JP2023128098A - Unit for home-visit dental care - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a unit for home-visit dental care capable of storing instruments for home-visit dental care and reducing a physical burden of a dentist or the like during the dental care at a destination of the home-visit dental care.SOLUTION: A unit 100 for home-visit dental care comprises: an air supply unit 130 including an air intake part for sucking air from the outside, and an air outlet for exhausting the air sucked by the air intake part; an air tube 180 whose one end is attached to an air nozzle for sending air toward the oral cavity of a patient and whose other end is connected to the air outlet of the air supply unit 130; a chair 120 including a seating part 122; and a housing 110 for housing at least the air supply unit 130, the air tube 180 and the chair 120. The housing 110 is so configured that a part 110b of the housing 110 can be opened and closed to the other part 110a of the housing 110 so as to expose the seating part 122 of the chair 120.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

The present invention relates to a unit for dental home visits.

Traditionally, dentists and dental assistants (hereinafter referred to as ``dentists, etc.'') visit patients who are difficult to go to the dental clinic, such as home health practitioners, to provide dental treatment and oral care (hereinafter referred to as ``dental care'') to patients who have difficulty going to a dental clinic. (referred to as "medical treatment, etc."). In order to carry dental instruments for such dental visits, it is necessary to carry dental instruments including micromotor handpieces and three-way syringes, and related equipment for dental instruments including their drive sources. A dental treatment device for house calls housed in a flexible housing is known (see Patent Document 1).

Patent No. 5785901 specification

At home visits, patients may, for example, lie on their backs on a futon spread on the floor or on a bed set on the floor, raise their upper bodies slightly from that position, or sit in a chair. , and receive medical treatment from a dentist, etc. Home-visit clinics may not have chairs, etc. for the dentist, etc. to sit during the treatment, etc., and in that case, the dentist, etc. should sit at a height that allows him/her to reach the patient's mouth. Dentists, etc., need to change their posture according to the situation, and sometimes maintain a half-backed posture while performing medical treatment, which places a physical burden on dentists, etc. when continuing medical treatment, etc. for a long period of time. growing.

The conventional dental treatment device for home visits disclosed in Patent Document 1 is merely a case that portablely stores dental treatment instruments such as a micromotor handpiece and a three-way syringe, and is used by dentists at visiting treatment locations. It does not provide any means to reduce the physical burden during medical treatment, etc.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a dental home visit treatment unit that accommodates equipment for dental home visit treatment and that can reduce the physical burden of dentists and others during medical treatment at the home visit treatment site. purpose.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an air supply unit includes an air intake unit that sucks air from the outside, an air outlet that discharges the air sucked in by the intake unit, and an air supply unit that supplies air toward the inside of a patient's oral cavity. an air tube having an air nozzle attached to one end and the other end connected to an air outlet of an air delivery unit; and a chair having a seating portion; A housing for accommodating the chair, and the housing is configured such that a part of the housing can be opened and closed with respect to other parts of the housing so as to expose a seating part of the chair. unit provided.

According to the unit for dental home visit treatment according to one aspect of the present invention configured as described above, at least the air supply unit and the air supply tube are housed in the housing, so that the home visit treatment unit is transported. First, a dentist or the like can supply air into the patient's oral cavity using an air supply unit and an air supply tube. For example, a dentist may hold an air tube with one hand to inject air into the patient's oral cavity, and use the other hand to hold other instruments to perform medical treatment on the patient. It is possible. Furthermore, the housing is configured so that a part of the housing can be opened and closed with respect to other parts of the housing so that the seat of the chair is exposed. By opening one part of the body to the other part and exposing the seating part of the chair, it becomes possible to perform medical treatment while sitting on the seating part of the chair. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the physical burden on dentists and the like when they continue to provide medical treatment for a long period of time.

According to another aspect of the invention, the chair may include a support for supporting the seat so that the height of the seat can be adjusted. This allows dentists and the like to adjust the height of the seating portion to their desired height when performing medical treatment. After the medical treatment, etc. is finished, the seat can be lowered to a height that can be accommodated within the casing, allowing part of the casing to be closed to the other part of the casing and the chair to be stored within the casing again. can.

According to another aspect of the invention, the air delivery tube may be housed in a housing below the seat of the chair so as to extend around the support.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the intake section of the air supply unit includes an intake fan that sucks air and an electric motor that rotates the intake fan, and the air supply unit has an electric power that rotates the electric motor. The device may further include a power battery that supplies power. By supplying power from a power supply battery to the electric motor that rotates the intake fan, the air supply unit can be used even if the clinic you visit is in a place without access to an external power source such as a 100-volt AC power source. It also becomes possible to supply air into the patient's oral cavity using an air supply tube.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a lighting device that illuminates the front side of the air supply nozzle may be configured to be attached near one end of the air supply tube. As a result, dentists and the like can, for example, grasp the vicinity of one end of the air supply tube and supply air from the air supply nozzle into the patient's oral cavity, without having to switch to a lighting device such as a flashlight. It becomes possible to visually observe the patient's oral cavity by illuminating it with the illumination device while holding the vicinity of one end of the air supply tube.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the dental visit treatment unit further includes a remote controller that operates the air supply unit via wireless communication, and the air supply unit receives an operation signal transmitted from the remote controller. The remote controller may further include a control unit that controls the rotational drive of the electric motor according to the operation signal, and the remote controller is configured to be attached near one end of the air supply tube. It's okay. In a configuration in which the remote controller is wired to the air supply unit using a conductive wire, it becomes complicated to route the conductive wire when used at a visiting clinic, and when a current flows through the conductive wire, the conductive wire There is a risk that unintended electromagnetic noise may be generated and affect the operation of other medical equipment installed at the visiting clinic, or even cause electric shock to the patient due to leakage of current from the conductive wires. In contrast, by configuring the air supply unit to be operated by a remote controller via wireless communication as in the above configuration according to one aspect of the present invention, the air supply unit can be operated by a wired connection using a conductive wire. It is possible to eliminate the above-mentioned disadvantages of the configuration.

