JP3205764U - Probe holder for photobiological measurement - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a probe holder for optical biometric measurement in which a problem caused by a collapse of the shape of a probe holder due to loosening of a fastening part is prevented. A plurality of sockets (2) for inserting and holding transmission / reception probes (6, 7) in a cylindrical hole of a cylindrical body (22) having a flange portion (21) on one end side, and at least two connecting holes (14) are formed and are flexible. A plurality of holder parts 11 and a fastening part 4 for clamping the holder part 11 in cooperation with the flange 21 of the socket 2. The holder part 11 is inserted into the connecting hole 14 of the holder part 11. Are connected to each other, and the socket 2 is supported at a predetermined interval, and is connected so as to be rotatable in a tangential plane of the surface of the object to be measured to form a net-like body. A bamboo shoot-like concavo-convex surface 23 is formed, and the fastening part 4 is formed of an annular component having an inner diameter that can be tightly fitted to the bamboo shoot-like concavo-convex surface 23. [Selection] Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a probe holder for optical biological measurement used when optical measurement inside a living body is performed by bringing a plurality of light transmitting probes and light receiving probes into close contact with a body surface such as a scalp.

In the living body, when oxygen is consumed by exercise, oxygen is supplied to the exercise site by blood flow redistribution. For example, when oxygen is consumed by brain activity in the brain, oxygen supply more than necessary is performed, and as a result, the amount of oxyhemoglobin in the blood increases at the activated site in the brain.
On the other hand, near-infrared light passes through bone tissue such as skin tissue and skull, and has different absorption spectrum characteristics with respect to oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin in blood.

  Therefore, near-infrared light is irradiated into the living body from a light-transmitting probe placed on the scalp, and the measurement light emitted from the living body after being absorbed and scattered in the brain is detected by a light-receiving probe placed on the scalp. Thus, the amount of oxyhemoglobin and the amount of deoxyhemoglobin at the measurement site in the brain can be measured, and a brain function measuring apparatus for measuring the brain activity state noninvasively using this principle has been put into practical use. In addition, since noninvasive measurement of living bodies other than the brain is possible, it is called an optical biometric apparatus in a broad sense.

The relationship between the probe interval between the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe in the optical biometric apparatus and the measurement site of the brain will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view showing the relationship between a pair of light-transmitting probes and light-receiving probes and the measurement site of the brain, and FIG. 6B is a plan view of FIG.
The light transmitting probe 12 is pressed against the light transmitting point T on the scalp surface of the subject, and the light receiving probe 13 is pressed against the light receiving point R on the scalp surface of the subject. And while irradiating light from the light transmission probe 12, the light reception probe 13 is made to detect the light discharge | released from the scalp surface. At this time, among the light irradiated from the light transmission point T on the scalp surface, the light passing through the banana shape (measurement region) reaches the light receiving point R on the scalp surface. As a result, in the measurement region, the light transmitting point T and the light receiving point R are particularly determined from the midpoint M of the line L connecting the light transmitting point T and the light receiving point R at the shortest distance along the scalp surface of the subject. Received light amount information (oxyhemoglobin concentration, deoxyhemoglobin concentration, and further calculated from these, depth L / 2 of half the distance of the line connected at the shortest distance along the scalp surface of the subject The total hemoglobin concentration) is most reflected, and is acquired as measurement data with this part S as a measurement point.

  In the optical biometric apparatus (brain function measuring apparatus), a large number of light transmitting probes and light receiving probes are prepared, and the probes are arranged on the scalp in a mesh shape (or lattice shape) using a probe holder. The brain activity state is imaged by irradiating near-infrared light into the living body, acquiring in-vivo information contained in the measuring light from many measurement points, and imaging the brain activity distribution. ing.

  In the light transmitting probe and the light receiving probe used in the optical biometric apparatus, since the distal end surface of the optical fiber is a light irradiation surface or a light receiving surface, for example, when performing brain function measurement, the distal end surface is closely attached to the scalp. If the tip surface is lifted off the scalp, accurate measurement data cannot be obtained.

