JP2014166241A - Vibration-electricity conversion device, and electric type vibration amplification device using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently perform amplification of a target vibration by removing vibrations other than the target vibration to suppress occurrence of noise or howling in a vibration-electricity conversion device of an electric type vibration amplification device.SOLUTION: In a vibration-electricity conversion device including a vibration collection part having a vibration-electricity conversion element and a vibration attenuation container for covering the vibration collection part so that vibrations other than a target vibration does not reach the vibration collection part, the vibration collection part is held by the vibration attenuation container via a vibration absorbing material, and the vibration collection part is provided to be positioned on or protruded from a plane same as a plane formed by an opening end part of the vibration attenuation container.

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for converting mechanical vibration into an electric signal, and an apparatus for amplifying the electric signal obtained thereby to convert it again into vibration such as sound, and more particularly to an electric stethoscope.

Stethoscopes used in the medical field convert the vibration (target vibration) of the object to be heard by bringing a chestpiece having a diaphragm surface or bell surface into contact with the auscultation object, and convert the air vibration to a stethoscope through a tube. It has been used for a long time (acoustic stethoscope) to transmit to the ear of a child and listen to it by an auscultator.

In such a conventional acoustic stethoscope, the target vibration can be amplified mechanically by increasing the area of the surface that the diaphragm or bell contacts, but there is a limit to increasing the size of the chestpiece. Therefore, in order to obtain the target vibration with sufficient amplitude, the contact method of the chestpiece to the auscultation target must be devised, and technical skill is required to hear the target vibration reliably. . Besides that, the acoustic stethoscope needed to be used in a quiet environment to avoid extraneous noise (target vibration amplification problem).

In addition, when a stethoscope uses an acoustic stethoscope, it is necessary to insert the ear piece of the acoustic stethoscope into the external ear of the stethoscope. When a stethoscope is a physician or emergency medical doctor, it is often necessary to use an acoustic stethoscope, but each time the insertion of the earpiece into the outer ear becomes cumbersome and a burden is placed on the outer ear at the time of insertion. There is also a risk that the auscultator feels pain and is abraded because of the force (earpiece outer ear insertion problem).

Furthermore, in the conventional acoustic stethoscope, when listening to the target vibration by multiple people at the same time, a tube and ear pieces for the number of people are connected to the chest piece. However, if the tube is lengthened, the target vibration is attenuated accordingly. To do. The length of the tube limits the behavior of the auscultator. For these reasons, it is difficult for a plurality of humans to listen to the same target vibration at the same time using a conventional acoustic stethoscope (a multi-person simultaneous auscultation problem).

In order to solve the weaknesses of these acoustic stethoscopes, electric stethoscope technology has been widely known that makes it possible to amplify the target vibration of the auscultation target by converting it into an electrical signal and listen to it with speakers and earphones. Yes.

JP 2001-149369 A JP 09-000518 A

For a conventional acoustic stethoscope that is provided with an electrical amplifying device, such as Patent Document 1, the auscultator can listen to the target vibration at a sufficient volume, thus eliminating the target vibration amplification problem. Yes, but the earpiece outer ear insertion problem and the simultaneous auscultation problem cannot be solved.
In the case of a configuration in which the target vibration is converted into an electric signal and then amplified and output by an electric vibration conversion device (for example, a speaker) as in Patent Document 2, the earpiece outer ear insertion problem can be solved. Then, noise and howling are likely to occur, so the volume cannot be raised sufficiently. As a result, the target vibration amplification problem and the simultaneous auscultation problem cannot be solved.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems.

The vibroelectric conversion device of the present invention is
“A vibration collecting unit that has a vibration electric conversion element that converts vibration into an electric signal, collects vibration in the object, converts it into an electric signal, and outputs it,
A vibration attenuating container that is provided to cover the vibration collecting unit when the vibration collecting unit collects vibrations and attenuates vibrations other than the collection purpose reaching the vibration collecting unit to be smaller than the vibrations for collection purpose;
Comprising
The vibration damping container is provided so as to hold the vibration collecting part via the vibration absorbing material,
The vibration collecting part is provided on the same plane as the surface formed by the opening end of the vibration damping container, or provided so as to protrude from this surface. ''
It is characterized by that.

