JP2021112378A - Eye drop tool - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an eye drop tool in which an appropriate amount of eye drops is administered to eyes in one time eye drop reliably, and a very small amount of eye drops can be used easily.SOLUTION: An eye drop tool (1) has a cup body (2) where an abutment part provided at an opening side comes in abutment with the periphery of user's eye pit and is equipped with an eye drop container, in which the eye drops in the eye drop container are used in eyeballs in the central vicinity of the cup body (2) by pressing the eye drop container. The cup body (2) has multiple abutment parts disposed substantially annularly at the opening side. The multiple abutment parts comprise an upper eyelid abutment part (3a), a lower eyelid abutment part (3b) arranged oppositely to the upper eyelid abutment part (3a) across the center, and a lateral ocular angle abutment part (4) arranged by making a substantially 90-degree angle respectively with the upper eyelid abutment part (3a) and the lower eyelid abutment part (3b) mainly on the center. The respective abutment parts have elasticity, and can elastically be deformed freely to spread to the center.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an eye drop in which an eye drop in an eye drop container is instilled into an eyeball, and more particularly to an eye drop having a cup body in which a contact portion provided on the opening side is in contact with the periphery of the user's orbit.

Conventionally, a contact portion provided on the opening side has a cup body that touches the periphery of the user's orbit, an eye drop container is attached, and the eye drop container is pressed to apply the eye drops in the eye drop container to the cup body. There is an eye drop device that instills eye drops in the vicinity of the center (Patent Document 1).

Since the conventional eye drop device disclosed in Patent Document 1 has the cup body, the contact portion provided on the opening side of the cup body can be applied to the vicinity of the user's orbit, whereby the user or assistance can be applied. The person can hold the eye drop device in an appropriate posture and easily perform the eye drop operation.

Further, conventionally, there is an eye drop device having a container pressing portion that presses the body portion of the eye drop container to be worn from the radial direction and moves to release the pressed state (Patent Document 2).

It is known that a thermoplastic resin such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyethylene terephthalate is used as a general material for the eye drop container.

Therefore, since the conventional eye drop tool disclosed in Patent Document 2 has the container pressing portion, it is possible to press these resin eye drop containers with a small operating force, and even a person who is not good at finger operation can easily perform the pressing. Can perform various eye drop operations.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2008-295880 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-248157

By the way, one drop of eye drops is 30 to 50 μL, whereas the amount of liquid that an adult can hold in the conjunctival sac is 20 to 30 μL, and about 7 μL of tear fluid is resident in the conjunctival sac. Therefore, a part of one drop overflows to the outside of the eye.

On the other hand, even when the cup body of the conventional eye drops is applied to the area around the user's orbit, if the upper eyelid and the lower eyelid are not sufficiently opened at the time of instillation, an appropriate amount of eye drops does not enter the eye. .. For example, since the cup body of the eye drop device disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a tubular shape and only abuts on the peripheral edge of the user's eyelid, the upper and lower eyelids may be closed even when the cup body is applied. Wake up and the eye drops do not get into the eyes.

Therefore, when instilling with a conventional eye drop, there is a risk that an appropriate amount of eye drops may not be in the eye with only one instillation. As a result, the user may apply the eye drops more times than the predetermined number of times due to the re-instillation, and it is difficult to predict the degree of the eye drops. As a result, although it was originally possible to apply eye drops for a sufficient number of days with one container, the eye drops were consumed many times, and the prescribed number of eye drops was used up earlier than the planned number of days. There is a great risk that it will end up. As a result, there is a risk of running out of eye drops, and it is uneconomical to have a large amount of spare eye drops. Moreover, there is an increased possibility that the period for guaranteeing quality will be overdue.

Furthermore, when the eye drops are applied an extremely larger number of times than the predetermined number of times, there is a concern that side effects of the eye drops may occur. In particular, when a small amount of eye drops is instilled by default, there are concerns about both the risk of getting more eye drops than the default and the risk of not getting enough eye drops.

Further, in the conventional eye drop tool, the eye drop container is manually pressed for instillation. For example, in the eye drops disclosed in Patent Document 2, a pair of operating arm portions are swung by fingers, and pressing protrusions provided on the respective operating arm portions press the body of the eye drop container to provide eye drops. To discharge. Therefore, the amount of eye drops discharged varies depending on the strength of the swinging operation of each operating arm portion.

For this reason as well, as mentioned above, there is a risk of running out of eye drops, and there is also a risk of causing side effects. Moreover, since the amount of eye drops that enter the eye varies with one eye drop operation, it is difficult for the user or the caregiver to determine whether or not an appropriate amount of eye drops has been instilled. In particular, when instilling a small amount of eye drops, it is difficult to adjust the amount by manual instillation operation.

In view of these problems, the present invention provides an eye drop that can reliably administer an appropriate amount of eye drops to the eye with a single instillation and can easily instill a small amount of eye drops. The purpose.

(1) In the present invention, the contact portion provided on the opening side has a cup body that touches the periphery of the user's eyelid, an eye drop container is attached, and the eye drop container is pressed to press the eye drop container in the eye drop container. An eye drop that instills an eyeball in the vicinity of the center of the cup body, and the cup body has a plurality of the contact portions arranged in a substantially annular shape on the opening side, and the plurality of contact portions are on the upper side. The eyelid pad, the lower eyelid pad that is arranged so as to face the upper eyelid pad across the center, and the upper eyelid pad and the lower eyelid pad that are approximately 90 degrees each centering on the center. Provided is an eye drop that includes an external eyelid contact portion that is arranged at an angle, and each of the contact portions has elasticity and is freely elastically deformable in a direction that expands with respect to the center. It is a thing.

