技术领域Technical Field
本申请涉及超声成像技术领域，特别涉及一种超声图像生成方法、一种超声图像生成装置、一种超声诊断设备及一种存储介质。The present application relates to the technical field of ultrasonic imaging, and in particular to an ultrasonic image generating method, an ultrasonic image generating device, an ultrasonic diagnostic device and a storage medium.
背景技术Background technique
在超声波检测过程中，超声探头可以向特定部位发射超声波信号，并根据接收到的回波信号生成相应的超声图像。During the ultrasonic detection process, the ultrasonic probe can transmit ultrasonic signals to a specific part and generate corresponding ultrasonic images based on the received echo signals.
现有超声探头主要通过次序扫描的方式实现信号的发生与接收。例如，从超声探头从左至右依次扫描时，一次扫描仅在一个位置上发射一条扫描线，当右边最后一条线扫描完毕后，跳回探头左边第一条线再次进行扫描，循环往复。由于超声探头上包括大量的探头阵元，探头采取次序扫描的方式将会导致扫描一帧图像所需时间过长，超声图像的成像帧率较低。Existing ultrasound probes mainly use sequential scanning to generate and receive signals. For example, when scanning from left to right, the ultrasound probe only emits one scan line at one position. When the last line on the right is scanned, it jumps back to the first line on the left of the probe and scans again, repeating the cycle. Since the ultrasound probe includes a large number of probe array elements, the sequential scanning method of the probe will result in a long time to scan a frame of the image, and the imaging frame rate of the ultrasound image is low.
因此，如何缩短超声探头扫描图像的时长，提高超声图像的成像帧率是本领域技术人员目前需要解决的技术问题。Therefore, how to shorten the time it takes for an ultrasound probe to scan an image and improve the imaging frame rate of the ultrasound image is a technical problem that those skilled in the art currently need to solve.
发明内容Summary of the invention
本申请的目的是提供一种超声图像生成方法、一种超声图像生成装置、一种超声诊断设备及一种存储介质，能够缩短超声探头扫描图像的时长，提高超声图像的成像帧率。The purpose of the present application is to provide an ultrasonic image generation method, an ultrasonic image generation device, an ultrasonic diagnostic device and a storage medium, which can shorten the time it takes for an ultrasonic probe to scan an image and improve the imaging frame rate of the ultrasonic image.
为解决上述技术问题，本申请提供一种超声图像生成方法，该超声图像生成方法包括：In order to solve the above technical problems, the present application provides an ultrasonic image generation method, which includes:
确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数；Determine the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the ring array probe;
根据所述信号接收孔径的阵元数在所述环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置；其中，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于所述信号接收孔径的阵元数，N不小于2；Select N signal transmission positions on the circular array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture; wherein the number of array elements between the center points of any two signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and N is not less than 2;
控制N个所述信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，且每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号；Controlling the N signal transmitting positions to transmit ultrasonic signals simultaneously, and the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each signal transmitting position to receive echo signals simultaneously;
根据所述回波信号合成的回波射频数据生成超声图像。An ultrasound image is generated according to the echo radio frequency data synthesized from the echo signals.
可选的，根据所述信号接收孔径的阵元数在所述环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置，包括：Optionally, selecting N signal transmission positions on the circular array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture includes:
确定所述环阵探头的总阵元数；Determining the total number of array elements of the ring array probe;
对所述总阵元数与所述信号接收孔径的阵元数的比值向下取整，得到发射位置最大数量；Rounding down the ratio of the total number of array elements to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture to obtain the maximum number of transmission positions;
基于所述信号接收孔径在所述环阵探头中选取等间距的不大于所述发射位置最大数量的若干个信号发射位置。A plurality of signal transmission positions with equal spacing and no greater than the maximum number of transmission positions are selected in the circular array probe based on the signal receiving aperture.
可选的，根据所述回波信号合成的回波射频数据生成超声图像，包括：Optionally, generating an ultrasound image according to the echo radio frequency data synthesized from the echo signal includes:
根据所述回波信号确定所述信号接收孔径中每一阵元的通道数据；Determine channel data of each array element in the signal receiving aperture according to the echo signal;
对所述信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据执行延时叠加加权操作和变迹加权操作，得到所述回波射频数据；Performing a delay-addition weighted operation and an apodization weighted operation on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture to obtain the echo radio frequency data;
根据所有所述回波射频数据生成所述超声图像。The ultrasound image is generated based on all the echo radio frequency data.
可选的，对所述信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据执行延时叠加加权操作和变迹加权操作，得到所述回波射频数据，包括：Optionally, performing a delay-addition weighted operation and an apodization weighted operation on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture to obtain the echo radio frequency data includes:
通过多波束接收的方式对所述信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据分别执行多次不同延时参数的延时叠加加权操作和多次不同加权系数的变迹加权操作，得到多条所述回波射频数据。By multi-beam receiving, multiple delay superposition weighted operations with different delay parameters and multiple apodization weighted operations with different weighting coefficients are performed on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture to obtain multiple echo radio frequency data.
可选的，在每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号之后，还包括：Optionally, after the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each of the signal transmitting positions simultaneously receives the echo signal, the method further includes:
确定阵元移动步长，并将所述信号发射位置按照预设方向移动所述阵元移动步长对应的阵元数，以便在所述环阵探头中选取新的N个信号发射位置。The array element movement step length is determined, and the signal transmission position is moved in a preset direction by the number of array elements corresponding to the array element movement step length, so as to select new N signal transmission positions in the ring array probe.
可选的，所述确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数，包括：Optionally, determining the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the circular array probe includes:
获取所述环阵探头的阵元指向性参数；其中，所述阵元指向性参数包括阵元灵敏度与方向角的对应关系；Acquire the array element directivity parameters of the circular array probe; wherein the array element directivity parameters include the corresponding relationship between the array element sensitivity and the direction angle;
根据所述阵元指向性参数确定所述阵元灵敏度大于第一预设值的第一方向角区间；Determining, according to the array element directivity parameter, a first directional angle interval in which the array element sensitivity is greater than a first preset value;
根据所述第一方向角区间确定所述环阵探头中所述信号接收孔径的阵元数。The number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the circular array probe is determined according to the first directional angle interval.
可选的，在获取所述环阵探头的阵元指向性参数之后，还包括：Optionally, after obtaining the array element directivity parameters of the ring array probe, the method further includes:
根据所述阵元指向性参数确定阵元灵敏度大于第二预设值的第二方向角区间；Determine, according to the array element directivity parameter, a second directional angle interval in which the array element sensitivity is greater than a second preset value;
根据所述第二方向角区间确定所述环阵探头中所述信号发射位置对应的阵元数。The number of array elements corresponding to the signal transmission position in the circular array probe is determined according to the second directional angle interval.
本申请还提供了一种超声图像生成装置，该装置包括：The present application also provides an ultrasonic image generating device, the device comprising:
接收孔径阵元数确定模块，用于确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数；A receiving aperture array element number determination module is used to determine the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the ring array probe;
信号发射位置选取模块，用于根据所述信号接收孔径的阵元数在所述环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置；其中，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于所述信号接收孔径的阵元数，N不小于2；A signal transmission position selection module, used to select N signal transmission positions on the circular array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture; wherein the number of array elements between the center points of any two signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and N is not less than 2;
信号收发模块，用于控制N个所述信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，且每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号；A signal transceiver module, used to control the N signal transmitting positions to transmit ultrasonic signals simultaneously, and the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each signal transmitting position to receive echo signals simultaneously;
成像模块，用于根据所述回波信号合成的回波射频数据生成超声图像。An imaging module is used to generate an ultrasonic image according to the echo radio frequency data synthesized from the echo signal.
本申请还提供了一种存储介质，其上存储有计算机程序，所述计算机程序执行时实现上述超声图像生成方法执行的步骤。The present application also provides a storage medium on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program is executed, the steps of the above-mentioned ultrasound image generation method are implemented.
本申请还提供了一种超声诊断设备，包括存储器和处理器，所述存储器中存储有计算机程序，所述处理器调用所述存储器中的计算机程序时实现上述超声图像生成方法执行的步骤。The present application also provides an ultrasonic diagnostic device, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor implements the steps of the ultrasonic image generation method when calling the computer program in the memory.
