Patent ID: 8083681

Claim:
An ultrasonic probe, comprising: an inserting portion to be inserted into a body cavity; and a grip portion held by an operator outside of the body cavity, wherein the inserting portion includes a transducer unit for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic wave, a rotation axis provided in the transducer unit, and a swing mechanism for swinging the transducer unit around the rotation axis as a center axis, and the grip portion includes a motor for driving the swing mechanism, the swing mechanism includes a shaft having a first end connected to the motor, a first pulley directly connected to a second end of the shaft a second pulley coaxially provided at the rotation axis, and a wire connecting the first pulley and the second pulley, the shaft is oriented such that its longitudinal direction is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the inserting portion, a length of the shaft is longer than a distance between the first pulley and the second pulley, and rotational movement of the motor is transmitted to the transducer unit via the shaft, the first pulley, the wire, and the second pulley.