JP2004313741A - Optical biological measurement device and its holders - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical biological measurement device which is easy to adjust to the shape of a subject to be examined and offers more information. <P>SOLUTION: Two holder parts 2 are connected with each other with their respective holes 4 joined together into which a socket 6 is inserted, and they are fastened by a nut 8. Two or more of this holder parts 2 are interconnected to form a network structure. The socket 6 is provided with a light-sending probe or a light-receiving probe 10. Since the angles at each joint bonding two or more holder parts 2, being in contact with the surface of a subject to be measured, can be arbitrarily changed by adjusting the socket 6 and the nut 8 in their tightness, and also the holder parts 2 have flexibility, these holders can be fitted to any shape of a head after being deformed in accordance with the curvature of the head. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a holder for mounting an element on a living body and an optical living body measuring device such as an oxygen monitor for measuring a change in blood dynamics in the living body. The present invention relates to a multi-channel optical biometric device including a probe and a plurality of light-receiving probes that receive transmitted and scattered light from a measurement site.

  The living body is irradiated with near-infrared light, absorbs or scatters inside the living body, receives light coming out of the living body, and uses the difference in spectra between oxygenated hemoglobin and deoxygenated hemoglobin to produce oxygenated hemoglobin. An oxygen monitor is known which non-invasively measures the relative change and absolute amount of deoxygenated hemoglobin.

  In addition, there is a commercially available oxygen monitor that increases the number of detectors and obtains an image output or an output similar to an image by arranging the detectors two-dimensionally. These are called multi-channel oxygen monitors.

  In a multi-channel oxygen monitor, a mounting device called a holder is used to bring probes (tips of optical fibers) connected to a light transmitting unit and a light receiving unit into contact with a subject in a predetermined arrangement. In a multi-channel oxygen monitor for measuring a human head, a holder molded according to the shape of a mounting portion of the head is used as the holder. A plurality of holes for fixing probes are provided in the molded holder, and the probes of the light transmitting unit and the light receiving unit are loaded in those holes, so that the distance between the probes becomes constant, and the reflected light is specified at that position It is guaranteed to get depth information. The interval between these probes is called a channel, and it is generally considered that when the channel length is 3 cm, information at a depth of 1.5 cm to 2 cm from the center of the channel is obtained. This substantially corresponds to the surface region of the brain at that position, and information related to brain activity is obtained.

  However, since the curvature of the head differs depending on gender, age, and individual difference, the molded holder does not always match the subject, and the holder may not be in close contact with the head. As a result, data may not be obtained because the tip of the probe floats from the scalp. Further, even if the tip of the probe is extended so that it can be in close contact with the head, accurate data cannot be obtained due to a change in the interval between the tip of the light transmitting probe and the tip of the light receiving probe.

Generally, a holder in which the positions of the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe are fixed cannot be arranged on spherical surfaces having different curvatures.
In order to measure a wide area of a subject with a light measuring device and to easily cope with a case where there is a difference in shape between the subjects, a holding unit holding each optical fiber is covered. The optical fiber holding sections are arranged in a lattice on the surface of the specimen, and these optical fiber holding sections are connected to each other by a connecting section that exhibits elasticity within a predetermined range. It has been proposed to use a holder having such a holder (see Patent Document 1).

  However, when an elastic member is used to bring the holder into close contact with the head as proposed, it is possible to place the holder approximately on a spherical surface by applying stress to the holder. In addition, the distance between the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe, that is, the channel length also changes due to stress strain, and accurate measurement cannot be performed.

One solution to such a problem is to use a flexible shell that holds a plurality of probes as an alternative to the holder, and connect the central probe in one direction as the shell, and Further, there has been proposed a probe having a plurality of branch portions extending to both sides from the connection axis in a direction perpendicular to the connection axis of these probes, and holding other probes on the branch portions (see Patent Document 2). .).
JP-A-2002-143169 JP 2001-286449 A

  In the proposed shell part, if the shell part is applied to the head and deformed to match the shape of the head, if the shell part does not have elasticity, the probe held in the same branch part The spacing between them is kept constant, but the spacing between probes held on different branches varies. Therefore, a channel formed by a pair of the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe that receives the transmitted and scattered light by the measurement light from the light transmitting probe can be formed only in the same branch. Therefore, there is a problem that the amount of information obtained with respect to the number of the light transmitting probes and the light receiving probes to be arranged is reduced.

