JP2003225268A - Method for detecting biological information such as respiratory rate, pulse rate or the like of air massage machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for detecting biological information of an air massage machine in which the biological information such as a respiratory rate, a pulse rate, a blood pressure or the like is detected by an air bag of an air massage machine and its detected result is fed back to a massage operation. <P>SOLUTION: The method for detecting the biological information such as the respiratory rate, the pulse rate or the like of the air massage machine comprises the steps of disposing a pressure sensor between a tube of the air bag and the air bag in the air massage machine having the air bags disposed at a position to be applied by a weight of a seat, a back or the like of the machine, and detecting a pulsation by the respiration from the load of the human body to be applied to the air bag. The method further comprises the steps of disposing the pressure sensor between the tube and the bag in the machine for massaging legs or hands by compressing them by the bags, and detecting the biological information such as the pules rate, the blood pressure or the like from the pressure change of the human body to be applied to the bags. The method also comprises the step of detecting the biological information through a notch filter for cutting a frequency of a medical treating speed of the massage and a filter for cutting an unnecessary signal except the biological information such as the respiration, the pulse rate, the blood pressure or the like from the detected signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention detects biological information such as respiratory rate and pulse rate, and detects biological information such as respiratory rate, pulse rate and blood pressure of an air massager for feeding back the detection result to a massage operation. It is about the method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A chair-type massage machine that detects breathing and feeds back the detection result to a massage operation is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 9-192186 and 8-117300.
Various articles such as Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-258972 and the like are known.

Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-204694 discloses a device using a piezoelectric element to detect a heart rate from a human body. Further, when the respiratory cycle is detected while moving the treatment means, the component of the pressing force change due to rolling lower than the respiratory component frequency is superimposed on the respiratory component frequency. It is known that a breathing cycle is determined by removing it by a filter and then binarizing it by a zero cross detection circuit.

On the other hand, the same applicant can also perform massage on the thighs and forearms at the same time as performing massage on the back side with the chair type massage machine, which is an air massager attached to the chair type massage machine. Is proposed (Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-287450).

The air massager attached to the proposed chair-type massager has one end connected to the left and right armrests of the chair-type massager in which a backrest has a built-in massaging mechanism. It has a pair of bendable connecting strips and a massage tool main body connected to the other end of each connecting strip. Each massage tool main body is placed on the seating portion and the thigh back side At least one of a first use position for massaging the thigh, a second use position for massaging the front side of the thigh by placing it on the thigh, and a third use position for massaging the forearm on the armrest It can be used in one use position. Each massaging tool body can be configured by a bag body, a flat and shape-retaining flexible cushion body housed in the bag body, and a vibrator held inside the cushion body. Further, each massage tool body is formed of an air bag that is formed into a bag shape with a material that is flexible and does not expand and contract, and that is connected to the pressurized air supply / discharge device via a flexible air tube.

The outline of the above conventional proposal will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of an air massager attached to the chair-type massage machine. In this embodiment, the massager main body of the air massager 20 is composed of an airbag 21. . The air massager is a massage function added to the original function of the chair-type massage machine and is used together with the original function of the chair-type massage machine. In the figure, the structure of the air massager used on both the left and right sides of the chair type is the same,
Only one of the massage machines 20 is shown.

The airbag 21 is a flexible connecting strip 2
2 is connected to the armrest side of the chair, and a flexible air hose 23 is embedded inside the connecting strip 22 near one side edge thereof. In this embodiment,
The airbag 21 is formed into a flexible, non-stretchable bag shape by stacking and adhering an outer layer 21A of a nylon cloth and an inner layer 21B of a vinyl chloride cloth to provide airtightness.
Pressurized air can be introduced into the inside.