本申请提供了一种超声图像生成方法，包括：确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数；根据所述信号接收孔径的阵元数在所述环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置；其中，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于所述信号接收孔径的阵元数，N不小于2；N个所述信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，且每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号；根据所述回波信号合成的回波射频数据生成超声图像。The present application provides an ultrasonic image generation method, comprising: determining the number of array elements of a signal receiving aperture in a circular array probe; selecting N signal transmission positions on the circular array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture; wherein the number of array elements between the center points of any two of the signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and N is not less than 2; the N signal transmission positions simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals, and the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each of the signal transmission positions simultaneously receives echo signals; and generating an ultrasonic image according to echo radio frequency data synthesized from the echo signals.
环阵探头的各阵元呈环状分布，环阵探头上相背或相隔较远位置的阵元发射超声波信号时，由于超声波信号发射的方向不同，发射的超声波信号相互之间影响很小。本申请根据信号接收孔径的阵元数选取N个信号发射位置，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于接收孔径阵元数。通过本申请中信号发射位置的布局方式可以降低信号位置之间发射信号的干扰，也可以降低信号接收孔径之间接收信号的干扰。相较于次序扫描的信号发射方式，本申请利用N个信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号且信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号，可以减少环阵探头扫描一帧图像所需的时间。由此可见，本申请可以在不影响成像质量的前提下缩短超声探头扫描图像的时长，提高超声图像的成像帧率。本申请同时还提供了一种超声图像生成装置、一种存储介质和一种超声诊断设备，具有上述有益效果，在此不再赘述。The array elements of the ring array probe are distributed in a ring shape. When the array elements on the ring array probe that are opposite to each other or far apart transmit ultrasonic signals, the transmitted ultrasonic signals have little influence on each other due to the different directions of the ultrasonic signal transmission. The present application selects N signal transmission positions according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and the number of array elements between the center points of any two of the signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the receiving aperture. The layout of the signal transmission positions in the present application can reduce the interference of the transmitted signals between the signal positions, and can also reduce the interference of the received signals between the signal receiving apertures. Compared with the signal transmission method of sequential scanning, the present application uses N signal transmission positions to simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals and the signal receiving aperture to simultaneously receive echo signals, which can reduce the time required for the ring array probe to scan a frame of image. It can be seen that the present application can shorten the time for the ultrasonic probe to scan the image without affecting the imaging quality, and improve the imaging frame rate of the ultrasonic image. The present application also provides an ultrasonic image generation device, a storage medium and an ultrasonic diagnostic device, which have the above-mentioned beneficial effects and are not repeated here.
附图说明BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
为了更清楚地说明本申请实施例，下面将对实施例中所需要使用的附图做简单的介绍，显而易见地，下面描述中的附图仅仅是本申请的一些实施例，对于本领域普通技术人员来讲，在不付出创造性劳动的前提下，还可以根据这些附图获得其他的附图。In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application, the following is a brief introduction to the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.
图1为本申请实施例所提供的一种超声图像生成方法的流程图；FIG1 is a flow chart of a method for generating an ultrasound image provided by an embodiment of the present application;
图2为本申请实施例所提供的一种环阵探头同时发射并接收三束超声波信号的原理示意图；FIG2 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of a circular array probe provided in an embodiment of the present application for simultaneously transmitting and receiving three ultrasonic wave signals;
图3为本申请实施例所提供的一种信号发射位置的选择方法的流程图；FIG3 is a flow chart of a method for selecting a signal transmission position provided in an embodiment of the present application;
图4为本申请实施例所提供的一种回波信号处理方法的流程图；FIG4 is a flow chart of an echo signal processing method provided in an embodiment of the present application;
图5为本申请实施例所描述的一种环阵探头收发信号的示意图；FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a ring array probe receiving and sending signals described in an embodiment of the present application;
图6为本申请实施例所提供的环阵波束合成的原理示意图；FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the principle of the ring array beamforming provided in an embodiment of the present application;
图7为本申请实施例所提供的一种环阵接收多波束的原理示意图；FIG7 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of a ring array receiving multi-beams provided in an embodiment of the present application;
图8为本申请实施例所提供的一种探头指向性示意图；FIG8 is a schematic diagram of a probe directivity provided in an embodiment of the present application;
图9为本申请实施例所提供的一种超声图像生成装置的结构示意图。FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an ultrasonic image generating device provided in an embodiment of the present application.
具体实施方式Detailed ways
为使本申请实施例的目的、技术方案和优点更加清楚，下面将结合本申请实施例中的附图，对本申请实施例中的技术方案进行清楚、完整地描述，显然，所描述的实施例是本申请一部分实施例，而不是全部的实施例。基于本申请中的实施例，本领域普通技术人员在没有做出创造性劳动前提下所获得的所有其他实施例，都属于本申请保护的范围。In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solution in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.
超声诊断设备的超声探头可以包括线阵探头、凸阵探头、相控阵探头、环阵探头等，相关技术中的超声探头均采用次序扫描的方式发射和接收信号，次序扫描指从超声探头的第一个阵元到最后一个阵元依次发射和接收信号，一次发射接收时间内超声探头仅能够生成一条超声图像的扫描线。上述方式中扫描一帧超声图像所需的时间过长，成像帧率较低。基于上述相关技术中存在的问题，本申请提供了以下几种新的超声图像生成方案，能够解决上述传统方案中扫描一帧图像所需时间过长，超声图像的成像帧率较低的问题。The ultrasonic probe of the ultrasonic diagnostic equipment may include a linear array probe, a convex array probe, a phased array probe, a circular array probe, etc. The ultrasonic probes in the related art all transmit and receive signals in a sequential scanning manner. Sequential scanning refers to transmitting and receiving signals from the first array element to the last array element of the ultrasonic probe in sequence. The ultrasonic probe can only generate a scanning line of an ultrasonic image within one transmission and reception time. The time required to scan a frame of ultrasonic image in the above method is too long, and the imaging frame rate is low. Based on the problems existing in the above related technologies, the present application provides the following new ultrasonic image generation schemes, which can solve the problems of the above traditional schemes requiring too long a time to scan a frame of image and the low imaging frame rate of ultrasonic images.
下面请参见图1，图1为本申请实施例所提供的一种超声图像生成方法的流程图。Please refer to Figure 1 below, which is a flow chart of an ultrasound image generation method provided in an embodiment of the present application.
具体步骤可以包括：Specific steps may include:
S101：确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数。S101: Determine the number of array elements of a signal receiving aperture in a circular array probe.
其中，本实施例可以应用于超声诊断设备中，超声诊断设备通过超声探头发射超声波信号，并根据接收到的回波信号生成相应的超声图像。本实施例具体应用于具有环阵探头的超声诊断设备，环阵探头上可以包括多个用于发射和接收信号的阵元，环阵探头上的首阵元与末阵元是相邻的，环阵探头上的阵元可以等间距分布在一个同心圆上，呈环状分布。Among them, this embodiment can be applied to an ultrasonic diagnostic device, which transmits an ultrasonic signal through an ultrasonic probe and generates a corresponding ultrasonic image according to the received echo signal. This embodiment is specifically applied to an ultrasonic diagnostic device with a circular array probe, which can include a plurality of array elements for transmitting and receiving signals, the first array element and the last array element on the circular array probe are adjacent, and the array elements on the circular array probe can be evenly spaced and distributed on a concentric circle, forming a circular distribution.
超声探头通过一个阵元或多个相邻的阵元向发射焦点发射超声波信号，超声探头的信号发射位置包括同时向同一发射焦点发射超声波信号的所有阵元。当信号发射位置包括的阵元数为1时，超声探头仅通过一个阵元向发射焦点发射超声波信号；当信号发射位置包括的阵元数大于1时，超声探头通过多个阵元向发射焦点发射超声波信号。超声探头通过一个阵元或多个相邻的阵元接收超声波信号对应的回波信号。当信号接收孔径包括的阵元数为1时，超声探头仅通过一个阵元接收超声波信号对应的回波信号；当信号接收孔径包括的阵元数大于1时，超声探头通过多个阵元接收超声波信号对应的回波信号。The ultrasonic probe transmits an ultrasonic signal to the transmitting focus through one array element or multiple adjacent array elements, and the signal transmitting position of the ultrasonic probe includes all array elements that simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals to the same transmitting focus. When the number of array elements included in the signal transmitting position is 1, the ultrasonic probe transmits an ultrasonic signal to the transmitting focus through only one array element; when the number of array elements included in the signal transmitting position is greater than 1, the ultrasonic probe transmits an ultrasonic signal to the transmitting focus through multiple array elements. The ultrasonic probe receives the echo signal corresponding to the ultrasonic signal through one array element or multiple adjacent array elements. When the number of array elements included in the signal receiving aperture is 1, the ultrasonic probe receives the echo signal corresponding to the ultrasonic signal through only one array element; when the number of array elements included in the signal receiving aperture is greater than 1, the ultrasonic probe receives the echo signal corresponding to the ultrasonic signal through multiple array elements.