Therefore, a first object of the present invention is to provide a holder that can be easily adjusted to the shape of a subject.
A second object of the present invention is to realize an optical biometric device using the holder.

  The holder of the present invention is a holder for holding a plurality of elements and mounting it on a measurement site, and supports a socket that holds the elements one by one, and supports a pair of the sockets at a fixed interval. A plurality of holder parts are connected to each other by the socket so as to be rotatable within a tangent plane of the surface of the object to be measured, and the holder part is connected to a direction normal to the surface of the object to be measured. This is a net-like body in which the angle of the holder component is variable.

In one example, the holder component is flexible and has two holes that are spaced apart, and the socket is inserted into the hole and can rotate between the holder components in a tangential plane of the surface of the object to be measured. It is connected to.
In another example, the holder component has a spherical body at both ends, and the socket has a plurality of recesses which are fitted on the side surfaces and are rotatably supported around the spherical body.

The socket may include a fixing mechanism for fixing the holder component so as not to rotate.
It is further provided with a diagonal member for defining a diagonal length in a diagonal direction of a quadrilateral formed by the socket and the holder component, and the diagonal member is also connected to the holder component by the socket. You can also.

At least two long side members provided with three or more holes for the socket are provided, and the holder component or another long side member is connected to the holes of the long side members by the socket. You can also.
The material constituting the holder is not particularly limited, but it may be preferable that all members are made of a non-magnetic material depending on the application.

  The apparatus further includes a wearing device for fixing the holder to a head of a human body, the wearing device includes a belt wound around the head, and a fixing part for detachably fixing an end of the holder to the belt. It can also be.

  The optical living body measuring device of the present invention uses the holder of the present invention, and includes a light transmitting probe and a light receiving probe as elements held in a socket, and the light transmitting probe moves from a light transmitting unit to a measurement site of a living body. The light receiving probe is configured to emit measurement light, and the light receiving probe is associated with the light receiving probe so as to receive the transmitted scattered light from the measurement site due to the measurement light emitted by the front light probe.

  The origin of the light-transmitting probe and the position of the light-receiving probe in polar coordinate variables (r, θ, φ) (where r is the distance between the light-transmitting probe and the light-receiving probe, and θ is the value obtained when the surface of the measurement object is approximated to a spherical surface. The angle in the normal direction of the spherical surface, φ is the angle in the tangent plane of the spherical surface), and only the distance r between the transmitting probe and the receiving probe is constant, and θ and φ can move freely. If a holder that can perform this method can be created, it will be possible to dispose them on spherical surfaces with different curvatures. In fact, since the light receiving probe has a certain size, not a point, there are three more degrees of freedom. This degree of freedom defines the direction of the probe, and it is desirable that the probe is arranged perpendicular to the tangent plane of the curved surface. Since it is considered that two of the three degrees of freedom can be substituted by the above θ and φ, it is desirable to further add a mechanism that also enables rotation in the axial direction at the joint portion.

  According to the holder of the present invention, a plurality of the holder components are rotatably connected by a socket in a tangent plane of the surface of the measurement object, and the angle of the holder component with respect to a normal direction of the surface of the measurement object is variable. As a result, a stable close contact with the head having various portions with different curvatures is possible.

If the socket has a fixing mechanism that locks the holder component so that it cannot rotate, the state where the curvature of the head is approximated is fixed by the fixing mechanism, so that the curvature is maintained and its shape is maintained. Becomes possible. Therefore, the shape is not deformed by external force due to the mounting and movement of the probe, etc., and it becomes a holder with excellent adhesion. When applied to an optical biometric device, it is strong against the movement of the measurement object, Data with a high N (signal to noise) ratio can be obtained.
Further, if the shape of the holder is fixed for each person to be measured, the measurement can be performed at the same position even in the measurement performed with a time interval, so that the data can be compared with high accuracy.