According to another aspect of the invention, a caster section having a plurality of casters may be provided at the bottom of the housing. This allows you to move the dental home visit treatment unit by placing the casters on the floor or rolling the casters, reducing the burden of carrying the dental home visit treatment unit on your back when transporting it. It becomes possible to do so.

Other features and advantages of the invention can be understood from the following description and the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of example and non-exhaustively.

According to the present invention, there is provided a unit for dental home visit treatment that accommodates equipment for dental home visit treatment and is capable of reducing the physical burden of dentists, etc. during medical treatment at the home visit treatment site. I can do it.

FIG. 1 is a front view showing the overall configuration of the dental visit treatment unit according to the embodiment of the present invention with the outer panel of the casing removed. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the dental visiting treatment unit shown in FIG. 1 in a state where the upper frame of the housing is separated upward from the lower frame. FIG. 2 is a left side view of the dental visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a rear view of the dental visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a top view of the dental visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the dental visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1 with the housing cut away along line AA shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an air supply unit included in the dental visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the air supply unit shown in FIG. 7. FIG. It is a figure which shows the air supply tube connected to the air supply port of the air supply unit shown in FIG. 1 etc. This is a diagram showing a dental home visit treatment unit in which the air supply tube shown in FIG. 9 is housed in the housing shown in FIG. be. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the dental visiting treatment unit shown in FIG. 10 with the upper part of the casing removed and the outer panel on the front side of the lower part of the casing removed. 12 is a diagram illustrating how the height of the seating portion of the chair of the dental visiting treatment unit shown in FIG. 11 is adjusted. It is a figure which shows the 1st modification of the unit for dental visit medical treatment of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the 2nd modification of the unit for dental visit medical treatment of this embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below do not unduly limit the content of the present invention described in the claims. Furthermore, not all of the components shown in the embodiments are essential components of the present invention.

(Configuration of dental home visit treatment unit of this embodiment)
First, the overall configuration of a dental visit treatment unit according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. FIG. 1 is a front view showing the overall configuration of a dental home visit treatment unit according to an embodiment of the present invention with the front outer panel of the housing removed, and FIG. 2 is a dental home visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1. , with the upper frame of the housing separated upward from the lower frame, FIG. 3 is a left side view of the unit for dental home visit treatment shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a view of the dental home visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a rear view of the unit.

As shown in FIG. 1, a dental visit treatment unit 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 110, a chair 120 housed in the housing 110, and a chair 120 housed in the housing 110. and an air supply unit 130.

Referring to FIG. 1, the housing 110 includes a lower frame 112 that constitutes a lower portion 110a of the housing 110, and an upper frame 114 that constitutes an upper portion 110b of the housing 110. The lower frame 112 and the upper frame 114 are configured to form a cubic lattice-like frame structure when stacked so that the ends of the frames at the four corners are brought into contact with each other. The upper frame 114 and the lower frame 112 are detachable from each other, and by removing the upper frame 114 from the lower frame 112, the upper part 110b of the housing 110 opens from the lower part 110a, and the upper frame 114 becomes the lower frame. 112, the upper part 110b of the housing 110 can be closed with respect to the lower part 110a. In this way, the casing 110 is configured such that the upper part 110b, which is a part of the casing 110, can be opened and closed with respect to the lower part 110a, which is the other part of the casing 110.

As an example, the lower frame 112 and the upper frame 114 can each be constructed by joining the ends of hollow or solid rod-shaped members having a circular, square, or rectangular cross-sectional shape. Those rod-shaped members may be made of metal such as iron or aluminum, wood, resin, or the like. To connect the rod-like members, any means such as fasteners such as bolts and nuts, screws, rivets, welding, adhesives, etc. can be used depending on the material and shape of the rod-like members. Furthermore, for example, an L-shaped or triangular bracket may be used as a coupling aid for coupling the rod-shaped members together.

A bottom plate 116a that forms the bottom surface of the housing 110 is installed at the bottom of the lower frame 112. Furthermore, an intermediate plate 116b forming an intermediate surface of the housing 110 is installed on the upper part of the lower frame 112. These bottom plate 116a and intermediate plate 116b function as a mounting surface for accommodating various equipment and articles in the housing 110, and also serve to increase the rigidity of the housing 110 as part of the structure of the housing 110. have The bottom plate 116a and the intermediate plate 116b can be fastened with any fastener such as bolts and nuts, screws, rivets, welding, adhesives, etc. using, for example, L-shaped or triangular brackets as coupling aids. It is fixed to the lower frame 112 by means of.