可以理解的是，信号发射位置和信号接收孔径为一一对应的关系，信号接收孔径包括的阵元数大于或等于信号发射位置包括的发射孔径阵元数；在相对应的信号发射位置和信号接收孔径中，信号发射位置中心位置的阵元处于信号发射位置的中心。It can be understood that the signal transmission position and the signal receiving aperture are in a one-to-one correspondence, and the number of array elements included in the signal receiving aperture is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the transmission aperture included in the signal transmission position; in the corresponding signal transmission position and signal receiving aperture, the array element at the center position of the signal transmission position is at the center of the signal transmission position.
S102：根据信号接收孔径的阵元数在环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置。S102: Selecting N signal transmission positions on the circular array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture.
其中，环阵探头上相背或相隔较远位置的信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号时，由于超声波信号的发射方向不同、且发射超声波信号的角度间隔较大，因此信号发射位置发射的超声波信号相互之间影响很小，在环阵探头上可以在降低发射信号干扰的前提下同时发射多条扫描线的超声波信号。进一步的，由于阵元具有指向性，接收角度越大，该方向的接收灵敏度越差。在接收波束合成过程中，可以会通过接收变迹来限制参与波束合成叠加的阵元的范围，达到抑制旁瓣噪声的目的。按照常规扫描方式的环阵探头，在一次发射接收过程中，仅能利用有限的阵元参与信号接收，且上述参与信号接收的阵元数小于一半的总探头阵元数。基于上述分析，环阵探头是能够设计成同时在多个足够角度间距位置发射或接收信号，而且可以保证在多个位置的发射信号的相互影响较小。Among them, when the signal transmitting positions on the circular array probe that are opposite to each other or far apart simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals, since the transmitting directions of the ultrasonic signals are different and the angular interval of the transmitted ultrasonic signals is large, the ultrasonic signals transmitted by the signal transmitting positions have little influence on each other, and the circular array probe can simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals of multiple scanning lines under the premise of reducing the interference of the transmitted signals. Furthermore, since the array elements are directional, the larger the receiving angle, the worse the receiving sensitivity in this direction. In the process of receiving beam synthesis, the range of the array elements participating in the beam synthesis superposition can be limited by receiving apodization to achieve the purpose of suppressing sidelobe noise. According to the circular array probe of the conventional scanning method, in a single transmitting and receiving process, only limited array elements can be used to participate in signal reception, and the number of array elements participating in the signal reception is less than half of the total number of probe array elements. Based on the above analysis, the circular array probe can be designed to transmit or receive signals at multiple positions with sufficient angular spacing at the same time, and it can ensure that the mutual influence of the transmitted signals at multiple positions is small.
可以理解的是，N可以为大于1的整数，即本步骤可以在环阵探头选取至少2个信号发射位置。每一信号发射位置均可以存在其对应的信号接收孔径，为了避免不同信号发射位置对应的信号接收孔径在接收回波信号时互相干扰，本步骤中用于同时接收回波信号的信号接收孔径相互不重叠。由于信号接收孔径的位置与信号发射位置相关，因此可以通过设置信号发射位置避免信号接收孔径相互重叠。具体的，可以以信号接收孔径包括的阵元数为参照在环阵探头选取N个信号发射位置，使得任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于信号接收孔径的阵元数。It can be understood that N can be an integer greater than 1, that is, at least two signal transmission positions can be selected in the circular array probe in this step. Each signal transmission position can have its corresponding signal receiving aperture. In order to avoid mutual interference between signal receiving apertures corresponding to different signal transmission positions when receiving echo signals, the signal receiving apertures used to simultaneously receive echo signals in this step do not overlap with each other. Since the position of the signal receiving aperture is related to the signal transmission position, the signal receiving apertures can be set to avoid overlapping of the signal receiving apertures. Specifically, N signal transmission positions can be selected in the circular array probe with reference to the number of array elements included in the signal receiving aperture, so that the number of array elements between the center points of any two of the signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture.
以环阵探头举例说明上述根据信号接收孔径的阵元数在环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置的过程：若环阵探头中包括编号为1、2、3、4，……，21的阵元，编号相邻的阵元在环阵探头上的位置相邻，1号阵元与21号阵元相邻。信号发射位置包括的阵元数为3，信号接收孔径包括的阵元数为7。第一个信号发射位置包括编号为3、4、5的阵元时，对应的信号接收孔径包括编号为1、2、3、4、5、6、7的阵元；第二个信号发射位置包括编号为10、11、12的阵元时，对应的信号接收孔径包括编号为8、9、10、11、12、13、14的阵元；当信号发射位置包括编号为17、18、19的阵元时，对应的信号接收孔径包括编号为15、16、17、18、19、20、21的阵元。上述例子说明了，两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数等于所述接收孔径包括的阵元数时选取信号发射位置的方式。The process of selecting N signal transmission positions on the ring array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture is explained by taking the ring array probe as an example: if the ring array probe includes array elements numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, ..., 21, the array elements with adjacent numbers are adjacent in position on the ring array probe, and array element No. 1 is adjacent to array element No. 21. The number of array elements included in the signal transmission position is 3, and the number of array elements included in the signal receiving aperture is 7. When the first signal transmission position includes array elements numbered 3, 4, and 5, the corresponding signal receiving aperture includes array elements numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7; when the second signal transmission position includes array elements numbered 10, 11, and 12, the corresponding signal receiving aperture includes array elements numbered 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14; when the signal transmission position includes array elements numbered 17, 18, and 19, the corresponding signal receiving aperture includes array elements numbered 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, and 21. The above example illustrates the way of selecting the signal transmission position when the number of array elements between the center points of the two signal transmission positions is equal to the number of array elements included in the receiving aperture.
如图2所示，图2为本申请实施例所提供的一种环阵探头同时发射并接收三束超声波信号的原理示意图。图2中三个信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，每一信号发射位置对应的信号接收孔径接收回波信号，信号发射位置位于信号接收孔径内部。当然，上述示例也可以选取2个信号发射位置，例如将编号为3、4、5的阵元作为第一个信号发射位置，将编号为11、12、13的阵元作为第二个信号发射位置，此时两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于信号接收孔径的阵元数。As shown in Figure 2, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the principle of a circular array probe provided by an embodiment of the present application to simultaneously transmit and receive three ultrasonic signals. In Figure 2, three signal transmitting positions simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals, and a signal receiving aperture corresponding to each signal transmitting position receives an echo signal, and the signal transmitting position is located inside the signal receiving aperture. Of course, the above example can also select two signal transmitting positions, for example, array elements numbered 3, 4, and 5 are used as the first signal transmitting position, and array elements numbered 11, 12, and 13 are used as the second signal transmitting position. At this time, the number of array elements between the center points of the two signal transmitting positions is greater than the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture.
作为一种可行的实施方式，本实施例可以根据环阵探头的总阵元数与信号接收孔径的阵元数的比值确定选取信号发射位置的取值区间，将该取值区间显示在人机交互界面，以便用户根据取值区间设置信号发射位置的数量。在接收到用户设置的信号发射位置的数量之后，超声诊断设备可以基于预设约束条件在环阵探头选取N个信号发射位置。该预设约束条件为：任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于信号接收孔径的阵元数。As a feasible implementation, this embodiment can determine the value interval for selecting the signal transmission position according to the ratio of the total number of array elements of the circular array probe to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and display the value interval on the human-computer interaction interface so that the user can set the number of signal transmission positions according to the value interval. After receiving the number of signal transmission positions set by the user, the ultrasonic diagnostic equipment can select N signal transmission positions in the circular array probe based on a preset constraint condition. The preset constraint condition is: the number of array elements between the center points of any two of the signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture.
S103：控制N个所述信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，且每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号。S103: Control the N signal transmitting positions to transmit ultrasonic signals simultaneously, and the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each signal transmitting position to receive echo signals simultaneously.
