JP2006326223A - Constituent concentration measuring device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To correctly measure a constituent concentration in a living body by preventing interference of electromagnetic noises and a sound wave generated in the living body or propagation of outside vibration. <P>SOLUTION: In a constituent concentration measuring device, interference of the electromagnetic noise is prevented by electromagnetically sealing a part which is susceptible to noises. Furthermore, in a constituent concentration measuring device, when a light emitting member which irradiates the living body partly comprises an optical fiber, the sound wave can be measured with a high degree of accuracy and the constituent concentration in the living body can be correctly measured by keeping adequate distances among the light emitting member, a light modulating member and a receiver of the sound wave generated in the living body to prevent interference of the electromagnetic noises among them. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a noninvasive component concentration measuring apparatus for a human or animal living body.

  With the aging of society, dealing with adult diseases is becoming a major issue. In blood glucose level and other tests, blood collection is necessary, which places a heavy burden on the patient. Therefore, a non-invasive component concentration measurement apparatus that does not collect blood has attracted attention. As a non-invasive component concentration measuring device that has been developed so far, the skin is irradiated with electromagnetic waves and absorbed by blood molecules to be measured, for example, glucose molecules in the case of blood glucose levels, and heated locally. A photoacoustic method for observing sound waves generated in a living body due to thermal expansion has attracted attention.

  However, the interaction between glucose and electromagnetic waves is small, and there is a limit to the intensity of electromagnetic waves that can be safely irradiated on a living body, so that sufficient effects have not been achieved in measuring blood glucose levels in living bodies.

  FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are diagrams showing a configuration example of a conventional blood component concentration measuring apparatus using a photoacoustic method as a conventional example.

  FIG. 3 shows a first conventional example in which a light pulse is used as an electromagnetic wave (for example, see Non-Patent Document 1). In this example, blood glucose, that is, glucose is the measurement target as the blood component. In FIG. 3, the drive power supply 102 supplies a pulsed excitation current to the pulse light source 103, the pulse light source 103 generates a light pulse having a sub-microsecond duration, and the generated light pulse is the living body test portion 101. Is irradiated. The light pulse generates a sound wave called a pulsed photoacoustic signal inside the living body test part 101, the sound wave is detected by an ultrasonic detector 104, and the sound wave is converted into an electric signal proportional to sound pressure. The

  The waveform of the electric signal is observed by a waveform observer 105. The waveform observer 105 is triggered by a signal synchronized with the excitation current, the electric signal is displayed at a fixed position on the tube surface of the waveform observer 105, and the electric signal can be measured by integrating and averaging. .

  By analyzing the amplitude of the electric signal thus obtained, the blood sugar level inside the living body test part 101, that is, the amount of glucose is measured. In the case of the example shown in FIG. 3, an optical pulse having a sub-microsecond pulse width is repeatedly generated at a maximum of 1 kHz, and 1024 optical pulses are averaged to measure the electrical signal. However, sufficient accuracy is obtained. It is not done.

  Therefore, a second conventional example using a light source that is continuously intensity-modulated has been disclosed for the purpose of improving accuracy. FIG. 4 shows the configuration of a second conventional apparatus (for example, see Patent Document 1). In this example as well, blood sugar is the main measurement target, and high accuracy is attempted using a plurality of light sources having different wavelengths.

  In order to avoid complicated explanation, the operation when the number of light sources is 2 will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 4, light sources having different wavelengths, that is, a first light source 201 and a second light source 202 are driven by a driving power source 203 and a driving power source 204, respectively, and output continuous light.

  The light output from the first light source 201 and the second light source 202 is intermittently driven by a chopper plate 213 that is driven by a motor 214 and rotates at a constant rotational speed. Here, the chopper plate 213 is formed of an opaque material, and a relatively small number of openings are formed on the circumference through which the light of the first light source 201 and the second light source 202 passes around the axis of the motor 214. Is formed.

With the above configuration, the light output from each of the first light source 201 and the second light source 202 is intensity-modulated with the relatively prime modulation frequency f ₁ and modulation frequency f ₂ , and then multiplexed by the multiplexer 211. Then, the living body test part 101 is irradiated as one light beam.