External panels 112a are provided on the four peripheral surfaces of the lower frame 112, and external panels 114a are provided on the four peripheral surfaces and the top surface of the upper frame 114. These outer panels 112a and 114a cover the periphery of the housing 110 and have the role of separating the inside of the housing 110 from the outside environment. As a result, the casing 110 accommodates various equipment and articles in a state separated from the external environment. The outer panels 112a and 114a can be formed of, for example, metal plates, wood plates, resin plates, or the like. The outer panels 112a, 114a may be fixed to the frames 112, 114, or may be detachably attached. For fixing the outer panels 112a, 114a to the frames 112, 114, for example, screws, double-sided adhesive sheets, or adhesives can be used. For example, a hook-and-loop fastener, a snap-fit type locking structure, or the like can be used.

Of these outer panels 112a, 114a, some may be fixed to the frames 112, 114, and other parts may be detachably attached to the frames 112, 114. In the illustrated example, outer panels 112a and 114a on the four side surfaces of the casing 110 that appear in the front view of FIG. 112a and 114a are fixed to frames 112 and 114. FIG. 1 shows the housing 110 with the outer panels 112a and 114a removed, and an air supply unit 130 and a housing section 140 are installed on the bottom plate 116a forming the bottom surface of the housing 110. A storage space is formed above the intermediate plate 116b forming the intermediate surface of the housing 110 to accommodate various equipment and the like. The storage section 140 has a plurality of drawer storage sections 142 of a drawer type, and it is possible to pull out these drawer storage sections 142 toward the front side in FIG. 1 to take articles in and out of the drawer storage sections 142 . By configuring parts of the outer panels 112a, 114a to be detachably attached to the frames 112, 114 in this way, the outer panels 112a, 114a can be removed to access articles, instruments, etc. stored inside the housing 110. Can be taken out easily.

The lower part 110a and the upper part 110b of the casing 110 are constructed by, for example, providing positive or negative magnets at the four corner ends of the lower frame 112 and the upper frame 114, respectively. When the upper frame 114 is stacked and integrated so that the end portions of the four corner frames are brought into contact with each other, the upper frame 114 may be configured to be fixed by their magnetic force. When the dental home visit treatment unit 100 is transported to the home visit treatment site in this state and the dental home visit treatment unit 100 is used, the dentist or the like moves the upper frame 114 of the upper part 110b of the housing 110 against the magnetic force. The upper portion 110b of the housing 110 can be removed from the lower portion 110a by pulling away from the lower frame 112 of the lower portion 110a. Alternatively, when transporting the dental visiting treatment unit 100, one or more binding belts may be used to wrap the lower part 110a and the upper part 110b of the housing 110 in the vertical direction in the figure. 110b may be tied and fixed to each other, and when the unit 100 for dental visit treatment is used, the binding belt may be removed and the upper portion 110b of the housing 110 may be removed from the lower portion 110a. When transporting or storing the dental visit treatment unit 100, the upper portion 110b and the lower portion 110a of the housing 110 may be fixed to each other using any other fixing means in addition to the fixing means described above. is possible.

Next, the chair 120 provided in the dental visit treatment unit 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference mainly to FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG. 5 is a top view of the dental home visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 is a top view of the dental home visit treatment unit shown in FIG. It is a figure shown in a broken state.

In particular, as shown in FIG. 6, the chair 120 includes a seating section 122 for a dentist or the like to sit on, and a support section 124 that supports the seating section 122. The seating part 122 is attached to the upper end portion of the support part 124 so as to be rotatable around the axis in the extending direction of the support part 124. As shown in FIG. 5, the support part 124 includes, for example, a cylinder part 124a that encloses gas and accommodates a spring, and enters and protrudes from the cylinder part 124a along the axis in the stretching direction. The gas cylinder device includes a support column 124b that can be displaced as shown in FIG. The support portion 124 is provided with a lever 124c for adjusting and fixing the amount of protrusion of the column portion 124b from the cylinder portion 124a. For example, the lever 124c can be used to control the height of the seating part 122, that is, the amount of protrusion of the support column 124b from the cylinder part 124a, while the operator flips up the lever 124c and sits on the seating part 122 and puts his/her weight on the seat part 122. After adjustment, the amount of protrusion of the support column 124b from the cylinder section 124a can be fixed at a desired state by finishing flipping up the lever 124c and returning the lever 124c to its original position. There is.