  A diagonal member that defines the length of the diagonal in the diagonal direction of the quadrilateral formed by the socket and the holder part, further comprising a diagonal member connected to the holder part by the socket. Is a triangular shape having three sides defined by a holder component and a diagonal member, so that the position of each socket (the position of the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe when applied to an optical biometric device) is a curved surface. Is uniquely determined according to As described above, since the holder conforms to an arbitrary curved surface and the position of each socket is uniquely determined, reproducible data can be obtained. Further, since an effect of blocking disturbance light can be obtained, more stable data can be obtained.

  In the case where at least two long-side members provided with three or more holes for sockets are provided, and the holes of the long-side members are connected to a holder component or another long-side member by a socket, Since the result is that the position of each socket is uniquely determined while conforming to an arbitrary curved surface, reproducible data can be obtained.

  When all the members constituting the holder are made of a non-magnetic material, it is possible to cope with measurement using magnetism such as NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance tomography). As such an application, for example, it is possible to attach an element that emits light by magnetism as an element to each socket as a marker and perform NMR imaging. By such photographing, the head position can be indicated in the NMR image.

  In the case where a wearing device for fixing the holder to the head of the human body is provided, and the wearing device includes a belt wrapped around the head and a fixing part for detachably fixing an end of the holder to the belt, This allows the holder to be stably mounted on the head, and the use of this holder in an optical biometric device improves measurement accuracy.

  In the optical biometric device equipped with the holder according to the present invention, the interval between the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe is always kept constant, so that the S / N ratio is high, accurate and highly reproducible in all channels. Data is obtained. In addition, it is possible to cope with various head shapes having individual differences from infants to adults.

  One example of a holder component is one that is flexible and has two holes that are spaced at regular intervals. In such a case, the socket is inserted into the hole to connect the holder components rotatably within a tangent plane of the surface of the object to be measured.

  In this embodiment, the distance between the two holes of the holder component is a channel, and the length is r as described above. Since the holder component is flexible, the angle θ in the normal direction of the spherical surface can be freely changed. Further, since the holder component is rotatably connected by a socket in a tangent plane of the surface of the object to be measured, the angle φ in the tangent plane can be freely changed.

  Another form of the holder component has spherical bodies at both ends. In this case, the socket has a plurality of recesses which are fitted on the side surfaces of the spherical body of the holder component and are rotatably supported around the spherical body. For example, the socket for mounting the light-transmitting probe and the light-receiving probe is connected by a holder part that does not have flexibility or elasticity, and the connection part is an angle within the tangent plane of the curved surface, such as a ball joint of the shoulder. And a rotation mechanism that enables rotation of the curved surface both in the normal direction and in the probe axial direction, and a plurality of holder components are connected by a socket.

  In this embodiment, the space between the spherical bodies at both ends of the holder component is a channel, and the length is r as described above. Since the spherical body of the holder part and the recess of the socket are rotatably connected around the spherical body, the angle θ to the normal direction of the spherical surface, the angle φ in the tangential plane of the spherical surface, and the probe axis The angle to the direction can be freely changed.

  In a further preferred embodiment, a mounting device for fixing the holder to the head of the human body is provided. The wearing tool has a belt wound around the head and a fixing component for detachably fixing the tip of the holder to the belt. As such a belt and a fixing component, a hook-and-loop hook-and-loop fastener is preferable.

  The material constituting the holder is not particularly limited, but it is necessary that the material does not have elasticity, and for example, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, polyacetal and the like are preferable. These resins are also non-magnetic.

Next, examples will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows components required for one embodiment. Reference numeral 2 denotes a holder component, and holes 4 and 4 are formed at both ends of the holder. The holder component 2 is made of polypropylene having a width of 2 cm and a thickness of 0.1 mm, has no elasticity, and has flexibility only in the thickness direction. The distance between the holes 4, 4 is the channel length, for example, its length is 3 cm.

