Abstract
Provided is a breast slip prevention pad for preventing a breast of a patient from slipping between compression presses when using a compression press type ultrasonic breast scanner. The breast slip prevention pad for an ultrasonic breast scanner includes a mesh sheet formed of an ultrasonic-wave-permeable flexible synthetic resin, and a support plate fixed to one surface of the mesh sheet to support the mesh sheet in a tightly stretched state so that a part of the mesh sheet is exposed. The mesh sheet includes a plurality of transverse ribs and a plurality of longitudinal ribs arranged to extend in a direction perpendicular to the transverse ribs, and the height of the longitudinal ribs is set to be larger than the height of the transverse ribs.
Claims
1. A breast slip prevention pad for an ultrasonic breast scanner, comprising: a mesh sheet formed of an ultrasonic-wave-permeable flexible synthetic resin; and a support plate fixed to one surface of the mesh sheet to support the mesh sheet in a tightly stretched state so that a part of the mesh sheet is exposed, wherein the mesh sheet includes a plurality of transverse ribs and a plurality of longitudinal ribs arranged to extend in a direction perpendicular to the transverse ribs, and the height of the longitudinal ribs is set to be larger than the height of the transverse ribs.
2. The pad of claim 1, wherein the transverse ribs of the mesh sheet are arranged to extend toward the support plate.
3. The pad of claim 1, wherein the support plate is provided with a plurality of through-holes.
4. The pad of claim 1, further comprising: a gel coated on the mesh sheet.
5. The pad of claim 1, further comprising: a gel pad disposed adjacent to the support plate of the mesh sheet, and wherein the gel pad is configured to become thinner as the gel pad extends away from the support plate along the transverse ribs.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a state in which a breast slip prevention pad is attached to and used in a compression press type ultrasonic breast scanner.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a perspective view for explaining a state in which the breast slip prevention pad is mounted on the scanning unit of the ultrasonic breast scanner.
[0022] FIG. 3 is a perspective view for explaining a structure of a mesh of the breast slip prevention pad according to the present invention.
[0023] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another example of the breast slip prevention pad according to the present invention.
[0024] FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a use state of the breast slip prevention pad shown in FIG. 4.
[0025] FIG. 6 illustrates explanatory views showing various examples in which the breast slip prevention pad according to the present invention is packaged in a disposable manner.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0027] Referring to FIG. 1, the ultrasonic breast scanner 100 includes a scanning unit 50 for supporting a breast of a patient, and a compression press 40 provided at an upper portion of the scanning unit 50 so as to be vertically movable. The scanning unit 50 is fixed to a rotary frame 30, and the compression press 40 is installed so as to be movable up and down with respect to the rotary frame 30. The rotary frame 30 is fixed to a rotary shaft 20, and the rotary shaft 20 is rotatably installed in a main frame 10. A breast slip prevention pad 60 according to the present invention is mounted on the upper surface of the scanning unit 50. There is shown a state in which a breast B of a patient is placed on the breast slip prevention pad 60 and is pressed and deformed by the compression press 40.
[0028] FIG. 2 shows the scanning unit 50 of the ultrasonic breast scanner 100 and the breast slip prevention pad 60 mounted on the scanning unit 50. The scanning unit 50 includes a housing 55 and a caterpillar scanner 52 mounted on the housing 55 so as to constitute a part of an upper surface of the housing 55. The caterpillar scanner 52 includes a plurality of links 53 configured to form a plane when the frame is exposed upward and an ultrasonic probe unit 52a installed between the links 53. The ultrasonic probe unit 52a includes a pair of probes 52a-1 arranged to be spaced apart at a regular interval and a support plate 52a-2 for supporting the pair of probes 52a-1. Although not shown, the links 53 of the caterpillar scanner 52 are configured to move along tracks and to go into or come out from the housing 55 while rotating at the corners of the housing 55. Furthermore, a drive means for driving the probe unit 52a of the caterpillar scanner 52 to move horizontally is installed in the housing 55. Therefore, when the probe unit 52a horizontally moves back and forth, the links 53 goes into or comes out from the housing 55 to scan the breast B placed on the caterpillar scanner 52, thereby obtaining an ultrasonic image. Although not shown, a transparent synthetic resin film is mounted on the upper portion of the caterpillar scanner 52. The transparent synthetic resin film prevents the ultrasonic wave medium from adhering to the links 53 or the probe unit 52a. Furthermore, the inside of the housing 55 is filled with oil or water for ultrasonic wave transmission between the pair of probes 52a-1 and the transparent synthetic resin film. A pad mounting portion 51 for fixing the breast slip prevention pad 60 and determining the mounting position of the breast slip prevention pad 60 is provided above the housing 55 of the scanning unit 50. The pad mounting portion 51 is provided with a plurality of guide projections 51a.
