JP2006000174A - Bathing navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bathing navigation system which enables a bather to bathe without fitting on anything, and, in addition, presents a bathing method by estimating the core temperature of the bather from a detection result for a bathing state. <P>SOLUTION: This bathing navigation system estimates a present core temperature variation amount or the core temperature of the bather on the basis of a detecting means (e.g., a water level sensor 14, a hot water temperature sensor 16, a bathroom temperature sensor 18, a timer 34 and so forth) which detects the bathing state, and the data of the bathing state (e.g., water level data, hot water temperature data, bathroom temperature data, bathing time data and so forth) which is detected by the detecting means (a core temperature estimating means 32). Then, the bathing navigation system presents a comfortable bathing method to the bather on the basis of the estimated core temperature variation amount or the core temperature (a presenting means 36). Therefore, the bather can bathe without fitting on anything as usual, and in addition, can enjoy a comfortable bathing by simply following the presented bathing method. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a bath navigation system that provides a safe and comfortable bathing method for bathers.

  Humans have a function of adjusting body temperature to around 37 ° C. by balancing heat production and heat dissipation. Bathing itself has been found to have fatigue recovery and relaxation effects, and these effects are closely related to increased body temperature. The rise in body temperature is manifested by the balance between the heat inflow from the outside and the heat dissipation from the body. The temperature rises and falls depending on the bath room temperature (ie, bath temperature), hot water temperature (ie, bath water temperature), bathing time, etc. Occurs. When the increase in body temperature becomes extremely large, the body temperature regulation function is hindered, and physiological phenomena such as hyperthermia occur.

Conventionally, in order to prevent the occurrence of physiological phenomena such as hyperthermia, a technique for displaying the bather's warmth based on the detection result of the bathing state (see, for example, Patent Document 1), hot water temperature, A technique for presenting bathing conditions based on bathing time, core heart temperature, heart rate, body fat percentage, and the like has been disclosed (see, for example, Patent Document 2). The core temperature (medical term) is the temperature of blood flowing in the deep part of the human body, and refers to, for example, the eardrum temperature, rectal temperature, esophageal temperature, axillary temperature, etc., and is also referred to as the body temperature or deep temperature. In addition, in order to perform a comfortable bathing, a technique (for example, refer to Patent Document 3) that notifies when the bathing time determined based on the hot water temperature has elapsed, or a notification when the bathing time exceeds the set time and water injection are performed. A technique for lowering the hot water temperature is also disclosed (see, for example, Patent Document 4).
JP 2002-291834 A (page 4-6, FIG. 3-5) JP 2003-225276 A (page 6, FIG. 10) JP 2002-000686 A (page 4-5, FIG. 4) JP 2003-325630 A (page 11, FIG. 18)

However, human body temperature regulation functions are performed in the hypothalamus of the brain, and it is known to regulate the balance between heat production and heat dissipation according to the blood temperature that passes through the hypothalamus, that is, the core temperature. In the above-mentioned Patent Document 2, information is provided to encourage bathing when the core temperature exceeds the allowable upper limit temperature or the amount of increase in the core temperature exceeds an appropriate value, but a thermometer is installed to measure the core temperature. You have to take a bath. It is normal to bathe without wearing anything, and bathing with a thermometer attached is not easy to relax because of the thermometer. In addition, when water enters the thermometer during bathing, there is a high possibility that the core temperature cannot be measured.
The present invention has been made in view of such points, and can be bathed without wearing anything as usual, and the core temperature of the bather is estimated based on the detection result of the bathing state, and is safe and comfortable. The object is to provide a bath navigation system that presents bathing methods.

(1) Means for solving the problem (hereinafter, simply referred to as “solution means”) 1 includes a detecting means for detecting a bathing state, and a bather based on bathing state data detected by the detecting means. The present invention is characterized by comprising: a core temperature estimation means for estimating the current core heart temperature of the child and a presentation means for presenting a safe and comfortable bathing method to the bather based on the core temperature estimated by the core temperature estimation means. .

  The bathing state can be detected even if the bather does not wear anything during bathing, such as the core temperature at the start of bathing, bathing time, hot water temperature, submerged body surface area, non-submerged body surface area, bath room temperature, etc. It is an item. According to Solution 1, since the core temperature estimation means estimates the current core heart temperature of the bather based on the bathing state data, and the presentation means presents a safe and comfortable bathing method based on the core temperature, Bathers need only follow the suggested bathing methods. Therefore, you can bathe without wearing anything as usual, and you can enjoy a safe and comfortable bathing because the bathing method is presented based on the core temperature. As described above, “nuclear heart temperature” as a medical term is the temperature of blood flowing deep in the human body, and includes, for example, the eardrum temperature, rectal temperature, esophageal temperature, axillary temperature, and the like.