Inside the living body test region 101 photoacoustic signal having the frequency f ₁ is generated by the light of the first light source 201, the photoacoustic signal having the frequency f ₂ is generated by the light of the second light source 202, these light The acoustic signal is detected by the acoustic sensor 212 and converted into an electrical signal proportional to the sound pressure, and the frequency spectrum is observed by the frequency analyzer 215.

  In this example, the wavelengths of the plurality of light sources are all set to the absorption wavelength of glucose, and the intensity of the photoacoustic signal corresponding to each wavelength is measured as an electrical signal corresponding to the amount of glucose contained in the blood. The

Here, the relationship between the intensity of the measured value of the photoacoustic signal and the value obtained by measuring the glucose content with blood collected separately is stored in advance, and the amount of glucose is measured from the measured value of the photoacoustic signal. ing.
JP-A-10-189 University of Oulu (University of Oulu, Finland) thesis “Pulse photoacoustic technique and glucodesis in human blood and tissue” (IBS 951-42-6690-0, ul./200.

The conventional example described above has the following problems.
About 2/3 of the human or animal body is water, and water has an absorption greater than 1000 times that of glucose. Therefore, since the sound wave generated by glucose is very small compared to the sound wave generated by water, it is necessary to measure a plurality of times and integrate the results to remove noise. However, there is a problem that a very small sound wave generated by glucose cannot be measured with sufficient accuracy when noise is mixed from the outside.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention electromagnetically shields a portion that is susceptible to noise in a component concentration measuring apparatus to prevent mixing of electromagnetic noise. Furthermore, when a part of the light irradiating unit that irradiates light to the living body is configured with an optical fiber, the distance between the light generating unit and the light modulating unit and the receiving unit of the sound wave generated in the living body is appropriately maintained. This is a component concentration measuring apparatus that can prevent the electromagnetic noise from being mixed, measure the sound wave with high accuracy, and accurately measure the biological component concentration.

  Specifically, the present invention provides light generating means for generating at least one wave of light, light modulating means for electrically intensity-modulating the at least one wave of light, and at least one wave of intensity modulated light. A component concentration measuring device comprising: a light irradiating means for irradiating a living body; and a sound wave detecting means for detecting a sound wave generated in the living body by at least one irradiated light, wherein the light generating means and the light modulation The component concentration measuring apparatus is characterized in that the means is electromagnetically shielded.

  As described above, in the present invention, electromagnetic light is mixed by electromagnetically shielding the light generating means and the light modulating means, and the light generated by the light generating means and the light modulating means are modulated. The size or wavelength of the light is changed to prevent noise from being superimposed. Furthermore, since the electromagnetic waves generated by the light generating means and the light modulating means are prevented from entering the sound wave detecting means and becoming noise, the sound wave detecting means can accurately generate the sound waves generated in the living body. The biological component concentration can be measured accurately.

  The light irradiating means may include a coupler that inputs the intensity-modulated at least one wave of light into one optical fiber and an optical fiber that irradiates the living body with at least one wave of light from the coupler.

  As described above, in the present invention, by including an optical fiber in a part of the light irradiation means, the light generation means, the light modulation means, and the sound wave detection means are separated from each other and the electromagnetic coupling is very much achieved. Since the size can be reduced, the electromagnetic wave generated by the light generation unit and the light modulation unit is prevented from entering the sound wave detection unit and becoming noise. Therefore, the sound wave detecting means can measure the sound wave generated in the living body with high accuracy, and can accurately measure the concentration of the living body component. Furthermore, when irradiating light of two or more waves, for example, by irradiating the living body after being coupled to the optical fiber by a coupler such as a fiber coupler, rather than individually irradiating the light of two or more waves, It becomes easy to match the optical axis of two or more waves to a predetermined position of the living body, and to match the beam diameter, so that the concentration of biological components can be measured accurately.

  The present invention relates to a light generating means for generating light of a plurality of wavelengths, a light modulating means for electrically intensity-modulating the light of the plurality of wavelengths, and combining the light of the plurality of wavelengths subjected to the intensity modulation into one optical fiber. And a light irradiating means including an optical fiber for irradiating the living body with light of a plurality of wavelengths from the multiplexer, and a sound wave detecting means for detecting a sound wave generated in the living body by the irradiated light of the plurality of wavelengths , A component concentration measuring device.

