JP2017196002A - Masticatory ability evaluation device - Google Patents

Abstract

A masticatory ability evaluation apparatus capable of evaluating masticatory ability in consideration of variation in the size of a bite fragment is provided. A chewing ability evaluation apparatus 100 includes a measuring table 10 having a mounting surface 11a on which a bite piece 2 of a test meal chewed by a subject is mounted, and a measurement separated from the mounting surface 11a by a predetermined distance L0. Based on the distance information acquisition means 22 for acquiring the distance information from the position to the bite fragment 2 on the placement surface 11a and the distance information acquired by the distance information acquisition means 22, an evaluation value for evaluating the masticatory ability Evaluation value deriving means 30 for deriving. [Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a masticatory ability evaluation apparatus for evaluating masticatory ability.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known an apparatus that allows a subject to chew a test meal for measuring chewing ability under a predetermined condition and evaluates the chewing ability according to the state of the bite fragment after chewing (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, gummy jelly is used as a test meal for measuring chewing ability, the concentration of gelatin or glucose eluted from the surface of the bite fragment after chewing is measured, and the evaluation value of the subject's chewing ability is determined from the concentration Is derived.

International Publication No. 2006/046377

  By the way, for example, when paralysis occurs on either the left or right side of the oral cavity of the subject, the left and right chewing abilities differ, and the size of the bite fragment varies. Therefore, in order to accurately evaluate the masticatory ability of the subject, it is preferable to consider variation in the size of the bite fragment. However, in the method of measuring the concentration of a substance eluted in water and evaluating the masticatory ability as in the device described in Patent Document 1, it is difficult to consider the variation in the size of the bite fragment.

  The masticatory ability evaluation apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a measurement table having a mounting surface on which a bite piece of a test meal chewed by a subject is mounted, and a measurement position separated from the mounting surface by a predetermined distance, Distance information acquiring means for acquiring distance information to the bite fragment on the mounting surface, and evaluation value deriving means for deriving an evaluation value for evaluating masticatory ability based on the distance information acquired by the distance information acquiring means; It is characterized by providing.

  According to the present invention, the evaluation value for obtaining the distance information from the measurement position away from the mounting surface of the bite fragment by a predetermined distance to the bite fragment on the mounting surface and evaluating the masticatory ability based on this distance information Therefore, it is possible to evaluate the masticatory ability in consideration of the variation in the size of the bite fragment.

The figure which shows schematically the whole structure of the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the procedure of the masticatory ability evaluation method which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows an example of the measurement point on the bite piece measured by the sensor part of the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus of FIG. The figure which shows an example of the evaluation value displayed on the output part of FIG. The figure which shows the other example of the evaluation value displayed on the output part of FIG. The figure which shows schematically the whole structure of the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view of the 2nd container of FIG.

-First embodiment-
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an overall configuration of a masticatory ability evaluation apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The masticatory ability evaluation apparatus 100 includes a container 10 disposed on the base 1, a sensor unit 20 provided above the container 10, and a controller 30 that evaluates the masticatory ability based on a signal from the sensor unit 20.

  The container 10 has a bottom wall 11 and a side wall 12 erected from the peripheral edge of the bottom wall 11, and the upper side is opened. A positioning portion 1a is provided on the upper surface of the base 1, and the container 10 is mounted in a state of being positioned at a predetermined position on the base 1 via the positioning portion 1a. In a state where the container 10 is mounted on the base 1, the upper surface 11a of the bottom wall 11 is horizontal, and the bite piece 2 of the test meal for measuring mastication ability chewed by the subject is placed on the upper surface 11a. As the test meal, a food having a predetermined shape and a predetermined hardness that can be subdivided without being dissolved in the oral cavity when the subject chews is used. For example, a cube-shaped gummy jelly is used as a test meal.

  The sensor unit 20 is supported by the arm 3. The arm 3 includes a first arm 3A standing from the base 1 and a second arm 3B extending from the upper end of the first arm 3A toward the upper side of the base 1. A socket 4 having an internal thread portion 4a is provided on the lower surface of the second arm 3B above the central portion of the container 10. The sensor unit 20 includes a housing 21, and a sensor unit 22 and a wireless communication unit 23 disposed in the housing 21.