By providing the vibration damping container, it is possible to attenuate the non-target vibration that reaches the vibration collecting unit, and the vibration-electric conversion element reliably converts the target vibration into an electric signal.
In addition, by holding the vibration collecting unit via the vibration absorbing material, it is possible to absorb the vibration from the vibration damping container to the vibration collecting unit, so that it is possible to further attenuate the non-target vibration reaching the vibration collecting unit. it can. Further, in order to appropriately collect the target vibration while sufficiently extracting the performance of the vibration damping container, it is important that the vibration collecting unit and the opening end of the vibration damping container are in close contact with the target object at the same time. When the target object is limited to have no flat or concave curved surface by making the vibration collecting unit flush with the surface formed by the opening end of the vibration damping container, it is suitable for this object. Can be contacted. Alternatively, by appropriately projecting the vibration collecting unit from the surface formed by the opening end of the vibration damping container, it is possible to suitably contact various objects such as a flat surface, a convex curved surface, a concave curved surface, and a soft surface. In general, vibration absorbers have flexible properties, so that vibration absorbers can be elastically deformed according to the shape of the object surface even when there are steps or different inclinations between the vibration damping container and the vibration collector. Thus, each of the vibration damping container and the vibration collecting unit can be in close contact with the object at the same time.

In addition, the vibroelectric conversion device of the present invention is
"The vibration damping container has a multilayer structure"
It is characterized by that.
By using a multilayer structure, it is possible to further attenuate unintended vibrations that pass through the vibration damping container. If the same damping factor is set, a multilayer structure is more suitable for a vibration damping container than a single layer structure. It becomes possible to make it small.

Moreover, the vibroelectric conversion device of the present invention is
“A vibration absorber is provided between each layer of the vibration damping container that has a multilayer structure.”
It is characterized by that.
With this structure, unintended vibration passing through the vibration damping container can be further damped.

In addition, the vibroelectric conversion device of the present invention is
"A part or all of the vibration absorbing material provided between the layers is provided near the opening end of the vibration damping container, and the vibration absorbing material protrudes from the opening end of the vibration damping container."
It is characterized by that.
Due to this feature, the vibration absorbing material protruding when pressing the vibroelectric conversion device against the object is deformed, and the gap between the opening end of the vibration damping container and the object is more effectively closed, and the intrusion from this gap It is possible to reduce unintended vibrations. In addition, non-target vibrations that are transmitted as surface waves on the object surface can be attenuated by the protruding vibration absorbing material.

Moreover, the vibroelectric conversion device of the present invention is
"Vibration damping container is hemispherical"
It is characterized by that.
With this structure, since the surface area of the vibration damping container is minimized and the area exposed to the atmosphere is minimized, unintended vibrations using the atmosphere as a medium can be reduced. In addition, since the mechanical strength is uniform, non-directive vibration with no directivity can be attenuated, and stable performance can be exhibited.

In addition, the electric vibration amplifying device of the present invention is
“Equipped with the above-described vibration-electric conversion device, an electric amplifier, and an electric vibration conversion device that converts an electric signal into vibration”
It is characterized by that.
With this configuration, it is possible to provide an electric vibration amplifying device that can efficiently amplify a target vibration inside an object while listening to noise and howling, and can be directly heard from an electric vibration conversion device such as a speaker. It becomes possible.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reliably amplify a target vibration by suppressing the generation of noise and howling and listen to it.

The present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing an electric vibration amplifying device of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the oscillating electricity converter of the present invention. It is the figure seen from the auscultation object contact side of the oscillating electricity converter of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the concept of the oscillating electricity converter of this invention. It is a figure which shows the vibration attenuation | damping container opening edge vicinity of the oscillating electricity converter of this invention.

