JP2004298430A - Pain therapeutic support apparatus and method for displaying phantom limb image in animating manner in virtual space - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pain therapeutic support apparatus which can support a therapy matched to various type phantom limb pains or a patient state and which can support a therapy with a small negative effect, such as a side effect, etc. <P>SOLUTION: The pain therapeutic support apparatus alleviates a pain regarding at least a part of a limb existing or missing at the present patient by performing a predetermined work by the patient in the virtual space. This apparatus detects the patient attitude, etc., with a position sensor and shows the phantom image corresponding to the patient movement for performing a predetermined work in the virtual space based on the detected patient attitude, etc. The patient visually recognizes the phantom image with high presence about the phantom image, while the patient learns a gap between a visual sense and the sense of touch, etc. Thus, a conclusion that "the phantom limb does not exist" in a patient brain can be introduced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a pain treatment support device for supporting a pain clinic for reducing pain, particularly phantom limb pain, and a method of displaying a phantom limb image in a virtual space in a moving image.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Many people who have lost part of their limbs due to an accident or surgery have complained of intractable pain called phantom pain. Here, the term “phantom limb” means a glare that makes it appear or feel that a part of the lost limb actually exists. Conventionally, for such phantom limb pain, drug treatment using an analgesic and surgical treatment such as excision of neuroma have been attempted. However, many of these analgesics have side effects and are often addictive. On the other hand, although surgical treatment is also temporarily effective, the burden on the patient is large and it often recurs. Ultimately, for unexplained pain and convulsions such as phantom limb pain, pain treatment that minimizes drug use and does not require surgical treatment is ideal.
[0003]
In recent years, studies on sensory mechanisms have shown that some of phantom limb pain can be suppressed by visually feeding back the movement and posture of the missing limb or paralyzed site to the patient. For example, a new treatment method in which an existing limb paired with a defective limb is mirrored and the image of the phantom limb itself is wiped out has been attempted and has been effective (for example, see Non-Patent Document 1).
[0004]
However, while this treatment has the merit that it can be easily realized, it is not effective, for example, for a person who has lost both hands and both feet at the same time. Another problem is that it is difficult to formulate a treatment program tailored to each patient's condition. Furthermore, there is a case where the scalability, such as integrally controlling and presenting non-visual sensations, for example, tactile sensation and other multi-sensations, is limited, and there is a limit in improving the treatment result.
[0005]
On the other hand, drug-based methods and surgical treatments are only reactive treatments. In addition, there are cases in which the patient suffers, such as a large side effect or a need for further surgical treatment.
[0006]
[Non-patent document 1]
(Ramachandran, VS et al., "Touching the Phantom Limb." Nature, 377: 489-490).
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and can support various phantom limb pain and treatment according to the patient's condition, a pain treatment support device capable of supporting treatment with less adverse effects such as side effects, and It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for displaying a phantom limb image in a virtual space as a moving image.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention employs the following means to achieve the above object.
[0009]
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pain treatment support apparatus for causing a patient to perform a predetermined task, thereby reducing pain relating to at least a part of an existing or missing limb of the patient. Virtual space generating means for generating a virtual space for virtually executing at a predetermined progress rate, position detecting means for detecting the position and posture of the existing limb of the patient, and the detected position of the existing limb Calculating means for calculating the position and posture of at least a part of the existing or missing limb in the virtual space by associating the real space with the virtual space based on the posture and the calculated posture. Phantom limb image generation means for generating a phantom limb image relating to at least a part of the existing or missing limb, and the phantom limb in the virtual space based on the calculated position. Is pain therapy support apparatus characterized by comprising a display means for moving displaying the image.
[0010]
A second aspect of the present invention is to perform the predetermined task virtually by causing the patient to perform the predetermined task, thereby reducing pain relating to at least a part of the existing or missing limb of the patient. A moving image of a phantom limb image corresponding to at least a part of the missing limb in a virtual space for generating the virtual space, and detecting a position and a posture of an existing limb of the patient. Then, based on the detected positions and postures of the existing limbs, make the real space correspond to the virtual space, and calculate the position and posture of at least a part of the existing or missing limbs in the virtual space. Generating a phantom limb image for at least a part of the existing or missing limb based on the calculated posture, and generating the phantom limb image in the virtual space based on the calculated position. It is characterized in that it comprises to moving to display an image.