其中，在确定了信号发射位置之后，即可以确定每一信号发射位置对应的阵元。在本步骤中可以通过N个所述信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，相应的信号接收孔径也可以同时接收超声波信号对应的回波信号。通过上述多个信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号、多个信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号，可以使环阵探头在一次信号发射接收时间内生成多组扫描线，减少了环阵探头扫描一帧图像所需要的时间，提高环阵成像帧率。Among them, after the signal transmission position is determined, the array element corresponding to each signal transmission position can be determined. In this step, ultrasonic signals can be transmitted simultaneously through N signal transmission positions, and the corresponding signal receiving apertures can also simultaneously receive echo signals corresponding to the ultrasonic signals. By transmitting ultrasonic signals simultaneously through the above-mentioned multiple signal transmission positions and receiving echo signals simultaneously through multiple signal receiving apertures, the annular array probe can generate multiple groups of scanning lines within one signal transmission and reception time, thereby reducing the time required for the annular array probe to scan a frame of image and improving the annular array imaging frame rate.
进一步的，由于环阵探头采用次序扫描的方式发射和接收信号，需要生成环阵探头上所有阵元对应的扫描线，S103中在环阵探头上选取了N个用于发射当前帧超声波信号的信号发射位置，为了得到其他位置阵元的扫描线，本实施例可以按照预设步长移动信号发射位置，实现环阵探头各个位置的扫描线生成。具体的，在执行一次S103中描述的发射和接收操作后，还可以确定阵元移动步长，并将所有的信号发射位置按照预设方向(顺时针方向或逆时针方向)移动所述阵元移动步长对应的阵元数，以便控制移动所述阵元移动步长后的信号发射位置发射下一帧超声波信号。该阵元移动步长可以根据环阵探头的参数以及实际应用需求进行设置。通过上述方式能够充分利用环阵探头的扫描功率，提高探头扫描效率和成像帧率。Furthermore, since the circular array probe transmits and receives signals in a sequential scanning manner, it is necessary to generate scanning lines corresponding to all array elements on the circular array probe. In S103, N signal transmission positions for transmitting the current frame of ultrasonic signals are selected on the circular array probe. In order to obtain the scanning lines of array elements at other positions, this embodiment can move the signal transmission position according to a preset step length to achieve the generation of scanning lines at various positions of the circular array probe. Specifically, after performing the transmission and reception operations described in S103 once, the array element movement step length can also be determined, and all signal transmission positions can be moved in a preset direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) by the number of array elements corresponding to the array element movement step length, so as to control the signal transmission position after moving the array element movement step length to transmit the next frame of ultrasonic signals. The array element movement step length can be set according to the parameters of the circular array probe and the actual application requirements. In the above manner, the scanning power of the circular array probe can be fully utilized to improve the scanning efficiency and imaging frame rate of the probe.
举例说明上述调整信号发射位置的方案，例如环阵探头包括第1～20号阵元，在执行S102时选取4个信号发射位置A、B、C、D。上述各信号发射位置与阵元的对应关系如下：A对应第1～3号阵元，B对应第6～8号阵元，C对应第11～13号阵元，D对应第16～18号阵元；在执行S103时可以控制上述4个所述信号发射位置对应的阵元同时发射当前帧的超声波信号。在执行S103之后，本实施例可以确定阵元移动步长(如2阵元)，并将所有的信号发射位置按照顺时针方向移动所述阵元移动步长对应的阵元数，以使移动预设步长后的信号发射位置与阵元的对应关系如下：A对应第3～5号阵元，B对应第8～10号阵元，C对应第13～15号阵元，D对应第18～20号阵元。在信号发射位置移动预设步长后，可以在利用上述4个信号发射位置对应的阵元发射下一帧超声波信号。可以理解的是，在信号发射位置移动时，信号接收孔径对应的阵元位置也发生变化，在信号发射位置发射下一帧超声波信号的同时，对应的信号接收孔径也可以接收下一帧回波信号。Take the above scheme of adjusting the signal transmission position as an example. For example, the ring array probe includes array elements No. 1 to No. 20. When executing S102, four signal transmission positions A, B, C, and D are selected. The corresponding relationship between the above signal transmission positions and the array elements is as follows: A corresponds to array elements No. 1 to No. 3, B corresponds to array elements No. 6 to No. 8, C corresponds to array elements No. 11 to No. 13, and D corresponds to array elements No. 16 to No. 18; when executing S103, the array elements corresponding to the above four signal transmission positions can be controlled to simultaneously transmit the ultrasonic signal of the current frame. After executing S103, this embodiment can determine the array element movement step (such as 2 array elements), and move all signal transmission positions in a clockwise direction by the number of array elements corresponding to the array element movement step, so that the corresponding relationship between the signal transmission position and the array element after moving the preset step is as follows: A corresponds to array elements No. 3 to No. 5, B corresponds to array elements No. 8 to No. 10, C corresponds to array elements No. 13 to No. 15, and D corresponds to array elements No. 18 to No. 20. After the signal transmission position moves by a preset step length, the array elements corresponding to the above four signal transmission positions can be used to transmit the next frame of ultrasonic signals. It can be understood that when the signal transmission position moves, the array element position corresponding to the signal receiving aperture also changes. When the signal transmission position transmits the next frame of ultrasonic signals, the corresponding signal receiving aperture can also receive the next frame of echo signals.
S104：根据回波信号合成的回波射频数据生成超声图像。S104: Generate an ultrasound image according to the echo radio frequency data synthesized from the echo signal.
其中，在得到回波信号之后，可以通过执行延时叠加加权和变迹加权将回波信号合成回波射频数据，进而基于回波射频数据生成超声图像。After the echo signal is obtained, the echo signal can be synthesized into echo radio frequency data by performing delay-addition weighting and apodization weighting, and then an ultrasonic image is generated based on the echo radio frequency data.
环阵探头的各阵元呈环状分布，环阵探头上相背或相隔较远位置的阵元发射超声波信号时，由于超声波信号发射的方向不同，发射的超声波信号相互之间影响很小。本实施例根据信号接收孔径的阵元数选取N个信号发射位置，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于接收孔径阵元数。通过本实施例中信号发射位置的布局方式可以降低信号位置之间发射信号的干扰，也可以降低信号接收孔径之间接收信号的干扰。相较于次序扫描的信号发射方式，本实施例利用N个信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号且信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号，可以减少环阵探头扫描一帧图像所需的时间。由此可见，本实施例可以在不影响成像质量的前提下缩短超声探头扫描图像的时长，提高超声图像的成像帧率。The array elements of the circular array probe are distributed in a ring shape. When the array elements on the circular array probe that are opposite to each other or far apart transmit ultrasonic signals, the transmitted ultrasonic signals have little influence on each other due to the different directions of the ultrasonic signal transmission. In this embodiment, N signal transmission positions are selected according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and the number of array elements between the center points of any two of the signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the receiving aperture. The layout of the signal transmission positions in this embodiment can reduce the interference of the transmitted signals between the signal positions, and can also reduce the interference of the received signals between the signal receiving apertures. Compared with the signal transmission method of sequential scanning, this embodiment uses N signal transmission positions to simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals and the signal receiving aperture to simultaneously receive echo signals, which can reduce the time required for the circular array probe to scan a frame of image. It can be seen that this embodiment can shorten the time it takes for the ultrasonic probe to scan an image without affecting the imaging quality, and improve the imaging frame rate of the ultrasonic image.
请参见图3，图3为本申请实施例所提供的一种信号发射位置的选择方法的流程图，本实施例是对图1对应实施例中S102的进一步介绍，可以将本实施例与图1对应的实施例相结合得到进一步的实施方式，本实施例可以包括以下步骤：Please refer to FIG. 3, which is a flow chart of a method for selecting a signal transmission position provided in an embodiment of the present application. This embodiment is a further introduction to S102 in the embodiment corresponding to FIG. 1. This embodiment can be combined with the embodiment corresponding to FIG. 1 to obtain a further implementation method. This embodiment can include the following steps:
S301：确定环阵探头的总阵元数。S301: Determine the total number of array elements of the ring array probe.
S302：对总阵元数与信号接收孔径的阵元数的比值向下取整，得到发射位置最大数量。S302: round down the ratio of the total number of array elements to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture to obtain the maximum number of transmission positions.
