Patent Application
20200359994
This disclosure relates to minimally invasive medical procedures performed using image guidance instruments, and more particularly to systems and methods for automated steering and maintaining of endoscopic narrow field-of-view ultrasound imaging using broad field-of-view external ultrasound imaging.
Surgical robots and/or steerable devices may be used in minimally invasive medical procedures, or interventional procedures, to improve a surgeon's dexterity inside an object (e.g., the patient or the patient's body) at a surgical site. Examples of surgical robots include multi-arm systems, such as da Vinci® robots, or flexible robots, such as Medrobotics Flex® robotic systems. These robotic systems are controlled by the user (e.g., surgeon) using different interface mechanisms, including hand controllers or input handles for the operating robotic systems. Imaging systems are also incorporated to enable visualization of areas of interest inside the object, the robotic systems and the tools controlled by the robotic systems when inside the areas of interest. Imaging systems may include ultrasound, X-rays, computed tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), for example.
Among the types of ultrasound systems used for interventional procedures are three-dimensional (3D) transoesophageal echo (TEE) ultrasound acquisition systems and transthoracic echo (TTE) ultrasound acquisition systems. (For simplicity, 3D TEE will be referred to simply as “TEE” throughout.) In procedures involving a patient's heart, such as in structural heart repair, for example, a TEE ultrasound acquisition system may be used to provide high resolution images of areas of interest (e.g., valves). That is, a TEE probe of the TEE ultrasound acquisition system is inserted through the patient's esophagus to provide ultrasound imaging from within the body. Due to size limitations of the TEE probe (e.g., restricted by esophagus) and close proximity to heart when inserted, the field-of-view of the TEE probe is narrow, and otherwise insufficient to image the entire heart. However, the TEE probe is able to provide high resolution images of the portions of the heart within its narrow field-of-view due in part to the close proximity of the TEE probe. The TTE ultrasound acquisition system is an external ultrasound imaging device with a broad field-of-view, commonly used to image a larger area or region of the patient, such as the entire heart and some surrounding area, e.g., in diagnostic and interventional cases. However, due in part to greater distance to heart (or other region), images provided by the TTE ultrasound acquisition system are low resolution images, which do not have sufficient detail and/or clarity of the areas of interest within the region for performing certain procedures, particularly as compared to the images provided by the TEE probe from inside the patient's body.
Generally, there are a number of different views from the TEE probe of areas of interest (targets) needed in structural heart disease interventions, including for example “en face” view of the mitral valve, mid-esophageal four-chamber view, long-axis view, transgastric view, tri-leaflet aortic valve view, x-plane view, and the like. These various views provided by the TEE probe at different locations are quite helpful to a cardiologist (or other interventionalist) for performing specific tasks within the patient, but are challenging to obtain, e.g., by an echocardiographer. Also, once the TEE probe is positioned to obtain a particular view, the TEE probe head requires continuous manual manipulation and adjustment within the patient by the echocardiographer to maintain the view. There is usually much discussion between the cardiologist and echocardiographer when determining a particular view for a specific task, and in locating and maintaining that view, since the cardiologist often provides feedback to the echocardiographer during the interventional procedure.
For improved overall ultrasound imaging, TEE and TTE images may be combined to provide narrow field-of-view high-resolution information with broad field-of-view low-resolution information. Examples of such combined ultrasound imaging are provided by international patent applications PCT/IB2014/066462 to Korukonda et al., filed Dec. 1, 2014, and PCT/IB2017/058173, filed Apr. 6, 2017, the entire contents of both of which are hereby incorporated by reference. However, in order to obtain the highest quality images, the TEE probe, in particular, needs to be optimally placed and/or repositioned in a imaging position adjacent the area of interest throughout the procedure, which may be difficult for the operator due to the narrow field-of-view.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide systems, methods and computer-readable storage media for coordinated control of both TEE and TTE ultrasound acquisition systems to provide through automation accurate positioning of the TEE probe for high resolution imaging, despite the narrow field-of-view of the TEE probe.