  As described above, in the present invention, light of a plurality of wavelengths whose intensity is modulated is combined into a single optical fiber by an optical multiplexer such as an arrayed waveguide grating multiplexer / demultiplexer (AWG), for example. Irradiating the light generating means and the light modulating means and the sound wave detecting means can be separated and the electromagnetic coupling can be made extremely small. This prevents the electromagnetic wave generated by the noise from being mixed into the sound wave detecting means. Furthermore, it is easier to align the optical axis of the light of the plurality of wavelengths at a predetermined position of the living body and to adjust the beam diameter than to individually irradiate the light of the plurality of wavelengths, and accurately measure the concentration of the biological component. it can.

  The light generating means and the light modulating means may be electromagnetically shielded.

  As described above, in the present invention, electromagnetic noise is mixed by electromagnetically shielding the light generation means and the light modulation means, and the light generated by the light generation means and the light modulation means are modulated. The light size or wavelength is changed to prevent noise from being superimposed. Further, since the electromagnetic waves generated by the light generation means and the light modulation means are prevented from entering the sound wave detection means and becoming noise, the sound wave detection means can measure the sound waves generated in the living body with high accuracy. And the biological component concentration can be accurately measured.

  The sound wave detecting element included in the sound wave detecting means may be further electromagnetically shielded.

  As described above, in the present invention, by further electromagnetically shielding the sound wave detection element, the sound wave detection element detects a sound wave generated in the living body, and noise is mixed in an electric signal obtained by converting the detected sound wave. Therefore, the sound wave detecting means can measure the sound wave generated in the living body with high accuracy, and can accurately measure the concentration of the living body component.

  The preamplifier circuit included in the sound wave detecting means may be further electromagnetically shielded.

  As described above, in the present invention, by further electromagnetically shielding the preamplifier circuit, the sound wave detection element detects a sound wave generated in the living body, and an electrical signal obtained by converting the detected sound wave is the preamplifier. Since the noise is prevented from being mixed when the circuit is amplified, the sound wave detecting means can measure the sound wave generated in the living body with high accuracy and can accurately measure the concentration of the living body component.

  The cable connecting the sound wave detection element included in the sound wave detection unit and the preamplifier circuit included in the sound wave detection unit may be further electromagnetically shielded.

  As described above, in the present invention, the cable is electromagnetically shielded to detect the sound wave detecting element, and an electric signal obtained by converting the detected sound wave is transmitted between the sound wave detecting element and the preamplifier circuit. Therefore, the sound wave detecting means can measure the sound wave generated in the living body with high accuracy and can accurately measure the concentration of the living body component.

  The optical fiber may be a photonic crystal fiber.

  As described above, in the present invention, the change in the light due to the movement of the optical fiber during measurement is reduced by making the optical fiber a photonic crystal fiber having a small change in light propagation characteristics due to bending. Therefore, it is possible to stably irradiate the living body and accurately measure the concentration of biological components.

  In the present invention, the electromagnetic shielding may be performed by covering with a metal foil or a metal mesh to which a sound absorbing material is attached.

  As described above, in the present invention, since the electromagnetic shield also has an acoustic shielding function, the mixing of electromagnetic noise into the light generation means, the light modulation means, or the sound wave detection means is prevented, Furthermore, the propagation of the sound wave generated in the living body or the vibration from the outside to the light generating means, the light modulating means, or the light irradiating means is prevented, and the sound wave generated in the living body is accurately detected. The biological component concentration can be measured accurately.

  In the present invention, the electromagnetic shielding may be performed by covering with a sound absorbing material to which metal powder is added.

  As described above, in the present invention, since the electromagnetic shield also has an acoustic shielding function, the mixing of electromagnetic noise into the light generation means, the light modulation means, or the sound wave detection means is prevented, Furthermore, the propagation of the sound wave generated in the living body or the vibration from the outside to the light generating means, the light modulating means, or the light irradiating means is prevented, and the sound wave generated in the living body is accurately detected. The biological component concentration can be measured accurately.