[0011]
According to such a configuration, it is possible to support various phantom limb pains and treatments tailored to the patient's condition, a pain treatment support device capable of supporting treatment with less adverse effects such as side effects, and a phantom limb image in a virtual space. Can be realized as a moving image.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, components having substantially the same functions and configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated description will be made only when necessary.
[0013]
First, the knowledge that is the premise of pain reduction treatment using this system will be described. The sensations of various parts of the body such as the limbs are each mapped to a unique region of the cerebral cortex ("W. Penfield, et. Al.," The Cerebral Cortex of Man: A Clinical Study of Localization Fund "). , "MacMillan, New York, (1950)"). However, if the limb is suddenly cut due to an accident or surgery, the sensory area in the brain corresponding to the missing limb is rearranged to a different part, and it is used for other stimuli, such as facial movements and faces. Activated by contact with This activation of the sensory region may be perceived as a sense of a missing limb. This is the phantom limb. It is thought that the phantom limb pain, which is the pain of the phantom limb, is caused by the rearrangement of the painful brain region of the defective limb similarly to the phantom limb.
[0014]
The phantom limb experience is strongly influenced by the visual image. According to the literature ("Ghosts in the Brain" by Blancsley, Ramachandran, Kadokawa Shoten), the virtual limbs corresponding to the phantom limb image of the patient are visually presented, and the phantom limb is "visible". In addition, creating a state in which the sense of movement and tactile sensation are not fed back can eliminate phantom limbs. The reason is that, as shown in FIG. 1, in order to eliminate the contradiction between the visual stimulus and the somatosensory stimulus, the brain must conclude that "phantom limb does not exist". According to this theory, if phantom limb sensation can be eliminated, phantom limb pain can also be eliminated. At the actual treatment site, as shown in FIG. 2, the treatment effect is increased by a simple method of superimposing the mirror images of the existing limbs on the original positions of the missing limbs.
[0015]
When performing a treatment based on the contradiction between the visual stimulus and the somatosensory stimulus, it is considered that the sense of presence that makes the virtually presented limb feel as one's own limb is important. For example, in addition to presenting virtual limbs corresponding to phantom limbs, it would be more effective if an environment (for example, some work) in which the virtual limbs make reasonable movements in the virtual reality world can be presented. This is because the setting of the work also activates the corresponding region in the brain related to the movement of the limb. The mirror can present only a simple and arbitrary work in which the existing limb and the phantom limb move mirror-symmetrically, but if virtual limbs can be generated by a computer, more natural and various work settings can be made.
[0016]
The present embodiment originates from the above-described consideration, and relates to a pain treatment support device that provides virtual limbs corresponding to phantom limbs with high realism as images in a virtual space. Hereinafter, a configuration of a pain treatment support device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0017]
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of the pain treatment support device 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the pain treatment support device 1 includes a magnetic sensor 11, a magnetic source 13, a calculation device 15, a control device 16, an image generation unit 17, a temporary storage unit 18, a storage device 19, a display 20, an input A portion 21 is provided. FIG. 3 shows an example in which components other than the display 20 are provided in the apparatus main body 10.
[0018]
The magnetic sensor 11 is attached to a part of the existing limb or other body part of the apparatus user (that is, the subject), and acquires the position and posture of a part of the limb or the whole body by magnetic means. The magnetic sensor 11 is a system for obtaining a relative position with respect to the magnetic field source 13 by the arithmetic unit 15, and for example, a Polhemus Fasttrak or the like can be used.