(2) The solution means 2 is the bath navigation system described in the solution means 1, and the detection means is the core temperature (T ₀ ), bath time (t), hot water temperature (T _w ), At least data on the surface area of the submerged body (S _w ), the surface area of the non-submerged body (S _r ), and the bath room temperature (T _r ) are detected. ) Or estimating the core temperature (T).
ΔT = pT _w t (t−q) · ε ^−dt + {a (T _w −T ₀ ) S _w + b (T _r −T ₀ ) S _r + c} · [{2 / (1 + ε ^−et )} − 1]
Or ΔT = pT _w t (t−q) · ε ^−dt + {a (T _w −T ₀ ) S _w + b (T _r −T ₀ ) S _r + c} · (1−ε ^−dt )
T = T ₀ + ΔT
Here, ε is the base of natural logarithm (Napier number), and p, q, a, b, c, d, and e are constants, and p, q, c ≧ 0.

  The core temperature, especially the eardrum temperature, temporarily decreases in the early stages of bathing, and if the hot water temperature is higher than the core temperature, then increases as the bathing time becomes longer, and heat inflow from the outside and heat dissipation from the body are reduced. Experiments have shown that when balanced, it gradually becomes calmer. According to the solution 2, the first term of each formula represents the amount of change in core temperature at the beginning of bathing, and the second term of each formula represents the amount of change in core temperature after the initial time of bathing. Therefore, since the core temperature of the bather can be accurately estimated, a bathing method suitable for the actual bathing condition can be presented.

(3) The solution means 3 is the bath navigation system described in the solution means 1 or 2, wherein the presentation means predicts a timing at which a change in the core temperature temperature (ΔT) estimated by the core temperature estimation means changes by a predetermined amount. The gist is to present the bather with a safe and comfortable bathing method a certain time before the predicted timing.

  As described above, the amount of change in core temperature (ΔT) after the initial bathing period increases as the bathing time becomes longer, and gradually becomes calmer when the heat inflow from the outside balances with the heat dissipation from the body. Draw a trajectory. According to the solving means 3, by using this curve approximation, the timing at which the core temperature change amount (ΔT) changes by a predetermined amount (for example, 0.5 degrees) is predicted. When a safe and comfortable bathing method is presented a certain time (for example, 3 minutes) before the predicted timing, the bather can prepare for the presented bathing method.

(4) The solution means 4 is the bathing navigation system described in the solution means 1 or 2, wherein the presentation means changes the bathing environment when the amount of change in core temperature (ΔT) estimated by the core temperature estimation means changes by a predetermined amount. The gist is to present changes or to take a bath.

  According to the solution means 4, when the change in core temperature (ΔT) changes by a predetermined amount, the presentation means changes the bathing environment or presents a bathing. Therefore, if the bather continues bathing more physiologically It turns out that the risk increases. Examples of the form of changing the bathing environment include water injection to lower the hot water temperature, and the ratio of the submerged body surface area to the non-submerged body surface area (for example, changing from a whole body bath to a half body bath). Therefore, the bather can take measures to continue safe and comfortable bathing before the physiological risk increases.

(5) The solution means 5 is the bathing navigation system according to any one of the solution means 1 to 4, wherein the presentation means is a change in the core temperature that has changed since the bather started bathing and felt sweating. Is a predetermined amount.

  Experiments have shown that stopping bathing when feeling sweating prevents physiological changes and allows safe bathing. According to the solution means 5, the amount of change in core temperature from the start of bathing until the perception of sweating is set as a predetermined amount. Therefore, if the bather follows the bathing method as presented, physiological changes can be prevented and safe bathing can be performed.

(6) The solution means 6 is the bath navigation system described in the solution means 5, and the presentation means is characterized in that the bather has a temperature setting unit for setting a predetermined amount of the change in core temperature.

  Depending on the physique of the bather (ie height and weight), age, body fat percentage, etc., the risk of becoming physiologically high before reaching a predetermined amount (for example, 0.5 degrees) of the preset change in core temperature It may be physiologically safe even after reaching the predetermined amount. According to the solution 6, the bather can set a predetermined amount of the core temperature change amount by the temperature setting unit, so that individual differences of the bather can be absorbed.

