TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTION DETERMINING APPARATUS

摘要

The invention relates to a temperature distribution measuring apparatus for measuring a temperature distribution within an object caused by heating the object. A temperature distribution measuring unit (13, 71) measures the temperature distribution in a measurement region within the object, while the object is heated, and a temperature measurement control unit (22) controls the temperature distribution measuring unit such that the measurement region is modified depending on the measured temperature distribution, in order to measure different temperature distributions in different measurement regions. This allows, for example, modifying the measurement region depending on an actually measured temperature distribution such that in the modified new measurement region the measurement of the temperature of the object can be continued, if the temperature actually measured in the current measurement region is too high for being accurately measured, thereby extending the time period in which a temperature distribution of the object can be measured.

主权项

1. A temperature distribution measuring apparatus for measuring a temperature distribution within an object caused by heating the object, the temperature distribution measuring apparatus comprising:
a temperature distribution measuring unit for measuring the temperature distribution in a measurement region within the object, while the object is heated, wherein the temperature distribution measuring unit comprises an ultrasound probe for acquiring ultrasound data of the measurement region and an ultrasound thermometry unit for determining the temperature distribution within the measurement region based on the acquired ultrasound data, a temperature measurement control unit for controlling the temperature distribution measuring unit such that the measurement region is modified depending on the measured temperature distribution, in order to measure different temperature distributions in different measurement regions, a model providing unit providing a model of the object describing a model temperature distribution a) in the measurement regions for time periods, in which the respective temperature distribution has been measured in the respective measurement region, and b) in the measurement regions for time periods, in which the respective temperature distribution has not been measured in the respective measurement region, and/or in a non-measurement region within the object, in which a temperature distribution is not measured, and a temperature distribution estimation unit for determining estimated temperature distributions in the different measurement regions for time periods, in which the respective temperature distribution has not been measured in the respective measurement region and/or in the non-measurement region based on the measured temperature distributions by using the provided model.