  The casing 21 has a symmetrical shape with the axis CL as the center. More specifically, the housing 21 has an enlarged diameter portion 21a in which the distance from the axis CL to the outer peripheral surface expands downward, and the whole has a substantially bulb shape. A base 24 is provided at the upper end of the housing 21. The base 24 has a male screw portion 24 a corresponding to the female screw portion 4 a of the socket 4, and is screwed into the female screw portion 4 a of the socket 4 via the male screw portion 24 a. As a result, the sensor unit 20 is held at a predetermined position of the arm 3, and power can be supplied to the sensor unit 22 and the wireless communication unit 23 via the base 24.

  The sensor unit 22 is configured by a distance sensor disposed opposite to the upper surface 11a of the container 10 on which the bite piece 2 is mounted and separated from the upper surface 11a by a predetermined distance L0. As the distance sensor, for example, an infrared distance sensor that detects the distance to the bite fragment 2 by irradiating infrared rays toward the bite fragment 2 and receiving the reflected light is used. The sensor unit 22 emits infrared rays. It has a part 22A and a light receiving part 22B. The light receiving unit 22B is configured by an infrared camera having a lens unit that transmits infrared rays in a predetermined band. A signal from the sensor unit 22 is transmitted to the controller 30 via the wireless communication unit 23.

  The controller 30 includes a computer including an arithmetic processing unit having a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and other peripheral circuits. Based on a signal from the sensor unit 22, an evaluation value (mastication) for evaluating the mastication ability. (Evaluation value) is derived. The controller 30 stores a predetermined distance L0 from the sensor unit 22 to the upper surface 11a of the container 10 in advance. The controller 30 includes an input unit 31 for inputting various commands, setting values, and the like, and an output unit 32 for outputting a mastication evaluation value. The input unit 31 and the output unit 32 can be integrally configured by a touch panel, for example.

  Next, a masticatory ability evaluation method using the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the masticatory ability evaluation method according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  First, a test meal (gummy jelly) is chewed by a subject under predetermined conditions (step S1). For example, the test meal is chewed only a predetermined number of times or for a predetermined time. Next, after all the bite fragments 2 after mastication are taken out from the oral cavity of the subject and washed with tap water or the like, the bite fragments 2 are placed in the container 10 (step S2). At this time, the bite piece 2 is placed on the upper surface 11a of the container 10 so that the bite pieces 2 do not overlap each other, and then the container 10 is mounted at a predetermined position on the base 1 via the positioning portion 1a.

  The base 1 may be provided with a vibration device, and the container 10 may be vibrated by the vibration device to prevent the bite fragments 2 from overlapping. In this case, the vibration device may be connected to the controller 30 and the drive of the vibration device may be commanded by the input unit 31.

  Next, a distance (vertical direction distance) L1 from the sensor unit 22 to the bite fragment 2 is measured (step S3). This distance measurement is performed by, for example, instructing the start of distance measurement by operating the input unit 31 and outputting an operation start command from the controller 30 to the sensor unit 22. Thereby, infrared rays are irradiated toward the bite piece 2 from the light projecting unit 22A, and infrared rays reflected at each measurement point on the bite piece 2 are received by the light receiving unit 22B. The signal acquired by the sensor unit 22 is transmitted to the controller 30.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the measurement point P on the bite fragment 2. The measurement points P are set at predetermined intervals on the bite piece 2 over the entire horizontal direction of the container 10. The controller 30 calculates a distance L1 from the sensor unit 22 to each measurement point P on the bite fragment 2 using a signal from the sensor unit 22. Thereby, a plurality of distance data for each measurement point P of the bite fragment 2 is obtained. In addition, the area of the bite piece 2 in the horizontal direction increases as the size of the bite piece 2 increases, and accordingly, the number of measurement points P set in the same bite piece 2 increases.

  The distance L1 from the sensor unit 22 to each measurement point P changes according to the size (height) of the bite fragment 2 at the measurement point P. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when there are the bite fragments 2a and 2b having different sizes, the distance L1a to the measurement point Pa on the bite fragment 2a is greater than the distance L1b to the measurement point Pb on the bite fragment 2b. Also short. In addition, when the bite piece 2 does not exist on the upper surface 11a of the container 10, the measurement point P is set on the upper surface 11a of the container 10, and the measurement distance L1 becomes the predetermined distance L0.