[0029] The breast slip prevention pad 60 includes a mesh sheet 62 and a support plate 61. The mesh sheet 62 is made of a flexible synthetic resin which is ultrasonic wave permeable. The support plate 61 is made of a synthetic resin and is fixed to one surface of the mesh sheet 61 so as to support the mesh sheet 62 in a tightly stretched state. Furthermore, the support plate 61 is fixed so that a part of the mesh sheet 62 is exposed on one side of the mesh sheet 62. The support plate 61 is provided with a plurality of through-holes 61a formed at positions corresponding to the projections 51a formed in the pad mounting portion 51 of the upper portion of the housing 55 of the scanning unit 50. The projections of the pad mounting portion 51 are fitted into the corresponding through-holes 61a so that the breast slip prevention pad 60 is mounted at a predetermined position, thereby making sure that when the breast B is pressed by the compression press 40, the breast slip prevention pad 60 does not slip off from the scanning unit 50.
[0030] In the present embodiment, the projections are formed in the pad mounting portion 51, and the through-holes 61a are formed in the support plate 61. Conversely, through-holes may be formed in the pad mounting portion 51, and the projections may be formed in the support plate 61. If necessary, a mechanism for fixing the support plate 61 to a predetermined position of the pad mounting portion 51 may be separately provided in the pad mounting portion 51.
[0031] Referring to FIG. 3, the mesh sheet 62 includes a plurality of transverse ribs 62b arranged to extend toward the support plate 61, and a plurality of longitudinal ribs 62a arranged to extend in a direction perpendicular to the transverse ribs 62b. The height of the longitudinal ribs 62a is set to be larger than the height of the transverse ribs 62b so as to prevent the breast B placed on the mesh sheet 62 from slipping.
[0032] When in use, the breast slip prevention pad 60 is mounted on the ultrasonic scanning unit 50, and the gel is applied to the mesh sheet 62 and the surface of the breast B. The caterpillar scanner 52 is driven to obtain an image of the breast B in a state in which the breast B is positioned on the mesh sheet 62 of the breast slip prevention pad 60 and the upper portion of the breast B is pressed by the compression press 40. The support plate 61 is positioned opposite to the breast B of the patient in a state in which the breast slip prevention pad 60 is mounted on the ultrasonic scanning unit 50. When the breast B placed on the mesh sheet 60 is pressed by the compression press 40, the surface of the breast B initially makes contact with the longitudinal ribs 62a having a larger height. The lower surface of the breast B deformed by the compression of the compression press 40 is inserted into between the longitudinal ribs 62a to make contact with some portions of the transverse ribs 62b. Therefore, when the breast B is pressed by the compression press 40, the breast B is caught by the transverse ribs 62a, so that the movement of the breast B in the transverse direction is impeded and the slip thereof does not occur.
[0033] FIG. 4 shows another example of the breast slip prevention pad for the ultrasonic breast scanner according to the present invention.
[0034] The breast slip prevention pad 70 of the present embodiment differs from the breast slip prevention pad 60 shown in FIG. 3 in that the breast slip prevention pad 70 further includes a gel pad 63 disposed on one surface of the mesh sheet 62 at a position adjacent to the support plate 61. As shown in FIG. 5, when the breast B is mounted on the mesh sheet 62, the gel pad 63 fills the space between the end portion of the breast B and the scanning unit 50 so that the ultrasonic waves can be smoothly transmitted to the distal end portion of the breast B of the patient. This makes it possible to obtain a clearer image of the breast B. Particularly, the gel pad 63 is configured so as to become thinner as it extends away from the support plate 61 along the transverse ribs 62b, so that an empty space is not formed at the end of the breast B, thereby allowing the ultrasonic waves to be transferred to the distal end portion of the breast.
[0035] FIG. 6 illustrates explanatory views showing various examples in which the slip prevention pad according to the present invention is packaged in a disposable manner. As shown in FIG. 6A, the breast slip prevention pad 60 may be put into a packaging container 80 and may be sealed with a film 81. Thus, the breast slip prevention pad 60 can be sold in a packaged state against contamination. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6B, the breast slip prevention pad 60 may be put into a packaging container 80, a liquid-state gel g may be poured into the container 80, and the breast slip prevention pad 60 may be sealed with a film 81. Thus, the breast slip prevention pad 60 can be sold in a packaged state against contamination. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 6C, the breast slip prevention pad 70 including the gel pad 63 may be put into a packaging container 80, a liquid-state gel g may be poured into the container 80, and the breast slip prevention pad 70 may be sealed with a film 81. Thus, the breast slip prevention pad 70 can be sold in a packaged state against contamination. If a product is supplied in a packaged state as described above, the user can directly use the breast slip prevention pad without having to apply a gel after mounting the breast slip prevention pad on the ultrasonic wave scanner.
[0036] It should be understood that the embodiments of the present invention described above are not intended to limit the present invention but are exemplary. The mesh sheet according to the present invention may be modified into various forms. The present invention may be modified and embodied in various forms within the scope of the claims and equivalents thereof.