That is, the eye drop device of the present invention has an upper eyelid pad, a lower eyelid pad, and an external eye angle pad, and the cup body is used because these are elastically deformed so as to expand from the center of the cup body. By applying it to the area around the orbit of a person, the upper eyelid can be expanded upward, the lower eyelid can be directed downward, and the external eye angle can be expanded outward at the time of instillation. This reduces the possibility that the upper and lower eyelids will be closed and the eye drops will not enter the eye and the eye drops will fail.

Therefore, the eye drops of the present invention can reliably administer an appropriate amount of eye drops to the eye with one eye drop, and even a small amount of eye drops can be instilled in an accurate amount at one time.

(2) Further, it may have an eye drop nozzle for ejecting the eye drop agent and a flow path for bending the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the eye drop agent container.

Generally, in order to use up the eye drops to the end, the eye drop container is mounted in a posture in which the discharge port faces downward and the longitudinal direction coincides with the vertical direction. On the other hand, in the eye drop tool of the present invention, the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle is bent from the longitudinal direction and does not coincide with the longitudinal direction. Therefore, even when the eye drop container is vertically mounted, the eye drop is vertically attached. It can be ejected in a direction other than downward.

As a result, the user does not need to hold the eye drop device of the present invention directly above the eye to apply the eye drop, and can perform the eye drop in a comfortable posture. Therefore, the possibility of failure of instillation is low, and an appropriate amount can be administered with one instillation.

(3) Further, the flow path may bend the ejection direction by 90 degrees with respect to the longitudinal direction.

That is, in the eye drop tool of the present invention, the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle is bent 90 degrees from the longitudinal direction of the eye drop container, so that the eye drop is ejected in the horizontal direction even when the eye drop container is mounted vertically. Can be done.

As a result, the user can hold the eye drops of the present invention at the same height as the eyes and apply the eye drops, and can perform the eye drops in a comfortable posture without bending the neck upward. Therefore, the possibility of failure of instillation is low, and an appropriate amount can be administered with one instillation.

(4) In the present invention, the contact portion provided on the opening side has a cup body that touches the periphery of the user's eyelid, an eye drop container is attached, the body of the eye drop container is pressed from the radial direction, and the eye drop container is attached. It has a container pressing portion that moves to release from the pressed state, and the container pressing portion presses the eye drop container to instill the eye drops in the eye drop container into the eyeball near the center of the cup body. The cup body has a plurality of the contact portions arranged in a substantially annular shape, and the plurality of contact portions are the upper eyelid contact portion and the upper eyelid contact portion sandwiching the center thereof. The lower eyelid pad portion arranged to face the portion and the outer eye drop pad portion arranged at an angle of approximately 90 degrees with the upper eyelid pad portion and the lower eyelid pad portion centered on the center. Including, each of the contact portions has elasticity and can be elastically deformed freely in a direction expanding with respect to the center. The container pressing portion is driven by an electric motor and is a body portion in a direction of pressing the body portion. Provided is an eye drop device characterized by reciprocating in the pressing direction.

That is, in the eye drop device of the present invention, by applying the cup body to the vicinity of the user's orbit, the upper eyelid pad is directed upward by the upper eyelid pad, and the lower eyelid is directed downward by the lower eyelid pad when instilling. The external eye angle can be widened outward depending on the part. This reduces the possibility that the upper and lower eyelids will be closed and the eye drops will not enter the eye and the eye drops will fail.

Further, in the eye drop device of the present invention, since the container pressing portion presses the body portion of the eye drop container and the container pressing portion is driven by the electric motor, the eye drop container is pressed according to the rotation of the electric motor. The amount of eye drops discharged from the eye drop container can be adjusted according to the rotation of the electric motor. Therefore, by accurately controlling the rotation angle or the rotation speed of the electric motor, a small amount of eye drops can be discharged in an accurate amount.

As described above, the eye drops of the present invention can discharge an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drops, and moreover, the small amount of the eye drops can be reliably administered to the eye.

(5) Further, it may have an eye drop nozzle for ejecting the eye drop agent and a flow path for bending the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the eye drop agent container.

That is, the user does not need to hold the eye drop device of the present invention directly above the eye to apply the eye drop, and can perform the eye drop in a comfortable posture. Therefore, the possibility of failure of eye drops is low, and an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drops can be reliably administered with one eye drop.

(6) Further, the flow path may bend the ejection direction by 90 degrees with respect to the longitudinal direction.

That is, the user can hold the eye drops of the present invention at the same height as the eyes and apply the eye drops, and can perform the eye drops in a comfortable posture without bending the neck upward. Therefore, the possibility of failure of eye drops is low, and an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drops can be reliably administered with one eye drop.

(7) Further, the container pressing portion is a slipper in the piston crank mechanism including the first section fixed to the eyeball device main body side and the second section rotated by the drive of the electric motor. , Corresponds to the third section forming one sliding kinematic pair together with the first section, and may slide in the body pressing direction to reciprocate.