  Next, the controller 30 subtracts the measurement distance L1 of each measurement point P from the predetermined distance L0 to calculate the size h (height) of the bite fragment 2 at each measurement point P (step S4). For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the size ha of the bite fragment 2a at the measurement point Pa and the size hb of the bite fragment 2b at the measurement point Pb are calculated.

  Next, the controller 30 evaluates the masticatory ability based on the ratio of the measurement points P corresponding to the calculated size h of the bite fragment 2, that is, the number N of measurement points P corresponding to the size h of the bite fragment 2. Is calculated as an evaluation value A1 (step S5). Thereby, how much the bite fragment 2 having the same size h exists in the container 10, in other words, the distribution of the size h of the bite fragment 2 can be grasped using the evaluation value A1. Next, the controller 30 outputs the calculated evaluation value A1 to the output unit 32 (step S6).

  4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating an example of the evaluation value A1 displayed on the output unit 32, respectively. In the figure, the horizontal axis indicates the size h of the bite fragment 2, and the vertical axis indicates the number N of measurement points P corresponding to the size h of the bite fragment 2, that is, the evaluation value A1. Characteristics f1, f2, and f3 in the figure are characteristics obtained from the results of chewing by different subjects.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, when the characteristic f1 and the characteristic f2 are compared, the evaluation value A1 of the characteristic f1 becomes the maximum at the magnitude h1. That is, the peak value of the number N of measurement points P exists in the size h1, and the number N of measurement points P is the largest. On the other hand, the characteristic f2 has the maximum evaluation value A1 at the magnitude h2. The sizes h1 and h2 at which the evaluation value A1 is the maximum mean the size h (height) of the bite fragment 2 that exists most in the container 10, and are hereinafter also referred to as representative sizes. In FIG. 4A, the representative magnitude h2 of the characteristic f2 is smaller than the representative magnitude h1 of the characteristic f1. The smaller the representative size, the finer the test meal is chewed, so it can be evaluated that the chewing ability is high.

  On the other hand, for example, when paralysis occurs on either the left or right side of the subject's mouth, the left and right chewing ability is different, and the size h of the bite fragment 2 varies. That is, the bite segment 2 on the side where the paralysis has not occurred is small, and the bite segment 2 on the side where the paralysis has occurred is large. For this reason, for example, as indicated by the characteristic f3 in FIG. 4B, the peak value of the evaluation value A1 occurs at two locations, and two representative magnitudes h3 and h4 are obtained. Therefore, by determining whether or not there are a plurality of peak values in the characteristics of the evaluation value A1, it is possible to determine whether or not paralysis is occurring in the oral cavity of the subject.

According to 1st Embodiment, there can exist the following effects.
(1) The chewing ability evaluation apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment is separated from the upper surface 11a by a predetermined distance L0 from the container 10 having the upper surface 11a on which the bite piece 2 of the test meal masticated by the subject is placed. A sensor unit 22 that acquires distance information from the measurement position to the bite fragment 2 on the upper surface 11a, and a controller 30 that derives an evaluation value A1 for evaluating masticatory ability based on the distance information acquired by the sensor unit 22. With.

  Thus, by acquiring the distance information to the bite fragment 2 by the sensor unit 22, the size of the bite fragment 2 in the entire region of the container 10 can be grasped, and the chewing ability in consideration of the variation in the size of the bite fragment 2 Can be evaluated. As a result, it is possible to determine whether or not the left or right side of the oral cavity is paralyzed. In addition, when a method of evaluating mastication ability based on distance information to the bite piece 2 is employed as in the present embodiment, it is not necessary to elute the bite piece 2 after mastication into water, so a special test meal is prepared. There is no need, and chewing ability can be evaluated at low cost. Since it is not necessary to dry the bite piece 2 after mastication, it is possible to quickly evaluate the mastication ability.

(2) The sensor unit 22 includes a light projecting unit 22 </ b> A and a light receiving unit 22 </ b> B as distance sensors disposed to face the upper surface 11 a of the container 10. Therefore, distance information from the sensor unit 22 to the upper surface of the bite fragment 2 can be acquired, and the size (height) of the bite fragment 2 can be easily grasped.

(3) The controller 30 derives the distribution of the bite fragment 2 corresponding to the distance information acquired by the sensor unit 22 as the evaluation value A1. As a result, the size h (representative size) of the bite fragment 2 at which the evaluation value A1 has a peak, that is, the size h of the most numerous bite fragment 2 can be obtained, and useful information for evaluation of masticatory ability is obtained. It is done.

