JP2005230433A - Spacer for light radiation port of light radiation type therapeutic apparatus or cosmetic appliance, and cooling device for the apparatus or appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a new cooling device which is ready to be outfitted and easily incorporated in an existing light radiation type therapeutic apparatus or a cosmetic appliance without a cooling mechanism arranged therein and by which the rise of temperature in skin due to burn or heat generation in light radiation is efficiently prevented. <P>SOLUTION: A spacer includes a cooling water flow space 9 between inner and outer light transmission boards 3, 4. Accordingly, a light radiation surface 106 is prevented from being brought into contact with the skin by both the light transmission boards 3, 4 and also the rise of the temperature in the skin is moderately suppressed by normally cooling the outer light transmission board 4 with the use of the cooling water flowing in the flow space 9. This kind of cooling function is added to the spacer 1. Consequently, the cooling function is inexpensively and easily outfitted subsequently to the existing light radiation type therapeutic apparatus or cosmetic appliance without incorporating the cooling mechanism. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a spacer attached to a light irradiation port of a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine such as an optical hair removal machine or a photo beauty machine, and a cooling device including the spacer, and more specifically, irradiation of light emitted from a light source The present invention relates to a light irradiation port spacer and a cooling device that can easily provide a cooling function for cooling a partial skin to a general-purpose light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine.

Conventionally, light emitted from a light source such as an arc lamp or a xenon lamp installed in the light irradiation port is changed to only light of a specific wavelength by passing through a filter, and the light is converted to the front end surface (light irradiation surface of the glass guide member). Light-irradiating treatment machines or beauty machines such as a photo epilator that performs hair removal by irradiating the skin toward the skin and a photo-facial machine that improves redness, pigmentation, etc. of the skin are known. Further, in this kind of light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine, in order to prevent burns or the like due to the light irradiation surface coming into direct contact with the skin, a spacer called a coupler is attached to the light irradiation port, and the light irradiation surface and the skin are A gap with a small dimension of about 2 to 3 mm is formed between them (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
In addition, a laser treatment apparatus that incorporates a cooling device such as a chiller or a Peltier element is known in order to prevent an increase in skin temperature due to heat generated by light irradiation (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

JP 9-215695 A JP 2003-734 A

By the way, the conventional spacer (coupler) can be easily attached to the light irradiation port of an existing light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine by retrofitting to prevent contact between the light irradiation surface and the skin. It did not have a function and could not prevent the skin temperature from rising due to the heat generated by light irradiation.
On the other hand, the laser treatment device described in Patent Document 2 has a built-in cooling device, and can efficiently treat the skin by preventing an increase in skin temperature due to heat generated by light irradiation. Since the mechanism is built in in advance, it has been difficult to retrofit it into a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine that does not include such a cooling mechanism.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional situation, and the purpose of the process is simply retrofitted to an existing light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine that does not include a cooling mechanism such as a chiller or a Peltier element. It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel cooling device that can be incorporated and can efficiently prevent a skin temperature increase due to a burn during light irradiation or heat generated by light irradiation.

In order to achieve the above object, a light irradiation port spacer according to the present invention is attached to a light irradiation port of a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine such as an optical hair removal machine or a photo beauty machine, and the light irradiation surface and the skin. A spacer that forms a gap having a minute dimension between the outer light transmitting surface that contacts the skin, the inner light transmitting surface disposed between the outer light transmitting surface and the light irradiation surface, and the inner and outer surfaces thereof. A cooling water flow space formed between the light transmission surfaces, and a water supply port and a water discharge port for flowing the cooling water in the flow space are provided.
If the light irradiation port spacer is connected with a water supply tube to the water supply port so that cooling water is continuously supplied into the flow space, a cooling layer is formed between the inner and outer light transmission surfaces, With the cooling function, the outer light transmitting surface that is in direct contact with the skin is always cooled, and the increase in the skin temperature due to the heat generated by light irradiation can be effectively prevented.

  The inner and outer light-transmitting surfaces can be formed of a light-transmitting member made of a light-transmitting and heat-resistant synthetic resin or heat-resistant glass. In view of prevention, production cost, etc., it is preferable to use a light-transmitting plate made of heat-resistant glass, and among them, it is preferable to use sapphire glass.

In the spacer according to the present invention, the inner and outer light transmissive plates are disposed in the bottom opening of the spacer body formed by connecting the front, rear, left and right side plates, and communicate with the flow space formed between the light transmissive plates. The water supply port and the drain port are formed in any one of the side plates, the outer peripheral surface of the outer light transmission plate is an inclined engagement surface, and the lower end of the inner surface of each side plate is aligned with the inclined engagement surface The outer light-transmitting plate is disposed in the bottom opening of the spacer body so that the contact surface with the skin of the outer light-transmitting plate is not submerged inward from the lower end of each side plate. It is preferable to do.
In this case, since the contact surface (outer surface) with the skin of the outer light transmitting plate is arranged so as to be flush with the lower end of each side plate of the spacer body or from the lower end of each side plate, The contact surface with the skin can be surely brought into contact with the skin.