  The component concentration measuring apparatus according to the present invention prevents electromagnetic noise mixed in each part by an electromagnetic shield, and includes an optical fiber in the light irradiation means, so that the light generating means, the light modulating means, and the sound wave detecting means portion The separation of electromagnetic noise between each other is prevented by increasing the distance. Furthermore, by combining multiple wavelengths of light into an optical fiber and irradiating the living body, it is possible to accurately irradiate a predetermined position of the living body by matching the optical axis and beam diameter of the light. It is possible to accurately detect the biological component concentration by detecting with high accuracy.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The embodiment described below is an example of the configuration of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment.

The component concentration measuring apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The component concentration measuring apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a light generating unit that generates at least one wave of light, a light modulating unit that electrically modulates the intensity of the light, and at least one wave subjected to intensity modulation. A component concentration measuring apparatus comprising: a light irradiating means for irradiating a living body with light of the same; and a sound wave detecting means for detecting a sound wave generated in the living body by the irradiated light, wherein the light generating means and the light modulating means Is a component concentration measuring device characterized by being electromagnetically shielded.

  FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 1 shows a case where the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 irradiates the living body test part 1 with two waves of light and measures the living body component concentration. However, one wave of light or three or more waves of light is emitted from the living body. The test part 1 may be irradiated, and the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of the present embodiment is not limited to two waves.

  In FIG. 1, a component concentration measuring apparatus 10 includes a first light generation unit 11 and a second light generation unit 12 as light generation units, and a first light modulation unit 13 and a second light modulation unit as light modulation units. 14, a light irradiation unit 21 as a light irradiation unit, a sound wave detection element 31 as a part of the sound wave detection unit, a cable 33 as a part of the sound wave detection unit, a preamplifier circuit 32 as a part of the sound wave detection unit, The biological component calculation unit 34 is configured. Here, when irradiating the living body test part 1 with one wave of light or two or more waves, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 includes the same number of light generation units as the light generation means and the number of the light generation units. An optical modulation unit is provided as optical modulation means.

  The component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment further includes a first light generation unit shield 15 and a second light generation unit shield 16, a first light modulation unit shield 17, and a second light modulation unit shield 18. It is preferable to include a sound wave detection element shield 35, a preamplifier circuit shield 36, and a cable shield 37.

  In FIG. 1 and the drawings shown below, portions that can be realized by a normal technique such as a control unit that controls the measurement operation of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10, a power source, and a housing are not shown.

  The output terminal of the first light generation unit 11 is connected to the input terminal of the first light modulation unit 13 by light transmission means. The first light generator shield 15 is electromagnetically shielded so as to wrap the first light generator 11, and is further connected to an electric common potential portion of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10, that is, a so-called ground. Also good.

  The output terminal of the second light generation unit 12 is connected to the input terminal of the second light modulation unit 14 by light transmission means. The second light generating part shield 16 covers and electromagnetically shields the second light generating part 12 and may be connected to the ground of the electric common potential of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10. .

  The output terminal of the first light modulation unit 13 is connected to the first input terminal of the light irradiation unit 21 by light transmission means. The first light modulation unit shield 17 covers and electromagnetically shields the first light modulation unit 13, and may be connected to the ground of the electric common potential of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10. .

  The output terminal of the second light modulation unit 14 is connected to the second input terminal of the light irradiation unit 21 by light transmission means. The second light modulation unit shield 18 covers and electromagnetically shields the second light modulation unit 14 and may be further connected to the ground having an electrical common potential of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10. .

  The light irradiation unit 21 is installed at a position where the irradiation light 41 irradiated from the output terminal of the light irradiation unit 21 is irradiated to the part to be measured of the living body test unit 1.

  The output terminal of the sound wave detection element 31 is connected to the input terminal of the preamplifier circuit 32 by a cable 33. The sound wave detecting element 31 is in contact with the living body test portion 1 and is installed at a position where the sound wave generated in the living body test portion 1 is detected. The sound wave detection element shield 35 may be electromagnetically shielded by covering the sound wave detection element 31 and may be further connected to the ground having an electrical common potential of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10.