  According to the present invention, since the core temperature estimation means estimates the core temperature of the bather based on the bathing state consisting of items that can be detected without wearing anything at the time of bathing, without wearing anything as usual. You can take a bath. Further, since the presenting means presents the bathing method based on the core temperature estimated by the core temperature estimating means, it is possible to enjoy safe and comfortable bathing.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[Derivation of estimation formula]
First, the derivation process of the estimation formula for estimating the bather's current core heart temperature will be described. In the following, the eardrum temperature is applied as the core heart temperature. When the bather took a bath, an experiment was conducted to see how the eardrum temperature changes as the bathing time increases. In this experiment, the eardrum temperature was measured when the subject took a bath under 14 different bathing environments. FIG. 1 shows an example of the result obtained by calculating and graphing the average value of the eardrum temperature for each bathing environment. The legend shown on the right side of the graph represents the bathing environment with a six-digit code (specifically, hot water temperature, full body bath / half body bath, and bath room temperature are each represented by two digits). Hot water temperature and bath room temperature represent temperature. The whole body bath is represented by WB (abbreviation of whole-body bathing), and the half-body bath is represented by HB (abbreviation of half-body bathing). The 6-digit code is, for example, “38WB22” if the bath temperature is 38 ° C. and the bath room temperature is 22 ° C., and “39HB14” if the bath temperature is 39 ° C. and the bath temperature is 14 ° C. The same applies hereinafter. The subjects of this experiment were 46 healthy adult males, age 24 ± 4 years, height 170 ± 6 cm, weight 62.4 ± 7.7 kg, body surface area 1.74 ± 0.11 m. ² .

  In the graph of FIG. 1, the horizontal axis represents bathing time (unit: minutes), and the vertical axis represents eardrum temperature change (unit: degree). Observing the changes in the graph, we found the following points. First, in the early stages of bathing, the blood pressure in the peripheral part contracts due to the hydrostatic pressure and the thermal stimulation of hot water, and the phenomenon in which the cooled blood in the peripheral part returns to the center of the body (blood centralization) occurs. Temporarily declined. Thus, the time when the eardrum temperature temporarily decreases and stagnates becomes longer as the body fat percentage increases, and women tend to be longer than men. Secondly, after the initial bathing time, the temperature of the eardrum increased faster as the bath temperature, bath room temperature, and water level increased. Therefore, since the change in the eardrum temperature is different between the initial period of bathing and the subsequent stable period, it is appropriate to use different estimation equations for the initial period of bathing and the stable period. In the early stage of bathing, the quadratic equation is used because it changes secondarily with respect to the bathing time.

  Here, the variables multiplied by the bathing time to explain the decrease in eardrum temperature at the beginning of bathing are examined. Pearson's product rate for bathing time, hot water temperature, bath room temperature, submerged body surface area (water level) and change in eardrum temperature. Correlation coefficient was calculated. The calculation results are shown in the following table. According to this calculation result, the bathing time has the highest product-moment correlation coefficient, and the hot water temperature-momentum correlation coefficient is high at the next point. Therefore, the hot water temperature was adopted as a value to be multiplied by the quadratic expression relating to bathing time.

┏━━━━━━┯━━━━━━┓
┃ Variable │ product moment correlation coefficient ┃
┠──────┼┼──────┨
┃Bath time │0.555 ┃
Hot water temperature │0.494 ┃
Bath room temperature │0.192 ┃
┃ Submerged surface area│0.012 ┃
┗━━━━━━┷━━━━━━┛

On the other hand, in the stable period, the eardrum temperature cannot be higher than the hot water temperature, and there is a limit value, and as the bathing time becomes longer, the heat inflow from the outside and the heat dissipation from the body balance and the eardrum Since the gradient of the temperature change becomes gentle, draw the locus of the logistic curve. Accordingly, the eardrum temperature is returned to the core temperature, and the core temperature when starting bathing (T ₀ ; corresponding to the above-described eardrum temperature), bathing time (t), hot water temperature (T _w ), and submerged body surface area (S _w ) , Non-submerged body surface area (S _r ) and bath room temperature (T _r ) are used to estimate the current core heart temperature change amount (ΔT; corresponding to the above-described tympanic membrane temperature change amount) of the bather. Or it becomes like Formula 2. The first term represents the amount of change in core temperature at the beginning of bathing, and the second term represents the amount of change in core temperature at the stable period.

[Derived estimation formula]
ΔT = pT _w t (t−q) · ε ^−dt + {a (T _w −T ₀ ) S _w + b (T _r −T ₀ ) S _r + c} · [{2 / (1 + ε ^−et )} − 1] (Formula 1)
ΔT = pT _w t (t−q) · ε ^−dt + {a (T _w −T ₀ ) S _w + b (T _r −T ₀ ) S _r + c} · (1−ε ^−dt ) (Formula 2 )
Here, ε is the base of natural logarithm (Napier number), and p, q, a, b, c, d, and e are constants, and p, q, c ≧ 0.