That is, since the eye drip device of the present invention employs a piston crank mechanism in converting the rotational motion of the motor into the linear motion of the container pressing portion, an accurate distance is obtained according to the controlled rotation angle or rotation speed of the motor. Only the container pressing portion can be advanced. As a result, the eye drop container can be pressed by the amount of discharging the accurate predetermined amount of eye drops, and the accurate predetermined amount of eye drops can be administered.

(8) Further, the first container has a pair of container pressing portions for sandwiching the body portion of the eye drops container on both sides in the radial direction, and one of the container pressing portions is fixed to the eye drip device main body side. In the piston crank mechanism including the knot and the second knot that is rotated by the drive of the electric motor, the piston crank mechanism is a slider and corresponds to the third knot that constitutes one sliding pair with the first knot. , Sliding in the body pressing direction and reciprocating, the one container pressing portion and the other container pressing portion are pivotally supported by a pair of inclined links forming a pair of rotating pairs. In addition to forming a pantograph mechanism, the pair of inclined links may rotate in the opposite directions at the same time and slide in opposite directions to reciprocate.

That is, the eye drop device of the present invention has a pair of container pressing portions, and each inclined link pivotally supported by these container pressing portions is chained so that one of the container pressing portions has the other container pressing portion. Follow. At this time, the respective container pressing portions reciprocate in opposite directions. Therefore, these container pressing portions can be pressed by sandwiching the body portion of the eye drop container from both sides.

As a result, in the eye drop tool of the present invention, the pair of container pressing portions can be simultaneously moved by one of the motors, and the eye drop container can be pressed accurately and efficiently.

(9) Further, the container pressing portion is fixed to the rack, and the pinion constituting the rack and pinion together with the rack is rotated by the drive of the electric motor, and the container pressing portion is driven by the rotation. The reciprocating movement may be performed.

That is, in the eye drops of the present invention, since the container pressing portion reciprocates according to the rotation of the electric motor by the rack and pinion, it is not necessary to adopt the piston crank mechanism or the pantograph mechanism. As a result, the container pressing portion can be reciprocated to press the eye drop container with a compact structure. Therefore, the eye drops of the present invention can discharge an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drops, and can be easily carried and held for eye drops. Also, the space required for accommodation is small.

(10) Further, the material of the portion of the container pressing portion that presses the body portion of the eye drop container may be at least metal.

It is known that a thermoplastic resin such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyethylene terephthalate is used as a general material for the eye drop container. Therefore, in the eye drop tool of the present invention, since the pressing portion of the container pressing portion is made of metal, the eye drop container can be pressed more reliably against the reaction force received from the eye drop container at the time of pressing. .. Therefore, the container pressing portion can move an accurate distance according to the rotation of the electric motor, and the eye drop device of the present invention can discharge an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drop.

(11) Further, the cup body may be rotatably supported around the center.

That is, since the cup body is rotatable, the user can widen the upper eyelid upward, the lower eyelid downward, and the outer eye angle outward even when the eye drop body is tilted and held. can. Therefore, regardless of the posture of the main body of the eye drop, the possibility of failure of eye drop is reduced, and an appropriate amount of eye drop can be reliably administered to the eye with one eye drop.

When the upper eyelid pad and the lower eyelid pad are shared, the outer eyelid pad uses the eye drops when the direction of the cup body is not rotated, or the eye drops when the cup body is rotated by 180 °. It can be used for either the left or right eye so that it is not located on the nasal side. As a result, one eye drop of the present invention can be used for both the left and right eyes, which is economical.

As described above, the eye drops of the present invention can reliably administer an appropriate amount of eye drops to the eye with one eye drop, and even a small amount of eye drops can be instilled in an accurate amount at one time. .. In addition, an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drops can be discharged, and the small amount of the eye drops can be reliably administered to the eye.

When the container pressing portion is driven by an electric motor, the terminal is a combination of the eye drops of the present invention and a terminal communication means that can be connected to a communication line such as the Internet, and when the user operates the terminal to rotate the prime mover. The signal transmitted from the communication means may be received by another terminal communication means or Web server means located at a place different from the user. As a result, the user's family, nursing care facility, medical institution, etc. can confirm the history of administration of eye drops to the user even in the different places, and can determine whether appropriate administration is performed. can.

At this time, since the eye drops of the present invention can reliably administer an appropriate amount of eye drops to the eye with one eye drop, an accurate history of the amount of eye drops administered can be obtained through the transmission and reception of the signal. be able to.

Further, when the cup body is rotatably supported by the shaft, the user rotates the cup body by 180 ° each time when one eye drop device of the present invention is used properly for the left eye and the right eye. .. Therefore, the eye drops of the present invention, the sensor that detects the rotation angle of the cup body, and the terminal communication means are combined, and the signal transmitted from the terminal communication means when the cup body is rotated is transmitted. It may be received by another terminal communication means or Web server means located in a place different from the user. As a result, the user's family, nursing care facility, medical institution, etc. can determine which eye the eye drop is administered to the user even in the different places, and the appropriate administration is performed. Can be determined if

At this time, since the cup body has an external eyelid pad, the user's nose interferes with the external eyelid pad if the cup body is to be used in the wrong direction. Therefore, it is possible to accurately determine which of the left and right eyes the eye drops are administered by the eye drops of the present invention. In particular, if the drug can be administered to either the left or right eye due to the medical condition of the user, it is possible to call attention not to administer it to the wrong eye.