  The cable 33 connects the output terminal of the sound wave detection element 31 and the input terminal of the preamplifier circuit 32. The cable shield 37 may be covered and electromagnetically shielded so as to wrap the cable 33, and may be connected to the ground having an electrical common potential of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10.

  The output terminal of the preamplifier circuit 32 is connected to the input terminal of the biological component calculator 34 by signal transmission means. The preamplifier circuit shield 36 may be covered and electromagnetically shielded so as to enclose the preamplifier circuit 32, and may be further connected to the ground at the electrical common potential of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10.

The function of each part of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of this Embodiment is demonstrated.
The first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12 have a function of generating light of a predetermined wavelength and supplying the generated light to the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14. Have. Here, the wavelength of the light which each of the 1st light generation part 11 and the 2nd light generation part 12 generate | occur | produces is selected as the wavelength absorbed by the biological component made into a measuring object.

  The first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14 modulate each light supplied from the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12 with each predetermined modulation signal. And has a function of supplying each modulated light to the light irradiation unit 21.

  The light irradiation unit 21 irradiates the living body test unit 1 with the light supplied from the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14 as irradiation light 41 from the output terminal.

  One end face of the sound wave detection element 31 is in contact with the living body test unit 1, and the irradiation light 41 emitted from the light irradiation unit 21 is absorbed by the living body component to be measured by the living body test unit 1, so that the living body test is performed. The sound wave generated in the unit 1 is detected, and the detected sound wave is converted into an electrical signal, and an electrical signal indicating the magnitude of the sound wave is transmitted to the preamplifier circuit 32 via the cable 33.

  The preamplifier circuit 32 has a function of receiving and amplifying the electric signal indicating the magnitude of the sound wave detected by the sound wave detecting element 31 and transmitting the electric signal to the biological component calculation unit 34.

  The biological component calculation unit 34 has a function of calculating and displaying the biological component concentration from the electric signal indicating the magnitude of the sound wave received from the preamplifier circuit 32. Here, the method in which the biological component calculation unit 34 calculates the biological component concentration of the biological subject 1 from the magnitude of the sound wave generated in the biological subject 1 is the same as the magnitude of the sound wave generated in the biological subject 1 in advance. You may calculate with the data which measured the relationship of the biological component density | concentration.

  When measuring the concentration of a biological component using two waves of light, each of the two waves of different wavelengths is electrically intensity-modulated with a signal of the opposite phase at the same frequency, The living body test unit 1 is irradiated with two waves of light, a sound wave generated in the living body test unit 1 by the irradiated light, that is, a photoacoustic signal is detected, and a living body component in the living body is detected from the detected sound wave size. Measure the concentration.

  The first light generation unit shield 15 and the second light generation unit shield 16 are mixed with electromagnetic noise in the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, and the first light generation unit 11. And a function of preventing noise from being superimposed by changing the size or wavelength of light generated by the second light generation unit 12. Further, the first light generating unit shield 15 and the second light generating unit shield 16 are configured so that electromagnetic waves generated from the first light generating unit 11 and the second light generating unit 12 are detected by other parts, for example, sound wave detection. It also has a function of preventing noise from being mixed into the element 31, the cable 33, the preamplifier circuit 32, and the like.

  The first light modulation unit shield 17 and the second light modulation unit shield 18 are mixed with electromagnetic noise into the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14. And the function of preventing noise from being superimposed by changing the size or wavelength of the light modulated by the second light modulator 14. Further, the first light modulation unit shield 17 and the second light modulation unit shield 18 are configured so that electromagnetic waves generated from the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14 are detected by other portions, for example, sound wave detection. It also has a function of preventing noise from being mixed into the element 31, the cable 33, the preamplifier circuit 32, and the like.

  The sound wave detection element shield 35 has a function of preventing electromagnetic noise from being mixed into the sound wave detection element 31 and causing noise of a signal indicating the magnitude of the sound wave detected by the sound wave detection element 31.

  The preamplifier circuit shield 36 has a function of preventing electromagnetic noise from being mixed into the preamplifier circuit 32 and causing noise of a signal indicating the magnitude of the sound wave amplified by the preamplifier circuit 32.