The front, rear, left and right side plates constituting the spacer body can be formed of heat-resistant metal, synthetic resin, heat-resistant glass, etc., but when the inner surface is a light reflecting surface, the light irradiated from the light irradiation surface Attenuation can be prevented and light can be efficiently irradiated to the skin.
The light reflecting surface can be formed by attaching a light reflecting film to the inner surfaces of the front, back, left, and right side plates, but considering the durability and manufacturing cost due to long-term use, a light reflective metal material It is preferable to form a side plate. Furthermore, in view of the weight reduction and manufacturing cost of the spacer, it is preferable to form the spacer with a light metal such as stainless steel.

Since the surface facing the light irradiation surface on the inner light transmission surface is heated by light irradiation heat, there is a risk that condensation and clouding may occur due to a large temperature difference with the flow space of the cooling water, There is a possibility that the light transmittance is lowered and the treatment efficiency is deteriorated.
Therefore, it is preferable to fill a gap formed between the inner light transmission surface and the light irradiation surface with gel so as to prevent the occurrence of dew condensation or fogging.

Further, the cooling device for a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to the present invention is a cooling water circulation supply that circulates and supplies cooling water having a predetermined temperature to the cooling water flow space in the spacer according to the present invention. It consists of a machine.
As the cooling water circulation supply device, for example, a cooling means such as a chiller is incorporated, and the cooling water cooled by the cooling means is supplied to the flow space of the spacer through the water supply tube and the water supply port, and the cooling in the flow space is also provided. The thing of the general-purpose structure provided with forced circulation means, such as a pump which drains water through a drain outlet and a drain tube, can be used.

Since the light irradiation opening spacer of the light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to the present invention is configured as described above, the following effects can be obtained.
(Claim 1)
Since a cooling function is added to the spacer that is attached to the light irradiation opening and forms a minute gap between the light irradiation surface and the skin, an existing light irradiation type treatment machine that does not have a cooling mechanism such as a chiller or a Peltier element or It can be easily attached to a beauty machine by retrofitting and can be provided with a cooling function at a low cost.

(Claim 2)
Since the light transmissive surface is formed of a heat-resistant glass plate, the light transmission efficiency can be reduced and the surface can be prevented from being damaged due to long-term use, and the above-described effect according to claim 1 can be made more effective.

(Claim 3)
It is possible to prevent an extra gap from being formed between the outer light transmitting plate and the lower end of each side plate of the spacer body, and to ensure that the outer light transmitting plate is in contact with the skin. Hair loss treatment and beauty treatment can be performed.

(Claim 4)
Since the inner surface of the side plate has a light reflecting function, attenuation of light irradiated from the light irradiation surface can be prevented, and light can be efficiently irradiated onto the skin.

(Claim 5)
Since the gel is filled in the gap between the inner light transmission surface and the light irradiation surface, dew condensation on the inner light transmission surface heated by the light irradiation heat can be prevented, and light irradiation can be performed efficiently.

  Moreover, the cooling device for a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to the present invention can surely obtain the respective effects described above by simple means simply connecting a cooling water circulation supply device to the spacer.

Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of a spacer for light irradiation ports and a cooling device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a handpiece 100 of a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine provided with a light irradiation port 101 to which a light irradiation port spacer (hereinafter simply referred to as “spacer”) 1 of this example is attached.
As shown in FIG. 2, the hand piece 100 reflects light emitted from a light source 102 such as an arc lamp or a xenon lamp installed in a light irradiation port 101 by a reflector 103 and passes the reflected light through a filter 104 as shown in FIG. Thus, only the light of a specific wavelength is changed, and the light is irradiated from the distal end surface (light irradiation surface 106) of the glass guide member 105 toward the skin to perform hair removal or facial treatment.

  The spacer 1 is formed by connecting the front and rear, left and right side plates 2a to 2d by bonding, screwing or the like, and closing the bottom opening 2e with inner and outer light transmitting plates 3 and 4, as shown in FIGS. A concave groove 5 is formed on the inner surface of each of the side plates 2a to 2d to hold the inner light transmitting plate 3 in a fitting shape, and the outer light transmitting plate 4 is provided at the lower end of the inner surface of each of the side plates 2a to 2d. An inclined engaged surface 6 for holding in a locked state is formed, a narrow gap (for example, about 1 mm) is ensured between the inner and outer light transmitting plates 3 and 4, and the side plates 2 c and 2 d are provided. A water supply port 7 and a water discharge port 8 communicating with the gap are formed, and the gap functions as a cooling water flow space 9.