[0019]
Since the pain treatment support device 1 visually reproduces a part of the limb lost in an accident or the like in a natural form, the magnetic sensor 11 has at least lost as shown in FIG. It is preferably provided at the end corresponding to a part of the limb. In the present embodiment, a sensor using magnetic means is used, but any detecting means may be used as long as it can detect the posture of the patient. For example, a retroreflective material (marker) is attached to each joint as in a motion capture system, and a plurality of light sources and a camera are used to photograph the position to obtain a position (for example, Vicom8i manufactured by Vicom). A system that obtains a position by a combination of a transmitter and a receiver (for example, a 3D mouse manufactured by Logitech) may be used.
[0020]
The magnetic source 13 generates a magnetic field to be detected by the magnetic sensor 11 attached to a part of an existing limb of the subject and other body parts.
[0021]
The arithmetic unit 15 estimates the position and posture of a part of the existing limbs or the entire body of the patient based on the relative positional relationship between the magnetic sensor 11 and the magnetic field source 13. In addition, the arithmetic unit 15 calculates the position of the part of the limb that the subject has lost in the virtual space to be described later, for example, based on the estimated position and posture of a part of the existing limb or the entire body, in an inverse mechanism. And the posture (that is, the position and posture of the phantom limb) are calculated.
[0022]
The control device 16 controls the operation of each component, and comprehensively controls the operation of the present pain treatment support device 1.
[0023]
The image generation unit 17 generates an image (virtual space image) for providing a virtual space for a patient to be treated to perform a predetermined operation. This virtual space image is a two-dimensional or three-dimensional image based on an animation or a photographed real image, and is preferably displayed as a moving image in order to produce a high sense of realism. In addition, the image generation unit 17 generates an image (phantom image) representing the phantom limb based on the posture and position of the phantom limb obtained by the arithmetic unit 15. This vision image is displayed on the display 20 in a predetermined form. The generation of these virtual space images and phantom limb images is executed in real time.
[0024]
That is, the vision image in the virtual space is generated by the image generating unit 17 based on the posture and position obtained by the arithmetic unit 15 in an inverse mechanistic manner, and is displayed on the display 20 in real time. Therefore, the visual hallucination image moves in the virtual space while changing the posture and the position according to the movement of the existing limb of the patient.
[0025]
The temporary storage unit 18 temporarily stores the treatment program read from the storage device 19. The present treatment program is developed on the temporary storage device 18 under the control of the control device 16, and various processes for reducing pain are executed based on the program.
[0026]
The storage device 19 stores data relating to pain treatment, for example, a program for realizing various task tasks for each treatment mode, attribute information of a virtual object used in each task task, sound effects provided in a virtual space, and holding of virtual objects. In this case, information on various grip modes selected in the case of performing the operation is stored.
[0027]
Here, the treatment mode is a mode for selecting a treatment according to the lost site. The task task is a task for moving a phantom limb in a virtual space in order to perform pain relief treatment. For example, a patient moves a phantom limb, receives a CG-displayed ball with a phantom limb, grasps and moves a virtual object with a phantom limb and an existing limb, or catches a ball between a phantom limb and an existing limb according to a voice instruction of a doctor. Etc.
[0028]
The display 20 combines and displays the virtual space image and the phantom limb image described above. From the viewpoint of the patient to be treated, the virtual space image and the phantom limb image on the display 20 change in response to the movement of the patient, and therefore, the fusion space in which the virtual space and the real space are fused is experienced with a high sense of reality. be able to.
[0029]
The input unit 21 is a mouse, a trackball, a mode changeover switch, a keyboard, and the like for taking in various instructions, commands, and information from the operator into the apparatus main body 10.
[0030]
Although FIG. 3 shows a system that provides a virtual space image and a visual hallucination image on the display 20, a system using another display system as described below may be employed, for example.
[0031]
(Video see-through display system)
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a video see-through display system. In this method, a real-world object or an existing limb of a patient is captured by a video camera, a range finder, or the like, and is fused by expressing the limb in a same coordinate space as a computer graphics (CG) model of a missing limb created by a computer. Things. As shown in FIG. 4, this system is configured using a camera 400 that acquires the shape and position of a hand, an electronic display 401 such as a CRT or a liquid crystal monitor, a mirror 402, and a position sensor 403. Can be.