  The cable shield 37 has a function of preventing electromagnetic noise from entering the cable 33 and causing noise of a signal indicating the magnitude of the sound wave transmitted from the sound wave detection element 31 to the preamplifier circuit 32.

  As described above, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is configured so that external electromagnetic noise is mixed with the electromagnetic shield, or electromagnetic waves generated inside the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 are in other parts. It is possible to accurately measure the concentration of the biological component by preventing noise from entering the body.

  As described above, the component concentration measuring device of the present invention can provide a component concentration measuring device capable of accurately measuring the biological component concentration.

The component concentration measuring apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the component concentration measuring apparatus according to the second embodiment. In FIG. 2, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is similar to the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment described with reference to FIG. Since it is the structure provided with the protection tube 23 and the biological contact part 24, and is the structure similar to the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of 1st embodiment except the above, the component concentration measurement of 1st Embodiment is carried out here. A different part from the apparatus 10 is demonstrated. In addition, when irradiating the biological test part 1 with one wave of light or two or more waves, the component concentration measuring device 10 includes the same number of light generation units as the light generation unit and the light An optical modulation unit as modulation means is provided.

  The optical fiber 22 is accommodated in a protective tube 23, one end of the optical fiber 22 is connected to the output terminal of the light irradiation unit 21, and the other end of the optical fiber 22 is in the living body contact unit 24. Thus, it is fixed together with the protective tube 23. In FIG. 2, the protective tube 23 and the biological contact portion 24 are shown in cross section.

  The light irradiation unit 21 is either the light modulated by the first light modulation unit 13 or the second light modulation unit 14, or the light modulated by the first light modulation unit 13 or the second light modulation unit 14. Each of which is input to the optical fiber 22. For input to the optical fiber 22, for example, a coupler such as a fiber coupler can be used.

  Alternatively, the light irradiation unit 21 has a function of combining and inputting each of the light of a plurality of wavelengths modulated by the first light modulation unit 13 or the second light modulation unit 14 to the optical fiber 22. For input to the optical fiber 22, for example, a multiplexer such as an arrayed waveguide grating type multiplexer / demultiplexer (AWG) can be used.

  In FIG. 2, the irradiation light 41 irradiated from the output terminal of the light irradiation unit 21 passes through the optical fiber 22 in the direction from the light irradiation unit 21 to the living body test unit 1 in the same manner as the irradiation light 41 shown in FIG. Is not shown in order to avoid the complexity of the drawing. The optical fiber 22 has a function of guiding the irradiation light 41 output from the light irradiation unit 21 to an appropriate position of the living body test unit 1. Since the optical fiber 22 has little attenuation of light and can be bent easily, it is effective to guide the irradiation light 41 to an appropriate position of the living body test part 1. Further, the optical fiber 22 sets the beam diameter and the optical axis of each light generated by the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12 on the living body test unit 1 in the process of propagating the irradiation light 41. It has a function to match. On the other hand, the optical fiber 22 is very thin, bends easily, and the sound wave hardly propagates. Therefore, when the sound wave generated in the living body test part 1 is large, it propagates to the light irradiation part 21 via the optical fiber 22. It also has a function to prevent.

  The protective tube 23 accommodates the optical fiber 22, one end is fixed to the light irradiation unit 21, the other end is fixed to the living body contact unit 24, and the optical fiber 22 is damaged by an operation during measurement. It has the function to prevent.

  The living body contact portion 24 is cylindrical, the protective tube 23 and the optical fiber 22 are introduced from one open end face, the other end portion of the protective tube 23 is fixed, and the optical fiber 22 is attached to the living body test portion 1. It has a function to prevent contact. Furthermore, the living body contact portion 24 includes a lens 25 in contact with the other end portion of the optical fiber 22 on the other open end face, and collects the irradiation light 41 emitted from the optical fiber 22 to the living body test portion 1. It has a function of appropriately irradiating and preventing the other end of the optical fiber 22 from being contaminated.