According to another illustrative embodiment, a controller is provided for imaging an area of interest of a region within an object using a transoesophageal echo (TEE) probe of a TEE ultrasound acquisition system, the TEE probe being inserted in the object. The controller includes a memory that stores instructions; and a processor that executes the instructions. When executed by the processor, the instructions cause the controller to perform a process including causing a transthoracic echo (TTE) probe of a TTE ultrasound acquisition system to emit an ultrasound beam to a selected area of interest of a region within the object; switching the TEE probe to a listening mode, enabling the TEE probe to detect and receive the ultrasound beam emitted by the TTE probe; and causing a robot to steer the TEE probe to an imaging location in the object using the detected TTE ultrasound beam. The TEE probe shows the area of interest using ultrasound images acquired from the imaging location.
According to another illustrative embodiment, a method is provided for automated guidance of a TEE probe of a TEE ultrasound acquisition system to an imaging location adjacent an area of interest in an object during an interventional procedure. The method includes switching the TEE probe to a listening mode; causing emission of an ultrasound beam by a TTE probe of a TEE ultrasound acquisition system to the area of interest, the TEE probe, the TEE probe detecting the ultrasound beam emitted by the TTE probe in the listening mode; causing a robot to steer the TEE probe to the imaging location using the detected TTE ultrasound beam; and receiving ultrasound images from the TEE probe positioned at the imaging location showing the area of interest.
The present invention will be more readily understood from the detailed description of exemplary embodiments presented below considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, as follows.
The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the present invention are shown. The present invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided as teaching examples of the invention.
Generally, according to various embodiments, a TEE probe of a TEE ultrasound acquisition system is precisely steered at least in part by a robot using a focused ultrasound beam emitted by a TTE probe of a TTE ultrasound acquisition system. That is, a user may select an area of interest in a region of the patient's body (e.g., the heart or other organ) using a display of the TTE image, e.g., on a graphical user interface (GUI). Once the area of interest is selected, the TTE probe generates a focused ultrasound beam that targets the selected area of interest and a controller uses the focused ultrasound beam probe image to cause the robot to steer the TEE probe to an imaging location (indicated by the focused ultrasound beam) to show the selected area of interest in a resulting TEE image. The procedure may be based on acoustic servoing using an adaptive control loop, for example, which does not require explicit registration between the TEE probe and the TTE ultrasound acquisition system or the TTE probe, thus simplifying the workflow.
Notably, live ultrasound guidance, such as that provided by the TEE and/or TTE ultrasound acquisition systems, is used in variety of procedures, including interventional cardiology, oncology and surgery. For the sake of convenience, the embodiments herein will be described in the context of interventional cardiology of structural heart disease (SHD). Examples of such procedures include mitral clip deployments, transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVR), coronary artery bypass grafting and mitral valve replacement. However, it is understood that the embodiments may be applied to any interventional or surgical field procedures that include use of a TEE probe or other endoscopic imaging device, such as minimally invasive general surgery (e.g., laparoscopic ultrasound and GI ultrasound), prostate surgery (e.g., transrectal ultrasound and GI ultrasound), cholecystectomy, and natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery, for example, without departing from the scope of the present teachings.
It should be understood that the disclosure is provided in terms of medical instruments; however, the present teachings are much broader and are applicable to any imaging instruments and imaging modalities. In some embodiments, the present principles are employed in tracking or analyzing complex biological or mechanical systems. In particular, the present principles are applicable to internal tracking procedures of biological systems and procedures in all areas of the body such as the lungs, gastro-intestinal tract, excretory organs, blood vessels, etc. The elements depicted in the figures may be implemented in various combinations of hardware and software and provide functions which may be combined in a single element or multiple elements.
It should be further understood that the terminology used herein is for purposes of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. Any defined terms are in addition to the technical and scientific meanings of the defined terms as commonly understood and accepted in the technical field of the present teachings.
As used in the specification and appended claims, the terms “a”, “an” and “the” include both singular and plural referents, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, “a device” includes one device and plural devices. The statement that two or more parts or components are “coupled” shall mean that the parts are joined or operate together either directly or indirectly, i.e., through one or more intermediate parts or components, so long as a link occurs.
Directional terms/phrases and relative terms/phrases may be used to describe the various elements' relationships to one another, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. These terms/phrases are intended to encompass different orientations of the device and/or elements in addition to the orientation depicted in the drawings.