S303：基于信号接收孔径在所述环阵探头中选取等间距的不大于发射位置最大数量的若干个信号发射位置。S303: Selecting a number of signal transmission positions with equal spacing and no more than the maximum number of transmission positions in the circular array probe based on the signal receiving aperture.
上述实施例提供了在环阵探头中选取尽可能多的信号发射位置的方式，本实施例中确定的任意两个信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于信号接收孔径的阵元数。在总阵元数为20的情况下，若接收孔径阵元数为4，则可以在环阵探头中选取5个所述信号发射位置；若接收孔径阵元数为5，则可以在环阵探头中选取4个所述信号发射位置。通过上述方式确定的信号发射位置能够在不影响成像质量的前提下缩短超声探头扫描图像的时长，使得超声图像的成像帧率达到最大值。The above embodiment provides a method for selecting as many signal transmission positions as possible in the circular array probe. The number of array elements between the center points of any two signal transmission positions determined in this embodiment is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture. When the total number of array elements is 20, if the number of receiving aperture array elements is 4, then 5 of the signal transmission positions can be selected in the circular array probe; if the number of receiving aperture array elements is 5, then 4 of the signal transmission positions can be selected in the circular array probe. The signal transmission positions determined in the above manner can shorten the time it takes for the ultrasound probe to scan the image without affecting the imaging quality, so that the imaging frame rate of the ultrasound image reaches the maximum value.
请参见图4，图4为本申请实施例所提供的一种回波信号处理方法的流程图，本实施例是对图1对应实施例中S104的进一步介绍，可以将本实施例与图1对应的实施例相结合得到进一步的实施方式，本实施例可以包括以下步骤：Please refer to FIG. 4, which is a flow chart of an echo signal processing method provided in an embodiment of the present application. This embodiment is a further introduction to S104 in the embodiment corresponding to FIG. 1. This embodiment can be combined with the embodiment corresponding to FIG. 1 to obtain a further implementation method. This embodiment can include the following steps:
S401：根据回波信号确定信号接收孔径中每一阵元的通道数据。S401: Determine channel data of each array element in a signal receiving aperture according to an echo signal.
其中，信号接收孔径中每一阵元接收的回波信号为该阵元的通道数据。The echo signal received by each array element in the signal receiving aperture is the channel data of the array element.
S402：对信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据执行延时叠加加权操作和变迹加权操作，得到回波射频数据。S402: Perform delay-addition weighting operation and apodization weighting operation on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture to obtain echo radio frequency data.
其中，本步骤可以先对每一通道数据执行延时叠加加权操作，再对延时叠加加权后的通道数据执行变迹加权操作得到回波射频数据。In this step, a delay-addition weighting operation may be performed on each channel data first, and then an apodization weighting operation may be performed on the delay-addition weighted channel data to obtain echo radio frequency data.
S403：根据所有回波射频数据生成所述超声图像。S403: Generate the ultrasound image according to all echo radio frequency data.
下面通过实际应用中的例子说明上述实施例描述的回波信号处理过程：The echo signal processing process described in the above embodiment is explained below by using an example in a practical application:
请参见图5，图5为本申请实施例所描述的一种环阵探头收发信号的示意图，图5描述了环阵探头同时发射两束超声波信号的示意图，环阵探头在位置1发射第一超声波信号503时，在位置2发射第二超声波信号506，位置1下对应的信号接收孔径为504，与位置2对应的信号接收孔径507不重叠，可以同时工作而不相互影响。本实施例根据同时存在的信号发射位置个数Ns，将环阵探头的阵元划分为多组，每个信号接收孔径包括的阵元个数为N0，环阵探头的总阵元个数为EleNum，满足Ns*N0≤EleNum。如图5所示，环阵探头同时存在2个信号发射位置。对一次发射接收来说，若信号接收孔径504的第一个阵元编号为S0+1，第一超声波信号503对应的信号接收孔径的阵元范围为S0+1～S0+N0，此范围内的回波数据经过延时叠加加权操作和变迹加权操作后，生成第一条回波射频数据，此范围外的回波数据不参与生成回波射频数据的过程。若信号接收孔径507的第一个阵元编号为S1+1，第二超声波信号506对应的信号接收孔径的阵元范围为S1+1～S1+N0，此范围内的阵元回波数据经过延时加权后，生成第二条回波射频数据。本实施例中的信号发射位置可以沿逆时针方向移动，对于不同信号发射位置发射超声波信号的回波信号，对应的信号接收孔径的位置也会改变，即S0，S1会变化。请参见图6，图6为本申请实施例所提供的环阵波束合成的原理示意图。获取信号接收孔径中的每一阵元的ADC通道数据S0+i，1≤i≤N0，对ADC通道数据S0+i执行缓存操作、延时叠加加权操作和变迹加权操作得到对应的回波射频数据。Please refer to Figure 5, which is a schematic diagram of a circular array probe receiving and sending signals described in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 5 describes a schematic diagram of the circular array probe emitting two ultrasonic signals at the same time. When the circular array probe emits a first ultrasonic signal 503 at position 1, it emits a second ultrasonic signal 506 at position 2. The corresponding signal receiving aperture at position 1 is 504, which does not overlap with the signal receiving aperture 507 corresponding to position 2, and they can work simultaneously without affecting each other. In this embodiment, the array elements of the circular array probe are divided into multiple groups according to the number of signal transmitting positions Ns that exist at the same time. The number of array elements included in each signal receiving aperture is N0, and the total number of array elements of the circular array probe is EleNum, satisfying Ns*N0≤EleNum. As shown in Figure 5, there are two signal transmitting positions at the same time in the circular array probe. For a single transmission and reception, if the first array element of the signal receiving aperture 504 is numbered S0+1, the array element range of the signal receiving aperture corresponding to the first ultrasonic signal 503 is S0+1~S0+N0, and the echo data within this range is subjected to the delay superposition weighting operation and the apodization weighting operation to generate the first echo radio frequency data, and the echo data outside this range does not participate in the process of generating the echo radio frequency data. If the first array element of the signal receiving aperture 507 is numbered S1+1, the array element range of the signal receiving aperture corresponding to the second ultrasonic signal 506 is S1+1~S1+N0, and the array element echo data within this range is subjected to the delay weighting to generate the second echo radio frequency data. The signal transmission position in this embodiment can be moved in a counterclockwise direction, and for the echo signals of the ultrasonic signals transmitted at different signal transmission positions, the corresponding signal receiving aperture position will also change, that is, S0 and S1 will change. Please refer to Figure 6, which is a schematic diagram of the principle of the ring array beamforming provided in the embodiment of the present application. The ADC channel data S0+i of each array element in the signal receiving aperture is obtained, 1≤i≤N0, and a buffering operation, a delay-addition weighted operation and apodization weighted operation are performed on the ADC channel data S0+i to obtain the corresponding echo RF data.
作为一种可行的实施方式可以通过多波束接收的方式对所述信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据分别执行多次不同延时参数的延时叠加加权操作和多次不同加权系数的变迹加权操作，得到多条所述回波射频数据。如图7所示，图7为本申请实施例所提供的一种环阵接收多波束的原理示意图，图7以两个位置收发信号为例，每个位置采用4波束接收，第一个位置生成A，B，C，D四个波束，第二个位置生成E，F，G，H四个波束，总共生成8个接收波束。As a feasible implementation method, multiple delay superposition weighted operations with different delay parameters and multiple apodization weighted operations with different weighting coefficients can be performed on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture by multi-beam reception to obtain multiple echo RF data. As shown in Figure 7, Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the principle of a ring array receiving multi-beam provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 7 takes the example of sending and receiving signals at two positions, and each position adopts 4-beam reception. The first position generates four beams A, B, C, and D, and the second position generates four beams E, F, G, and H, generating a total of 8 receiving beams.
多波束接收即多波束技术，多波束技术是指发射一次，对同一组接收回波数据，进行不同延时及加权处理形成多条接收线数据的技术。Multi-beam reception is also called multi-beam technology. Multi-beam technology refers to a technology that transmits once and performs different delays and weighted processing on the same set of received echo data to form multiple receiving line data.