In the illustrated example, a flange 125 is provided at the bottom of the cylinder portion 124a, and the flange 125 is attached to the bottom plate 116a of the housing 110 using fasteners such as bolts and nuts, riveting, welding, adhesive, etc. Fixed using means. Furthermore, an opening is formed in the intermediate plate 116b of the housing 110, through which the cylinder portion 124a or the support portion 124b of the support portion 124 passes. It is preferable that the shape and dimensions of these openings are substantially the same as the outer diameter shape and dimensions of the cylinder portion 124a to the support portion 124b. Thereby, the chair 120 is housed in the housing 110 while being fixed to the housing 110.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, the air supply unit 130 included in the dental visit treatment unit 100 of the present embodiment includes an air intake section 132 that sucks outside air, and an air supply section 132 that sucks in outside air, and an air supply unit 132 that sucks in outside air. It has a mouth 134. A proximal end 188 of an air tube 180 (see FIG. 9), which has an air nozzle 186 (see FIG. 9) attached to a distal end 184, is removably attached to the air inlet 134. In the illustrated example, the air inlet 134 is provided on the left side of the casing 110, and the air intake section 132 is provided on the back side of the casing 110. The location is not limited to this example. The air intake part 132 and the air supply port 134 are provided with air purifying filters 132c and 134a (see FIG. 7), respectively.

Here, a more detailed configuration of the air supply unit 130 shown in FIG. 1 and the like will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an air supply unit included in the dental visit treatment unit shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the air supply unit shown in FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an air supply tube connected to the air supply port of the air supply unit shown in FIG. 1 and the like.

Referring to FIG. 7, the air supply unit 130 includes a storage space 131 that forms an internal space and accommodates each component, an intake section 132 that sucks outside air into the storage space 131, and an air intake section 132 that sucks outside air into the storage space 131. It is provided with an air supply port 134 for exhausting the sucked air to the outside of the storage space 131.

The intake section 132 includes an intake fan 132a, an electric motor 132b that rotationally drives the intake fan 132a, and an air purifying filter 132c. The air purifying filter 132c is installed on one side of the storage space 131, and the intake fan 132a is installed in the storage space 131 so as to be adjacent to the storage space 131. The intake fan 132a can be configured with, for example, a propeller fan, a sirocco fan, a turbo fan, an air foil fan, or a plate fan.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the air supply unit 130 is installed at a predetermined position in the housing 110, a part of the outer panel 112a in the area facing the air intake part 132 is attached to the remaining part of the outer panel 112a. When operating the air supply unit 130, a part of the outer panel 112a is removed and outside air can be sucked into the air supply unit 130 from outside the housing 110. Make it. Thereby, when the electric motor 132b is driven to rotate the intake fan 132a, air is sucked into the storage space 131 from outside the storage space 131 through the air purifying filter 132c. The air supply unit 130 further includes a control unit 136 that controls the drive of the electric motor 132b, and a power battery 138 that supplies power to the electric motor 132b via the control unit 136. It is rotationally driven by electric power supplied from the battery 138 via the control unit 136. As the power source battery 138, a secondary battery such as a NiCd battery or a lithium ion battery can be used in addition to a primary battery such as an alkaline battery.

The control unit 136 is configured to be wirelessly connected to the remote controller 160 and receive operation signals from the remote controller 160 via wireless communication. The drive control of the electric motor 132b (turning on/off, changing the rotational speed, etc.) can be performed by the operator operating the button 162 of the remote controller 160.

The air supply port 134 is formed to protrude from a side surface of the storage space 131 that is different from the side surface on which the air intake section 132 is provided. The air supply port 134 has a lumen that communicates the internal space of the storage space 131 with the outside of the storage space 131 . As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the air inlet 134 projects to the outside of the outer panel 112a through a through hole for the air inlet 134 formed in the outer panel 112a provided on the side surface of the housing 110.

Next, referring to the block diagram of FIG. 8, the control unit 136 of the air supply unit 130 includes a drive control circuit 136a that controls the rotational drive of the electric motor 132b (see FIG. 7) of the air intake section 132, and a remote controller 160. and a communication section 136b that receives the operation signal by wireless communication and inputs it to the drive control circuit 136a. For wireless communication between the communication unit 136b and the remote controller 160, wireless communication techniques such as infrared communication, Wi-Fi (registered trademark), and Bluetooth (registered trademark) can be used, for example. The operation signal from the remote controller 160 is transmitted from the remote controller 160 to the communication unit 136b when the operator operates the button 162 (see FIG. 7) on the remote controller 160.

The drive control circuit 136a controls the electric motor 132b by adjusting the voltage or current supplied from the power battery 138 to the electric motor 132a of the intake unit 132 in accordance with the operation signal received by the communication unit 136b from the remote controller 160. Controls rotational drive. The drive control circuit 136a is configured, for example, to alternately turn on and off the rotational drive of the electric motor 132b each time the button 162 of the remote controller 160 is pressed. The drive control circuit 136a may further be configured to be able to adjust the rotational speed of the electric motor 132b, for example, depending on how long the button 162 of the remote controller 160 is pressed or the number of times the button 162 is quickly clicked. .

Next, the air supply tube 180 will be explained with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 9(a), the air supply tube 180 includes a flexible tube portion 182 formed in a bellows shape, a distal end portion 184 to which an air supply nozzle 186 is detachably attached, and a tip portion 184 shown in FIG. The base end portion 188 is detachably attached to the air supply port 134 of the air supply unit 130 shown in FIG. The air supply tube 180 has a length that reaches from the dental visiting treatment unit 100 installed near the patient at the visiting treatment site to the patient's mouth, and preferably has a total length of, for example, about 1 to 2 meters. In addition, in FIG. 9, for convenience of illustration, a part of the tube part 182 is omitted and shown by a dotted line.