A “computer-readable storage medium” encompasses any tangible storage medium which may store instructions which are executable by a processor of a computing device. The computer-readable storage medium may be referred to as a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, to distinguish from transitory media such as transitory propagating signals. The computer-readable storage medium may also be referred to as a tangible computer-readable medium.
In some embodiments, a computer-readable storage medium may also be able to store data which is able to be accessed by the processor of the computing device. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to: a floppy disk, a magnetic hard disk drive, a solid state hard disk, flash memory, a USB thumb drive, Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, and the register file of the processor. Examples of optical disks include Compact Disks (CD) and Digital Versatile Disks (DVD), for example CD-ROM, CD-RW, CD-R, DVD-ROM, DVD-RW, or DVD-R disks. The term computer readable-storage medium also refers to various types of recording media capable of being accessed by the computer device via a network or communication link. For example, data may be retrieved over a modem, over the internet, or over a local area network. References to a computer-readable storage medium should be interpreted as possibly being multiple computer-readable storage mediums. Various executable components of a program or programs may be stored in different locations. The computer-readable storage medium may for instance be multiple computer-readable storage medium within the same computer system. The computer-readable storage medium may also be computer-readable storage medium distributed amongst multiple computer systems or computing devices.
“Memory” is an example of a computer-readable storage medium. Computer memory is any memory which is directly accessible to a processor. Examples of computer memory include, but are not limited to RAM memory, registers, and register files. References to “computer memory” or “memory” should be interpreted as possibly being multiple memories. The memory may for instance be multiple memories within the same computer system. The memory may also be multiple memories distributed amongst multiple computer systems or computing devices.
Computer storage is any non-volatile computer-readable storage medium. Examples of computer storage include, but are not limited to: a hard disk drive, a USB thumb drive, a floppy drive, a smart card, a DVD, a CD-ROM, and a solid state hard drive. In some embodiments computer storage may also be computer memory or vice versa. References to “computer storage” or “storage” should be interpreted as possibly including multiple storage devices or components. For instance, the storage may include multiple storage devices within the same computer system or computing device. The storage may also include multiple storages distributed amongst multiple computer systems or computing devices.
A “processor” as used herein encompasses an electronic component which is able to execute a program or machine executable instruction. References to the computing device comprising “a processor” should be interpreted as possibly containing more than one processor or processing core. The processor may for instance be a multi-core processor. A processor may also refer to a collection of processors within a single computer system or distributed amongst multiple computer systems. The term computing device should also be interpreted to possibly refer to a collection or network of computing devices each comprising a processor or processors. Many programs have instructions performed by multiple processors that may be within the same computing device or which may even be distributed across multiple computing devices.
A “user interface” or “user input device” as used herein is an interface which allows a user or operator to interact with a computer or computer system. A user interface may provide information or data to the operator and/or receive information or data from the operator. A user interface may enable input from an operator to be received by the computer and may provide output to the user from the computer. In other words, the user interface may allow an operator to control or manipulate a computer and the interface may allow the computer indicate the effects of the user's control or manipulation. The display of data or information on a display or a graphical user interface is an example of providing information to an operator. The receiving of data through a touch screen, keyboard, mouse, trackball, touchpad, pointing stick, graphics tablet, joystick, gamepad, webcam, headset, gear sticks, steering wheel, wired glove, wireless remote control, and accelerometer are all examples of user interface components which enable the receiving of information or data from a user.
A “hardware interface” encompasses an interface which enables the processor of a computer system to interact with and/or control an external computing device and/or apparatus. A hardware interface may allow a processor to send control signals or instructions to an external computing device and/or apparatus. A hardware interface may also enable a processor to exchange data with an external computing device and/or apparatus. Examples of a hardware interface include, but are not limited to: a universal serial bus, IEEE 1394 port, parallel port, IEEE 1284 port, serial port, RS-232 port, IEEE-488 port, Bluetooth connection, Wireless local area network connection, TCP/IP connection, Ethernet connection, control voltage interface, MIDI interface, analog input interface, and digital input interface.
A “display” or “display device” or “display unit” as used herein encompasses an output device or a user interface adapted for displaying images or data. A display may output visual, audio, and or tactile data. Examples of a display include, but are not limited to: a computer monitor, a television screen, a touch screen, tactile electronic display, Braille screen, Cathode ray tube (CRT), Storage tube, Bistable display, Electronic paper, Vector display, Flat panel display, Vacuum fluorescent display (VF), Light-emitting diode (LED) displays, Electroluminescent display (ELD), Plasma display panels (PDP), Liquid crystal display (LCD), Organic light-emitting diode displays (OLED), a projector, and Head-mounted display.