  Reference numeral 6 denotes a female socket for mounting and holding one light-transmitting probe and one light-receiving probe, and a female screw into which the light-transmitting probe and the light-receiving probe are screwed is provided. A screw is also provided outside the socket 6, and a nut 8 is screwed into the screw while being inserted into the hole 4 of the holder component 2.

The screw and the nut 8 on the outside of the socket 6 are an example of a fixing mechanism. Two holder parts are sandwiched between the socket 6 and the nut 8, and the angle between the two holder parts is reduced by tightening the socket 6 and the nut 8. Can be fixed.
Reference numeral 10 denotes a light transmitting probe or a light receiving probe. The light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe are formed in the same outer shape, and are screwed and mounted on the socket 6.

  FIG. 2 shows a state in which two holder parts 2 are overlapped with one hole 4 each, a socket 6 is inserted into the overlapped hole 4 and attached with a nut 8. A light transmitting probe or a light receiving probe 10 is mounted on the socket 6.

  When the tightening between the socket 6 and the nut 8 is loosened, the two holder parts 2 become rotatable, and the angle formed by the two holder parts 2 can be adjusted. When the tightening between the socket 6 and the nut 8 is strengthened, the two holder parts 2 are fixed and the angle therebetween is fixed, and the shape of the entire holder composed of the socket 6, the nut 8 and the holder part 2 is fixed. You.

  In this way, the plurality of holder parts 2 are connected to form a net as shown in FIG. At this time, by adjusting the screw tightening of the socket 6 and the nut 8, the angle in the tangent plane of the surface of the object to be measured at the portion where the plurality of holder parts 2 are connected can be arbitrarily adjusted.

  In order to adjust the angle of the surface of the object to be measured in the tangent plane in each step, a small concave portion is provided around the inside of the hole 4 of the holder component 2 so as to come into contact with the inside of the hole 4. A small ball mechanism may be incorporated on the side of the socket 6.

  FIG. 3 shows a holder 12 according to an embodiment configured using the holder component 2, the socket 6, and the nut 8. In this embodiment, the sockets 6 are arranged on a square grid. A light transmitting probe and a light receiving probe are alternately mounted on these sockets, and a channel is formed between adjacent light transmitting probes and light receiving probes, and absorbance is measured in each channel. Therefore, in this example, there are 40 channels.

  FIG. 4 shows an example in which the holder 12 configured in a net shape is applied to the head. The spherical surface of the head cannot be approximated by a square lattice, and the distortion increases with distance from a certain point with reference to the point. In this embodiment, the flexibility of the holder component 2 enables the movement in the direction of the angle θ in the normal direction of the spherical surface, and the holder component 2 can be rotated by the socket 6 in the tangential plane of the surface of the object to be measured. Because they are connected, they can also move in the direction of the angle φ in the tangent plane, so that the square lattice can be deformed along the spherical surface, and the probe mounted on the socket 6 can be moved to any spherical surface. It becomes possible to adhere.

  The shape of the holder 12 can be fixed by tightening the space between the socket 6 and the nut 8 in a state of being mounted on the head as shown in FIG. Since the fixed shape is a shape unique to the person to be measured, the holder can be removed from the head, remounted, and measured at the same measurement position.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when the holder is assembled in a lattice shape, the sum of the inner angles of the lattice is always 360 degrees on a plane having no curvature. However, when the deformation is applied along the curved surface such as the head by the flexible holder component 2, the sum of the inner angles of the lattice is not 360 degrees. Usually, it is larger than 360 degrees. Therefore, in this state, when the connecting portion of the holder component 2 is fixed, the holder component 2 can no longer return to a plane, and the curvature is maintained. When the holder component is configured in a triangular shape, the curvature is maintained by the sum of the internal angles deviating from 180 degrees.