通过将上述实施例提供的环阵扫描方式结合多波束技术，所有位置的波束数总和可以达到系统支持的最大波束数(即系统一次可以最大并行处理的波束数)，此时采用环阵扫描的成像帧率优于多波束下的帧率。此外，相关技术中多波束技术的发射声束声场需要覆盖接收声束声场范围，覆盖范围越大，接收波束的信噪比越差。由于本申请的环阵探头通过多位置收发信号，将上述实施例提供的环阵扫描方式与多波束技术结合可以兼顾帧率与成像质量，在总的波束数相同条件下，减小单一发射接收位置的波束数，可以使得在保持与多波束方式相同帧率的条件下，获得更高信噪比的成像图像。如果系统支持的接收波束数足够多，本申请环阵探头多位置收发信号的方案与多波束技术结合可以进一步提高接收帧率。By combining the circular array scanning method provided in the above embodiment with multi-beam technology, the sum of the number of beams at all positions can reach the maximum number of beams supported by the system (i.e., the maximum number of beams that the system can process in parallel at one time). At this time, the imaging frame rate using the circular array scanning is better than the frame rate under the multi-beam. In addition, the transmitting sound beam sound field of the multi-beam technology in the related art needs to cover the receiving sound beam sound field range. The larger the coverage range, the worse the signal-to-noise ratio of the receiving beam. Since the circular array probe of the present application receives and sends signals at multiple positions, the circular array scanning method provided in the above embodiment is combined with the multi-beam technology to take into account both the frame rate and the imaging quality. Under the condition that the total number of beams is the same, the number of beams at a single transmitting and receiving position is reduced, so that an imaging image with a higher signal-to-noise ratio can be obtained while maintaining the same frame rate as the multi-beam method. If the number of receiving beams supported by the system is sufficient, the scheme of receiving and sending signals at multiple positions of the circular array probe of the present application combined with the multi-beam technology can further improve the receiving frame rate.
作为对于图1实施例的进一步介绍，可以根据阵元指向性参数确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数，以及信号发射位置包括的阵元数。As a further introduction to the embodiment of FIG. 1 , the number of array elements in the signal receiving aperture in the circular array probe and the number of array elements included in the signal transmitting position may be determined according to the array element directivity parameters.
阵元指向性参数为用于描述阵元的指向性的参数，阵元的指向性是指阵元的发射响应或接收响应的幅值随方位角的变化而变化的一种特性。即，阵元的灵敏度会跟随角度的变化而变化的特性。请参见图8，图8为本申请实施例所提供的一种探头指向性示意图，图8中(1)为探头声场的示意图，(2)为(1)中声场的横切面图。根据图8所示的探头主瓣内灵敏度变化规律可知：方向角越小，阵元越灵敏，方向角越大，阵元越不灵敏。多个阵元形成的声场，同样具有上述规律。阵元的指向性分布与探头本身的特性有关。由于探头阵元具有指向性，超过一定角度收发的信号会比较弱，如果将大于一定角度的接收阵元接收的信号作用于波束合成会导致图像噪声水平升高，图像质量下降。为防止类似的问题，本实施例可以通过步骤A1～A3确定信号接收孔径包括的接收孔径阵元数：The array element directivity parameter is a parameter used to describe the directivity of the array element. The directivity of the array element refers to a characteristic that the amplitude of the transmit response or receive response of the array element changes with the change of the azimuth. That is, the sensitivity of the array element will change with the change of the angle. Please refer to Figure 8, which is a schematic diagram of the probe directivity provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 8 (1) is a schematic diagram of the probe sound field, and (2) is a cross-sectional view of the sound field in (1). According to the sensitivity change law within the main lobe of the probe shown in Figure 8, it can be seen that: the smaller the directional angle, the more sensitive the array element, and the larger the directional angle, the less sensitive the array element. The sound field formed by multiple array elements also has the above law. The directivity distribution of the array element is related to the characteristics of the probe itself. Since the probe array element has directivity, the signal received and transmitted beyond a certain angle will be relatively weak. If the signal received by the receiving array element greater than a certain angle is applied to beam synthesis, the image noise level will increase and the image quality will decrease. To prevent similar problems, this embodiment can determine the number of receiving aperture array elements included in the signal receiving aperture through steps A1 to A3:
步骤A1：获取所述环阵探头的阵元指向性参数。Step A1: Obtaining the array element directivity parameters of the ring array probe.
其中，所述阵元指向性参数包括阵元灵敏度与方向角的对应关系。The array element directivity parameter includes the corresponding relationship between the array element sensitivity and the direction angle.
步骤A2：根据所述阵元指向性参数确定所述阵元灵敏度大于第一预设值的第一方向角区间。Step A2: determining a first directional angle interval in which the array element sensitivity is greater than a first preset value according to the array element directivity parameter.
例如，可以选取-θ-6dB与θ-6dB之间的区间作为第一方向角区间。For example, the interval between -θ-6dB and θ-6dB may be selected as the first direction angle interval.
步骤A3：根据所述第一方向角区间确定所述环阵探头中所述信号接收孔径的阵元数。所述第一方向角区间的跨度与所述发射孔径的阵元数正相关。Step A3: Determine the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the circular array probe according to the first directional angle interval. The span of the first directional angle interval is positively correlated with the number of array elements of the transmitting aperture.
其中，所述第一方向角区间的跨度与所述接收孔径阵元数正相关。如图5所示，θ为环阵探头圆心和阵元的连线(即中心声轴线)方向与该阵元与发射焦点的连线方向的夹角，本实施例可以将θ在第一方向角区间的所有阵元作为信号发射位置包括的阵元。The span of the first directional angle interval is positively correlated with the number of array elements of the receiving aperture. As shown in FIG5 , θ is the angle between the line connecting the center of the circular array probe and the array element (i.e., the central acoustic axis) and the line connecting the array element and the transmission focus. In this embodiment, all array elements of θ in the first directional angle interval can be used as array elements included in the signal transmission position.
基于上文分析可以通过步骤B1～B3确定信号发射位置包括的发射孔径阵元数：Based on the above analysis, the number of transmit aperture array elements included in the signal transmission position can be determined through steps B1 to B3:
步骤B1：获取所述环阵探头的阵元指向性参数。Step B1: Obtaining the array element directivity parameters of the ring array probe.
步骤B2：根据所述阵元指向性参数确定阵元灵敏度大于第二预设值的第二方向角区间。Step B2: determining a second directional angle interval in which the array element sensitivity is greater than a second preset value according to the array element directivity parameter.
步骤B3：根据所述第二方向角区间确定所述环阵探头中所述信号发射位置包括的阵元数；其中，所述第二方向角区间的跨度与信号发射位置的阵元数正相关。Step B3: determining the number of array elements included in the signal transmission position in the circular array probe according to the second directional angle interval; wherein the span of the second directional angle interval is positively correlated with the number of array elements at the signal transmission position.
通过上述方式可以根据环阵探头的特性，对信号发射位置和信号接收孔径包括的阵元数进行限制，可以有效避免相邻信号发射位置之间的信号发射干扰，以及相邻信号接收孔径之间的信号接收干扰，提高了超声诊断设备的成像质量。Through the above method, the number of array elements included in the signal transmission position and the signal receiving aperture can be limited according to the characteristics of the circular array probe, which can effectively avoid signal transmission interference between adjacent signal transmission positions and signal reception interference between adjacent signal receiving apertures, thereby improving the imaging quality of the ultrasonic diagnostic equipment.
本实施例根据阵元灵敏度具有指向性的特点设置信号接收孔径的阵元数和信号发射位置的阵元数，以便环阵探头可以在多个不同位置同时进行发射接收信号，且使得多个位置的发射声束的相互影响很小，不影响成像图像性能。In this embodiment, the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture and the number of array elements of the signal transmitting position are set according to the characteristic of the directional nature of the array element sensitivity, so that the circular array probe can transmit and receive signals at multiple different positions simultaneously, and the mutual influence of the transmitted sound beams at multiple positions is very small, and the imaging image performance is not affected.
请参见图9，图9为本申请实施例所提供的一种超声图像生成装置的结构示意图；Please refer to FIG. 9 , which is a schematic diagram of the structure of an ultrasonic image generating device provided in an embodiment of the present application;
该装置可以包括：The device may include:
接收孔径阵元数确定模块901，用于确定环阵探头中信号接收孔径的阵元数；The receiving aperture array element number determination module 901 is used to determine the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the ring array probe;
信号发射位置选取模块902，用于根据所述信号接收孔径的阵元数在所述环阵探头上选取N个信号发射位置；其中，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于所述信号接收孔径的阵元数，N不小于2；The signal transmission position selection module 902 is used to select N signal transmission positions on the circular array probe according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture; wherein the number of array elements between the center points of any two signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and N is not less than 2;
信号收发模块903，用于控制N个所述信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号，且每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号；The signal transceiver module 903 is used to control the N signal transmitting positions to transmit ultrasonic signals simultaneously, and the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each signal transmitting position to receive echo signals simultaneously;
成像模块904，用于根据所述回波信号合成的回波射频数据生成超声图像。The imaging module 904 is configured to generate an ultrasound image according to the echo radio frequency data synthesized from the echo signal.