-Second Embodiment-
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Hereinafter, differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described. In the first embodiment, the bite fragment 2 is arranged in a single container 10, but in the second embodiment, the bite fragment 2 is separated into a plurality of groups according to the size of the bite fragment 2, and the bite fragment 2 Are placed in different containers 10 for each group. Furthermore, in 2nd Embodiment, the sensor unit 20 is provided with respect to the container 10 so that relative movement is possible.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing an overall configuration of a masticatory ability evaluation apparatus 100A according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the location same as FIG. Hereinafter, the orthogonal three-axis directions are defined as an X direction, a Y direction, and a Z direction as illustrated. The Z direction is the direction in which the first arm 3A extends, that is, the gravitational direction (vertical direction), and the X direction is the direction in which the second arm 3B extends.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the masticatory ability evaluation device 100 </ b> A has a plurality (three in the figure) of containers 10. These containers 10 are referred to as a first container 101, a second container 102, and a third container 103 in order from the top. A stay support portion 104 is provided on the first arm 3 </ b> A, and a stay 105 is attached to the stay support portion 104. The stay 105 has container support portions 105a for the first container 101 to the third container 103 at the tip, and the first container 101 to the third container 103 are supported by the container support portions 105a, respectively. The positions of the first container 101 to the third container 103 are shifted from each other so that the upper space of the containers 101 to 103 is opened. Note that the Y-direction positions of the containers 101 to 103 coincide with each other.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the second container 102. As shown in FIG. 6, the second container 102 includes a pair of substantially rectangular bottom plates 1021 and 1022 arranged in a substantially V shape in the XZ cross section, and a pair of side plates 1023 and 1024 that block the opening at the end in the Y direction. Have The bottoms of the pair of bottom plates 1021 and 1022 are separated from each other by a predetermined width ΔX2 in the X direction, and an opening 102a penetrating in the Z direction with a width ΔX in the X direction is provided along the Y direction at the bottom of the second container 102. It is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the first container 101 is formed in a substantially V-shaped cross section like the second container 102. However, the width ΔX1 of the opening 101a in the X direction of the first container 101 is larger than the width ΔX2 of the opening 102a of the second container 102. The third container 103 is also formed in a substantially V-shaped cross section, but no opening is provided at the bottom of the third container 103. Accordingly, the bite fragment 2 smaller than the predetermined width ΔX1 falls through the opening 101a of the first container 101, and the bite fragment 2 smaller than the predetermined width ΔX2 falls through the opening 102a of the second container 102. To do.

  In 2nd Embodiment, in the bottom part of each container 101-103, especially in the 1st container 101 and the 2nd container 102, the surface in which the bite piece 2 is mounted above the opening parts 101a and 102a, ie, the container 101. ˜103, the upper surface 11a (dotted line) is formed. By providing the openings 101 a and 102 a in the first container 101 and the second container 102, respectively, the large bite piece 2 a having a predetermined width ΔX1 or more is placed on the upper surface 11 a of the first container 101, and the second container 102. A medium-sized bite fragment 2b having a predetermined width ΔX2 or more and less than a predetermined width ΔX1 is placed on the upper surface 11a, and a small bite piece 2c having a width less than the predetermined width ΔX2 is placed on the upper surface 11a of the third container 103. Thereby, the bite piece 2 can be divided into three groups according to the size, and each can be arranged in different containers 101 to 103.

  The stay support portion 104 of the first arm 3 </ b> A is provided with a vibration device 106, and the vibration devices 106 can vibrate the containers 101 to 103 through the stay 105. Thereby, the overlap of the bite piece 2 in each container 101-103 can be prevented, and the bite piece 2 can be arranged in a line in the Y direction along the bottom part of each container 101-103.

  In 2nd Embodiment, the sensor unit 20 (sensor part 22) is provided so that relative movement with respect to the container 10 is possible via a moving mechanism. Specifically, the second arm 3B is provided to be movable in the X direction with respect to the first arm 3A by the drive mechanism 110. A third arm 3C extending in the Z direction is provided at the tip of the second arm 3B, and the socket 4 is fixed to the lower end of the third arm 3C. The third arm 3C is provided to be movable in the Z direction with respect to the second arm 3B by the drive mechanism 120. As a result, the sensor unit 22 is moved to a first position PS1 that is a predetermined distance L0 above the upper surface 11a of the first container 101, a second position PS2 that is a predetermined distance L0 above the upper surface 11a of the second container 102, and a third container 103. Can move to a third position PS3 that is a predetermined distance L0 above the upper surface 11a.