Although one end of the air hose 23 is open to the inside of the airbag 21 and the other end is not shown, the pressurized air is supplied through the armrest to which the connecting strip 22 is connected. It is connected to the ejector. The pressurized air supply / discharge device is
A compressed air supply source including a compressor, an accumulator, a pressure adjusting valve, and the like is provided with an electromagnetic switching valve. By controlling the switching of the electromagnetic switching valve, pressurized air is supplied from the pressurized air supply source via the air hose 23 to the airbag 21. It has a function of being introduced into the inside of the airbag 21 to inflate it and discharging the air in the airbag 21 into the atmosphere to flatten it.

Further, the electromagnetic switching valve is provided with a control circuit for repeating the switching operation of air supply / discharge to / from the air bag 21 at a desired cycle. Airbag 2 on the back side and forearm
The expansion and contraction of 1 gives a massage and loosening effect.
When the length is set to be short, the airbag 21 has the same effect as the vibrator.

The same applicant has also proposed a boot-type air massager which can be used as a massager not only for the legs but also for the arms. (Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2001-15770
1 publication. ) The air massager, as shown in FIG.
A massaging device that compresses a foot by an air bag body that is inflated by pressurized air supplied from an external air source to perform a massage, the first portion having an air bag body that presses a shin, and the first portion. The second portion has a bladder body that is detachably connected to the first portion above the ankle portion and presses the tip side from the ankle portion. Normally, the foot can be massaged as shown in FIG. 7, and the first portion can be removed as necessary to use the same as an arm massager as shown in FIG.

However, in these conventional air massagers, there is a massage machine that detects biological information such as the respiratory rate and pulse rate from the airbag itself of the air massager and feeds back the detection result to the massage operation. do not do.

[0012] For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-252289, a sensor is attached to an ear or a finger to measure a pulse, but there is a drawback that the sensor is restrained and the usability is not good. Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-126259 discloses a configuration in which an air bag can be used as a compression means for blood pressure measurement, but both (massage and blood pressure measurement) cannot be performed at the same time.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a massager equipped with an air massager, which detects biological information such as respiration rate, pulse rate, blood pressure, etc. by an air bag of the air massager. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for detecting biological information such as respiratory rate, pulse rate, and blood pressure of a massager, which feeds back the result to a massage operation.

[0014]

In order to achieve the above object, the method of detecting biological information of an air massager according to the present invention is arranged at a place where a load is applied, such as a seat or a back of the massager, and is freely bendable. The air bag is formed into a bag shape and is connected to a pressurized air supply / discharge device through a flexible air tube. Air is supplied to the air bag from the pressurized air supply / discharge device through the tube. In an inflowing air bag type air massager, a pressure sensor is placed between the tube and the air bag to detect biological information such as respiration rate and pulse rate from changes in the load of the human body on the air bag. Characterize.

Further, in the air-massaging machine for compressing a foot or hand with an air bag inflated by the pressurized air supplied from the pressurized air supply / discharge device through the tube, the tube and the air bag are used. It is characterized in that a pressure sensor is arranged between the two, and biological information such as the pulse rate and blood pressure is detected from the pressure fluctuation of the human body applied to the air bag.

Furthermore, a notch filter for cutting the frequency of the massage treatment speed from the detected signal, a low-pass filter, a high-pass filter for cutting unnecessary signals other than biological information such as respiratory rate, pulse rate, blood pressure, etc.
Alternatively, detecting the biological information through a filter such as a bandpass filter, or at the time of the detection
Characterized by stopping the massage.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the present invention provided in a chair-type massage device.

The massage device comprises a backrest portion 10, a seat portion 11 and a footrest portion 14. Seat part 11
An electric reclining mechanism and a control device (not shown) are housed inside. A back frame is arranged in the backrest 10 of the massage device, and inside the back frame,
A massage unit 12 is held in the back frame so that it can slide up and down. In FIG. 1, for convenience of description, a portion 13 in which the backrest massage unit is stored and a footrest portion 14 are cut open. The massage unit 12 is fitted with a vertical feed screw (not shown), and the feed screw is rotatably held by the back frame. A pulley is attached to the lower part of the feed screw and is connected to a vertical movement motor attached to the back frame via a belt. The vertical movement motor is a control device (CP).
Under the control of U), normal rotation and reverse rotation are possible at any speed. The rotation of the vertical movement motor is transmitted to the feed screw,
The massage unit is configured to be movable between upper and lower movement limit position detecting limit switches (not shown) attached to the back frame.

