  12 , then it would be first attached to one of the housing components and then to the other housing component when the housing components are attached to one another. Alternately, the lens  42  could be part of or formed integral with the transducer  14 . 
     With the foregoing structure, the housing  12  with the integrated display unit  16  dynamically provides key status information about the transducer settings and/or relative system settings to the user at any time while the system is powered on and the transducer  14  is connected to the control unit. 
     Another embodiment of an ultrasound probe system including ultrasound transducer probes in accordance with the invention is shown in  FIG. 7  and designated as  56 . The system  56  includes a plurality of similar probes  58  with each probe  58  including a housing  60  and an integrated display unit which includes a display  62  visible through a transparent display cover thereof, or through a transparent portion of the housing  60 . Housing  60  includes a transducer in an interior thereof which is connected via a cable  64  to a control unit  66  which includes a microprocessor. User interface devices  68 ,  70  are connected to the control unit  66 . The display unit may be programmed to display on the display  62  any of data discussed above with respect to display unit  16  and display  36  thereof, e.g., transducer settings and patient data. Probes  58  may have the shape as shown in  FIG. 7  or the shape of the probe  10  shown in  FIGS. 1-5  above, with the same structure thereof. 
     Control unit  66  controls the display units, when the probes  58  are coupled via the cable  64  thereto, to vary activation and content of the display  62  based on the activation status of the probe  58  and the desired functional parameters of the transducer and/or probe  58 . In the absence of a connection between the probes  58  and the control unit  66 , the display  62  can be designed to maintain a blank, non-illuminated screen which would be indicative of an inactive status. 
     Although only two housing constructions are illustrated, the invention can be applied to any shape and size of an ultrasound probe housing. Applying teachings of the invention, the probe housing would be constructed to include an integral display and programmed to display data relating to the transducer arranged in the housing and/or the patient being examined by the probe. 
     Although illustrative embodiments of the present invention have been described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments, and that various other changes and modifications may be effected therein by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.