  By the way, there are various differences (gender difference, age difference, individual difference) in the shape of the head of the subject, and the curvature and shape of the head are different for each subject. For this reason, the optimal overall shape of the probe holder to which the probe is attached differs slightly from subject to subject, and when a fixed probe holder with a certain shape is used for all subjects, the head of each subject It is difficult to make all the probe tips closely contact each other. Therefore, it has been desired for the probe holder to be able to adjust the mounting position of the probe in accordance with the curvature and shape of the head of each subject.

  From this point of view, as a probe holder that can be adjusted according to the curvature and shape of the head of the subject, a plurality of sockets in which holes for mounting probes one by one are formed, and the outer periphery of each socket is formed. A fastening nut to be screwed onto the male screw, and a linear holder part that supports the pair of sockets by connecting them at a constant interval (the interval is determined by the depth from the body surface to the measurement point). A probe holder configured to connect sockets in a mesh shape is disclosed (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the components of the probe holder described in Patent Documents 1 and 2. 8A and 8B are views for explaining the socket portion in a state where the components shown in FIG. 7 are assembled. FIG. 8A is a plan view and FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of the probe holder in which the components shown in FIG. 7 are assembled.
The probe holder B includes a linear holder part 11 having appropriate flexibility, a socket 15 having a cylindrical hole 17, and a nut 16. Connection holes 14 and 14 are formed at both ends of the holder part 11, and a socket 15 is inserted into the connection hole 14. A male screw is machined on the outer periphery of the socket 15 and is screwed into a female screw (not shown) of the nut 16. A female screw (not shown) is machined on the inner circumference of the cylindrical hole 17 of the socket 15, and a probe 18 with a male screw machined on the outer circumferential surface is screwed into the cylindrical hole 17.

  Then, one connection hole 14 of each of the two holder parts 11 is overlapped, a socket 15 into which the probe 18 is screwed is inserted into the overlapped connection hole 14, and the nut 16 is sandwiched between the two holder parts 11. By tightening with, the holder part 11 is connected. The angle formed by the two holder parts 11 can be adjusted by loosening the tightening of the socket 15 and the nut 16 so that the angle can be adjusted. It can be set as the probe holder B of the net-like body hold | maintained in the state which made the whole shape correspond.

  When the probe holder B having a mesh shape is attached to the head, a belt 19 for wrapping around the head and a fixing member (for example, a hook) 20 that is detachably fixed to the holder part 11 located in the vicinity of the belt 19. And are used as wearing tools.

  The holder part 11, the socket 15, and the nut 16 of the probe holder B described above are formed of resin (for example, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, polyacetal, etc.). In addition, the holder part 11 has flexibility but is not stretchable, so that appropriate flexibility for matching the curvature of the head can be obtained, and between the adjacent sockets 15 and 15. The distance can be kept constant.

JP 2007-111407 A JP 2004-313741 A

  In an optical biometric device that measures the brain function by placing a light transmitting probe and a light receiving probe on the scalp, it is desirable to obtain a wide range of in-vivo internal information at a large number of measurement points. There are many. In the brain function measurement, measurement may be performed while applying a load such as exercise, and the measurement may be continued in a state in which vibration or external force is applied to the probe holder during measurement. Furthermore, it is rare that the measurement is completed only once in a short time, and the measurement is often repeated over a period of time.

  Therefore, when the probe holder B is set on the head before the measurement is started, even if the male screw of the socket 15 and the female screw of the nut 16 are firmly fastened, the nut is gradually affected by vibration and external force during measurement. 16 may loosen and the shape of the probe holder B may collapse. In some cases, the nut 16 itself may fall off or be lost. The probability that the trouble caused by the looseness of the nut 16 occurs as the number of probes to be attached increases.