The massage unit 12 is equipped with a clutch and a treatment drive motor. The rotation of the treatment drive motor causes a roller (firball), which is a treatment element, to swing back and forth and / or left and right, Kneading massage, kneading (or shiatsu) massage, kneading kneading (or shiatsu)
Take action. Note that these structures and operations are well known,
It is shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-258972.

In FIG. 1, reference numerals 1, 2 and 3 denote massage air bags (air bags), for example, under the buttocks of a human body (patient to be massaged) being massaged or behind the waist. As described above, the airbags 1 to 3 are connected to the armrest side of the chair or the like by the flexible connecting strip 22 as described above.

As described above, in FIGS. 4 and 5, one end of the air hose 23 opens inside the airbag 21, and the other end passes through the armrest to which the connecting strip 22 is connected. Connected to the pressurized air supply / discharge device. The pressurized air supply / discharge device includes a pressurized air supply source composed of a compressor, an accumulator, a pressure adjusting valve, and the like, and an electromagnetic switching valve. By controlling the switching of the electromagnetic switching valve, the pressurized air supply source is supplied via the air hose 23. Has a function of introducing pressurized air into the air bag 21 to inflate it and discharging the air in the air bag 21 into the atmosphere to flatten it. Further, the electromagnetic switching valve is provided with a control circuit for repeating the switching operation of air supply / discharge to / from the airbag 21 at a desired cycle. The effect of loosening and loosening the forearm by expanding and contracting the airbag 21 is obtained, and when the length is set short, the airbag 21 has an effect similar to that of the vibrator.

According to the present invention, since the massage air bag is provided in a place where the load of the human body is applied (butt, back, contact portion), the air bag (air bag) 1,
2 and 3 are also used as a breathing sensor, and a pressure sensor is provided at the output portion of the air bag to detect biological information such as the breathing rate.

A block diagram of the detection circuit is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, and the output of the pressure sensor is a notch filter for removing the pressure fluctuation frequency of the compressor, a notch filter for cutting the frequency of the massage speed, a breathing Biological information such as the respiratory rate is detected through a filter such as a low-pass filter, a high-pass filter, or a band-pass filter that cuts unnecessary signals other than biological information such as pulse and blood pressure.

As described above, in order to detect the biological information such as the respiratory rate and pulse rate of the human body from the pressure fluctuation, the detection is performed at any of the following timings. (1) Air is supplied and discharged during treatment, but supply and discharge of air is stopped when biometric information such as respiratory rate and pulse rate is detected. (2) When air is being supplied and exhausted for treatment, the frequency component of the treatment is removed and biological information such as the respiratory rate is detected.

In this case, the treatment cycle of the air massage may be close to the breathing cycle. Therefore, in order to eliminate the fluctuation in the treatment of the air massage, first, the human body is not sitting on the chair-type massage machine. Detects the pressure fluctuation signal (A) due to the treatment of the air massager and stores the detection signal, and then detects the pressure change detection signal (B) detected while the human body is sitting and performing the same air massage. Take air
The difference (B-A) between the signals may be calculated in synchronization with the massage treatment pattern.

Further, since the biological information such as the respiratory rate is a mechanism for detecting the movement of the body due to breathing by the air fluctuation, it is desirable to detect the biological information as quietly as possible. Therefore, when the air massager is used together with the chair massager, it is necessary to prevent noise from the original treatment of the chair massager. In the original massage function of the chair-type massage machine, the tapping action is performed in a constant cycle, so it is relatively easy to remove with a bandpass filter. However, in the rolling motion, the head and waist of a person remarkably moves as the treatment element moves up and down, which interferes with the respiratory detection waveform. The rail on which the massage unit of the chair type massage machine can slide up and down has a shape that curves forward from the shoulder to the neck. When the massage unit moves along the curved portion, the weight of the treatment piece is loaded as the treatment element projects, and the head and waist of the human body remarkably move, resulting in large noise generation. Therefore, there is less noise when moving around the waist, which is the straight part of the rail, rather than breathing detection when the massage unit moves along the curved part of the rail.