[0032]
The position of the missing limb (the right arm in FIG. 4) presented as a phantom limb is determined in an inverse mechanistic manner by the position of the shoulder detected by the position sensor 403. The video presented as a phantom limb may be a stereoscopic image or a normal two-dimensional image. It is desirable that the electronic display 401 and the mirror 402 move up and down in accordance with the patient's body so that the mirror image can be seen at a spatially correct position. Further, the configuration may be such that a hand portion is visually conspicuous by a spotlight or the like.
[0033]
(Optical see-through display system)
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the optical see-through display system. This is to optically fuse the real world and the virtual world using a half mirror instead of a mirror. That is, by using the electronic display 501 and the half mirror 502, the object in the real world and the existing limb of the patient are transmitted through the half mirror, and the CG model is presented as a reflection image on the half mirror to fuse the two. In this method, since everything can be seen through the half mirror, the entire apparatus is placed in a dark environment, and the directional light source 503 is selectively brightened only for those who want to show it, so that the effect can be further enhanced. (See, for example, the document “K. Kayama,“ Tangible Modeling System, ”SIGGRAPH Conference Abstract (1999))”. When this system is used, the video to be presented may be a stereoscopic image or a normal two-dimensional image.
[0034]
(Display system using Fresnel lens)
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a display system using a Fresnel lens. This optically fuses the real world and the virtual world using an optical system that changes the position of an image. That is, the phantom limb reproduced by the electronic display 601 is projected at a target position with respect to the table 603 using an optical element 602 such as a concave mirror or a Fresnel lens. The image presented as a phantom limb may be a two-dimensional image, but a three-dimensional image is more effective. In this system, a virtual space with a wider field of view can be realized by increasing the size of the optical element 602.
[0035]
(Display system using shadow picture)
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display system using a shadow picture. This system includes an electronic display 701 such as a projector and an optical element 702 such as a transmission screen. The patient places an existing arm or the like under the optical element 702 whose height has been adjusted to match the height of the shoulder. On the optical element 702, the phantom limb is projected as a shadow image of a CG, and the real-world object such as the patient's existing arm is projected as a shadow that blocks the projector light.
[0036]
In addition to the representative examples described above, there are, for example, a method of using a super multi-view display to present a stereoscopic image closer to the patient, and a method of presenting a stereoscopic image on the curved screen 304 shown in FIG.
[0037]
In order to reduce the size and weight, it is preferable to make the display wearable. FIG. 9A shows a head-mounted display (hereinafter, referred to as a “head-mounted display”) that includes a half mirror, an optical element 40 such as a lens, a monitor 91, and a head position measuring device 92 and is capable of presenting a virtual world superimposed on the real world. HMD). FIG. 9B shows an HMD that has a small electronic display 90, a monitor 91, a head position measuring device 92, and a video camera 93 and can capture the real world and present it to the virtual world. In particular, the display in the latter system is described in detail in the document "Taniguchi," Fusing virtual and real time in real time ", Proceedings of the H13 IEEJ Electronics, Information and Systems Division Conference, (2001).
[0038]
(Example of device operation)
Next, the operation in the pain reduction treatment of the pain treatment support device 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS. For the sake of simplicity, an example will be described below in which the right arm is presented as a phantom limb image in the virtual space. It should be noted that the same technique can be used to provide the left arm, both arms, right foot, left foot, or both feet as phantom limbs.
[0039]
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of each process executed in the pain relief treatment.
[0040]
In the figure, first, the doctor selects a treatment mode suitable for a patient to be treated through the input unit 21 of the pain treatment support device 1, and sets a desired task (step S1). The control device 16 reads a program for realizing the task in the selected treatment mode from the storage device and expands the program on the memory. In step S1, it is assumed that the task task of catching the flying ball with the right arm as a phantom limb has been selected.
