Patent US5608824A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0284055A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
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Endoscopically deliverable ultrasound imaging system
Assignee: Washington Research Foundation
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Filing: 1988-03-23
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2008-03-23
Abstract
Abstract An endoscopically deliverable ultrasound imaging system having an ultrasound probe mounted at the end of an endoscopically deliverable catheter (6). The catheter (6) connects the probe to an ultrasound imaging system. The axial or radial position of the ultrasound probe is measured by a position transducer (10) mounted on the endoscope (2) adjacent the biopsy port (12) from which the catheter extends. The output of the position measuring transducer is applied to the ultrasound imaging system so that the imaging system provides an image of the tissue depth as a function of the position of the ultrasound probe.
Inventors
- 👤 Roy W. Martin
- 👤 Fred E. Silverstein
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-10 00:50
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61M; A61M25/00; A61M25/01; A61M25/0105; A61M25/0122; A61B; A61B8/00; A61B8/12; A61B8/44; A61B8/4444; A61B8/445; A61M25/0043; A61M25/005
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 13
Claim 1
Independent Claim
172 words
A system for ultrasonically imaging internal tissues through the biopsy channel of an endoscope, comprising: a catheter having a diameter that is sufficiently small to pass through said biopsy channel; an ultrasound probe mounted at one end of said catheter, said ultrasound probe having a maximum transverse dimension that is sufficiently small to pass through said biopsy channel, said ultrasound probe having a transversely directed beam pattern; position measuring means coupled between said endoscope and catheter for generating an ultrasound probe position signal indicative of the position of said catheter with respect to said endoscope; and imaging means connected to said ultrasound probe by conductors extending through said catheter, said imaging means generating an ultrasound signal that is applied to said transducer to generate an acoustic signal, said imaging means further receiving an ultrasound signal from said ultrasound probe corresponding to ultrasound acoustic signals reflected from said tissues to said ultrasound probe, said ultrasound imaging means generating said ultrasound image from said received ultrasound signal and from said ultrasound probe position signal.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
172 words
A system for ultrasonically imaging internal tissues through the biopsy channel of an endoscope, comprising: a catheter having a diameter that is sufficiently small to pass through said biopsy channel; an ultrasound probe mounted at one end of said catheter, said ultrasound probe having a maximum transverse dimension that is sufficiently small to pass through said biopsy channel, said ultrasound probe having a transversely directed beam pattern; position measuring means coupled between said endoscope and catheter for generating an ultrasound probe position signal indicative of the position of said catheter with respect to said endoscope; and imaging means connected to said ultrasound probe by conductors extending through said catheter, said imaging means generating an ultrasound signal that is applied to said transducer to generate an acoustic signal, said imaging means further receiving an ultrasound signal from said ultrasound probe corresponding to ultrasound acoustic signals reflected from said tissues to said ultrasound probe, said ultrasound imaging means generating said ultrasound image from said received ultrasound signal and from said ultrasound probe position signal.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 1 wherein the ultrasound probe position signal from said position measuring means is indicative of the longitudinal position of said catheter with respect to said endoscope.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
42 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 2, further including a latch that is actuatable to manually disengage said catheter from said position measuring means so that catheter can move freely through said position measuring means without varying said ultrasound probe position signal.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
103 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 3 wherein said position measuring means comprise: a linear potentiometer having a resistance between a pair of leads that varies according to the linear position of a potentiometer wiper contact arm, said potentiometer being mounted on said endoscope adjacent the biopsy port of said biopsy channel; and a releasable fastener mounted on said wiper contact arm, said fastener releasably engaging said catheter as it exits from said biopsy port so that the resistance between the leads of said potentiometer varies according to the longitudinal position of said catheter when said releasable fastener is engaged in said catheter.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
32 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 1 wherein the ultrasound probe position signal from said position measuring means is indicative of the rotational position of said catheter with respect to said endoscope.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
99 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 10 wherein said position measuring means comprise: a potentiometer housing mounted on said endoscope adjacent the biopsy port of said biopsy channel; a rotary potentiometer mounted in said potentiometer housing, said potentiometer having an arcuate resistance element and a rotatable wiper contact slidable along said resistance element, said wiper contact being coupled to a hollow shaft through which said catheter extends, said hollow shaft being coaxial with said arcuate resistance element; and a releasable fastener releasibly securing said catheter to said hollow shaft so that said catheter and shaft rotate with each other.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
72 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 1 wherein said ultrasound probe comprises: a probe casing mounted at the end of said catheter, said casing having at least one acoustically transparent area; a transducer support member mounted in said casing; an ultrasound transducer mounted on said transducer support member beneath said acoustically transparent area; and actuating means for selectively moving said transducer support member longitudinally within said casing, thereby longitudinally scanning said transducer.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
79 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 18 wherein said catheter includes a fluid channel extending along its length and communicating with the interior of said probe casing, and wherein said transducer support member includes a piston slidably engaging the inside wall of said probe casing, and wherein said actuating means includes fluid control means for selectively applying fluid to the interior of said catheter to cause said piston to move said transducer support member longitudinally in said probe casing.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
51 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 1 wherein said ultrasound probe comprises: a probe body having a planar transducer mounting surface and a partially spherical recess positioned above said transducer mounting surface; an ultrasound transducer mounted on said transducer mounting surface; and an impedance matching material filling said partially spherical recess.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
90 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 23 wherein said probe is specially adapted to focus at at least two depth ranges, the probe body of said probe having a second partially spherical recess concentric with said first partially spherical recess, said second partially spherical recess having a radius of curvature that is smaller than the radius of curvature of said first partially spherical recess, the transducer of said probe having outer and inner elements having respective diameters approximately equal to the diameters of said first and second partially spherical recesses.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
143 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 24 wherein said transducer comprises a cylindrical plate of a piezoelectric material having first and second planar faces, said first planar face being plated with a metal over substantially its entire surface, said second planar face being plated with a metal in two semicircular areas having a diameter that is substantially smaller than the diameter of said cylindrical plate and in two separate arcuate areas surrounding said semicircular areas, said ultrasound imaging system being connected between the plating on said semicircular areas to focus at a relatively shallow depth and between the plating on said arcuate areas to focus at a relatively large depth, the piezoelectric material beneath the semicircular area and arcuate area on one side of said plate being polarized oppositely from the polarization of the piezoelectric material beneath the other semicircular and arcuate areas.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
87 words
The ultrasound imaging system of claim 23 wherein said ultrasound transducer comprises a cylindrical plate of piezoelectric material having first and second planar faces, said first planar face being plate with a metal over substantially its entire surface and said second planar face being plated with a metal in two separate semicircular areas between which said ultrasound imaging system is connected, the piezoelectric material beneath one of said semicircular areas being polarized oppositely from the polarization of the piezoelectric material beneath the other of said semicircular areas.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US4582067A
Cited
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