Furthermore, when the shape of the probe holder B is broken, the tip of the probe 18 attached to the socket 15 is lifted from the scalp, which may hinder measurement.
In view of this, an object of the present invention is to provide a probe holder for optical biometric measurement in which a problem caused by a collapse of the shape of the probe holder due to loosening of a fastening nut is prevented.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention takes the following technical means. That is, the probe holder according to the present invention comprises a cylindrical body having a flange on one end side, and a plurality of sockets for inserting and holding a light transmitting probe or a light receiving probe in the cylindrical hole of the cylindrical body, and at least a connecting hole A plurality of flexible holder parts, and a fastening part that clamps the holder parts in cooperation with a flange of the socket, and the sockets are connected to the connection holes of the holder parts. A plurality of holder parts are connected to each other, and the socket is supported at a predetermined interval, and is connected so as to be rotatable in a tangential plane of the surface of the object to be measured. A probe holder for measurement, wherein the socket is formed with a bamboo scalloped uneven surface on the outer periphery of the cylindrical body, and the fastening part is formed of an annular part having an inner diameter that can be tightly fitted to the bamboo sac uneven surface. Are you.

According to the probe holder of the present invention, a plurality of holder parts that are flexible and can change the angle with respect to the normal direction of the surface of the measurement object (for example, the head surface) by bending are measured by the socket. By connecting one after the other so that it can rotate within the tangential plane of the object surface, the curvature of the object surface (head surface) with various curvatures is irregular regardless of the curvature. Even if it changes, it is possible to form a net that ensures that the socket is in close contact with the surface of the object to be measured. And in the probe holder formed in the mesh body, the holder parts connected to the individual sockets are clamped between the flange parts of the sockets and the fastening parts.
In the probe holder of the present invention, a bamboo sac uneven surface is formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical body of the socket, and the fastening part is formed of an annular part having an inner diameter that can be tightly fitted to the bamboo sac surface.
Bamboo concavo-convex surface can fit the annular part into the concavo-convex surface with relative ease, while large resistance is generated in the direction of pulling out the annular part from the concavo-convex surface. After being inserted, the holder part and the socket are firmly fixed unless they are easily loosened and are not pulled out intentionally.
Therefore, it does not loosen and drop off due to vibration or the like as in the case of fastening with a conventional nut, and it is possible to prevent the shape of the probe holder of the mesh body from collapsing.
In addition, the bamboo-like uneven surface can be manufactured by resin molding and is easy to manufacture.

Here, the holder part may be linear, and one connecting hole may be formed at each end.
By making a linear holder part having one connection hole at each end, each adjacent socket is connected so as to be rotatable within the tangential plane of the surface of the object to be measured. Can be configured.

The fastening part may be a rubber annular part having adhesiveness.
Due to the adhesiveness of the rubber, it can be more firmly adhered to the bamboo worm-like uneven surface.

  Further, a probe holder according to the present invention made from another viewpoint is composed of a cylindrical body having a flange on one end side, and a plurality of sockets for inserting and holding a light transmitting probe or a light receiving probe in a cylindrical hole of the cylindrical body A plurality of holder parts having at least two connecting holes and having flexibility, and fastening parts for clamping the holder parts in cooperation with the flanges of the sockets. The socket is inserted into the connection hole to connect the plurality of holder parts to each other, and the socket is supported at a predetermined interval, and is connected to be rotatable in a tangential plane of the surface of the measurement object. A probe holder for photobiological measurement that constitutes a body, wherein the socket has an irregular surface with a saw-toothed cross section on the outer periphery of the cylindrical body, and an annular inner diameter that allows the fastening component to be closely fitted to the irregular surface Formed with parts It is so.