The present invention is not limited to a chair type massage machine equipped with an air massager,
It can also be used in bed-type air massagers, boot-type air massagers, and the like.

For example, when used in the boot-type air massager shown in FIG. The air massager performs massage by pressing a foot or hand with an air bag band that is inflated by pressurized air supplied from a pressurized air supply / discharge device through a tube. A pressure sensor is arranged at the position to detect biological information such as the pulse rate and blood pressure from the pressure fluctuation of the human body applied to the air bag. This makes it possible to measure the pulse rate and even the blood pressure in a normal usage state of the massage machine without burdening the user. By displaying the measurement result, the user can grasp his / her health condition and visualize the effect of the air massager.
Further, by feeding back the measurement result to the treatment operation, it becomes possible to receive a massage suitable for the user's health condition, for example, a weak stimulus for a person with high blood pressure.

[0029]

As described above, according to the present invention, the air
Since biological information such as respiratory rate and pulse rate can be detected using the air bag of the massager, there is an effect that biological information such as respiratory rate and pulse rate can be detected without separately providing a piezoelectric sensor or the like.

Further, by detecting when the treatment of the air massage is stopped or removing the pressure fluctuation of the air massage with a filter, it is possible to reduce the error in the detection and detection of the biological information such as the respiratory rate and the pulse rate. . Also, when there is little load fluctuation due to the original treatment of the chair type massage machine,
Alternatively, by detecting biometric information such as respiratory rate and pulse rate when the movement of the treatment element greatly differs from the respiratory cycle, noise can be easily removed, and errors in detection and detection of biological information such as respiratory rate and pulse rate are reduced. can do.

In addition, a boot-type equal pressure type air
The massage machine can also measure pulse rate and blood pressure during treatment, which is convenient for grasping the health condition and feeding back to the massage.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a chair-type massage machine including an air massager of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a control circuit of the massage machine of FIG.

3 is a diagram showing a circuit for detecting biological information such as respiratory rate and pulse of the massage machine shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an air bag of an air massager used in the present invention.

5 is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a view showing a boot type air massager.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a usage state of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing another usage state of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1,2,3 breath detector 10 backrest 11 sheets 14 footrest

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Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A massager is provided at a place where a load is applied, such as a seat portion or a back portion, and has a flexible bag-shaped air bag, and a pressurized air supply is provided through a flexible air tube. An air bag type air massager connected to an exhaust device, in which air flows from the pressurized air supply / exhaust device through a tube into the air bag, wherein a pressure sensor is arranged between the tube and the air bag, A method for detecting biometric information of an air massager, which detects biometric information such as a respiratory rate and a pulse rate from a change in a load of a human body applied to an air bag. 2. An air massager for compressing a foot or hand by an air bag inflated by pressurized air supplied from a pressurized air supply / discharge device through a tube, wherein the tube and the air bag are inflated. A biometric information detection method for an air massager, characterized by arranging a pressure sensor between and detecting biometric information such as pulse rate and blood pressure from pressure fluctuations of the human body applied to the air bag. 3. A notch filter that cuts the frequency of the massage treatment speed from the detected signal, a low-pass filter, a high-pass filter, or a band-pass that cuts unnecessary signals other than biological information such as respiration, pulse, and blood pressure. The biological information detecting method for an air massager according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the biological information is detected through a filter such as a filter. 4. The air massager according to claim 1, wherein the air massage is stopped at the time of the detection.
A method for detecting biological information of a massage machine.