The air supply nozzle 186 may be a disposable type called a disposable type, or a reusable type that can be sterilized by high pressure steam sterilization (autoclave) or a sterilizing gas such as ethylene oxide gas. It may be of a possible type. The material constituting the air supply nozzle 186 can be appropriately selected depending on the intended use of the material for disposal or reuse.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9(b), a remote controller 160 having a button 162 on the top surface is configured to be detachably attached to the vicinity of the distal end 184 of the air supply tube 180. The remote controller 160 can be attached to the air supply tube 180 via a detachable attachment (not shown). As an example, the detachable attachment includes a pedestal section to which the back side of the remote controller 160 is fixed, and a snap fit section detachably attached to the peripheral surface of the tube section 182. The snap fit portion is formed, for example, in a C-shape having a notch and partially surrounding the tube portion 182, and is attached to and removed from the tube portion 182 through the gap between the notch.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 9(b), a lighting device 190 is provided near the distal end 184 of the air supply tube 180 in this embodiment to illuminate the inside of the patient's oral cavity to which air is supplied from the air supply nozzle 186. There is. The lighting device 190 includes, for example, a main body portion 192 that accommodates a battery, and an illumination portion 194 that accommodates a light source such as a white LED (white light emitting diode), a lens, and a reflector. For example, in the lighting device 190, when the lighting section 194 is rotated by a predetermined angle in a predetermined direction around the longitudinal axis of the lighting device 190 with respect to the main body section 192, the light source of the lighting section 194 is turned on, and then the light source is turned on in the opposite direction. The light source of the illumination unit 194 is configured to turn off when rotated in the direction to the original position. When the illumination unit 194 is turned on, the illumination device 190 can illuminate the inside of the patient's oral cavity by irradiating light from a light source in front of the air supply nozzle 186 (upward in the paper of FIG. 9(a)).

As an example, the lighting device 190 has a main body portion 192 fixed to a base portion of the detachable attachment (not shown). In the illustrated example, the lighting device 190 is arranged on the side surface of the air supply tube 180, but the arrangement position of the lighting device 190 with respect to the air supply tube 180 is not limited to this.

FIG. 10 shows a dental visit treatment unit 100 in which the air supply tube 180 shown in FIG. 9 is housed in the casing 110 shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the outer panel of the device with the outer panel removed. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the air delivery tube 180 is housed within the upper portion 110b of the housing 110 above the intermediate plate 116b. The air supply tube 180 bends a flexible tube portion 182 so as to spiral around the support portion 124 of the chair 120 (see FIG. 6, etc.) below the seating portion 122 of the chair 120. Accordingly, it is possible to accommodate it within the upper portion 110b of the housing 110. When the air supply tube 180 is housed in the housing 110 in this manner, a detachable attachment (not shown) provided with the remote controller 160 and the lighting device 190 may remain attached to the air supply tube 180, or the detachable attachment may be left attached to the air supply tube 180. may be removed from the air supply tube 180 and housed in the upper portion 110b of the housing 110, or may be housed in the drawer accommodating part 142 of the accommodating part 140.

(Example of use and advantages of the dental visit treatment unit of this embodiment)
Next, examples of use and advantages of the dental visit treatment unit 100 of this embodiment will be explained.

Before going to a home visit, a dentist or the like stores the air supply tube 180 and other instruments in the housing 110, and fixes the lower part 110a and the upper part 110b of the housing 110 using any of the above-mentioned fixing means. The dental visiting treatment unit 100 is fixed and transported to the visiting treatment destination. This prevents the lower part 110a and upper part 110b of the casing 110 from separating when the dental visit treatment unit 100 is transported, and the air tube 180, instruments, etc. housed in the casing 110 to be scattered to the outside. can be prevented.

At a home-visit clinic, the dental home-visit clinic unit 100 is placed, for example, on a futon or bed where a patient is sleeping, or beside a chair where a patient is sitting, at a position where a dentist or the like is seated when performing medical treatment. Placed. After the placement position of the dental visit treatment unit 100 is determined, the dentist or the like removes the fixing means fixing the lower part 110a and the upper part 110b of the housing 110, and The upper part 110b is removed from the housing 110, the lower part 110a is opened, and the upper part 110b is placed on the side of the lower part 110a of the housing 110. At this time, among the outer panels 112a that cover the lower part 110a of the housing 110, the outer panel 112a installed on the front side shown in FIG. Instruments and the like stored in the drawer housing section 142 may be taken out.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the dental visiting treatment unit 100 shown in FIG. 10 with the upper part 110b of the casing 110 removed and the outer panel 112a on the front side of the lower part 110a of the casing 110 removed. It is. When the upper part 110b of the casing 110 is removed and the lower part 110a of the casing 110 is opened as shown in FIG. (See FIG. 2, etc.) The air supply tube 180 accommodated in a spiral manner is exposed. The dentist or the like takes out the air supply tube 180 from the housing 110 and temporarily places the air supply tube 180 on the upper surface of the upper part 110b placed on the side of the lower part 110a of the housing 110, for example. Place it. In this way, the upper surface of the upper portion 110b can be used as a place to place various instruments used for medical treatment.