[0041]
The task work proceeds in accordance with an input instruction from the input unit 21 such as a doctor, but may be configured to proceed in accordance with a voice instruction. FIG. 11 shows an example in which a speech recognition device 31 is provided in the optical see-through display system shown in FIG. FIG. 12 shows an example in which the voice recognition device 31 is provided in the pain treatment support device 1 shown in FIG. In the system shown in each figure, the task work is progressed in accordance with the voice instruction of the doctor or the like, and the patient performs the task work (the computer graphics (CG) displayed ball is received by the phantom limb) in accordance with the voice instruction of the doctor or the like. become.
[0042]
Next, in the pain reduction treatment, the shape of the phantom limb visually provided is determined (step S2). In general, patients have a phantom limb image quite clearly. Therefore, in determining the shape of the phantom limb, in order to enhance the sense of reality, it is preferable that the phantom limb image of the patient be heard in advance to determine the shape or that the existing left arm be measured and its mirror image be used as the phantom limb. .
[0043]
Next, the posture (posture) of the phantom limb according to the work situation is obtained and displayed in accordance with the movement of the patient (steps S3 to S8). Various computer animations and the like that operate in response to human movements have been developed. Here, as an example, a method based on a literature (Y. Koka et. Al., “Planning Motions with Intents”, Proc. Of SIGGRAPH'94 (1994)) is adopted. This method is suitable for creating an animation or the like of a phantom limb in a task using a hand, and the specific contents of each step described below correspond to the algorithm of the method in the device 1.
[0044]
First, the position / posture of the patient's body is measured (step S3), and the position / posture of the virtual grasping target 27 is calculated based on this (step S4). Specifically, the following processing is performed.
[0045]
First, the position and posture of the patient P, for example, the tip of the existing left arm or / and the left and right shoulders are determined by the magnetic sensor 11. Next, for example, in the case of a catch ball, each time of the grasp target 27 is calculated from the position and posture of the patient P obtained from the information from the magnetic sensor 11 and the trajectory of the ball thrown from the right hand as a phantom limb. Find the position at. When the object is held by the right hand as a phantom limb, the position of the grasping target 27 at each time is obtained by calculation based on the position and posture of the patient P obtained from the information from the magnetic sensor 11.
[0046]
Next, the grip mode of the phantom limb is determined from the shape of the grip target 27 (step S5). For the determination of the gripping mode, for example, a method described in the document “CC Norkin et. Al.,“ Joint Structure & Function: A Comprehensive Analysis ”, FA Davis Co., Philadelphia (1983)” is used. can do. In this method, as shown in FIG. 13, the way of gripping basic shapes such as a cylinder, a ball, a pyramid, and a prism is classified (correlated) in advance, and by determining the gripping target 27, the wrist of the phantom limb is determined. Is automatically determined.
[0047]
Next, based on the positional relationship between the grasping target 27 and the patient and the grasping mode, the position and posture of the phantom limb are determined in an inverse mechanism, and the joint angle of the finger is determined along the grasping target 27 (step S6). ). The position and posture of the phantom limb are described in, for example, the document "JF Soechting, et. Al.," Analysis for the generation of curvilineear wrist motion in an arbitrary planetary ancestry. .4 (1986) ", or the document" JF Soechting, "Elements of coordinated arm movements in three-dimensional space," Perspectives edificetion ed. e Publishers, Amsterdam, it is possible to adopt the method described in (1989) "and the like.
[0048]
FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the concept of a method of determining the position and posture of the phantom limb in an inverse mechanism. As shown in the figure, information on the posture of the patient (χ, 中 in FIG. 14) from the sensor 11 provided on the patient and the position (x, y, z) of the gripping target 27 (or wrist) are obtained. The shape of the arm and wrist (θ, β, η, α in FIG. 14) can be determined inversely mechanically, and the shape of the finger is determined from the shape of the gripping target 27 and the gripping mode. Can be.
[0049]
Next, the grasp target 27 and the phantom limb are drawn in a real-life manner or as an animation by a method such as CG (step S7). This drawing is executed in real time by a predetermined method. The drawn gripping object 27 and the phantom limb are displayed at a predetermined position in a virtual space in a predetermined posture.