  FIG. 4 also shows a mounting device for fixing the holder 12 to the head. The wearing tool includes a belt 14 wound around the head, and a fixing component 16 for detachably fixing the tip of the holder 12 to the belt 14. The belt 14 and the fixing part 16 are hook-and-loop hook-and-loop fasteners.

  In this way, since the holder 12 can be fixed to the belt 14 wound around the head, it is more difficult to measure the blood flow of the brain by moving the chin compared to, for example, a wearing device that places the belt on the chin and fixes the holder. Also in measurement, accurate measurement is possible without the position of the probe being affected by the movement of the chin.

  The present invention is characterized in that the coupling portion of the holder is deformable, and does not specify a coupling mechanism or a parallel coupling mode of components. In the embodiment of FIG. 3, the connection mode in which the sockets 6 are arranged on a square grid is used, but the connection mode in which the sockets 6 are arranged on a triangular grid may be used.

FIG. 5 shows a holder component and a socket according to another embodiment. In this embodiment, the holder component 20 is made of a hard resin having spherical bodies 22, 22 at both ends, and has neither stretchability nor flexibility. The socket 24 has a plurality of recesses 26 in which the spherical body 22 is fitted on the side surface and is rotatably supported around the spherical body 22. The connection between the concave portion 26 of the socket 24 and the spherical body 22 of the holder component 20 is performed by, for example, an angle in a tangent plane of the curved surface, an angle in a normal direction of the curved surface, and the socket 24 like a ball joint of the shoulder. The probe can be rotated at an angle in the axial direction (indicated by a dashed line in FIG. 5B) of the probe attached to the probe.
By connecting the holder components 20 by the socket 24, a net-shaped body as shown in FIG. 3 or a holder made of another net-shaped body can be formed.

  The socket 24 shown in FIG. 5 can also be provided with a fixing mechanism for stopping the rotation of the spherical body 22 fitted in the concave portion 26. As such a fixing mechanism, a mechanism in which a screw hole is provided from the surface of the socket 24 to the concave portion 26, a screw in the screw hole is screwed, and the spherical body 22 is pressed and fixed at the tip of the screw can be cited. .

  FIG. 6 shows still another embodiment, in which a diagonal line defining the length of the diagonal of the quadrilateral lattice formed by the socket 6 and the holder part 2 of the holder 12 shown in FIG. A member 30 is further provided. The diagonal member 30 also has holes at both ends, and the holes and the holes of the holder component 2 are overlapped and connected by the socket 6. As an example, the length between the holes of the diagonal member 30 is configured to be √2 times the length of one side of the lattice, but the length between the holes of the diagonal member 30 is the length of one side of the lattice. Not only √2 times, but also longer and shorter ones are prepared according to the curvature to be constituted by this holder.

By attaching the diagonal members 30 in the diagonal direction of the lattice in this manner, the quadrilateral lattice included in the holder is constituted by triangles having three sides of a specified length. The positions (the positions of the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe) are uniquely determined according to the curved surface. To further explain, if the sum of the interior angles of the constructed triangles is 180 degrees, the result will be a planar fit, and as the sum of the interior angles of the triangles becomes greater than 180 degrees, the degree of curvature will increase. The result is to be fitted to the corresponding convex surface. Conversely, if the sum of the interior angles of the triangle is less than 180 degrees, the result will be a fitted concave surface.
Then, even when the shape of the holder is adapted to the measurement object using the diagonal member 30, the shape of the holder can be fixed by tightening the socket 6 and the nut 8.

  FIG. 7 shows still another embodiment, in which at least two long side members 40a and 40b in which three or more socket holes are arranged are provided, and the holes of the long side members 40a (40b) are provided with the sockets 6a and 6b. The holder component 2 or the other long side member 40b (40a) is connected to the holder component 2. Here, two long side members 40a and 40b are used.

  The two non-rotatable shafts (40a and 40b) are introduced by the two long side members 40a, 40b being joined crosswise to each other and fixed so that their angles do not change. The holder component 2 is formed of a member having a length connecting the sockets 6, whereas the long side members 40 a and 40 b are formed of members having a length extending over three or more sockets 6. In the embodiment, the long side members 40a and 40b having a length extending over the seven sockets 6 are used. The angle between the intersections of the long side members 40a, 40b does not need to be 90 degrees, and the long side members 40a, 40b need not be linear.