Like numbered elements in these figures are either equivalent elements or perform the same function. Elements which have been discussed previously will not necessarily be discussed in later figures if the function is equivalent.
Initially, it is noted that medical images may include 2D or 3D images such as those obtained via an ultrasonic transducer or an endoscopic camera provided on a distal end of an probe or an endoscope, respectively, or via a forward-looking camera provided at the distal end of a robot (e.g. as the end effector). Also, live images may include still or video images captured through medical imaging during the minimally invasive procedure. Other medical imaging may be incorporated during the surgical process, such as images obtained by externally applied ultrasound, X-ray and/or magnetic resonance, for example, for a broader view of the surgical site and surrounding areas.
Referring to
The system 100 includes TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110, TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120 and a controller (work station) 130. The controller 130 determines and controls positioning of a TEE probe 112 of the TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110, as discussed below. The controller 130 may also cause images from the TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110 and the TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120 to be displayed on an ultrasound display 127 and/or a system display 137, and to be stored in the images module 134 of memory 133. Alternatively, the TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110 and the TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120, which include the ultrasound display 127, may cause the TEE images and the TTE images to be displayed on the ultrasound display 127 directly.
The TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110 includes the TEE probe 112, which has at least one ultrasonic transducer 114 on a probe head at the distal end of the TEE probe 112. The TEE probe 112 passes through the mouth the patient (object 105) and into the esophagus to provide TEE ultrasound images an area of interest 101 (e.g., a portion of the heart) from within the object 105. The TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110 is operable to capture signals and images from the TEE probe 112, which may be displayed and/or stored, as discussed above. The TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120 includes a TTE probe 122, which has at least one ultrasound transducer 124 on a probe head at the distal end of the TTE probe 122. The TTE probe head is brought into physical contact (e.g., manually) with the exterior of the object 105 to provide TTE ultrasound images of a region 102 (e.g., the entire heart and some surrounding area), including the area of interest 101, within the object 105. The TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120 is operable to capture signals and images from the TEE probe 112, which may be displayed and/or stored, as discussed above. In an embodiment, the TEE and TTE ultrasound acquisition systems 110 and 120 may be one integrated ultrasound system.
The controller 130 of the system 100 includes a processor 131, memory 133, user interface 136 and system display 137. The controller 130 may be implemented as a graphical user interface (GUI), for example. The processor 131 may be programmed to determine a target position or imaging location of the TEE probe 112 based on a selected area of interest 101 and view(s) to be shown by the TEE images (e.g., “en face” view of the mitral valve, mid-esophageal four-chamber view, long-axis view, transgastric view, tri-leaflet aortic valve view, x-plane view, and the like). For example, the processor 131 may be programmed to determine the imaging location in response to the user identifying the area of interest 101 in a TTE image from the TTE probe 122 using the user interface 136. The processor 131 is programmed to then guide the TEE probe 112, e.g., through controlling robot 150, to a focused ultrasound beam emitted by the TTE probe 122 using signal strength of the focused ultrasound beam detected by the TEE probe 112, as discussed below with reference to
The user interface 136 includes input device(s), such as a keyboard, a mouse, a joy stick, a haptic device, speakers, microphone or any other peripheral or control devices to permit user feedback from and interaction with the controller 130. This includes, for example, programming, providing data to, or otherwise accessing the processor 131, and managing the ultrasound and system displays 127 and 137. In various embodiments, the ultrasound display 127 may include separate displays for the ultrasound images provided by the TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110 and the TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120, respectively. Alternatively, the ultrasound display 127 (and/or the system display 137) may be a single display, in which case the controller 130 may be configured to switch between input from the TEE ultrasound acquisition system 110 and input from the TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120, respectively, such that high resolution, narrow field-of-view images, and low resolution, broad field-of-view images of the area of interest 101 may be selected, as desired. Notably, display of the TTE ultrasound image may also show the TEE probe 112 as it is guided into the area of interest 101 and positioned at the imaging location. Thus, the display of the TTE ultrasound image may be used to monitor guidance of the TEE probe 112 to one or more imaging locations for obtaining various high resolution ultrasound images throughout the procedure.