  The drive mechanisms 110 and 120 can be configured by, for example, an electric motor and a power conversion mechanism such as a ball screw that converts the rotational motion of the electric motor into the linear motion of the arms 3B and 3C. Although illustration is omitted, the masticatory ability evaluation device 100A includes sensors that detect the positions of the sensor unit 22 in the X direction and the Z direction, and the controller 30 determines the driving mechanism (electric motor) according to the signal from the sensor. Control the behavior.

  In the second embodiment, when evaluating the chewing ability of the subject, the bite fragment 2 after mastication is put into the first container 101 and the containers 101 to 103 are vibrated by the vibration device 106. When the containers 101 to 103 are vibrated, the small and medium-sized bite pieces 2b and 2c are shaken off from the first container 101 to the second container 102, and the further small bite piece 2c is transferred from the second container 102 to the third container. 103 is shaken off. Thereby, according to the magnitude | size of the bite piece 2, the bite piece 2 is isolate | separated into each container 101-103, and is arrange | positioned along with the bottom part of each container 101-103 in a line.

  From this state, when the controller 30 outputs a control signal to the drive mechanisms 110 and 120, the sensor unit 22 is sequentially moved to the first position PS1, the second position PS2, and the third position PS3. And according to the command from the controller 30, the sensor unit 22 is operated at each position PS <b> 1 to PS <b> 3, the distance from the sensor unit 22 to the bite fragment 2 is measured, and the measurement result is transmitted to the controller 30. In this case, since the bites 2 having almost the same size are arranged in a line in each of the containers 101 to 103, the distance to the bite 2 can be accurately measured by the sensor unit 22. The controller 30 calculates the distribution (evaluation value A1) of the size h of the bite fragment based on the signal from the sensor unit 22 and outputs the distribution to the output unit 32, as in the first embodiment.

  Thus, in 2nd Embodiment, in order to isolate | separate the bite fragment 2 into a some group according to the magnitude | size of the bite fragment 2, the some containers 101-103 from which the magnitude | size of opening part 101a, 102a differs are provided. The separated bite fragments 2a to 2c of each group are placed on the upper surface 11a of the containers 101 to 103, respectively. This prevents, for example, the small bite fragment 2c from being hidden by the shadow of the large bite fragment 2a and not being recognized by the sensor unit 22, and the measurement point P can be reliably set on each bite fragment 2. Therefore, distance measurement can be performed on all the bite fragments 2, and the evaluation value A1 can be calculated with high accuracy.

  The plurality of containers 101 to 103 are arranged with their horizontal positions shifted from each other so that the space above the upper surface 11a of each container 101 to 103 is opened. Thereby, the single sensor unit 22 is sequentially moved to the first position PS1, the second position PS2, and the third position PS3 via the moving mechanism, so that the size of the bite fragment 2 in each of the containers 101 to 103 is increased. Can be measured. Therefore, it is not necessary to increase the number of sensor units 22 and can be configured at low cost.

  Since the containers 101 to 103 are depressed downward and have a substantially V-shaped cross section, the bite fragments 2 are arranged in a line in each of the containers 101 to 103. Therefore, the range of distance measurement by the sensor unit 22 can be suppressed to a narrow range. Therefore, when the positions of the plurality of containers 10 in the Z direction and the X direction are shifted as in the second embodiment, the movement range of the sensor unit 22 is suppressed, and the overall size of the apparatus can be prevented.

(Modification)
The above embodiment can be modified into various forms. For example, in the second embodiment, the sensor unit 22 is moved with respect to the containers 101 to 103 via the moving mechanism. However, the containers 101 to 103 are moved with respect to the sensor unit 22. Also good. Or you may make it move both the sensor part 22 and the containers 101-103. Although the drive mechanism 110, 120 moves the sensor unit 22 relative to the container 10 in the X direction (horizontal direction) and the Z direction (vertical direction), it may be moved in an oblique direction. The structure of the mechanism is not limited to that described above.