It is a perspective view of the eye drop device 1 which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a front view of the eye drop device 1 which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the state which puts the cup body 2 around the orbit Gl of the left eye of the user with the eye drop device 1 which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a cross section of the left side surface of the eye drop device 1 which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is an enlarged view of the enlarged part E of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the state which puts the cup body 2 around the orbit Gr of the right eye of the user with the eye drop device 1 which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view of the eye drop device 11 which shows the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view of the state in which the housing 15e and the electric motor 17 are removed from the eye drop tool 11 of FIG. It is a perspective view of the state in which the housing 15e and the electric motor 17 are removed from the eye drop tool 11 of FIG. It is a rear view of the state in which the housing 15e and the electric motor 17 are removed from the eye dropper 11 of FIG. 7.

[First Embodiment]
1 to 6 illustrate the first embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is an eye drop.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an eye drop tool 1 in a state where the eye drop container B is attached. The eye drop device 1 includes a cup body 2, and the cup body 2 has a plurality of contact portions 3a, 3b, 4 provided on the opening side thereof. Each of the contact portions 3a, 3b, and 4 hits the periphery of the user's orbit G as described later.

Further, in the eye drop tool 1, the eye drop container B is attached to the nozzle block 5. The user presses the eye drop container B and instills the eye drop Q in the eye drop container B into the eyeball E in the vicinity of the center C of the cup body 2. Since the eye drop container B is made of a thermoplastic resin such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyethylene terephthalate and has flexibility, it is dented when the body portion Ba is pressed. Then, the internal volume is reduced and the extruded eye drop Q is discharged.

The cup body 2 has respective contact portions 3a, 3b, 4 arranged in a substantially annular shape. FIG. 2 shows a front view of the eye drop tool 1 as viewed from the opening side of the cup body 2. In the figure, the arrow U indicates the upper side (upward) of the eye drop tool 1, and the arrow D indicates the lower side (downward). Further, the arrow L indicates the left side (leftward direction) of the eye drop tool 1, and the arrow R indicates the right side (rightward direction).

The respective contact portions 3a, 3b, 4 of the cup body 2 are the upper eyelid contact portion 3a arranged on the upper U of the center C, the lower eyelid contact portion 3b arranged on the lower D of the center C, and the center C. It is composed of an external eyelid contact portion 4 arranged on the left side L. Further, the cup body 2 is vertically symmetrical in shape.

The cup body 2 is formed of a highly elastic material such as silicon or rubber. Since each of the contact portions 3a, 3b, 4 is formed so as to project toward the front in FIG. 2, the tip portion on the front side of each of the contact portions 3a, 3b, 4 is easily elastic so as to expand from the center C. It can be transformed. Further, the cup body 2 is formed of a translucent material.

FIG. 3 shows a state in which the cup body 2 is applied from the front to the periphery of the orbit Gl of the left eye in the user's head H represented by the imaginary line. In the figure, the arrow u indicates the upper side (upward) of the head H, and the arrow d indicates the lower side (downward) of the head H. Further, the arrow l indicates the user's left hand side (leftward direction) in the head H, and the arrow r indicates the user's right hand side (rightward direction) in the head H.

In FIG. 3, a portion of the eye drop tool 1 other than the cup body 2 is omitted for the sake of explanation. Further, while the opening side of the cup body 2 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 faces the front side of the drawing, the cup body 2 shown in FIG. 3 is applied to the head H from the front, so that the opening side is the back side of the drawing. Turn to the side. Therefore, the left and right sides of the cup body 2 in FIG. 3 are located opposite to the left and right sides in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Around the orbit Gl of the left eye, the upper eyelid, which is the upper u eyelid of the left eyeball El, the lower eyelid, which is also the lower d eyelid, and the outer eye angle, which is also the left side l eyelid, are arranged. There is. Therefore, when the user puts the cup body 2 around the orbit Gl of the left eye, the upper eyelid pad 3a is on the user's upper eyelid, the lower eyelid pad 3b is on the user's lower eyelid, and the outer eyelid pad 4 is on the user's lower eyelid. Contact the user's external eyelid angle. Further, the cup body 2 is arranged so that the center C is substantially the same position as the eyeball El of the left eye in front view. At this time, since the external eye angle contact portion 4 is located on the opposite side of the nose in the left-right direction, the user's nose does not interfere with the wearing of the eye drop device 1.

FIG. 4 shows a cross section on the left side surface of the eye drop tool 1 representing the cross section AA shown in FIG. The arrow U indicates the upper side (upward) of the eye drop device 1, and the arrow D indicates the lower side (downward). Further, the arrow F indicates the front side (forwardward) of the eye drop tool 1, and the arrow B indicates the posterior side (rearward).

The arrows UB, DB, and LB shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 and LB can be elastically deformed so that the tips of the upper eyelid pad 3a, the lower eyelid pad 3b, and the outer eyelid pad 4 each extend from the center C. Indicates the correct direction. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the tip portion of the upper eyelid pad portion 3a can be elastically deformed into an upward / backward UB in which the upward U and the backward B are combined. The lower eyelid pad portion 3b can be elastically deformed into a downward-backward DB in which the downward-facing D and the backward-facing B are combined. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the external eyelid contact portion 4 can be elastically deformed to the left rearward LB, which is the combined direction of the leftward L and the backwardward B.