[0050]
Next, it is determined whether or not the operation is to be stopped. If the operation is not to be ended, the processing of steps S3 to S7 is repeated. On the other hand, when the termination instruction is given, the present pain relief treatment is terminated (step S8).
[0051]
By the way, in order to finally present a phantom limb animation or the like suitable for the purpose of pain treatment, seamless fusion with the real world is necessary. Therefore, the drawing of the phantom limb animation or the like must be performed from the viewpoint position of the patient P. In order to precisely determine the viewpoint position of the patient and provide a phantom limb image with a higher sense of reality, it is preferable that the apparatus further includes a device that tracks the line of sight of the patient.
[0052]
In the case of a system using a fixed display as shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 3 to 8, the viewpoint position does not largely move and can be treated as a fixed position for each patient. Therefore, the provided phantom limb animation or the like is not problematic if the position is adjusted for each patient.
[0053]
Further, in the case of the system having the wearable type display shown in FIG. 9, there is a high possibility that the positional relationship between the patient's head (eyes) and the operation target fluctuates. For this reason, when such a system is used, for example, a method introduced in the literature (R. Azuma, “A Survey of Augmented Reality,” Presense, Vol. 6, No. 4, (1997)). It is preferable to integrate the real world and the virtual world.
[0054]
In addition, it is desirable that the phantom limb displayed on the display 20 be drawn more realistically by a color matching the clothing and skin color of the patient. This is because, as described above, the higher the reality of the virtual limb, the higher the treatment result. Basically, in the case of loss of one arm or one leg, a method of acquiring an image of the other arm or foot and generating a phantom limb image as a texture of the lost arm or foot can be adopted.
[0055]
In the above, the operation of the present pain treatment support apparatus 1 has been described by taking, as an example, the operation of gripping the virtual gripping target 27 with the right arm as a phantom limb. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a phantom limb for treatment can be provided with a similar configuration for other operations. For example, if you do not hold a virtual object and just move the phantom limb according to the doctor's instructions, you must first determine the trajectory of the hand and then determine the posture of the arm in an inverse mechanism. Good.
[0056]
According to the configuration described above, the following effects can be obtained.
[0057]
The pain treatment support apparatus detects a posture or the like of a patient by a position sensor, and presents a vision image corresponding to the movement of the patient in a virtual space based on the detected posture. Therefore, the patient can visually recognize the vision image with a high sense of reality. This allows the patient's brain to learn the gap between sight and tactile sensation, and can induce the brain to conclude that "phantom limb does not exist". As a result, the patient's pain can be reduced.
[0058]
The therapy provided by the device has significant benefits, particularly in the following respects. First, the treatment mode can be selected according to the missing limb, and the task can be selected according to the ability of the patient. Therefore, various phantom limb pains and treatments tailored to the patient's condition can be provided. Secondly, since surgery and drugs are not required, it is possible to provide a treatment with less adverse effects such as side effects.
[0059]
The pain treatment support device detects the posture and the like of the patient by a position sensor, and calculates the posture and position of the phantom limb based on the detected posture. Therefore, the movement of the patient in the real space (real space) and the movement of the phantom limb image in the virtual space can be naturally linked. This phantom limb image can also be displayed according to the color of the patient's clothing, skin, and the like. With these configurations, a phantom limb image can be provided with a high sense of reality.
[0060]
The pain treatment support device can select a treatment mode suitable for treatment relating to a defect site from a plurality of treatment modes, and in each treatment mode, select a desired task such as catching a ball or grasping an object. can do. In each task work, a phantom limb is provided in a form suitable for execution of the task. Therefore, it is possible to provide a treatment with a high degree of freedom in accordance with various phantom limb pains and patient states with a high sense of reality.
[0061]
The pain treatment support device can control the progress of the task work by inputting an instruction from an input unit or voice instruction. Therefore, an operator such as a doctor can easily operate the present apparatus, and can proceed with the operation according to various phantom limb pains and the state of the patient.
[0062]
Next, a modified example of the present embodiment will be described.