  Since the angle at the intersection of these two long-side members 40a, 40b and the position of the socket 6 on the long-side members 40a, 40b are defined, the position of the intersection of the long-side members 40a, 40b (for example, an electroencephalograph) Is determined, the position of the socket 6 on these long side members 40a and 40b is also determined. Therefore, if the curved surface to which this holder is adapted is determined, the position of the socket 6 indicated by reference numerals 42-1 to 42-4 is changed from the position of the socket 6 adjacent to the intersection on each of the long side members 40a, 40b. It is determined. When the positions 42-1 to 42-4 are determined, the position of the socket 6 next to the positions 42-1 to 42-4 is defined by the length of the holder component 2, so that The position of the socket 6 will be determined one after another. By determining the curved surface in this manner, the position of the socket 6 is uniquely determined.

  The holder of the present invention can be used for positioning an element such as a probe at a predetermined position on a living body, such as an optical biometric device.

It is a figure which shows the components in one Example, (A) is a top view which shows a holder component, (B) is a perspective view which shows a socket, (C) is a perspective view which shows a nut, (D) is a perspective view which shows a probe. It is. (A) is a plan view showing a state where the holder components are connected by a socket, and (B) is a cross-sectional view of the connection part. It is a top view which shows one Example of the comprised holder. FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state where the holder of FIG. 3 is mounted on a head. It is a figure which shows the component in another Example, (A) is a top view which shows a holder component, (B) is a perspective view which shows a socket. It is a top view showing the holder of other examples. It is a top view showing the holder of other examples.

Explanation of reference numerals

2, 20 Holder part 4 Hole for holder part 6, 24 Female socket 8 Nut 10 Transmitting or receiving probe 12 Holder 14 Belt 16 Fixed part 30 Diagonal member 40a, 40b Long side member

Claims (9)

A holder for holding a plurality of elements and mounting it on a measurement site,
A socket that holds the elements one by one, and a holder component that supports the pair of sockets at a fixed interval and is connected to each other by the supported sockets, and a plurality of the holder components are measured by the socket. A holder comprising a net-like body rotatably connected within a tangent plane of an object surface and having a variable angle of the holder component with respect to a direction normal to the surface of the object to be measured.   The holder component is flexible and has two holes spaced at a fixed interval, and the socket is inserted into the hole and rotatably connects the holder components in a tangential plane of the surface of the object to be measured. The holder according to claim 1, wherein the holder is used.   2. The holder according to claim 1, wherein the holder component has a spherical body at both ends, and the socket has a plurality of concave portions into which the spherical body is fitted on a side surface and rotatably supported around the spherical body. 3. .   The holder according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the socket includes a fixing mechanism for fixing the holder component so as not to rotate.   2. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a diagonal member for defining a diagonal length in a diagonal direction of a quadrilateral formed by the socket and the holder component, wherein the diagonal member is also connected to the holder component by the socket. 5. The holder according to any one of items 1 to 4.   2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising at least two long-side members provided with three or more holes for the socket, wherein the holder component or another long-side member is connected to the holes of the long-side members by the socket. 3. 5. The holder according to any one of 5.   7. The holder according to claim 1, wherein all members constituting the holder are made of a non-magnetic material.   A mounting device for fixing the holder to a head of a human body, wherein the mounting device includes a belt wound around the head, and a fixing part for detachably fixing an end of the holder to the belt. Item 8. The holder according to any one of Items 1 to 7. A holder according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
A light transmitting probe and a light receiving probe as the element held by the socket,
The light transmitting probe is configured to irradiate measurement light from a light transmitting unit to a measurement site of a living body, and the light receiving probe receives transmitted scattered light from the measurement site due to the measurement light irradiated by the light transmission probe. Optical biometric device associated with.

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