  In the second embodiment, the first container 101 having the opening 101a having the predetermined width ΔX1, the second container 102 having the opening 102a having the predetermined width ΔX2 (<ΔX1), and the third container having no opening. 103 are arranged so as to partially overlap in the vertical direction, and the bite fragment 2 is put into the first container 101 so that the bite fragment 2 is separated into a plurality of groups according to the size of the bite fragment 2. However, the configuration of the separating means is not limited to this. The containers 101 to 103 are arranged so as to be displaced from each other in the horizontal direction so that the space above the upper surface 11a (mounting surface) of each container 101 to 103 is opened. The arrangement of the containers 101 to 103 is not limited to this as long as the distance measurement by the sensor unit 22 is possible. The number of containers 10 is not limited to that described above.

  In the said 1st Embodiment, the container 10 which has the bottom wall 11 and the side wall 12 is used as a measurement stand which has the mounting surface (upper surface 11a) in which the bite piece 2 of the test meal masticated by the test subject is mounted. In the second embodiment, a container having a substantially V-shaped cross section that is recessed downward is used, but the configuration of the measurement table is not limited to that described above. In the above embodiment, an infrared camera (light receiving unit 22B) is used as the sensor unit 22, but distance information from the measurement position separated by a predetermined distance L0 from the placement surface to the bite fragment 2 on the placement surface is acquired. If so, any configuration of the distance information acquisition means may be used. Although the infrared distance sensor is arranged facing the mounting surface, other distance sensors such as a laser distance sensor may be arranged. Although the sensor unit 20 having the sensor portion 22 is attached to the socket 4, the configuration of the attachment portion of the sensor portion 22 is not limited thereto. Although the signal from the sensor unit 22 is wirelessly transmitted to the controller 30, it may be transmitted by wire.

  In the above embodiment, the controller 30 derives the distribution of the bite fragment 2 corresponding to the distance information acquired by the sensor unit 22 as the evaluation value A1, but the evaluation for evaluating the masticatory ability based on the acquired distance information. As long as the value is derived, any configuration of the controller 30 as the evaluation value deriving unit may be used. The shape of each bite fragment 2 may be specified by a signal from the sensor unit 22 and used as the evaluation value A1. For example, assuming that the measurement point P at which the distance measurement value is L0 is on the upper surface 11a of the container 10, the region surrounded by the plurality of measurement points P on the upper surface 11a is determined as the single bite fragment 2, and the bite fragment The shape of 2 may be specified.

  The above description is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and modifications unless the features of the present invention are impaired. The constituent elements of the embodiment and the modified examples include those that can be replaced while maintaining the identity of the invention and that are obvious for replacement. That is, other forms conceivable within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention are also included in the scope of the present invention. Moreover, it is also possible to arbitrarily combine one or more of the above-described embodiments and modified examples, or modified examples.

2 bite fragment, 10 container, 11a upper surface, 22 sensor unit, 30 controller, A1 evaluation value, L0 distance, 100, 100A mastication ability evaluation device

Claims (6)

A measuring table having a mounting surface on which the bite piece of the test meal chewed by the subject is mounted;
Distance information acquisition means for acquiring distance information from the measurement position away from the placement surface by a predetermined distance to the bite fragment on the placement surface;
An evaluation value deriving unit for deriving an evaluation value for evaluating the mastication ability based on the distance information acquired by the distance information acquisition unit. The masticatory ability evaluation apparatus according to claim 1,
The distance information acquisition unit includes a distance sensor arranged to face the placement surface, and a masticatory ability evaluation device. In the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The evaluation value deriving unit derives a size distribution of the bite fragment corresponding to the distance information acquired by the distance information acquiring unit as the evaluation value. In the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Separating means for separating the bite fragment into a plurality of groups according to the size of the bite fragment is further provided, and the measuring table is a plurality of the bite fragments of each group separated by the separating means are respectively mounted. A masticatory ability evaluation apparatus having a mounting surface. In the chewing ability evaluation apparatus according to claim 4,
The masticatory ability evaluation device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of placement surfaces are arranged so as to be displaced from each other in a horizontal direction so that an upper space of each placement surface is opened. In the masticatory ability evaluation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The masticatory ability evaluation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the measurement table is depressed downward and has a V-shaped cross section.

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