环阵探头的各阵元呈环状分布，环阵探头上相背或相隔较远位置的阵元发射超声波信号时，由于超声波信号发射的方向不同，发射的超声波信号相互之间影响很小。本实施例根据信号接收孔径的阵元数选取N个信号发射位置，任意两个所述信号发射位置的中心点之间的阵元数大于或等于接收孔径阵元数。通过本实施例中信号发射位置的布局方式可以降低信号位置之间发射信号的干扰，也可以降低信号接收孔径之间接收信号的干扰。相较于次序扫描的信号发射方式，本实施例利用N个信号发射位置同时发射超声波信号且信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号，可以减少环阵探头扫描一帧图像所需的时间。由此可见，本实施例可以在不影响成像质量的前提下缩短超声探头扫描图像的时长，提高超声图像的成像帧率。The array elements of the circular array probe are distributed in a ring shape. When the array elements on the circular array probe that are opposite to each other or far apart transmit ultrasonic signals, the transmitted ultrasonic signals have little influence on each other due to the different directions of the ultrasonic signal transmission. In this embodiment, N signal transmission positions are selected according to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture, and the number of array elements between the center points of any two of the signal transmission positions is greater than or equal to the number of array elements of the receiving aperture. The layout of the signal transmission positions in this embodiment can reduce the interference of the transmitted signals between the signal positions, and can also reduce the interference of the received signals between the signal receiving apertures. Compared with the signal transmission method of sequential scanning, this embodiment uses N signal transmission positions to simultaneously transmit ultrasonic signals and the signal receiving aperture to simultaneously receive echo signals, which can reduce the time required for the circular array probe to scan a frame of image. It can be seen that this embodiment can shorten the time it takes for the ultrasonic probe to scan an image without affecting the imaging quality, and improve the imaging frame rate of the ultrasonic image.
进一步的，信号发射位置选取模块902包括：Furthermore, the signal transmission position selection module 902 includes:
总阵元数确定单元，用于确定所述环阵探头的总阵元数；A total array element number determination unit, used to determine the total array element number of the ring array probe;
最大发射数量确定单元，用于对所述总阵元数与所述信号接收孔径的阵元数的比值向下取整，得到发射位置最大数量；A maximum transmission number determination unit, configured to round down the ratio of the total number of array elements to the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture to obtain a maximum number of transmission positions;
发射孔选取单元，用于基于所述信号接收孔径在所述环阵探头中选取等间距的不大于所述发射位置最大数量的若干个信号发射位置。The transmitting aperture selection unit is used to select a number of signal transmitting positions with equal spacing and no more than the maximum number of transmitting positions in the circular array probe based on the signal receiving aperture.
进一步的，成像模块904包括：Furthermore, the imaging module 904 includes:
通道数据确定单元，用于根据所述回波信号确定所述信号接收孔径中每一阵元的通道数据；A channel data determination unit, configured to determine the channel data of each array element in the signal receiving aperture according to the echo signal;
信号合成单元，用于对所述信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据执行延时叠加加权操作和变迹加权操作，得到所述回波射频数据；A signal synthesis unit, used for performing a delay-addition weighted operation and apodization weighted operation on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture to obtain the echo radio frequency data;
超声图像生成单元，用于根据所有所述回波射频数据生成所述超声图像。An ultrasound image generating unit is used to generate the ultrasound image according to all the echo radio frequency data.
进一步的，所述信号合成单元用于通过多波束接收的方式对所述信号接收孔径中所有阵元的通道数据分别执行多次不同延时参数的延时叠加加权操作和多次不同加权系数的变迹加权操作，得到多条所述回波射频数据。Furthermore, the signal synthesis unit is used to perform multiple delay superposition weighted operations with different delay parameters and multiple apodization weighted operations with different weighting coefficients on the channel data of all array elements in the signal receiving aperture through multi-beam reception to obtain multiple echo RF data.
进一步的，还包括：Furthermore, it also includes:
信号发射位置更新模块，用于在每个所述信号发射位置对应的所述信号接收孔径同时接收回波信号之后，确定阵元移动步长，并将所述信号发射位置按照预设方向移动所述阵元移动步长对应的阵元数，以便在所述环阵探头中选取新的N个信号发射位置。The signal transmission position updating module is used to determine the array element movement step after the signal receiving aperture corresponding to each of the signal transmission positions simultaneously receives the echo signal, and move the signal transmission position in a preset direction by the number of array elements corresponding to the array element movement step, so as to select new N signal transmission positions in the circular array probe.
进一步的，接收孔径阵元数确定模块901包括：Further, the receiving aperture array element number determination module 901 includes:
指向性参数获取模块，用于获取所述环阵探头的阵元指向性参数；其中，所述阵元指向性参数包括阵元灵敏度与方向角的对应关系；A directivity parameter acquisition module, used to acquire the array element directivity parameters of the circular array probe; wherein the array element directivity parameters include the corresponding relationship between the array element sensitivity and the direction angle;
第一方向角区间确定单元，用于根据所述阵元指向性参数确定所述阵元灵敏度大于第一预设值的第一方向角区间；A first direction angle interval determining unit, configured to determine, according to the array element directivity parameter, a first direction angle interval in which the array element sensitivity is greater than a first preset value;
第一阵元数确定单元，用于根据所述第一方向角区间确定所述环阵探头中所述信号接收孔径的阵元数。The first array element number determination unit is used to determine the number of array elements of the signal receiving aperture in the circular array probe according to the first directional angle interval.
进一步的，还包括：Furthermore, it also includes:
第二方向角区间确定单元，用于根据所述阵元指向性参数确定阵元灵敏度大于第二预设值的第二方向角区间；A second direction angle interval determining unit, used to determine a second direction angle interval in which the array element sensitivity is greater than a second preset value according to the array element directivity parameter;
第二阵元数确定单元，用于根据所述第二方向角区间确定所述环阵探头中所述信号发射位置对应的阵元数。The second array element number determining unit is used to determine the number of array elements corresponding to the signal transmission position in the circular array probe according to the second directional angle interval.
由于装置部分的实施例与方法部分的实施例相互对应，因此装置部分的实施例请参见方法部分的实施例的描述，这里暂不赘述。Since the embodiments of the apparatus part correspond to the embodiments of the method part, please refer to the description of the embodiments of the method part for the embodiments of the apparatus part, which will not be repeated here.
本申请还提供了一种存储介质，其上存有计算机程序，该计算机程序被执行时可以实现上述实施例所提供的步骤。该存储介质可以包括：U盘、移动硬盘、只读存储器(Read-Only Memory，ROM)、随机存取存储器(Random Access Memory，RAM)、磁碟或者光盘等各种可以存储程序代码的介质。The present application also provides a storage medium on which a computer program is stored, and when the computer program is executed, the steps provided in the above embodiment can be implemented. The storage medium may include: a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and other media that can store program codes.
本申请还提供了一种超声诊断设备，可以包括存储器和处理器；所述存储器用于存储计算机程序；所述处理器调用所述存储器中的计算机程序时，可以实现上述实施例所提供的步骤.The present application also provides an ultrasonic diagnostic device, which may include a memory and a processor; the memory is used to store a computer program; when the processor calls the computer program in the memory, the steps provided in the above embodiment can be implemented.
当然所述超声诊断设备还可以包括环阵探头、显示器、网络接口、电源、触摸输入装置、蓝牙模块等组件。所述环阵探头用于发射超声波信号，还用于接收超声波信号对应的回波信号；所述显示器用于显示处理器生成的超声图像。Of course, the ultrasonic diagnostic equipment may also include components such as a ring array probe, a display, a network interface, a power supply, a touch input device, a Bluetooth module, etc. The ring array probe is used to transmit ultrasonic signals and receive echo signals corresponding to ultrasonic signals; the display is used to display the ultrasonic image generated by the processor.