[0063]
(First embodiment)
The first embodiment further includes a living body monitor for monitoring a physiological condition of a patient. The physiological state of the patient is grasped based on the output from the living body monitor, and the content and progress of the task are controlled according to the content. For example, when a catch ball in a virtual space is used as a task, when the patient is determined to be in a nervous state, the speed of the ball is controlled so as to decrease.
[0064]
According to such a configuration, an operator such as a doctor can grasp the organizing state of the patient based on objective data, and can proceed with work according to various phantom limb pains and the state of the patient. Can be. Further, by monitoring the physiological state by the living body monitor, it is possible to execute a quantitative evaluation on the effect of the treatment.
[0065]
(Second Modification)
The second modified example utilizes other senses than the visual sense. According to the above-mentioned literature ("Ghosts in the brain" by Ramachandran and Blaixley (Kadokawa Shoten)), if a stimulus that combines visual and somatic sensations is given even partially, it enhances the sense of reality be able to.
[0066]
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an apparatus according to the present modification. As shown in the figure, the device according to the present modification further includes a tactile presentation device 38 that transmits a virtual force based on the movement of a phantom limb from a grasping target in order to provide a somatic sensation fused with the visual sense. I have it. This tactile sense presentation device 38 is controlled by the arithmetic unit 15 so that, for example, when the selected task task is a virtual catch ball, some force is fed back at the timing when the virtual ball thrown by the phantom limb hits an existing hand. .
[0067]
With such a configuration, the sense of reality can be further enhanced, and a high therapeutic effect can be expected.
[0068]
(Third Modification)
Pain can often be caused by psychological causes. In such a case, it is effective to perform this treatment while promoting psychological relaxation by music, fragrance, and the like.
[0069]
FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an apparatus according to the present modification. As shown in the figure, the device according to the present modified example is configured to include at least one of the voice generating device and the fragrance generating device 38, and a biological monitor 39 for monitoring, for example, a physiological condition of a patient. The output of the voice generation device or the fragrance generation device is controlled by the arithmetic unit 15 based on the output from the biological monitor 39. Also,
With such a configuration, effective treatment can be performed even for pain caused by psychological causes, and the patient can be treated with music and aroma while being psychologically sufficiently relaxed.
[0070]
As described above, the present invention has been described based on the embodiments. However, in the scope of the concept of the present invention, those skilled in the art can come up with various modified examples and modified examples. It is understood that it belongs to the scope of the present invention. For example, as shown in (1) and (2) below, various modifications can be made without changing the gist.
[0071]
(1) In the above embodiment, the treatment for pain as phantom limb pain has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not intended to be limited to this, and it is considered that treatment with a similar configuration is also effective, for example, for unexplained paralysis and convulsions.
[0072]
(2) In the above embodiment, a stationary device installed in a hospital, home, or the like has been described. On the other hand, the device may be configured to be a portable device by reducing the size of the device. In this case, a more compact device can be realized by using a head mounted display for the monitor.
[0073]
In addition, the embodiments may be implemented in appropriate combinations as much as possible, in which case the combined effects can be obtained. Furthermore, the above embodiments include inventions at various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriately combining a plurality of disclosed constituent features. For example, even if some components are deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment, the problem described in the column of the problem to be solved by the invention can be solved, and the effects described in the column of the effect of the invention can be solved. When at least one of the above is obtained, a configuration from which this configuration requirement is deleted can be extracted as an invention.
[0074]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention described above, it is possible to support various phantom limb pains and treatments according to the patient's condition, and to provide a pain treatment support device capable of supporting treatment with less adverse effects such as side effects, and a phantom limb image in a virtual space. A method of displaying a moving image can be realized.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the principle of pain treatment executed by a pain treatment support device according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a conventional pain treatment.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an appearance of the pain treatment support device 1 according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a video see-through display system.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an optical see-through display system.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a display system using a Fresnel lens.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display system using a shadow picture.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display system using a curved screen.
FIGS. 9A and 9B are diagrams illustrating an example of an HMD that can present a virtual world superimposed on the real world and an example of an HMD that captures the real world and presents the virtual world. is there.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a flow of each processing executed in the pain relief treatment.