Thus, in sum, the controller 130 is configured to receive (and store) images of the region 102 from the TTE probe 122, and to enable the user to select an area of interest 101 in the received (or stored) images via the user interface 136. The controller 130 may then send a command to the TTE ultrasound acquisition system 120 to have the TTE probe 122 send a focused ultrasound beam directed only to the selected area of interest 101. The controller 130 is further configured to turn on the listening mode in the TEE probe 112 to detect the focused ultrasound beam sent by the TTE probe 122. The controller 130 repeatedly receives the listening signal from the TEE probe 112, identifies the corresponding signal strengths, and sequentially moves the TEE probe 112 (through control of the robot 150) to a position where the TEE probe 112 receives the focused ultrasound beam at maximum signal strength, through a feedback loop described for example with reference to
Additional medical equipment may be provided to enable performance of the interventional procedure by the system 100, as would be apparent to one of skill in the art. For example, as shown in
A typical OR staff during a structural heart repair procedure on the object 105 includes the echocardiographer, who manages the TEE and TTE probes, and the cardiologist, who navigates interventional devices, such as catheters and guidewires (not shown) from arterial incisions in the object 105 into the heart under guidance of the X-ray and/or ultrasound images in order to perform various diagnostic or therapeutic procedures. In conventional systems, the echocardiographer manually manipulates the TEE probe into a suitable position for imaging the area of interest 101, typically under the direction of the cardiologist. However, use of a TEE ultrasound acquisition system, without guidance from a TTE ultrasound acquisition system as described herein, has a number of challenges. For example, the position and orientation of the probe head of the TEE probe requires constant, minute adjustments by the echocardiographer for the duration of the interventional procedure in order to maintain appropriate visualization of the target structures. This can lead to fatigue and poor visualization during long procedures. Also, the length of the TEE probe results in the echocardiographer being positioned in close proximity to the x-ray source 143 of the c-arm 142, thus increasing exposure to x-rays over the course of the interventional procedure. Further, during certain phases of an interventional procedure, the cardiologist and echocardiographer must be in constant communication as the cardiologist instructs the echocardiographer as to which portion of the region 102 to visualize with the TEE probe. Given the difficultly interpreting a 3D ultrasound volume, and the different co-ordinate systems displayed by the x-ray and ultrasound systems, it can be challenging for the echocardiographer to understand and/or carry out the instructions of the cardiologist. In addition, when the area of interest is not visible in the TEE images due to the narrow field-of-view of the TEE probe, the echocardiographer must sweep the TEE probe in order to find the proper location for obtaining the desired images. This may be a time-consuming effort, further impacted by difficult mapping between TEE dials on the ultrasound acquisition system and the TEE probe head position.
In comparison, according to the representative embodiment shown in
The user (e.g., the echocardiographer and/or the cardiologist) may select the area of interest 101 in the TTE image, and the TEE probe 112 is steered to an appropriate imaging location to show the selected area of interest 101 in the TEE image provided by the TEE probe 112. Steering the TEE probe 112 is based on acoustic servoing using an adaptive control loop, as shown in
Referring to
Referring to
More particularly, the signal strength of the focused ultrasound beam 207 received by the TEE probe 112 at time t is measured at block 301 (at the signal peak) by the controller 130. The signal strength of the focused ultrasound beam 207 at time t+1 is measured at block 302 by the controller 130, where the TEE probe 112 has been moved incrementally by operation of the robot 150 (e.g., along the motion arrow 205) to a new position between times t and t+1. The signal strength measured at time t+1 is summed with the signal strength measured at time t at block 303, and the resulting difference is obtained by the controller 130 at block 304. The controller 130 controls movement of the TEE probe 112 at block 305 (via the robot guidance/control module 135 and the robot 150) in response to the resulting difference in signal strength, with the goal of moving the TEE probe 112 to a next position from which the next measured signal strength will be greater than the previous measured signal strength, as determined at block 303.