说明书中各个实施例采用递进的方式描述，每个实施例重点说明的都是与其他实施例的不同之处，各个实施例之间相同相似部分互相参见即可。对于实施例公开的装置而言，由于其与实施例公开的方法相对应，所以描述的比较简单，相关之处参见方法部分说明即可。应当指出，对于本技术领域的普通技术人员来说，在不脱离本申请原理的前提下，还可以对本申请进行若干改进和修饰，这些改进和修饰也落入本申请权利要求的保护范围内。The various embodiments in the specification are described in a progressive manner, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments, and the same and similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other. For the device disclosed in the embodiment, since it corresponds to the method disclosed in the embodiment, the description is relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the method part description. It should be pointed out that for ordinary technicians in this technical field, without departing from the principles of this application, several improvements and modifications can be made to the present application, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the claims of this application.
还需要说明的是，在本说明书中，诸如第一和第二等之类的关系术语仅仅用来将一个实体或者操作与另一个实体或操作区分开来，而不一定要求或者暗示这些实体或操作之间存在任何这种实际的关系或者顺序。而且，术语“包括”、“包含”或者其任何其他变体意在涵盖非排他性的包含，从而使得包括一系列要素的过程、方法、物品或者设备不仅包括那些要素，而且还包括没有明确列出的其他要素，或者是还包括为这种过程、方法、物品或者设备所固有的要素。在没有更多限制的状况下，由语句“包括一个……”限定的要素，并不排除在包括所述要素的过程、方法、物品或者设备中还存在另外的相同要素。It should also be noted that, in this specification, relational terms such as first and second, etc. are only used to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "comprises", "comprising" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the statement "comprising a ..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CN202011310296.9ACN112315500B (en) | 2020-11-20 | 2020-11-20 | Ultrasonic image generation method and device, ultrasonic diagnostic equipment and storage medium |
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CN202011310296.9ACN112315500B (en) | 2020-11-20 | 2020-11-20 | Ultrasonic image generation method and device, ultrasonic diagnostic equipment and storage medium |
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CN112315500A CN112315500A (en) | 2021-02-05 |
| CN112315500Btrue CN112315500B (en) | 2024-06-25 |
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CN202011310296.9AActiveCN112315500B (en) | 2020-11-20 | 2020-11-20 | Ultrasonic image generation method and device, ultrasonic diagnostic equipment and storage medium |
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CN (1) | CN112315500B (en) |
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN115530873A (en)* | 2021-06-30 | 2022-12-30 | 深圳开立生物医疗科技股份有限公司 | Ultrasonic imaging method and related device |
| CN114533127A (en)* | 2022-01-13 | 2022-05-27 | 南京易云医疗设备科技有限公司 | Doppler ultrasonic system for detecting blood vessels |
| CN114711816B (en)* | 2022-03-21 | 2025-06-27 | 京东方科技集团股份有限公司 | Ultrasonic imaging system, ultrasonic imaging method, and computer-readable storage medium |
| CN114767164A (en)* | 2022-04-25 | 2022-07-22 | 飞依诺科技股份有限公司 | Scanning method, device and storage medium for annular array ultrasonic endoscope |
| CN114848003B (en)* | 2022-04-26 | 2024-10-22 | 青岛海信医疗设备股份有限公司 | Ultrasonic control method and related device for multi-dimensional probe |
| CN116077099B (en)* | 2023-01-05 | 2024-08-16 | 中北大学 | Ultrasonic CT reflection imaging method based on fast image reconstruction of multiple subarrays of annular array |
| CN117379093B (en)* | 2023-12-11 | 2024-03-15 | 深圳英美达医疗技术有限公司 | Ultrasonic imaging method based on ring array transducer and ultrasonic probe system |
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN111035411A (en)* | 2019-12-31 | 2020-04-21 | 华中科技大学 | A three-dimensional imaging method and system of ultrasonic tomography based on helical scanning |
| CN111281421A (en)* | 2018-12-06 | 2020-06-16 | 深圳迈瑞生物医疗电子股份有限公司 | Ultrasonic scanning method and ultrasonic system |
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN100450443C (en)* | 2004-12-15 | 2009-01-14 | 深圳迈瑞生物医疗电子股份有限公司 | Receiving method and its device based on double beam and synthetic aperture |
| CN101396282B (en)* | 2007-09-29 | 2013-03-27 | 深圳迈瑞生物医疗电子股份有限公司 | Arc wide-beam transmission method and device for ultrasonic image-forming |
| CN104614728B (en)* | 2015-02-13 | 2018-06-05 | 张鸿 | A kind of supersonic imaging device and imaging method |
| EP3389500A4 (en)* | 2015-12-18 | 2019-01-02 | Ursus Medical LLC | Ultrasound beamforming system and method with reconfigurable aperture |
| CN106063710B (en)* | 2016-05-25 | 2018-11-13 | 深圳开立生物医疗科技股份有限公司 | A kind of ultrasonic imaging method, system and device |
| WO2018223294A1 (en)* | 2017-06-06 | 2018-12-13 | 深圳迈瑞生物医疗电子股份有限公司 | Method, apparatus and system for imaging in ultrasonic scanning |
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN111281421A (en)* | 2018-12-06 | 2020-06-16 | 深圳迈瑞生物医疗电子股份有限公司 | Ultrasonic scanning method and ultrasonic system |
| CN111035411A (en)* | 2019-12-31 | 2020-04-21 | 华中科技大学 | A three-dimensional imaging method and system of ultrasonic tomography based on helical scanning |
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CN112315500A (en) | 2021-02-05 |
| Publication | Publication Date | Title |
|---|---|---|
| CN112315500B (en) | Ultrasonic image generation method and device, ultrasonic diagnostic equipment and storage medium | |
| JP5895018B2 (en) | Non-coherent retrospective dynamic transmission focus | |
| JP4975098B2 (en) | Ultrasound synthesis transmission focusing with motion compensation | |
| WO2020006748A1 (en) | Method for calibrating phased-array antenna, and related apparatus | |
| JP2009536856A (en) | Retrospective and dynamic transmission focusing for spatial compounding | |
| JP2014113490A (en) | Ultrasonic diagnostic device and ultrasonic probe | |
| JP2001245884A (en) | Ultrasonic imaging apparatus | |
| WO2025010933A1 (en) | Planar-array ultrasonic transducer, ultrasound imaging method, and electronic device | |
| CN109416400B (en) | Fast synthetic focused ultrasound imaging with large linear arrays | |
| CN100450443C (en) | Receiving method and its device based on double beam and synthetic aperture | |
| CN101329397A (en) | A multi-beam fast detection method and device | |
| US9066703B2 (en) | Medical ultrasound 2-D transducer array architecture: spot of arago | |
| JP6378370B2 (en) | Ultrasonic imaging apparatus and ultrasonic signal processing method | |
| WO2018195873A1 (en) | Doppler imaging method and apparatus for ultrasonic continuous waves, and storage medium | |
| Ramalli et al. | 256-element density-tapered spiral matrices for ultrasound phased imaging | |
| JP2004286680A (en) | Ultrasonic transceiver | |
| CN106037805B (en) | Method and device for ultrasonic imaging | |
| JP6459744B2 (en) | Ultrasonic inspection apparatus and control method of ultrasonic inspection apparatus | |
| JP2019154977A (en) | Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus | |
| JP4241825B2 (en) | Ultrasonic diagnostic equipment | |
| WO2014088079A1 (en) | Ultrasonic diagnostic device and ultrasonic probe | |
| TWI702035B (en) | Ultrasonic imaging device and imaging method thereof | |
| CN116961714A (en) | Apparatus comprising at least one processor | |
| WO2022226651A1 (en) | Contemporaneous firing scheme for acoustic inspection | |
| JP4418491B2 (en) | Ultrasonic imaging device |
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| PB01 | Publication | ||
| PB01 | Publication | ||
| SE01 | Entry into force of request for substantive examination | ||
| SE01 | Entry into force of request for substantive examination | ||
| GR01 | Patent grant | ||
| GR01 | Patent grant | ||
| EE01 | Entry into force of recordation of patent licensing contract | ||
| EE01 | Entry into force of recordation of patent licensing contract | Application publication date:20210205 Assignee:Opening of biomedical technology (Wuhan) Co.,Ltd. Assignor:SONOSCAPE MEDICAL Corp. Contract record no.:X2024980042568 Denomination of invention:A method and device for generating ultrasound images, ultrasound diagnostic equipment, and storage medium Granted publication date:20240625 License type:Common License Record date:20241226 |