Therefore, when the user presses the eye drop tool 1 against the head H backward B, a reaction force from the head H acts, and the upper eyelid pad 3a, the lower eyelid pad 3b, and the external eye angle pad 4 Each tip is elastically deformed so as to be rolled up and backward UB, downward backward DB, and left rearward LB, respectively. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3, each of the contact portions 3a, 3b, and 4 can pull the upper eyelid upward u, the lower eyelid downward d, and the outer eye angle left l.

As a result, by applying the cup body 2 to the periphery of the user's orbit G, the upper eyelid can be expanded upward u, the lower eyelid downward d, and the external eye angle outward at the time of instillation. Therefore, the possibility that the upper and lower eyelids are closed and the eye drop Q does not enter the eye and the eye drop fails is reduced. As a result, in the eye drop tool 1 of the present invention, an appropriate amount of eye drop Q is surely administered to the eye with one instillation, and even a small amount of eye drop Q is instilled in an accurate amount at one time. Can be done.

[Nozzle block and eye drop nozzle]
As shown in FIG. 4, the eye drop container B is attached to the eye drop tool 1 in a posture in which the longitudinal direction coincides with the vertical direction and the discharge port Bb is located on the lower side D. The nozzle block 5 of the eye dropper 1 has an opening 5a having a vertical upward U, and the opening 5a has a female screw 5b. One eye drop container B has a neck portion, and this neck portion has a male screw Bc. Then, the male screw Bc is screwed into the female screw 5b, so that the eye drop container B is joined to the nozzle block 5.

The nozzle block 5 has an eye drop nozzle 5c that communicates with the opening 5a. The eye drop nozzle 5c is arranged at substantially the center C of the cup body C in the front view of the eye drop tool 1. Therefore, the eye drop Q ejected from the eye drop nozzle 5c hits the eyeball El of the left eye.

The enlarged portion E shown in FIG. 4 is enlarged and shown in FIG. The instillation nozzle 5c is arranged in the front-rear direction, and the axis of the instillation nozzle 5c forms 90 ° with the vertical direction. Further, the tip of the eye drop nozzle 5c opens forward in F, and the base end communicates with the opening 5a. Therefore, the eye drop Q discharged from the discharge port Bb by extrusion flows into the eye drop nozzle 5c through the opening 5a.

The base end portion of the eye drop nozzle 5c is formed in a truncated cone shape whose diameter is reduced toward the front side F, and the tip end portion is also formed in a columnar shape continuous from the base end portion. Therefore, the eye drop Q flowing into the eye drop nozzle 5c is vigorously ejected from the tip and administered to the eyeball El of the left eye.

At this time, since the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle 5c is bent 90 degrees from the longitudinal direction of the eye drop container B, the eye drop Q can be ejected in the horizontal direction even when the eye drop container 5c is mounted vertically. As a result, the user can hold the eye drop tool 1 of the present invention at the same height as the eyeball El and apply the eye drops, and it is not necessary to raise the eye drop device 1 directly above the eyeball El and apply the eye drops. Then, the eye drops can be applied in a comfortable posture without bending the neck upward. Therefore, the possibility of failure of instillation is low, and an appropriate amount can be administered with one instillation.

[Cup body support inner cylinder and outer cylinder]
The nozzle block 5 has a cylindrical cup body support inner cylinder portion 5d that projects forwardly F so as to surround the opening of the eye drop nozzle 5c. Further, an annular convex portion 5e, which is an annular convex portion protruding outward in diameter, is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cup body support inner cylinder portion 5d.

On the other hand, the rear side B end of the cup body 2 has an outer cylinder portion 2a formed in a cylindrical shape. An annular recess 2b, which is an annular recess that is recessed inward in diameter, is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the outer cylinder portion 2a.

The cup body 2 is formed separately from the nozzle block 5, and is joined to the nozzle block 5 by rotatably outer fitting the outer cylinder portion 2a with respect to the cup body support inner cylinder portion 5d. At this time, by combining the annular concave portion 2b with the annular convex portion 5e, the cup body 2 does not shift in the front-rear direction with respect to the nozzle block 5 and rotates about the axis of the cup body support inner cylinder portion 5d. be able to.

Since the cup body 2 is rotatable in this way, even when the eye drop device 1 is tilted and held, the user can turn the upper eyelid upward, the lower eyelid downward, and the outer eye angle outward at the time of instillation. Can be expanded. Therefore, regardless of the posture of the eye drop tool 1, the possibility of failure of eye drop is reduced, and an appropriate amount of eye drop can be reliably administered to the eye with one eye drop.

Further, since the cup body 2 is formed vertically symmetrically, the cup body 2 is rotated 180 ° so that the upper eyelid pad portion 3a is on the lower side D of the center C and the lower eyelid pad portion 3b is also on the upper side U. By arranging, the user can use the eye drop tool 1 for instillation of the right eye.

That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the lower eyelid contact portion 3b can hit the upper eyelid of the right eye and elastically deform so that the tip portion can be rolled up and backward in the UB, and the upper eyelid can be pulled upward u. The upper eyelid contact portion 3a is in contact with the lower eyelid of the right eye and can be elastically deformed so that the tip portion can be rolled up in the downward and posterior DB, and the lower eyelid can be pulled downward d. Further, the external eyelid contact portion 4 can hit the external eyelid angle of the right eye and elastically deform so that the tip portion can be rolled around the right rearward RB, and the external eyelid angle can be pulled to the rightward r.