First, the electric vibration amplifying device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view.
Schematically, it is comprised by the vibration electrical converter, the electrical vibration converter 19 incorporating the amplifier, and the cable 18c which connects them. In the embodiment, a speaker is used for the electric vibration conversion device 19, but other conversion devices such as an earphone may be used according to the purpose of the user. In consideration of user convenience, the wireless cable may be used for connection and the physical cable may be eliminated.

When performing auscultation, the vibration collection unit of the present invention and the vibration damping container opening end 15 are brought into contact with each other while being pressed against a target object. The vibration collecting unit in the claims is the vibration collecting unit 11 of FIG. 1, and includes a vibration collecting unit (housing) 11a, a vibration collecting unit (inner surface) 11b, a diaphragm 11c, a rim 11d, a vibration electric transducer 11e, and a vibration absorbing material 11f. It is the whole including. The target vibration generated in the object reaches the vibration collecting unit (inner surface) 11b through the diaphragm 11c, and vibrates the air existing in the vibration collecting unit (inner surface) 11b. The vibration collecting portion (inner surface) 11b has a trumpet shape, and guides this air vibration, which is the target vibration, to the oscillating electrical conversion element 11e disposed in the center portion thereof. For example, the oscillating electrical conversion element 11e may be a microphone or a pressure sensor, but is not limited thereto.
As another example, an acceleration sensor, a piezoelectric element, or the like may be employed as the oscillating electrical conversion element. In this case, since air vibration is not interposed, the vibration collecting unit may have a structure different from that shown in FIG.

In the oscillating electricity conversion element 11e, the target vibration guided by the vibration collecting unit (inner surface) 11b is converted into an electric signal. This electrical signal is output to the electrical vibration converter 19 by the cable 18c. By incorporating an amplifier in the electric vibration conversion device 19, this electric signal can be amplified to an arbitrary amplitude. This allows the auscultator to listen at an appropriate volume.

The oscillating electrical conversion element 11e is fixed to the vibration collecting part (housing) 11a via the vibration absorbing material 11f. This has the effect of attenuating vibrations other than the target vibration from the diaphragm 11c (non-target vibration), and can prevent the non-target vibration from reaching the oscillating electrical transducer 11e.

Further, the vibration collecting unit (housing) 11 a is fixed to the vibration damping container 15 a via the vibration absorbing material 17. Thereby, there is an effect of attenuating the non-target vibration from the vibration damping container 15a, and it is possible to prevent the non-target vibration from reaching the vibration collecting unit (housing) 11a.

The vibration collection unit (housing) 11a may be a high-density material such as metal. Stainless steel is suitable from the viewpoint of economy and rust prevention, but is not limited thereto.
The vibration absorbing material 11f and the vibration absorbing material 17 are, for example, sponge-like cushions, but are not limited thereto. The vibration absorbing material 11f and the vibration absorbing material 17 may be made of different materials.

In this embodiment, triple vibration damping containers 15a to 15c are provided so as to cover the vibration collecting unit (housing) 11a. The vibration damping container is effective even with a single layer, but the damping effect is higher when a low density substance such as air is present between the layers as multiple layers. However, in consideration of workability, cost, and performance, the present embodiment employs a triple, but the present invention is not limited to this. In the drawing, 15a, 15b and 15c are shown from the inside.
The vibration damping containers 15a to 15c are preferably made of metal such as stainless steel from the viewpoint of economy and rust prevention, but are not limited thereto. The vibration damping containers 15a to 15c may be made of different materials.