  Equation 1 was derived based on winter data, and Equation 2 was derived based on summer data. When nonlinear regression analysis was performed based on the data shown in FIG. 1 using these estimation formulas (that is, Formula 1 or Formula 2), the values of the constants were as shown in the following table.

┏━━┯━━━━━━━━━━━━━┯━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓
┃ Constant | Numeric value in Equation 1 | Numeric value in Equation 2 ┃
┠──┼─────────────┼─────────────┨
┃p │ 27.219516837│ 1.04E-05 ┃
┃q │ 0.000117444 │ 397.3737 ┃
┃a │225.76381564 │ 1494.519 ┃
┃b │ 18.680457527│ 148.9467 ┃
┃c │ 0 │13503.31 ┃
┃d │ 0.060261575 │ 1.08E-05 ┃
┃e │ 0.000077243│ (No constant) ┃
┗━━┷━━━━━━━━━━━━━┷━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the result obtained by calculating the tympanic membrane temperature change amount corresponding to the nuclear heart temperature change amount using the above-described formula 1 or formula 2 and graphing it. The legend is the same as in FIG. Compared to FIG. 1, the tympanic temperature (that is, the core temperature) similarly changes in the same bathing environment, and the rise in tympanic temperature becomes faster as the hot water temperature, bath room temperature, and water level are higher. Therefore, it can be said that the derived expression 1 or expression 2 changes the eardrum temperature to match the actual condition.

Since the temperature change amount from the start of bathing is calculated according to Formula 1 or Formula 2, the current core temperature (T) of the bather can be easily calculated by the following Formula 3.
T = T ₀ + ΔT (Formula 3)

[Relationship between changes in core temperature and comfort]
As the bather continued to take a bath, the core temperature changed, and how the bather's feeling changed with the change of the core temperature was investigated. The test subjects mentioned above were asked to report whether they were comfortable, neutral, or uncomfortable. FIG. 3 shows the test result of the subject thus obtained. In FIG. 3, the horizontal axis represents the reporting ratio (unit:%), and the vertical axis represents the tympanic membrane temperature change amount in six stages. Since the psychological change has greatly changed since the eardrum temperature change amount is 1 degree, it is necessary to make the eardrum temperature change amount less than 1 degree in order to perform comfortable bathing.

[Relationship between changes in core temperature and sweating volume]
The body's moisture is lost as much as you sweat while taking a bath, which may adversely affect your body. Therefore, we investigated how the sweating amount of bathers changes with changes in core temperature. Similar to the above-mentioned comfort declaration, the subject was informed of whether sweating was high or low. FIG. 4 shows the test result of the subject thus obtained in the same format as FIG. Since the amount of sweating changes greatly when the tympanic temperature change is 0.5 degrees, it is necessary to make the tympanic temperature change less than 0.5 degrees to perform physiologically safe bathing There is.

  According to the above investigation results, in order to perform a comfortable and physiologically safe bathing, it is desirable that the amount of change in core temperature is less than 0.5 degrees of the temperature at which sweating is felt. Therefore, 0.5 degree is set at a predetermined temperature. Therefore, if the bather estimates the core temperature when taking a bath and presents a bathing method so that the estimated change in the core temperature does not change by a predetermined amount (0.5 degrees), comfortable and safe bathing can be performed. it can. A bathing navigation system that presents such bathing methods will be described below.

[Configuration example of bathing navigation system]
A configuration example of the bathing navigation system will be described with reference to FIG. The bath navigation system shown in FIG. 5 includes a water level sensor 14, a hot water temperature sensor 16, a bath room temperature sensor 18, an operation panel 20, a control device 30, and the like. In this example, the bathroom 10 includes a water level sensor 14, a hot water temperature sensor 16, a bath room temperature sensor 18, an operation panel 20, and the like.
In the example shown below, the eardrum temperature (T _ty ) corresponding to the core heart temperature (T) is used. Therefore, it is good also as a structure provided with the eardrum temperature sensor 28 for measuring an eardrum temperature separately.