FIG. 12 shows how the height of the seat 122 of the chair 120 is adjusted. Next, as shown in FIG. 12, the dentist or the like sits on the seating section 122 with the lever 124c provided on the support section 124 of the chair 120 flipped upward, and increases the height of the seating section 122 while putting their weight on it. The height of the seating portion 122 is adjusted by adjusting the amount of protrusion of the support column 124b from the cylinder portion 124a. The height of the seating part 122 of the chair 120 is the lowest height (solid line in FIG. 12) at which the seating part 122 is accommodated in the housing 110 when the dental visit treatment unit 100 is transported, and the support from the cylinder part 124a. It is adjustable between the highest height (dotted line in FIG. 12) at which 124b protrudes to the maximum extent. After adjusting the height of the seating portion 122 to the dentist's desired height, the dentist or the like adjusts the amount of protrusion of the support portion 124b from the cylinder portion 124a to the desired amount by returning the lever 124c to its original position. The height of the seating portion 122 can be fixed by fixing the height of the seating portion 122 in a fixed state.

Next, the dentist or the like removes the air supply tube 180 placed on the upper surface of the upper portion 110b, and inserts the proximal end 188 (see FIG. 9) of the air supply tube 180 into the air supply tube that protrudes from the side surface of the housing 110. If the air nozzle 186 is not attached to the tip 184 of the air tube 180, the air nozzle 186 is attached to the tip 184 of the air tube 180, and the remote controller 160 and the illumination device 190 is not attached to the air supply tube 180, the detachable attachment is attached near the tip 184 of the air supply tube 180 as shown in FIG. 9(b). do. This completes the attachment of the air feeding tube 180 to the air feeding unit 130 and the preparation before use of the air feeding tube 180.

Furthermore, the dentist or the like may also check other instruments housed in the accommodating portion 140 etc. in the housing 110 of the unit 100 for dental home visits, as well as instruments for dental treatment carried separately from the unit 100 for dental home visits. In some cases, they are taken out and set in a state where they can be used for medical treatment, etc. With the above steps, the preparation of the dental visit treatment unit 100 and other instruments for performing medical treatment etc. is completed.

Subsequently, the dentist or the like performs medical treatment on the patient using the air supply tube 180 and various instruments. The dentist or the like first operates the illumination device 190 attached to the distal end portion 184 of the air supply tube 180 as described above to turn on the illumination section 194 . A dentist or the like grasps the distal end 184 of the air supply tube 180 together with the remote controller 160 with one hand. At this time, it is preferable to grip the remote controller 160 so that the ventral side of the thumb of one hand is positioned above the button 162 of the remote controller 160. Then, the dentist or the like uses the other hand to grasp a handpiece used for medical treatment or an instrument such as a toothbrush used for oral care.

The dentist or the like illuminates the patient's oral cavity with light emitted from the illumination device 190 provided at the distal end 184 of the air tube 180 held in one hand, while holding the instrument held in the other hand. Medical treatment, etc. for patients is carried out using the medical equipment. At this time, the dentist or the like may use the upper portion 110b as a table for placing instruments and place instruments on the upper surface of the upper portion 110b.

Dental lighting devices like those installed in dental clinics are not usually provided at visiting clinics, and in general, when performing medical treatment at visiting clinics, a flashlight is used to illuminate the inside of a patient's mouth. Illumination is being carried out. In that case, when using an air tube at a visiting clinic, after blowing air through the air tube to dry the affected area in the patient's mouth, switch from the air tube to a flashlight to illuminate the inside of the patient's mouth. It is necessary to visually check the condition of the affected area, and if necessary, switch to an air supply tube again to supply air to the affected area, which requires time and effort for medical treatment. On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, since the illumination device 190 is provided at the distal end 184 of the air supply tube 180, the inside of the patient's oral cavity is illuminated by the illumination device 190 so that a dentist or the like can visually inspect the inside of the oral cavity. The air can be supplied with the air supply tube 180 while checking the air supply, and even when performing medical treatment using an instrument held in the other hand, the illumination device 190 can be used to directly supply air to the oral cavity without changing the air supply tube 180. Since the tube can be illuminated, the effort and time required for medical treatment can be reduced compared to the case where it is necessary to switch between the air supply tube and the flashlight.