  With the above configuration, the component concentration measurement apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment includes the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, the first light modulation unit 13, and the second light modulation unit 14. The biological component concentration can be measured with an appropriate distance between the sound wave detection element 31, the cable 33 and the preamplifier circuit 32. Therefore, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of the present embodiment includes the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14, and the sound wave detection element. 31, the electromagnetic coupling between the cable 33 and the preamplifier circuit 32 can be reduced, and it can be prevented that they are mixed with each other as noise, and the concentration of biological components can be accurately measured.

  Furthermore, since the optical fiber 22 hardly propagates the sound wave, when the sound wave generated in the living body test part 1 is large, the sound wave generated in the living body test part 1 passes from the living body contact part 24 via the light irradiation part 21. Propagating to the first light modulation unit 13 or the second light modulation unit 14 and further to the first light generation unit 11 or the second light generation unit 12, and changing the size or wavelength of the irradiation light 41 There is also an effect of preventing noise from being superimposed. In addition, when irradiating the living body test part 1 with a plurality of lights, by combining or combining the plurality of lights with the optical fiber 22 and irradiating the living body test part 1 via the optical fiber 22, There is an effect that it becomes easy to align the optical axes of a plurality of lights and to adjust the beam diameter.

  The optical fiber 22 may be a photonic crystal optical fiber. By making the optical fiber 22 a photonic crystal fiber having a small change in light propagation characteristics due to bending, the change in the light due to the movement of the optical fiber 22 during the measurement can be reduced, so that the living body test portion can be stably provided. 1 can be irradiated to accurately measure the concentration of biological components. Furthermore, for example, a photonic crystal fiber having a plurality of holes in the longitudinal direction has a large propagation loss of sound waves due to the holes, and prevents sound waves generated in the living body test part 1 from propagating to the light irradiation part 21. There is also an effect.

  As described above, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment reduces the electromagnetic coupling between the respective parts, prevents mixing between each other as noise, and accurately determines the biological component concentration. Can be measured. Furthermore, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of the present embodiment accurately irradiates a predetermined position by combining the optical axes and beam diameters of the plurality of lights when irradiating the living body test part 1 with a plurality of lights. The biological component concentration can be accurately measured.

  As described above, the component concentration measuring device of the present invention can provide a component concentration measuring device capable of accurately measuring the biological component concentration.

A component concentration measuring apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The component concentration measuring apparatus according to the present embodiment includes the first light generating unit shield 15, the second light generating unit shield 16, and the first light generating unit shield 16 of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the second embodiment described with reference to FIG. The light modulation unit shield 17, the second light modulation unit shield 18, the sound wave detection element shield 35, the preamplifier circuit shield 36, or the cable shield 37 is made of a shield material in which a sound absorbing material is attached to a metal foil or a metal mesh. This is the case.

  The shield material may be processed into a seal shape, a sheet shape, or a plate shape, or may be applied to or sprayed on a metal foil or a metal mesh. Examples of the shielding material include rubber and resin. A material containing a large amount of air is preferred for sound absorption. For example, a polystyrene foam can be illustrated.

  Here, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of this Embodiment is demonstrated as the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 shown in FIG. The component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment has the above-described configuration, the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14, and the sound wave. Electromagnetic noise is prevented from entering the detection element 31, the preamplifier circuit 32, and the cable 33. Furthermore, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of the present embodiment has the above-described configuration and includes the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, the first light modulation unit 13, and the second light modulation unit 14. It is possible to prevent the sound irradiation generated in the living body test unit 1 from being mixed into the light irradiation unit 21 or the propagation of external vibration to change the size or wavelength of the irradiation light 41 to prevent noise from being superimposed. it can.

  Furthermore, the first light generation unit shield 15, the second light generation unit shield 16, the first light modulation unit shield 17, the second light modulation unit shield 18, and the sound wave of the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of the present embodiment. The detection element shield 35, the preamplifier circuit shield 36, or the cable shield 37 can also be made of a material in which metal powder is added to a sound absorbing material.

  The electromagnetic shield may be a shield material added with metal powder processed into a seal, sheet or plate shape, or metal powder may be applied or sprayed onto the surface of a shield material processed into a seal, sheet or plate shape. Or something like that. Examples of the shielding material include rubber and resin. A material containing a large amount of air is preferred for sound absorption. For example, a polystyrene foam can be illustrated.