  The water level sensor 14 detects the water level of the bathtub 12 and transmits it to the control device 30 as water level data. The hot water temperature sensor 16 detects the temperature of hot water stretched on the bathtub 12 and transmits it to the control device 30 as hot water temperature data. The bath room temperature sensor 18 detects the temperature in the bathroom 10 and transmits it to the control device 30 as room temperature data. The operation panel 20 includes a display 22, an operation key 24, a speaker 26, and the like. When the eardrum temperature sensor 28 is provided, it is connected to the operation panel 20 (or the control device 30). The operation panel 20 that has received the display data transmitted from the control device 30 displays information on the display 22 in accordance with the display data and outputs sound (for example, sound, sound effects, music, etc.) from the speaker 26. When the bather operates the operation key 24 and inputs information (for example, characteristic data such as height and weight), the operation panel 20 transmits the setting data to the control device 30. When the bather starts bathing and detects the eardrum temperature using the eardrum temperature sensor 28, the operation panel 20 transmits the eardrum temperature data to the control device 30 as the core temperature data.

  The control device 30 includes a core temperature estimation means 32, a presentation means 36, a timer 34, a storage medium, and the like. Among these, the core temperature estimation means 32, the presentation means 36, and the timer 34 may all be realized by executing software, or may be realized by hardware. When implemented by executing software, the control device 30 is constituted by a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. For example, the bathing method presentation process described later is realized by the CPU executing a control program stored in the ROM. The storage medium is composed of, for example, a memory such as a RAM or an EEPROM, or an external storage device such as a hard disk or a magneto-optical disk. In addition, although the control apparatus 30 of this example was comprised separately from the operation panel 20, you may comprise integrally in order to make compact.

  The timer 34 measures the bathing time and transmits it to the core temperature estimation means 32 as bathing time data. The core temperature estimation means 32 includes water level data transmitted from the water level sensor 14, hot water temperature data transmitted from the hot water temperature sensor 16, bath room temperature data transmitted from the bath room temperature sensor 18, and bathing time data transmitted from the timer 34. Based on the setting data and the core temperature data transmitted from the operation panel 20, the current change in the core temperature or the eardrum temperature of the bather is calculated according to the above-described Equation 1, Equation 2, and Equation 3. If the shape of the bathtub 12, the height and weight of the bather, water level data, and the like are obtained, the submerged body surface area and the non-submerged body surface area can be estimated. For example, the body surface area can be estimated according to Equations 4 and 5 described below. The ratio of submergence can be calculated by calculating the ratio of body surface area by the palm method, the 9 rule (for adults), the 5 rule (for children), etc. . The shape of the bathtub 12 may be measured in advance and stored in a storage medium. When the change amount of the eardrum temperature calculated by the core temperature estimation means 32 reaches a predetermined temperature, the presenting means 36 displays information on the display 22 and presents the bathing method to the bather.

[Estimation formula for body surface area]
S = (7.246 × 10 ⁻³ ) × W ^0.425 × H ^0.725 (Equation 4; high ratio equation)
S = (100.315 × 10 ⁻⁴ ) × W ^0.383 × H ^0.693 (Formula 5; Kurashimi's formula)
However, S represents a body surface area (m ² ), W represents a body weight (kg), and H represents a height (cm).

[Examples of bathing methods]
A presentation example of the bathing method will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure executed in the control device 30, and FIG. 7 shows an example of contents displayed on the display 22.

First, the operation key 24 is operated to input characteristic data of the bather (step S10), and the eardrum temperature (T _ty0 ) when starting bathing is detected using the eardrum temperature sensor 28 (step S12). If the eardrum temperature sensor 28 is not provided, the bather may use the eardrum thermometer and measure the eardrum temperature measured by operating the operation key 24. Steps S10 and S12 are repeated until the characteristic data is input and the eardrum temperature is detected (NO in step S14). When the input of characteristic data and the detection of the eardrum temperature are performed (YES in step S14), it is presented so as to start bathing (step S16), and the timer 34 starts counting time as soon as the rise of the water level is detected (step S16). Step S18).

  In steps S10 and S12, it is desirable that the display 22 be displayed to prompt input. The bather characteristic data to be input in step S10 corresponds to, for example, a name such as an individual name, sex, height, weight, body fat percentage, age, predetermined temperature, and the like. The characteristic data input in step S10 and the core temperature data measured in step S12 are both storage media provided in the control device 30 (for example, memory such as RAM and EEPROM, external storage device such as hard disk and magneto-optical disk). To remember. In the case of a non-volatile storage medium, since the memory is maintained even when the power is turned off, the characteristic data for each individual needs to be input only once. In this way, when the characteristic data is already stored, the process of step S10 is unnecessary, and only step S12 needs to be executed. In step S16, for example, as shown in FIG. 7A, a message such as “Please start bathing” is displayed on the display 22, or the same content as the message is guided by voice from the speaker 26.