In FIG. 1, the surface formed by the diaphragm 11 c and the vibration attenuation container opening end 15 is not the same plane, and the diaphragm 11 c is provided so as to protrude from the surface formed by the vibration attenuation container opening end 15. This is because the diaphragm 11c and the opening end portion of the vibration damping container need to be in close contact with the object at the same time in order to appropriately collect the target vibration while sufficiently extracting the performance of the vibration damping container. The vibration absorbing material 17 is elastically deformed even when a step or a different inclination is generated in the vibration damping container and the vibration collecting unit when the vibroelectric transducer is pressed against various objects such as a flat surface, a convex curved surface, a concave curved surface, and a soft surface. Thus, the object, the diaphragm 11c, and the vibration damping container opening end 15 can be brought into close contact with each other simultaneously.
When the object is limited to a flat object and an object having no concave curved surface, the diaphragm 11c may be provided so as to be on the same plane as the surface formed by the vibration damping container opening end 15. Compared with the case where the diaphragm 11c protrudes from the vibration damping container opening end portion 15, the deformation of the vibration absorbing material can be set small, so that the oscillating electrical converter can be made thin.

A vibration absorbing material 16a is provided between the vibration damping containers 15a and 15b, and a vibration absorbing material 16b is provided between the vibration damping containers 15b and 15c. Compared with the case where the vibration damping containers 15a to 15c are in direct contact with each other, if a substance having a low density such as air is present between them, the vibration damping effect is enhanced, but it is necessary to support it with some member mechanically. It is supported by vibration absorbers.
The vibration absorbing materials 16a and 16b are, for example, sponge-like cushions, but are not limited thereto. The vibration absorbing materials 16a and 16b may be made of different materials.

The outermost vibration damping container 15c is connected to the gripping portion 18a, and the auscultator handles the oscillating electrical converter by holding the gripping portion 18a by hand.
The switch 18b controls whether or not the electric vibration converter 19 with a built-in amplifier can be operated through the cable 18c. By providing the switch 18b integrally with the grasping portion 18a grasped by the stethoscope, the usability for the stethoscope is improved. This is because noise or howling occurs when sound is output from the electrical vibration conversion device 19 in a state where the vibration attenuating container opening end 15 is not in close contact with the auscultation target. This is because it is preferable that can be controlled arbitrarily.

Next, the external appearance of the oscillating electricity converter of the present invention will be described based on FIG. 2 and FIG.

The vibration damping containers 15a to 15c are provided so as to be concentric with bowls. The vibration damping container opening end 15 corresponds to the edge of a concentric circle. As described above, the vibration damping containers 15a to 15c cover the vibration collecting unit 11 as a whole for collecting the target vibration. In the configuration of the present invention, the diaphragm 11c is provided on the vibration collecting portion (inner surface) 11b. One of the purposes is protection of the oscillating electric transducer 11e. If the diaphragm 11c is unnecessary depending on the subject of auscultation, the diaphragm 11c may be omitted.

Further, the main points of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

The object of the present invention is to guide the vibration (target vibration) emitted from the vibration generating source 44 in the object 45 to the vibration collecting unit 47. However, the atmospheric propagation noise 41 using the atmosphere as a medium, the object surface wave noise 42 using the object surface 46 as a medium, and the reproduced sound 43 generated by the electric vibration converter reach the vibration collecting unit 47 and are mixed into the target vibration. There was a problem. In particular, howling occurs when the reproduced sound 43 from the electric vibration converter reaches the vibration collecting unit 47. In order to solve this problem, a vibration damping container 48 is provided. The vibration damping container 48 is a whole including the vibration damping containers 15a to 15c and the vibration absorbing materials 16a and 16b.

For example, the object 45 is a human body. In this case, the object surface 46 is skin. Since human body tissue is elastic, noise, which is unintended vibration, propagates through the object surface as a surface wave. In the present invention, the surface wave is prevented from reaching the vibration collecting unit 47 by pressing the object surface 46 at the opening end of the vibration damping container 48.

Further, the vibration damping container 48 isolates the vibration collecting unit 47 from the external atmosphere. As described above, since the vibration damping container 48 is a high-density material such as metal, the atmospheric propagation noise 41 and the reproduced sound 43 produced by the electric vibration conversion device are reflected and prevented from reaching the vibration collecting unit 47.
Furthermore, since the vibration damping container 48 has a multiple structure, there is an effect of attenuating the noise 41 and the reproduced sound 43 that could not be reflected from reaching the vibration collecting unit 47.