Switching on/off of the air supply from the air supply tube 180 and adjusting the strength of the air supply can be performed by operating the button 162 of the remote controller 160 to operate the air supply unit 130, as described above. In this embodiment, the air supply unit 130 and the remote controller 160 are configured to communicate wirelessly as described above, and a conductive wire for electrically connecting the air supply unit 130 and the remote controller 160 is not provided. do not have. If the air supply unit and the remote controller are electrically connected using a conductive wire, it becomes complicated to route the conductive wire when using the air supply unit 130, and it is difficult to operate the remote controller to apply current to the conductive wire. When flowing, unintended electromagnetic noise is emitted from the conductive wires, which may cause malfunction of medical equipment installed at the visiting clinic, or even cause electric shock to patients due to current leakage from the conductive wires. There is. In contrast, in this embodiment, the air supply unit 130 and the remote controller 160 are connected wirelessly, so the possibility of the above situation occurring can be eliminated.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, when a dentist or the like operates the button 162 of the remote controller 160 to turn on the air supply operation in the air supply unit 130, the operation signal transmitted from the remote controller 160 is , is received by the communication section 136b of the air supply unit 130, and inputted from the communication section 136b to the drive control circuit 136a. The drive control circuit 136a supplies power from the power battery 138 to the electric motor 132b of the intake section 132 in accordance with the input operation signal. The electric motor 132b supplied with electric power rotates and rotates the intake fan 132a. As a result, air outside the air supply unit 130 is sucked into the storage space 131 of the air supply unit 130 through the air purifying filter 132c of the air intake section 132. When the external air passes through the air purifying filter 132c, dust and the like are removed, and the external air is sucked into the storage space 131 in a purified state.

The air sucked into the storage space 131 is discharged from the storage space 131 of the air supply unit 130 through the air supply port 134. An air purifying filter 134a is provided inside the storage space 131 of the air supply port 134, and the air in the storage space 131 passes through the air purifying filter 134a, and is purified by further removing dust and the like. The air is exhausted from the air supply port 134.

As described above, since the air supply port 134 is connected to the base end 188 of the air supply tube 180, the air discharged from the air supply port 134 flows from the base end 188 of the air supply tube 180 to the tube section 182. and is discharged through an air delivery nozzle 186 in the tip 184. A dentist or the like appropriately sends air discharged from the air nozzle 186 of the air feeding tube 180 into the patient's oral cavity. As described above, the air discharged from the air supply nozzle 186 of the tip portion 184 is purified through the air purifying filter 132c on the side of the intake section 132 in the air supply unit 130 and the air purifying filter 134a on the side of the air supply port 134. This allows clean air to be supplied to the patient's oral cavity.

As described above, the dentist or the like can adjust the rotational speed of the electric motor 132b depending on how long the button 162 of the remote controller 160 is pressed and the number of times the button 162 is quickly clicked. Moreover, when stopping the air supply from the air supply tube 180, the button 162 of the remote controller 160 is operated to turn off the rotational drive of the electric motor 132b. In response to these various button operations, operation signals are sent from the remote controller 160 to the communication section 136b of the air supply unit 130, and the drive control circuit 136a adjusts or stops the rotational speed of the electric motor 132b in response to these operation signals. conduct.

As described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, the air supply unit 130 in this embodiment includes a power battery 138 therein, and the electric motor 132b is driven by the power supplied from the power battery 138. Therefore, the dental visiting treatment unit 100 of this embodiment can operate the air supply unit 130 without using an external power source such as a household AC 100 volt power source. If the air supply unit 130 of the dental home visit treatment unit 100 is configured to rely on an external power source, for example, if the home visit site is a disaster evacuation site (a community center, school gymnasium, outdoor tent, etc.), the air supply unit 130 of the dental home visit treatment unit 100 may be Since it is difficult to obtain electric power, there is a possibility that the air supply unit 130 cannot be operated. The air supply unit 130 can be operated even in places or environments where air supply is not available.

In addition to the power supply battery 138 described above as a power source, the air supply unit 130 in this embodiment may include an external power receiving unit for receiving power from an external power source such as a household AC 100 volt power source. . As a result, in a place or environment where power can be supplied from an external power source, the air supply unit 130 can be operated by receiving power from an external power source such as a household AC 100 volt power source.

After completing the medical treatment at the home visit, the dentist or the like returns the dental home visit medical treatment unit 100 to a state in which it can be transported, in a procedure that is generally the reverse of the above. More specifically, the seat 122 of the chair 120 is lowered to the lowest position shown in FIGS. The upper part 110b of the housing 110 is integrated with the lower part 110a as shown in FIG. ．． 124a, if any, are attached to the housing 110, and then the upper portion 110b and the lower portion 110a of the housing 110 are fixed using any fixing means. Thereby, the dental home visit treatment unit 100 returns to the state it was in when it was transported to the home visit treatment place, and can be taken out from the home visit treatment place.

[Modified example]
<First modification example>
Here, a first modification of the dental visit treatment unit 100 of this embodiment will be described. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a first modified example of the unit for dental visit treatment of this embodiment.

A dental visit treatment unit 100' of a modified example shown in FIG. 13 includes a caster section 126 provided with a plurality of casters 126a at the bottom of the chair 120. In the illustrated example, the support part 124' of the chair 120 in this modification extends downward through the flange part 125 and the bottom plate 116a of the housing 110, and the caster part 126 is fixed to the lower surface of the support part 124'. has been done. The flange portion 125 is fixed to the support portion 124' by welding or the like, and is further fixed to the bottom plate 116a using fasteners such as bolts and nuts.

The casters 126a provided near the end of each leg 126b of the caster portion 126 follow the direction of movement of the dental visit treatment unit 100' placed on the floor or the like. These are so-called swivel casters that are configured so that the direction of travel can be changed. In FIG. 12, two casters 126a are drawn near both ends of the caster part 126 for simplicity of illustration, but the caster parts 126 are arranged radially at equal intervals in the radial direction from the central axis of the support part 124'. It has at least three extending legs 126b.