  The component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment has the above-described configuration, the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, the first light modulation unit 13 and the second light modulation unit 14, and the sound wave. Electromagnetic noise is prevented from entering the detection element 31, the preamplifier circuit 32, and the cable 33. Furthermore, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 of the present embodiment has the above-described configuration and includes the first light generation unit 11 and the second light generation unit 12, the first light modulation unit 13, and the second light modulation unit 14. It is possible to prevent the sound irradiation generated in the living body test unit 1 from being mixed into the light irradiation unit 21 or the propagation of external vibration to change the size or wavelength of the irradiation light 41 to prevent noise from being superimposed. it can.

  As described above, the component concentration measuring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment prevents the mixing of electromagnetic noise, and also prevents the mixing of sound waves generated in the living body test unit 1 or the propagation of vibration from the outside. Thus, the biological component concentration can be accurately measured.

  As described above, the component concentration measuring device of the present invention can provide a component concentration measuring device capable of accurately measuring the biological component concentration.

  The component concentration measuring apparatus of the present invention can be used for daily health management and cosmetic check. Moreover, not only a human living body but also an animal living body can be used for health management.

It is a figure explaining the structure of the component concentration measuring apparatus of 1st embodiment. It is a figure explaining the structure of the component concentration measuring apparatus of 2nd embodiment. It is a figure explaining the structure of the component concentration measuring apparatus of a 1st prior art example. It is a figure explaining the structure of the component concentration measuring apparatus of a 2nd prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Living body test part 10 Component density | concentration measuring apparatus 11 1st light generation part 12 2nd light generation part 13 1st light modulation part 14 2nd light modulation part 15 1st light generation part shield 16 2nd Light generation part shield 17 First light modulation part shield 18 Second light modulation part shield 21 Light irradiation part 22 Optical fiber 23 Protective tube 24 Biological contact part 25 Lens 31 Sound wave detection element 32 Preamplifier circuit 33 Cable 34 Biological component Calculation unit 35 Sound wave detection element shield 36 Preamplifier circuit shield 37 Cable shield 41 Irradiation light 101 Living body test unit 102 Drive power supply 103 Pulse light source 104 Ultrasonic detector 105 Waveform observation device 201 First light source 202 Second light source 203 Drive power supply 204 Drive power supply 211 Multiplexer 212 Acoustic sensor 213 Chopper plate 214 Motor 215 Frequency analyzer

Claims (10)

Light generating means for generating at least one wave of light;
Light modulation means for electrically intensity-modulating the at least one wave of light;
A light irradiating means for irradiating the living body with at least one wave of intensity-modulated light;
A sound wave detecting means for detecting sound waves generated in the living body by at least one irradiated light, and a component concentration measuring device comprising:
The component concentration measuring apparatus, wherein the light generating means and the light modulating means are electromagnetically shielded.   The light irradiation means includes a coupler that inputs at least one wave of intensity-modulated light into a single optical fiber, and an optical fiber that irradiates a living body with at least one wave of light from the coupler. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 1. Light generating means for generating light of a plurality of wavelengths;
A light modulation means for electrically intensity-modulating the light of the plurality of wavelengths;
A light irradiating means including a multiplexer that multiplexes light of a plurality of wavelengths whose intensity is modulated into one optical fiber, and an optical fiber that irradiates the living body with light of a plurality of wavelengths from the multiplexer;
A sound wave detection means for detecting sound waves generated in the living body by the irradiated light of a plurality of wavelengths;
Concentration measuring device equipped with.   4. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the light generating means and the light modulating means are electromagnetically shielded.   5. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sound wave detecting element included in the sound wave detecting means is further electromagnetically shielded.   6. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the preamplifier circuit included in the sound wave detecting means is further electromagnetically shielded.   The cable connecting the sound wave detection element included in the sound wave detection unit and the preamplifier circuit included in the sound wave detection unit is further electromagnetically shielded. Component concentration measuring device.   8. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the optical fiber is a photonic crystal fiber.   9. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic shielding is performed by covering with a metal foil or a metal mesh to which a sound absorbing material is attached. 10. The component concentration measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic shielding is performed by covering with a sound absorbing material to which metal powder is added.

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