In this way, the eye drops 1 when the direction of the cup body 2 is not rotated, or the eye drops 1 when the cup body 2 is rotated by 180 °, can be placed on either the left or right side so that the external eyelid pad 4 is not located on the nose side. It can be used in the eyes. As a result, one eye dropper 1 of the present invention can be used for both the left and right eyes, which is economical.

[Second Embodiment]
7 to 10 illustrate a second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 11 is an eye drop device.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the front surface, the plane surface, and the right side surface of the eye drop tool 11 with the eye drop container B attached. In the figure, the arrow U indicates the upper side (upward) of the eye drop tool 1, and the arrow D indicates the lower side (downward). The arrow L indicates the left side (to the left) of the eye drop tool 1, and the arrow R indicates the right side (to the right). Further, the arrow F indicates the front side (forwardward) of the eye drop tool 1, and the arrow B indicates the posterior side (rearward).

The eye drop 11 includes a cup body 12 on the front side, and the cup body 12 has an upper eyelid pad 13a, a lower eyelid pad 13b, and an external eye angle pad 14. The cup body 12 is joined to the nozzle block 15 by rotatably outer-fitting the outer cylinder portion 12a hidden in FIG. 7 with respect to the cup body support inner cylinder portion 15d. The eye drop container B is joined to the nozzle block 15 by screwing the male screw Bc at the neck into the female screw 15b at the opening 15a of the nozzle block 15. The nozzle block 15 is fixed to a box-shaped housing 15e that surrounds the nozzle block 15.

The eye drop device 11 has a pair of left and right container pressing portions 16r and 16l that press the body portion Ba of the eye drop container B from the radial direction and move to release the pressed state. The container pressing portions 16r and 16l are formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape flat in the vertical direction, and one end of each sandwiches the body portion Ba from both the left and right sides.

The eye dropper 11 has an electric motor 17 having an output shaft in the vertical direction. The electric motor 17 is housed in the housing 15e so that the output shaft upper end 17a, which is the upper U end of the output shaft, is located on the lower D of the left container pressing portion 16l. The container pressing portions 16r and 16l are driven by the electric motor 17 and reciprocate in the left-right direction in the figure, which is the direction in which the body portion Ba is pressed.

FIG. 8 shows an explanatory view of a state in which the housing 15e and the electric motor 17 are removed from the eye drop tool 11 of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 8, one end of each of the container pressing portions 16r and 16l is formed in a semi-cylindrical shape having a center line in the front-rear direction, and the semi-cylindrical outer peripheral surface 16a which is the outer peripheral surface of the semi-cylindrical column is the body portion Ba. Contact. The material of the semi-cylindrical outer peripheral surface 16a is a metal such as stainless steel.

The container pressing portions 16r and 16l are supported by the housing 15e so as to freely slide in the left-right direction. That is, the housing 15e has guide rails 15f in the left-right direction on the inner wall of the front side F and the inner wall of the rear side B, respectively, and the container pressing portions 16r and 16l have end faces of the front and rear sides F and B. It can slide left and right while being loosely fitted to the guide rail 15f.

[Piston crank mechanism]
FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the back surface, the bottom surface, and the left side surface in a state where the housing 15e and the electric motor 17 are removed from the eye drop device 11. The circular crank plate 18a in a plan view is directly connected to the upper end 17a of the output shaft of the motor 17 not shown in FIG. 9 in the vertical direction, and rotates according to the motor 17. The crank plate 18a rotatably pivotally supports the left L end of the connecting member 18b via a pin in the vertical direction. Next, the right R end of the connecting member 18b is rotatably pivotally attached to the left container pressing portion 16l via another pin in the vertical direction.

At this time, the left container pressing portion 16l is restricted by the guide rail 15f and can move and slide only in the left-right direction. Therefore, the left container pressing portion 16l includes a piston crank mechanism including a guide rail 15f, which is a first node fixed to the housing 15e, and a crank plate 18a, which is a second node rotated by driving the electric motor 17. Configure. The left container pressing portion 16l is a slider and corresponds to a third node constituting one sliding kinematic pair together with the first node. As a result, the left container pressing portion 16l slides in the left-right direction and reciprocates in accordance with the motor 17.

In this way, the eye dropper 11 converts the rotational movement of the electric motor 17 into a linear movement of the left container pressing portion 16l. Here, since the piston crank mechanism is adopted to convert the rotary motion into a linear motion, the left side container pressing portion 16l can be advanced by an accurate distance according to the rotation angle or the rotation speed of the controlled electric motor 17. .. As a result, the eye drop container B can be pressed by the amount of discharging the accurate predetermined amount of the eye drop Q, and the accurate predetermined amount of the eye drop Q can be administered.

Further, while a thermoplastic resin such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyethylene terephthalate is used as a general material for the eye drop container B, since the pressing portions of the container pressing portions 16r and 16l are made of metal, the eye drops are instilled at the time of pressing. The eye drop container B can be pressed more reliably against the reaction force received from the agent container B. Therefore, the container pressing portions 16r and 16l can move an accurate distance according to the rotation of the electric motor 17, and the eye dropper 11 can discharge an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drop.