For example, when the difference in signal strengths measured at time t and time t+1 is positive, indicating increased signal strength, the controller 130 causes the robot 150 to continue to move the TEE probe 112 in the same direction (or continue along a predetermined path) based on the assumption that the signal strength will continue to increase. When the difference in signal strengths measured at time t and time t+1 is negative, indicating decreased signal strength, the controller 130 causes the robot 150 to move the TEE probe 112 in the opposite direction (or back to a previous point along the predetermined path) on the assumption that the signal strength will otherwise continue to decrease. This process continues until it is determined that the maximum signal strength has been attained, in which case the controller 130 causes the robot 150 to move the TEE probe 112 the position corresponding to the maximum signal strength, or to remain in place if already in the position corresponding to the maximum signal strength.
In various embodiments, the controller 130 may cause the robot 150 to move the TEE probe 112 in some direction other than the same or opposite direction at block 305 in response to a negative difference between sequential signal strength measurements, thereby exploring various directions from a present position of the TEE probe 112 until the signal strength measurements begin to increase again or until it is determined that the present position is the position at which the TEE probe 112 receives the focused ultrasound beam 207 at maximum signal strength. Alternatively, in response to a negative difference between adjacent signal strength measurements, the controller 130 may cause the robot 150 to return the TEE probe 112 to the previous position (i.e., where it was located at time t), and then move the TEE probe 112 in some other direction from that position at the next time increment, again exploring various directions until the signal strength measurements begin to increase again or until it is determined that the present position is the position at which the TEE probe 112 receives the focused ultrasound beam 207 at maximum signal strength.
Referring to
In block S413, the focused ultrasound beam emitted by the TTE ultrasound probe is detected using the TEE probe having been switched to operate in a listening mode. In the listening mode, the TEE transducer(s) of the TEE probe are not emitting ultrasound signals, but rather are configured to receive ultrasound signals, particularly the focused ultrasound beam from TTE probe. As discussed above, the TEE probe is inserted in esophagus of the patient, and maneuvered within the esophagus by a robot under control of a controller. In an embodiment, detecting the focused ultrasound beam emitted from the TTE ultrasound probe may include moving the TEE probe (e.g., manually or under robotic control) along a predefined detection path in the patient until the focused ultrasound beam emitted from the TTE ultrasound probe is initially detected, and then stopping the TEE probe. The predefined detection path may include a set of concentric spheres around the probe head of the TEE probe, for example.
Once the focused ultrasound beam is detected, the TEE probe is steered from the position at which the focused ultrasound beam is first detected to an imaging location in block S414 using characteristics of the detected focused ultrasound beam, such as signal strength, an example of which is discussed below with reference to
Referring to
In block S513, magnitudes of the signal peak are measured at different locations of the TEE probe as the TEE probe is moved along the positioning path over a series of incremental time steps, respectively, and compared to one another to determine a highest signal strength of the received focused ultrasound beam. Generally, differential of signal peaks of a current time step and the preceding time step in the control loop defines an error signal for the control loop, as discussed above with reference to
In an alternative embodiment, a model of the region 102 (e.g., a heart model) is overlaid on top of the TTE image provided by the TTE probe 122. The user (e.g., the echocardiographer) selects an anatomical landmark from the model of the region 102, and the anatomical landmark is transferred to a coordinate frame of the TTE image by the processor 131. The model of the region 102, including the anatomical landmarks, may be previously stored in the memory 133, and the TTE image may be stored in the memory 133 upon acquisition by the TTE probe 122. The coordinate frame of the TTE image is applied by the processor 131, and the combined coordinate frame and TTE image are likewise stored in the memory 133 to enable the processor 131 to transfer the selected anatomical landmark. In this case, the focused ultrasound beam generated by the TTE probe 122 is directed to the anatomical landmark transferred to the TTE image. The TEE probe 112 is then positioned in the imaging location (e.g., moved from the start position 212a to the end position 212b as shown in
In practice, the discussed control processes may be implemented by modules that are embodied by any combination of hardware, software and/or firmware installed on any platform (e.g., a general computer, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). Furthermore, processes such as those depicted in
While various embodiments have been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive; the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments.
Other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measured cannot be used to advantage. A computer program may be stored/distributed on a suitable medium, such as an optical storage medium or a solid-state medium supplied together with or as part of other hardware, but may also be distributed in other forms, such as via the Internet or other wired or wireless telecommunication systems. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/EP2018/080321 | 11/6/2018 | WO | 00 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62585000 | Nov 2017 | US |