Although the vibration damping container 48 is shown as a bowl-like shape in FIG. 4, it is not limited to this. For example, a hemispherical shape may be used. By doing so, the area of the vibration damping container 48 exposed to the outside atmosphere is minimized, so that unintended vibrations using the atmosphere as a medium can be reduced and the mechanical strength becomes uniform. For this reason, it becomes possible to attenuate the non-target vibration using the atmosphere as a medium without directivity and to exhibit stable performance.

Next, further features of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the opening end of the vibration damping container.
In this figure, the vibration absorbing materials 16a and 16b protrude from the end surfaces of the vibration damping containers 15a to 15c, respectively. With this configuration, since the vibration absorbing materials 16a and 16b are deformed when the oscillating electrical converter is pressed against the object, it is possible to more efficiently cut off the external atmosphere.
The degree of protrusion of the vibration absorbers 16a and 16b does not have to be the same, and may be different from each other, or one of them may not protrude. Similarly, the end surfaces of the vibration damping containers 15a to 15c do not need to be coplanar, and when the diaphragm 13 on the inside protrudes from the surface formed by the vibration damping container opening end, the vibration damping container 15a. The end surfaces of ˜15c may also be configured to decrease the degree of protrusion from the inside toward the outside.

  The present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and many modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. Of course.

  The vibroelectric conversion device capable of mass production and the electric vibration amplifying device using the same have the effects that noise and howling can be suppressed and auscultation work can be performed efficiently.

10 Electric vibration amplifying device (cross section)
11 Vibration collection unit 11a Vibration collection unit (housing)
11b Vibration collection part (inner surface)
11c Diaphragm 11d Rim 11e Vibrating / electrical conversion element 11f Vibration absorbing material 15 Vibration damping container opening end 15a Vibration damping container 15b Vibration damping container 15c Vibration damping container 16a Vibration absorbing material 16b Vibration absorbing material 17 Vibration absorbing material 18a Grasping part 18b Switch 18c Cable 19 Electric vibration conversion device 20 Vibration electric conversion device (appearance perspective view)
30 Vibrating electrical converter (front view)
40 Vibrating electrical converter (conceptual diagram)
41 Atmospheric Propagation Noise 42 Object Surface Wave Noise 43 Sound Reproduced by Electric Vibration Converter 44 Vibration Source 45 Object 46 Object Surface 47 Vibration Collecting Unit 48 Vibration Attenuating Container 50 Enlarging End of Vibration Attenuating Container

Claims (6)

A vibration collecting unit that has a vibration electric conversion element that converts vibration into an electric signal, collects vibration in the object, converts it into an electric signal, and outputs the electric signal;
A vibration attenuating container that is provided to cover the vibration collecting unit when the vibration collecting unit collects vibrations and attenuates vibrations other than the collection purpose reaching the vibration collecting unit to be smaller than the vibrations intended for collection;
In the oscillating electrical conversion device comprising:
The vibration damping container is provided so as to hold the vibration collecting unit via a vibration absorbing material,
The vibration collecting unit is provided on the same plane as the surface formed by the opening end of the vibration damping container or provided so as to protrude from the surface.
A vibration-electric conversion device characterized by the above. The vibration-electricity conversion device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration damping container has a multilayer structure. The vibration-electric conversion device according to claim 2, wherein a vibration absorbing material is provided between each layer of the vibration damping container having the multilayer structure. Part of the vibration absorbing material provided between the layers is provided near the opening end of the vibration damping container, and the vibration absorbing material protrudes from the opening end of the vibration damping container. The oscillating electricity converter according to claim 3 characterized by things. 5. The vibroelectric conversion device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration damping container has a hemispherical shape. An electrical vibration amplifying device comprising: the vibration-electric conversion device according to claim 1; an electric amplifier; and an electric vibration conversion device that converts an electric signal into vibration. .