  When bathing is started, data transmitted from each sensor is stored in the storage medium (step S20), and time measurement data of the timer 34 started in step S18, that is, bathing time data is stored in the storage medium (step S22). The data transmitted from the sensor in step S20 corresponds to, for example, water level data by the water level sensor 14, hot water temperature data by the hot water temperature sensor 16, bath room temperature data by the bath room temperature sensor 18, and the like. The data transmitted from the sensor may be displayed not only on the storage medium but also displayed on the display 22 as shown in FIG.

Based on the stored water level data, hot water temperature data, bath room temperature data, bathing time data, etc., the current tympanic temperature change or eardrum temperature is estimated (step S24). For example, it is estimated by calculating the eardrum temperature change amount based on the above-described expression 1 or 2, or by calculating the eardrum temperature based on expression 3. In these equations, the tympanic temperature change amount (ΔT _ty ) corresponds to the nuclear heart temperature change amount (ΔT), and the tympanic temperature (T _ty ) corresponds to the nuclear heart temperature (T). That is, in each equation, ΔT may be replaced with ΔT _ty and T may be replaced with T _ty . In addition to simply calculating, the calculation result may be displayed on the display 22 as shown in FIGS. 7C and 7D, or may be guided by voice from the speaker 26. In the example of FIG. 7C, numerical values are displayed with the estimated change in the eardrum temperature as “change amount” and the estimated eardrum temperature as “estimated temperature”. In the example of FIG. 7D, the amount of change in the eardrum temperature is displayed as a graph (the measured part is a solid line, and the change prediction is a two-dot chain line).

  If the presentation condition is satisfied (YES in step S26), the bathing method is presented to the bather (step S28). As the presentation condition, an arbitrary condition (one condition or a plurality of conditions) can be set using an eardrum temperature change amount, an eardrum temperature, or the like.

  Condition 1 relates to an eardrum temperature change amount calculated by, for example, Equation 1 or Equation 2 in Step S24. That is, a change in the eardrum temperature change amount by a predetermined amount (a change amount of the eardrum temperature ≧ a predetermined amount), a change rate of the eardrum temperature change amount reaches a predetermined change rate, and a timing at which the eardrum temperature change amount changes by a predetermined amount. And a certain time (for example, 3 minutes) has been reached from the predicted timing. The timing at which the eardrum temperature change amount changes by a predetermined amount is predicted using the curve approximation in the second term of Equation 1.

  Condition 2 relates to the eardrum temperature calculated by Equation 1, Equation 2, and Equation 3 in Step S24. That is, the eardrum temperature has reached the upper limit temperature (the eardrum temperature ≧ the upper limit temperature), the rate of change of the eardrum temperature has reached a predetermined rate of change, and the predicted timing when the eardrum temperature reaches the upper limit temperature For example, a certain period of time has passed.

The bathing method to be presented to the bather in step S28 is displayed on the display 22 or guided by voice from the speaker 26. Specifically, it is presented so as to change the bathing environment, or bathing is presented. When changing the bathing environment, the bathing condition may be such that the current tympanic temperature change amount or the tympanic temperature is reduced or maintained. It suggests changing the ratio of the non-submerged body surface area (for example, changing from full body bath to half bath), leaving the bathtub 12 temporarily, and the like. The content to be presented depends on the specific data of the bather, the amount of change in the eardrum temperature, the eardrum temperature, the data stored in the storage medium (ie, water level data, hot water temperature data, bath room temperature data, bathing time data, etc.) It depends on.
In the case of bathing, the remaining time until bathing and the timing of bathing are presented. For example, the time remaining until bathing is displayed as shown in FIG. 7E, a message such as “Please take a bath” is displayed as shown in FIG. invite.

  The processes from step S20 to S28 as described above are repeatedly executed until bathing (NO in step S32). And when a bather takes a bath (it is YES at step S32), this input method presentation process is complete | finished.

According to the embodiment described above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) Detection means for detecting the bathing state (water level sensor 14, hot water temperature sensor 16, bath room temperature sensor 18, timer 34) and bathing state data detected by this detection means (water level data, hot water temperature data, bath room temperature) Based on the data, bathing time data), the current tympanic temperature change (ΔT _ty ) or tympanic temperature (T _ty ) of the bather was estimated (nucleus heart temperature estimating means 32; see step S24 in FIG. 6). Then, based on the estimated eardrum temperature change or eardrum temperature, a safe and comfortable bathing method was presented to the bather {presentation means; see step S28 in FIG. 6}. Therefore, it is possible to take a bath without wearing anything as usual, and the bather only has to follow the proposed bathing method, and can enjoy safe and comfortable bathing.