[Pantograph mechanism]
FIG. 10 is a rear view of the eye drop device 11 with the housing 15e and the electric motor 17 removed. Since the eye drop 11 is viewed from the back, the left side L of the eye drop 11 is shown on the right side and the right side R of the eye drop 11 is shown on the left side at an angle of viewing FIG. 10 from the front. The left side container pressing portion 16l pivotally supports the left side inclined link 19l, which is the inclined link of the left side L, in the rearward direction B. Further, the right side container pressing portion 16r pivotally supports the right side inclined link 19r, which is the inclined link of the right side R, in the rearward direction B. The lower D end of each of the left inclined link 19l and the right inclined link 19r is pivotally attached by the left and right inclined link connecting pin 20 which is a pin in the front-rear direction, and can be freely centered on the left and right inclined link connecting pin 20. Rotate. These pairs of tilted links 19r and 19l are included in a pair of kinematic pairs that make up the pantograph mechanism.

The pantograph mechanism includes a swing link 19m in addition to the pair of tilt links 19r and 19l. One end of the swing link 19m is rotatably supported by the housing 15e, and the other end is rotatably pivotally attached to substantially the center of the left side inclined link 19l in the longitudinal direction. At this time, the swing link 19m is arranged so as to be positioned parallel to the right side inclined link 19r in the front view.

Therefore, when the left container pressing portion 16l goes straight to the right R (to the left when viewed from the front in FIG. 10), the left inclined link 19l is restricted to the swing link 19m and is closed with respect to the right inclined link 19r. Change posture to CL. In the figure, the direction in which one inclined link 19r, 19l closes with respect to the other inclined link 19r, 19l is indicated by the arrow of CL, and the direction of opening is indicated by the arrow of OP.

When the left inclined link 19l changes its posture to the closing direction CL, the left and right inclined link coupling pin 20 moves downward D under the constraint of the right inclined link 19r. As a result, the right-side inclined link 19r is pulled downward by the left-right inclined link coupling pin 20 and changes its posture to the closing direction CL. By the way, since the right container pressing portion 16r is restricted by the guide rail 15f like the left container pressing portion 16l, it can move and slide only in the left-right direction. As a result, the right container pressing portion 16r goes straight to the left L (to the right when viewed from the front in FIG. 10).

On the contrary, when the left container pressing portion 16l goes straight to the left L, the posture is changed to the OP in which the left inclined link 19l opens with respect to the right inclined link 19r. Therefore, the left / right inclined link coupling pin 20 moves upward U and changes its posture to the opening direction OP of the right inclined link 19r, and the right container pressing portion 16r goes straight to the right R.

In this way, the pair of left and right container pressing portions 16r and 16l each have a pair of inclined links 19r and 19l that are axially supported and form a pair of rotating pairs, forming a pantograph mechanism, and each inclined link 19r, With the rotation in the forward and reverse directions by 19 liters, they slide in the opposite directions at the same time and reciprocate.

That is, the eye drop device 11 of the present invention has a pair of container pressing portions 16r and 16l, and the inclined links 19r and 19l respectively supported by these container pressing portions 16r and 16l are chained to form a left side container pressing portion 16l. The right side container pressing portion 16r is driven. At this time, the container pressing portions 16r and 16l reciprocate in opposite directions to each other. Therefore, these container pressing portions 16r and 16l can press the body portion Ba of the eye drop container B by sandwiching it from both sides.

As a result, the eye drop tool 11 of the present invention can simultaneously move the pair of container pressing portions 16r and 16l by one electric motor 17, and can accurately and efficiently press the eye drop container B.

Other configurations are common to the first embodiment.

As a modification of the second embodiment, although not shown, the container pressing portions 16r and 16l are fixed to the rack, and the pinions constituting the rack and pinion together with the rack are rotated by the drive of the motor 17. You may. As a result, the container pressing portions 16r and 16l can reciprocate in accordance with the motor 17 that rotates in the forward and reverse directions.

Since the container pressing portions 16r and 16l reciprocate according to the rotation of the electric motor 17 by such a rack and pinion, it is not necessary to adopt a piston crank mechanism or a pantograph mechanism. As a result, the container pressing portions 16r and 16l can be reciprocated to press the eye drop container B due to the compact structure. Therefore, the eye drop 11 can discharge an accurate amount of a small amount of eye drops, and can be easily carried and held for eye drops. Also, the space required for accommodation is small.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, the cup bodies 2 and 12 are not only formed of a translucent material, but may also be formed of an opaque or transparent material. If it is formed of a translucent or transparent material, when the caregiver instills it, the caregiver can visually confirm whether or not the eye drop Q has been instilled in the user's eyeball E.

Further, the cup bodies 2 and 12 do not have to be vertically symmetrically formed, and the upper eyelid contact portions 3a and 13a are lowered even when the cup bodies support inner cylinder portions 5d and 15d are rotated by 180 °. If the shape is such that the eyelid is pulled downward d, the lower eyelid pads 3b and 13b pull the upper eyelid upward u, and the outer eyelid pads 4 and 14 can pull the outer eye angle outward. For example, the upper eyelid pads 3a and 13a and the lower eyelid pads 3b and 13b may be formed in different shapes.

The eye drop nozzles 5c and 15c do not have to be formed in a columnar or truncated cone shape, and as long as the eye drop agent Q is vigorously ejected from the tip, for example, even if the eye drop nozzles 5c and 15c are formed in the shape of a prism, a prism, or the like. good.

