Ultrasonic beam forming system

Claim 1

An ultrasonic reception beam processing system including an ultrasonic probe equipped with a plurality of transducers and having a respectively corresponding plurality of channels, each transducer converting an ultrasonic signal, reflected from a target position and received thereby, to a channel electric signal and the system effecting dynamic focussing by multiplying each channel electric signal, as output by each of said transducers, by a corresponding reference signal having the phase thereof dynamically adjusted for each channel and adding together each after-multiplication signal, after processing same through a respective frequency separation filter, to produce a superposed after-multiplication channel signal which is processed through a delay line, characterized in that: at least first and second reference signals having respective and mutually different frequencies and phases and at least first and second, respective multipliers are provided for each of said channels, each multiplier receiving the respective reference signal as a first input thereto, each multiplier receiving and multiplying the corresponding channel electric signal by the respective reference signal and producing a corresponding after-multiplication channel signal as the output thereof; each of said reference signals is constituted so as to correspond to and discriminate an ultrasonic signal as reeived by the corresponding transducer from a corresponding direction different other such ultrasonic signals received by the corresponding transducer from respective, other corresponding directions and to have the phase angle thereof adjusted so as to effect dynamic focussing; said after-multiplication signal from each of said multipliers for each channel, after said processing thereof through a respective frequency separation filter, is supplied to said delay line; and said superposed after-multiplication channel signals for the respective, plural channels, are time-shifted and added to one another in said processing through said delay line for producing a final superposed output signal of said delay line which is subjected to frequency separation by at least first and second filters respectively adapted to correspond to the mutually different frequencies of the at least first and second reference signals.

Claim 18

A system for processing ultrasonic beams and employing an ultrasonic probe having a plurality of transducers disposed in an array and having a plurality of signal channels respectively associated with the plurality of transducers with each channel receiving as an input thereto the electrical signal output of the associated transducer, as converted from an ultrasonic beam received by the corresponding transducer, the system providing for processing at least first and second beams as reflected from corresponding target positions and received by each transducer of the array from corresponding, at least first and second different directions and comprising: means for supplying to each of said channels at least first and second reference signals having corresponding, at least first and second, mutually different frequencies corresponding to and discriminating between the respective, at least first and second ultrasonic signals as received by the associated channel transducer from respective, at least first and second mutually different directions and for dynamically adjusting the respective phases of the at least first and second reference signals to effect dynamic focusing; at least first and second multipliers, in each said channel, commonly receiving the channel electrical signal output of the corresponding sensor and respectively receiving, and multiplying the channel electrical signal output by, the at least first and second reference signals and producing respective, at least first and second after-multiplication output signals, each after-multiplication output signal including signal components having frequencies equal to the sum and the difference of the respective frequencies of the corresponding reference signal and the channel electric signal; at least first and second channel filters, in each channel, having frequency band-pass characteristics corresponding to commonly selected ones of the signal components of the respective, at least first and second after-multiplication output signals and producing corresponding and respective, at least first and second selected component output signals; an adder in each channel which adds the first and second selected component output signals of the corresponding channel filters and produces a superposed component signal; a delay unit which receives and selectively delays the superposed component signals from the respective adders of the plurality of channels and adds the selectively delayed, superposed component signals and produces a final superposed output signal; and at least first and second output filters having frequency band-pass characteristics respectively corresponding to those of the at least first and second channel filters and which extract corresponding first and second components from the final superposed output signal and produce same as respective, at least first and second system output signals.

Claim 19

A system for processing ultrasonic beams and employing an ultrasonic probe having a plurality of transducers disposed in an array and having a plurality of signal channels respectively associated with the plurality of transducers with each channel receiving as an input thereto the electrical signal output of the associated transducer, as converted from an ultrasonic beam received by the corresponding transducer, the system providing for processing at least first and second beams as reflected from corresponding target positions and received by each transducer of the array from corresponding, at least first and second different directions and comprising: means for supplying to each of said channels at least first and second reference signals having corresponding, at least first and second, mutually different frequencies corresponding to and discriminating between the respective, at least first and second ultrasonic signals as received by the associated channel transducer from respective, at least first and second mutually different directions and for dynamically adjusting the respective phases of the at least first and second reference signals to effect dynamic focusing; at least first and second multipliers, in each said channel, commonly receiving the channel electrical signal output of the corresponding sensor and respectively receiving, and multiplying the channel electrical signal output by, the at least first and second reference signals and producing respective, at least first and second after-multiplication output signals, each after-multiplication output signal including signal components having frequencies equal to the sum and the difference of the respective frequencies of the corresponding reference signal and the channel electric signal; at least first and second channel filters, in each channel, having frequency band-pass characteristics corresponding to commonly selected ones of the signal components of the respective, at least first and second after-multiplication output signals and producing corresponding and respective, at least first and second selected component output signals; an adder in each channel which adds the first and second selected component output signals of the corresponding channel filters and produces a superposed component signal; a delay unit which receives and selectively delays the superposed component signals from the respective adders of the plurality of channels and adds the selectively delayed, superposed component signals and produces a final superposed output signal; and at least first and second output filters having frequency band-pass characteristics respectively corresponding to those of the at least first and second channel filters and which extract corresponding first and second components from the final superposed output signal and produce same as respective, at least first and second system output signals.