PURPOSE: To reduce the deterioration of an image by minimizing the shift of a delay map with respect to all kinds of probes by applying the delay map to a transmitting and/or receiving beam former with due regard to the frequency characteristics to the delay quantity of a delay line.
CONSTITUTION: When a transmission pulse is sent to a transmission beam former 2 from a pulse generating circuit 1, the data corresponding to the kind of a probe 4 and the depth of a concern region is sent to a transmitting-receiving delay map generating circuit 7 from a system controller 8. The transmitting- receiving delay map generating circuit 7 inputting the data generates the delay map fitted to the center frequency of the probe 4 on the basis of the data to set delay quantity and sends said data quantity to the transmission beam former 2 as control data to apply control data controlling the delay of each transmission pulse and forming the delay map fitted to the kind of the probe 4 and the depth of the concern region to a matrix switch 5. The controlled transmission pulse is amplified by a power amplifier 3 to reach the probe 4 and a vibrator is driven to generate an ultrasonic wave which is, in turn, projected on an examinee and the reflected wave thereof is received by the probe 4 to be converted to an electric signal.
MOTOTANI TAKESHI
TAKANO WATARU