(2) The eardrum temperature sensor 28 detects the eardrum temperature (T _ty0 ) {corresponding to the core temperature (T ₀ )} when starting bathing, the timer 34 detects the bathing time (t), and the hot water temperature sensor 16 detected the hot water temperature (T _w ), and the bath room temperature sensor 18 detected the bath room temperature (T _r ). Further, the submerged body surface area (S _w ) and the non-submerged body surface area (S _r ) were estimated based on the water level data detected by the water level sensor 14, the shape of the bathtub 12, and the height and weight of the bather. And based on these data, it was set as the structure which estimates a bather's present tympanic temperature change amount (( _DELTA ) _Tty ) {equivalent to a nuclear heart temperature change amount ((DELTA) T)} according to Formula 1 or Formula 2 (nucleus heart temperature estimation) Means 32; see step S24 in FIG. The first term of Formula 1 or Formula 2 represents the amount of change in the eardrum temperature at the initial stage of bathing, and the second term of Formula 1 or Formula 2 represents the amount of change in the eardrum temperature after the initial period of bathing. Therefore, since the tympanic membrane temperature of the bather can be accurately estimated, a bathing method suitable for the actual bathing condition can be presented.

(3) Predict the timing at which the estimated tympanic temperature change (ΔT _ty ) estimated in step S24 of FIG. 6 changes by a predetermined amount, and provide a safe and comfortable bathing method to the bather a certain time before the predicted timing. It was set as the structure to present (presenting means; refer step S28 in FIG. 6). Since the amount of change in the eardrum temperature (ΔT _ty ) after the initial bathing period increases as the bathing time increases and gradually becomes gentle, a logistic curve trajectory is drawn. By utilizing the curve approximation of this logistic curve, it is possible to predict the timing at which the eardrum temperature change amount (ΔT _ty ) changes by a predetermined amount. Since a safe and comfortable bathing method is presented a certain time before the predicted timing, the bather can prepare for the presented bathing method.

(4) When the amount of change in the eardrum temperature (ΔT _ty ) estimated in step S24 of FIG. 6 changes by a predetermined amount, it is suggested that the bathing environment is changed or that the user takes a bath (presenting means; FIG. 6) (See step S28). When the tympanic temperature change amount (ΔT _ty ) changes by a predetermined amount, the bathing environment is changed or the bathing is presented, so that it is understood that the bather becomes psychologically uncomfortable if he continues bathing further. Thus, the bather can take measures to continue safe and comfortable bathing before becoming psychologically uncomfortable.

(5) The predetermined temperature is set to a temperature at which sweating is felt (presentation condition; see step S26 in FIG. 6). Stopping bathing when you feel sweating can prevent physiological changes and safer bathing. Therefore, if the bather follows the bathing method as presented, physiological changes can be prevented and safe bathing can be performed.

(6) The bather is configured to include an operation key 24 (corresponding to a temperature setting unit) for setting a predetermined temperature (see FIG. 5). Depending on the bather's physique (ie height and weight), age, body fat percentage, etc., he / she may become psychologically uncomfortable before reaching the preset temperature (ie 0.5 degrees) It may be psychologically comfortable later. The bather can set a desired predetermined temperature by operating the operation key 24.

[Other Embodiments]
Although the best mode for carrying out the present invention has been described, the present invention is not limited to the above-described mode. In other words, the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the following forms may be realized.

(1) In the above embodiment, the bathing method is presented when the presentation condition is satisfied (see step S14 in FIG. 6). Instead of (or in addition to) the presentation of the bathing method, control may be performed to change the bathing environment (see step S30 in FIG. 6). The control for changing the bathing environment includes, for example, control for pouring water into the bathtub 12 and control of an air conditioner and a bathroom heater / dryer provided in the bathroom 10 separately. In order to lower the hot water temperature, water is poured in consideration of the amount of hot water in the bathtub 12 to lower only the target temperature. Considering the volume of the bathroom 10 and the current bath room temperature, the bath room temperature is maintained almost constant by intermittently operating the heating. Similarly, the body surface is cooled by cool air operation (fan blowing), and the rise in core temperature is alleviated. According to this configuration, since the bathing time until the amount of change in core temperature reaches a predetermined amount is extended, the bather can continue bathing until the extended time without doing anything.