The ejection directions of the eye drop nozzles 5c and 15c do not have to be bent by 90 ° from the longitudinal direction of the eye drop container B, and if the user can perform eye drop in a comfortable posture, for example, 45 ° and 60 °. It may be bent at an angle of less than 90 ° such as.

Both of the container pressing portions 16r and 16l do not have to move, and if the eye drop container B can be pressed efficiently, for example, only one of the container pressing portions 16r and 16l reciprocates in the left-right direction to push the body portion Ba, and the other It may be sufficient to simply receive the eye drop container B without moving.

Further, the container pressing portions 16r and 16l do not have to be driven by one electric motor 17, and if the container pressing portions 16r and 16l can simultaneously press both sides of the body portion Ba at the same time, for example, they are independent of each other. Then, it may be driven by two electric motors.

The material of the semi-cylindrical outer peripheral surface 16a does not have to be metal, and as long as the eye drop container B can be pressed reliably, for example, a synthetic resin having sufficient hardness may be used.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for an eye drop device in which the eye drop in the eye drop container is manually or electrically applied to the user's eyeball.

1,11 Eye drops 2,12 Cup body 2a, 12a Outer cylinder 3a, 13a Upper eyelid pad 3b, 13b Lower eyelid pad 4,14 External eye angle pad 5,15 Nozzle block 5c, 15c Eye drop nozzle 5d, 15d Cup body support inner cylinder part 15e Housing 15f Guide rail 16r Right side container pressing part 16l Left side container pressing part 17 Electric motor 18a Crank plate 18b Connecting member 19r Right side tilting link 19l Left side tilting link 19m Swinging link 20 Left and right tilting link coupling pin

Claims (11)

The contact portion provided on the opening side has a cup body that touches the periphery of the user's eye socket, an eye drop container is attached, and the eye drop container is pressed to apply the eye drops in the eye drop container to the center of the cup body. It is an eye drop that instills in the eyeball in the vicinity.
The cup body has a plurality of the contact portions arranged in a substantially annular shape on the opening side, and the cup body has a plurality of the contact portions.
The plurality of contact portions include an upper eyelid contact portion, a lower eyelid contact portion arranged so as to face the upper eyelid contact portion with the center thereof interposed therebetween, and the upper eyelid contact portion and the lower eyelid contact portion centered on the center. Includes a pad and an external eyelid pad that are arranged at an angle of approximately 90 degrees, respectively.
An eye drop that has elasticity and can be elastically deformed in a direction that spreads with respect to the center.
The eye drop device according to claim 1, further comprising an eye drop nozzle for ejecting the eye drop agent and a flow path for bending the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the eye drop container.
The eye drop according to claim 2, wherein the flow path bends the ejection direction by 90 degrees with respect to the longitudinal direction.
The contact portion provided on the opening side has a cup body that abuts around the user's eye socket, and an eye drop container is attached, and the body of the eye drop container is pressed from the radial direction and released from the pressed state. An eye drop device having a container pressing portion that moves for the purpose, and the container pressing portion presses the eye drop container to instill the eye drops in the eye drop container into the eyeball in the vicinity of the center of the cup body. ,
The cup body has a plurality of the contact portions arranged in a substantially annular shape, and has a plurality of the contact portions.
The plurality of contact portions include an upper eyelid contact portion, a lower eyelid contact portion arranged so as to face the upper eyelid contact portion with the center thereof interposed therebetween, and the upper eyelid contact portion and the lower eyelid contact portion centered on the center. Includes a pad and an external eyelid pad that are arranged at an angle of approximately 90 degrees, respectively.
Each of the abutments has elasticity and can be elastically deformed in a direction that expands with respect to the center.
An eye drop that is driven by an electric motor and reciprocates in a body pressing direction, which is a direction in which the container pressing portion is pressed.
The eye drop device according to claim 4, further comprising an eye drop nozzle for ejecting the eye drop agent and a flow path for bending the ejection direction of the eye drop nozzle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the eye drop container.
The eye drop according to claim 5, wherein the flow path bends the ejection direction by 90 degrees with respect to the longitudinal direction.
The container pressing portion is a slipper in a piston crank mechanism including a first section fixed to the eye drop main body side and a second section rotated by driving the electric motor, and the first section is described. The eye drop according to any one of claims 4 to 6, which corresponds to a third section that constitutes one sliding pair with a section, and slides in the body pressing direction to reciprocate.
It has a pair of container pressing portions for sandwiching the body portion of the eye drop container on both sides in the radial direction.
On the other hand, the container pressing portion is a slider in the piston crank mechanism including the first node fixed to the eyeball device main body side and the second node rotated by the drive of the electric motor, and the first node. It corresponds to the third section that constitutes one sliding kinematic pair together with one section, and slides in the body pressing direction to reciprocate.
The one container pressing portion and the other container pressing portion are pivotally supported by each other, and a pair of inclined links forming a pair of rotational pairs form a pantograph mechanism, and the pair of inclined links are positive. The eye drop according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the eye drops slide back and forth at the same time and in opposite directions as they rotate in opposite directions.
The container pressing portion is fixed to the rack, and the pinion forming the rack and pinion together with the rack is rotated by the drive of the electric motor.
The eye drop according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the container pressing portion reciprocates in accordance with the rotation.
The eye drop device according to any one of claims 4 to 9, wherein the container pressing portion is made of at least a metal material for pressing the body portion of the eye drop container.
The eye drop according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the cup body is rotatably supported around the center.

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