FIG. 11 shows an example in which a voice recognition device is provided in the optical see-through display system.
FIG. 12 shows an example in which a voice recognition device is provided in the pain treatment support device.
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a gripping mode according to a shape of a gripping target.
FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the concept of a method for determining the position and orientation of a phantom limb in an inverse mechanistic manner.
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an apparatus according to a second modification.
FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a configuration of an apparatus according to a third modification.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Pain treatment support apparatus, 11 ... Magnetic sensor, 13 ... Magnetic source, 15 ... Computing device, 16 ... Control device, 17 ... Image generation part, 18 ... Temporary storage part, 19 ... Storage device, 20 ... Display, 21 ... input unit, 27 ... gripping object, 28 ... ball, 40 ... optical element, 91 ... monitor, 92 ... head position measuring device, 90 ... electronic display, 91 ... monitor, 92 ... head position measuring device, 93 ... video Camera, 304: curved screen, 400: camera, 401: electronic display, 402: mirror, 403: position sensor, 501: electronic display, 502: half mirror, 503: light source, 601: electronic display, 602: optical element, 603 ... Table, 701 ... Electronic display, 702 ... Optical element

Claims (9)

By performing a predetermined task to the patient, a pain treatment support device that reduces the pain related to at least a part of the existing or missing limb of the patient,
Virtual space generating means for generating a virtual space for virtually executing the predetermined work at a predetermined progress rate;
Position detecting means for detecting the position and posture of the patient's existing limbs,
Calculation means for associating a real space with the virtual space based on the detected position and orientation of the existing limb, and calculating the position and orientation of at least a part of the existing or missing limb in the virtual space. When,
Based on the calculated posture, phantom limb image generating means for generating a phantom limb image for at least a part of the existing or missing limb,
Display means for displaying the phantom limb image in the virtual space based on the calculated position,
A pain treatment support device comprising: The said calculation means calculates the position and attitude | position of at least one part of the said existing or missing limb inversely mechanically based on the detected position and attitude of the existing limb. The pain treatment support device according to claim 1. Further comprising a selection means for selecting the predetermined work,
The virtual space generation means generates a virtual space corresponding to the selected work,
The phantom limb image generating means generates the phantom limb image in a form suitable for the selected predetermined work,
The pain treatment support device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: 3. The pain treatment support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the phantom limb image generating unit generates the phantom limb image according to at least one of a color of clothing and skin of the patient. 4. The pain treatment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising feedback means for providing a tactile sensation or an action corresponding to the change in the virtual space to the existing limb of the patient. Support equipment. The said virtual space generation means controls the said predetermined progress based on at least one of the automatic instruction | indication based on the program set beforehand, the instruction | indication by a manual operation, or the instruction | indication by a voice input. The pain treatment support device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising at least one of a sound output unit that outputs a sound in response to the change in the virtual space, and a fragrance output unit that outputs a fragrance in response to the change in the virtual space. The pain treatment support device according to any one of claims 4 to 7. Monitoring means for monitoring the physiological condition of the patient, and outputting physiological information about the patient,
The virtual space generation means controls the predetermined progress based on the physiological state,
The pain treatment support device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: By causing the patient to perform a predetermined task, in order to reduce the pain related to at least a part of the existing or missing limb of the patient, the virtual space for virtually executing the predetermined task is used to execute the predetermined task. A method of displaying a phantom limb image corresponding to at least a part of the limb in a moving image,
Generating the virtual space,
Detect the position and posture of the patient's existing limbs,
Based on the detected positions and postures of the existing limbs, make the real space correspond to the virtual space,
Calculate the position and orientation of at least a part of the existing or missing limb in the virtual space,
Based on the calculated posture, generate a phantom limb image for at least a part of the existing or missing limb,
Based on the calculated position, displaying the phantom limb image in the virtual space in a moving image,
A method for displaying a phantom limb image in a virtual space in a moving image, comprising:

Images