(2) In the above embodiment, the start of bathing is determined by inputting characteristic data and measuring the eardrum temperature (see step S14 in FIG. 6), but may be determined based on data transmitted from each sensor. . For example, when the bather enters or exits the bathtub 12, the water level changes greatly. When the bather first enters the bathtub 12, the hot water temperature temporarily decreases, and the warm bather first exits the bathtub 12. Sometimes bath room temperature rises temporarily. Thus, if it is set as the structure which detects the time when data change a lot, the start time of bathing, the time of bathing, etc. can be specified. Therefore, storing each data in the storage medium from the time when the start of bathing is specified can prevent useless data storage, and the bathing time can be detected more accurately.

(3) In the above embodiment, the eardrum temperature sensor 28 is configured to be connectable to the operation panel 20 (or the control device 30) as required (see FIG. 5), but the body fat percentage of the bather is detected. The body fat percentage sensor may be configured to be connectable. Further, a height sensor that measures the height of the bather, a weight sensor that measures the weight of the bather, and the like may be connected. By providing a body fat percentage sensor, a height sensor, and a weight sensor, more data can be measured in the bathroom 10 or near the entrance.

(4) In the above embodiment, the eardrum temperature is applied as the core temperature, but other core temperatures may be applied. For example, rectal temperature, esophageal temperature, axillary temperature, and the like are applicable, but axillary temperature that can be measured using a thermometer is desirable in terms of ease of measurement. In addition, one core temperature is selected from the eardrum temperature, rectal temperature, esophageal temperature, axillary temperature, etc., and the amount of change in core temperature and the core temperature after the start of bathing are estimated based on the selected core temperature data It is good. As described above, regardless of which core temperature is applied, the change in core temperature (ΔT), the core temperature (T), or the like can be estimated by using Equations 1, 2, and 3. Therefore, the same effect as the above embodiment can be obtained.

It is a figure explaining the amount of change of core temperature to bathing time. It is a figure explaining the nuclear heart temperature change amount calculated | required with the estimation formula. It is a figure explaining the report ratio about comfort. It is a figure explaining the report ratio about the amount of perspiration. It is a figure which represents typically the structural example of a bathing navigation system. It is a flowchart showing the procedure of the bathing method presentation process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display on a display.

Explanation of symbols

10 bathroom 12 bathtub 14 water level sensor (detection means)
16 Hot water temperature sensor (detection means)
18 Bath room temperature sensor (detection means)
20 Operation Panel 22 Display 24 Operation Key 26 Speaker 28 Core Temperature Sensor (Detection Means)
30 Control Device 32 Core Temperature Estimating Means 34 Timer 36 Presenting Means

Claims (6)

Detecting means for detecting a bathing state;
Based on the bathing state data detected by the detection means, a core temperature estimation means for estimating the current core temperature of the bather;
A bathing navigation system comprising: presenting means for presenting a bather with a safe and comfortable bathing method based on the core temperature estimated by the core temperature estimating means. The bath navigation system according to claim 1,
The detection means are: core temperature (T ₀ ) at the start of bathing, bathing time (t), hot water temperature (T _w ), submerged body surface area (S _w ), non-submerged body surface area (S _r ), bathroom temperature Detect at least the data for (T _r ),
The core temperature estimation means is a bathing navigation system that estimates the current change in core temperature (ΔT) or core temperature (T) of the bather according to the following equation.
ΔT = pT _w t (t−q) · ε ^−dt + {a (T _w −T ₀ ) S _w + b (T _r −T ₀ ) S _r + c} · [{2 / (1 + ε ^−et )} − 1]
Or ΔT = pT _w t (t−q) · ε ^−dt + {a (T _w −T ₀ ) S _w + b (T _r −T ₀ ) S _r + c} · (1−ε ^−dt )
T = T ₀ + ΔT
Here, ε is the base of natural logarithm (Napier number), and p, q, a, b, c, d, and e are constants, and p, q, c ≧ 0. The bath navigation system according to claim 1 or 2,
The presenting means predicts the timing at which the amount of change in core temperature (ΔT) estimated by the core temperature estimating means changes by a predetermined amount, and presents the bather with a safe and comfortable bathing method a predetermined time before the predicted timing. Navigation system. The bath navigation system according to claim 1 or 2,
The presenting means is a bathing navigation system that presents that the bathing environment is changed or takes a bath when the change in core temperature (ΔT) estimated by the core temperature estimating means changes by a predetermined amount. The bathing navigation system according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The presentation means is a bathing navigation system in which the amount of change in core temperature that has changed since the bather started bathing and felt sweating was a predetermined amount. The bath navigation system according to claim 5,
The presenting means is a bathing navigation system having a temperature setting unit in which a bather sets a predetermined amount of change in core temperature.