  A packing 10 made of an elastic material is loaded in the concave groove 5 for holding the inner light transmission plate 3 so that the cooling water in the flow space 9 does not leak to the light irradiation surface 106 side. That is, if the cooling water leaks to the light irradiation surface 106 side, condensation or fogging may occur on the inner light transmission plate 3, which may reduce the light transmittance and deteriorate the treatment efficiency. By disposing the packing 10, such a problem is prevented in advance.

The inclined engaged surface 6 for holding the outer light transmitting plate 4 is formed at an angle that matches the inclined engaging surface 11 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the outer light transmitting plate 4 so as to transmit the outer light transmitting light. Consideration is given so that the contact surface of the plate with the skin does not sink inward from the lower end of each side plate.
That is, when the outer light transmitting plate 4 is to be held in the concave groove 5 in the same manner as the inner light transmitting plate 3, the contact surface 4a with the skin of the light transmitting plate 4 is on the inner side from the lower ends of the side plates 2a to 2d. The contact surface 4a may not be in contact with the skin and the treatment efficiency may be deteriorated. On the other hand, as in this example, the outer light transmitting plate 4 is held by the engagement of the inclined engaged surface 6 and the inclined engaging surface 11, so that the skin on the outer light transmitting plate 4 The contact surface 4a can be disposed so as to be flush with the lower end of each of the side plates 2a to 2d or project from the lower end, and the contact surface 4a can be reliably brought into contact with the skin.

  Each side plate 2 of the spacer 1 is made of a metal such as stainless steel, and is provided with light reflectivity on its inner surface. The spacer 1 is attached to the light irradiation port 101 by applying a cooling gel 12 to the inner surface thereof, and the gap between the inner light transmission plate 3 and the light irradiation surface 106 is closed by the gel 12. Yes.

  The inner light transmissive plate 3 constitutes an inner light transmissive surface, the outer light transmissive plate 4 constitutes an outer light transmissive surface, and the light transmissive plates 3 and 4 have a light irradiation surface 106 in contact with the skin. In order to prevent this, the above-mentioned cooling for cooling the outer light transmission plate 4 that directly contacts the skin while ensuring a gap of a minute dimension (for example, about 2 to 3 mm) between the light irradiation surface 106 and the skin. The water flow space 9 is secured, and is integrally formed of a glass material excellent in light transmission, heat resistance, durability, and the like, for example, sapphire glass.

  A water supply tube 13 is connected to the water supply port 7 of the spacer 1, a drainage tube 14 is connected to the drainage port 8, and these tubes 13 and 14 are connected to a cooling water circulation supply machine 15.

  The cooling water circulation supply unit 14 is of a general-purpose type, and incorporates cooling means such as a chiller and supplies cooling water cooled by the cooling means to the flow space 9 of the spacer 1 through the water supply tube 13 and the water supply port 7. In addition, a forced circulation means such as a pump for discharging the cooling water in the flow space 9 through the drain port 8 and the drain tube 14 is provided.

When the spacer 1 is attached to the light irradiation port 101, the cooling device A of the present example configured as described above prevents contact between the light irradiation surface 106 and the skin by the inner and outer light transmission plates 3 and 4, and a cooling water circulation supply machine. The cooling water circulated and supplied at 15 flows in the flow space 9 of the spacer 1 so that the outer light transmission plate 4 in direct contact with the skin is always cooled. Moreover, since the inner surface of each side plate 2a-2d of the spacer 1 becomes a light reflection surface, attenuation of the light irradiated from the light irradiation surface 106 can be prevented, and light irradiation can be performed efficiently. Moreover, the gap formed between the inner light transmission plate 3 and the light irradiation surface 106 can be closed with the gel 12 to prevent the occurrence of condensation or cloudiness.
Therefore, the light emitted from the light irradiation surface 106 is efficiently applied to the skin and the skin is prevented from being burned, and the increase in the temperature of the skin due to the heat generated by the light irradiation is moderately suppressed to efficiently remove the hair, beautify the skin, etc. Can do beauty treatment.

  5 and 6 show examples of changing the cooling water flow space in the spacer 1 described above, and the other components are the same as described above, and therefore, some of the overlapping illustrations and explanations are omitted, and only the differences are described below. In the following.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which a bottom plate member 20 integrally formed of a synthetic resin having light transmittance and heat resistance, for example, a polycarbonate resin, is used as a member for closing the bottom opening of the spacer 1.
The bottom plate member 20 is formed in a hollow shape having a flow space 9 for cooling water therein, and has an inner light transmission surface 3 ′ on the flow space 9 and an outer light transmission surface 4 ′ below the flow space 9. Each of them is integrated. Further, the bottom plate member 20 has a convex portion 21 on the outer peripheral surface, and the convex portion 21 is fitted into a concave groove 22 provided in the lower part of the inner surface of each of the side plates 2 a to 2 d and is disposed in the bottom opening of the spacer 1. .
In this embodiment, in addition to the same effects as the examples shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, since the bottom plate member 20 integrally including the inner and outer light transmitting surfaces 3 ′ and 4 ′ is used, the assembly of the spacer 1 is easy. There are effects such as.