The dental home visit treatment unit 100' shown in FIG. 13 is drawn in the same manner as the dental home visit treatment unit 100 shown in FIG. 6, and the dental home visit treatment unit 100' of this modification is particularly described above. The configuration other than the above configuration is the same as the configuration of each part of the dental visit treatment unit 100 shown in FIG. 6 and the like.

According to this modification, the dental visit treatment unit 100' can be moved by placing the plurality of casters 126a of the caster portion 126 on a floor surface or the like and rolling it. Therefore, the unit 100' for dental home visit treatment can be transported to the home visit treatment site without having to be carried or carried on one's back, and the dentist or the like can remain seated on the chair 120 while performing treatment. Since the lower portion 110a can be moved together, the burden on dentists and the like regarding the movement of the unit 100' for dental home visits can be reduced.

<Second modification example>
Next, a second modification of the dental visit treatment unit 100 of this embodiment will be described. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a second modification of the dental visit treatment unit of this embodiment.

In the modified example of the dental visit treatment unit 100'' shown in FIG. A hinge 118 is provided that connects the upper portion 110a and the upper portion 110b.The hinge 118 is, for example, a so-called flat hinge in which two plate members are rotatably connected to each other around a single rotating shaft. One of the two plate members of the flat hinge-like hinge 118 is fixed to the outer plate on the side surface of the lower portion 110a, and the other is fixed to the outer plate on the side surface of the upper portion 110b. The hinge 118 has two plate members that can rotate relative to each other around its own rotation axis, and accordingly, the lower part 110a and the upper part of the casing 110 connected via the hinge 118 The portions 110b are rotatable relative to each other about the axis of rotation of the hinge 118.

The configuration of the unit 100'' for dental home visit treatment shown in FIG. 14 other than the configuration specifically explained above is the same as the configuration of each part of the unit 100 for dental home visit treatment shown in FIG. 1 etc.

As shown in FIG. 14A, from the state where the upper part 110b is closed with respect to the lower part 110a of the housing 110, the upper part 110b is moved about 180 degrees relative to the lower part 110a about the rotation axis of the hinge 118. When the housing 110 is rotated to an angle of 100 degrees, the upper part 110b of the housing 110 is opened relative to the lower part 110a, as shown in FIG. 14(b). In addition, on the contrary, from the state where the upper part 110b of the housing 110 is opened with respect to the lower part 110a as shown in FIG. When the housing 110 is rotated at an angle of approximately 180 degrees in the opposite direction with respect to the side portion 110a, the upper portion 110b of the housing 110 is closed relative to the lower portion 110a of the housing 110, as shown in FIG. 14(a). In this way, also in this modification, the upper part 110b of the housing 110 is configured to be openable and closable with respect to the lower part 110a.

As shown in FIG. 14(b), when the upper portion 110b of the housing 110 is open with respect to the lower portion 110a, a posture is maintained in which the inside of the upper portion 110b faces upward. A dentist or the like may temporarily place instruments used for medical treatment inside the upper portion 110b while performing medical treatment at a visiting clinic.

Although the embodiments and modifications thereof according to the present invention have been described above, they can be implemented in various other forms, and can be implemented with various omissions, substitutions, and changes. These embodiments and modifications, as well as omissions, substitutions, and changes, are included within the technical scope of the claims and their equivalents.

100, 100', 100" Dental visiting medical unit 110 Housing 120 Chair 130 Air supply unit 140 Housing section 160 Remote controller 180 Air supply tube 190 Lighting device

Claims (8)

an air supply unit having an intake section that sucks air from the outside, and an air supply port that discharges the air sucked by the intake section;
an air supply tube having an air supply nozzle attached to one end for supplying air into the patient's oral cavity, and the other end connected to the air supply port of the air supply unit;
a chair having a seating portion;
a casing that accommodates at least the air supply unit, the air supply tube, and the chair;
Equipped with
The casing is a unit for dental home visit treatment, wherein a part of the casing is configured to be openable and closable with respect to another part of the casing so as to expose the seating part of the chair. The dental visit treatment unit according to claim 1, wherein the chair includes a support portion that supports the seating portion so that the height of the seating portion can be adjusted. The dental visit treatment unit according to claim 2, wherein the air supply tube is housed in the housing below the seating portion of the chair so as to go around the support portion. The dental clinic according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a lighting device that illuminates the front of the air supply nozzle is configured to be mounted near the one end of the air supply tube. Visiting medical unit. The intake section of the air supply unit includes an intake fan that sucks air and an electric motor that rotates the intake fan,
The unit for dental home visit treatment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the air supply unit further includes a power supply battery that supplies power to rotate the electric motor. The dental visit treatment unit further includes a remote controller that operates the air supply unit via wireless communication,
The dental visit according to claim 5, wherein the air supply unit further includes a control unit that receives an operation signal transmitted from the remote controller and controls rotational drive of the electric motor according to the operation signal. Medical unit. The dental visit treatment unit according to claim 6, wherein the remote controller is configured to be mounted near the one end of the air supply tube. The dental visit treatment unit according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein a caster portion having a plurality of casters is provided at the bottom of the casing.

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