FIG. 6 shows an example in which a bottom plate member 30 integrally formed of a synthetic resin having light transmittance and heat resistance, for example, a polycarbonate resin, is used as a member for closing the bottom opening of the spacer 1.
The bottom plate member 30 is formed so as to have a plurality of tubular cooling water flow spaces 9 ′ inside, the inner light transmission surface 3 ″ above the flow spaces 9 ′, and the outer light transmission surface 4 below the flow spaces 9 ′. "Is integrated with each other. Further, the bottom plate member 30 has a convex portion 31 on the outer peripheral surface, and the convex portion 31 is fitted into a concave groove 32 provided in the lower part of the inner surface of each of the side plates 2 a to 2 d and is disposed at the bottom opening of the spacer 1. .
In this embodiment, in addition to the same effects as the examples shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, since the bottom plate member 30 integrally including the inner and outer light transmitting surfaces 3 ″ and 4 ″ is used, the assembly of the spacer 1 is easy. There are effects such as.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described above with reference to the drawings. However, the light irradiation opening spacer and the cooling device of the light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to the present invention are not limited to the illustrated examples. It goes without saying that various modifications can be made within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims.

It is a perspective view which shows an example of embodiment of this invention, and represents the usage example to the handpiece of a light irradiation type treatment machine or a beauty machine. FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view schematically showing an internal structure of a light irradiation port of a spacer and a handpiece shown in FIG. It is a longitudinal front view which simplifies and shows the internal structure of the light irradiation port of the spacer and handpiece shown in FIG. It is a vertical side view which simplifies and shows the internal structure of the light irradiation port of the spacer and handpiece shown in FIG. It is a vertical side view which concerns on the other example of embodiment of this invention, and shows simply the internal structure of the light irradiation opening of a spacer and a handpiece. It is a vertical side view which concerns on the other example of embodiment of this invention, and shows simply the internal structure of the light irradiation opening of a spacer and a handpiece.

Explanation of symbols

1: Spacers 2a to 2d: Side plate 3: Inner light transmission plate (inner light transmission surface)
4: Outside light transmission plate (outside light transmission surface)
3 ', 3 ": Inner light transmitting surface 3", 4 ": Outer light transmitting surface 4a: Contact surface with skin 6: Inclined engaged surface 7: Water supply port 8: Drain port 9, 9': Cooling water flow space 11: Inclined engagement surface 12: Gel 15: Cooling water circulation supply machine 101: Light irradiation port 106: Light irradiation surface

Claims (6)

  A spacer that attaches to the light irradiation port of a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine such as a light hair removal machine or a photo beauty machine, and forms a minute gap between the light irradiation surface and the skin, and is in contact with the skin. A light transmission surface, an inner light transmission surface disposed between the outer light transmission surface and the light irradiation surface, a flow space of cooling water formed between the inner and outer light transmission surfaces, and the flow space A light irradiation port spacer for a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine, comprising a water supply port and a drain port through which cooling water flows.   The light irradiation opening spacer of a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to claim 1, wherein the inner and outer light transmission surfaces are made of a light transmission plate made of heat-resistant glass.   The inner and outer light transmitting plates are arranged in the bottom opening of the spacer body formed by connecting the front, rear, left and right side plates, and the water supply port and the drain port communicating with the flow space formed between the light transmitting plates are either And forming an inclined engaged surface that matches the inclined engaging surface at the lower end of the inner surface of each side plate. The outer light transmitting plate is disposed in the bottom opening of the spacer body so that the contact surface of the outer light transmitting plate with the skin does not sag inside the lower end of each side plate. The light irradiation opening spacer of the light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine described above.   The light irradiation opening spacer of a light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to claim 3, wherein the inner surface of each side plate is a light reflection surface.   The light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a gel is filled between the inner light transmission surface and the light irradiation surface and attached to the light irradiation port. Spacer for light irradiation port.   An optical epilator comprising the light irradiation port spacer according to any one of claims 1 to 5, and a cooling water circulation supply device that circulates and supplies cooling water having a predetermined temperature to a cooling water flow space in the light irradiation port spacer. Cooling device for light irradiation type treatment machine or beauty machine such as photo beauty face machine.

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