The assembly exploded view which shows a part of probe holder which concerns on this invention. The whole figure which shows the use condition of the probe holder which concerns on this invention. The front view and sectional drawing of the socket shown in FIG. The front view and sectional drawing of the annular component shown in FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the assembly state of the probe holder which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows the relationship between a pair of light transmission probe and light reception probe, and a brain measurement site | part. Explanatory drawing which shows the component of the conventional probe holder. Explanatory drawing of the socket part in the assembly state of the component shown in FIG. The whole block diagram of the probe holder in the assembly state of the component shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the probe holder of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an exploded view showing a part of a probe holder A according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an overall view showing a use state of the probe holder A. FIG.
The probe holder A includes a holder part 11, a socket 2, and an annular part 4, and a reticulate body is formed by assembling a plurality of these.
The probe holder A assembled into a net-like body is mounted on the head by a mounting tool comprising a belt 19 for winding around the head and a fixing member (for example, hook) 20 as in the conventional example. . In addition, about the mounting tool for mounting | wearing on a head, things other than this may be sufficient.

  The holder part 11 of the probe holder A is the same as the conventional one, and a connecting hole 14 having a size to fit the socket 2 is formed at both ends. Specifically, the holder part 11 is made of polypropylene having a width of about 2 cm and a thickness of about 0.1 mm and having flexibility in the thickness direction, and does not have stretchability in order to keep the distance between the probes constant. The distance between the connecting holes 14 and 14 (channel length between the probes) is about 3 cm.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the socket 2 and shows a half on one side in a sectional view. FIG. 4 is a front view of the annular component 4, and shows a half on one side in a cross-sectional view as in FIG.
The socket 2 includes a cylindrical body 22 having a flange 21 formed on one end (lower end) side. On the outer peripheral surface from the end (upper end) on the side opposite to the flange portion 21 of the cylindrical body 22 to the vicinity of the center height, after the annular component 4 is externally fitted to this portion, resistance is obtained when the annular component 4 is pulled out. A “bamboo shoot-like” concavo-convex surface 23 is formed. This uneven surface has a convex surface that is connected once in the circumferential direction, and has a saw-toothed cross section, similar to a bamboo fitting.
A flat surface 24 on which the holder part 11 is fitted is formed below the bamboo concavo-convex surface 23. The height of the flat surface 24 is set such that two to four holder parts 11 are fitted from the lower part of the bamboo concavo-convex surface 23 to the flat surface 24 so that the annular part 4 can be externally fitted thereon. is there.
Further, a groove 25a is formed in the cylindrical hole 25 of the socket 2 so that protrusions 6c and 7c of the probes 6 and 7 to be described later are engaged.

  The annular component 4 is made of a material having adhesiveness (elasticity) such as a rubber ring such as silicon rubber or a Tygon (registered trademark) tube. In the case of using a long tube material such as a rubber tube or a Tygon tube, it can be used as the annular part 4 by making a ring shape into a ring shape. The inner diameter of the annular part 4 is such that it can be fitted onto the bamboo concavo-convex surface 23 of the socket 2, and when it is pulled out from the fitted state, a sufficient resistance is generated due to adhesiveness and firmly fixed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the light transmitting probe 6 and the light receiving probe 7, probe terminals 6b and 7b are fixed around the tip portions of the small-diameter optical fiber main bodies 6a and 7a. The probe terminals 6 b and 7 b have an outer diameter that can be fitted into the cylindrical hole 25 so that the light transmitting probe 6 and the light receiving probe 7 can be fixed in the cylindrical hole 25 of the socket 2. Further, protrusions 6c and 7c are formed on the outer peripheral surfaces of the probe terminals 6b and 7b, and are engaged with the groove 25a when inserted into the cylindrical hole 25 of the socket 2, and the front end surfaces of the optical fiber main bodies 6a and 7a. Coincides with the lower end surface of the socket 2 and positions in the circumferential direction and the height direction are determined.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the holder part 11 is fixed by the socket 2 and the annular part 4 to constitute the probe holder A, and the light transmitting probe 6 (or the light receiving probe 7) is inserted. The connecting holes 14 and 14 of the two holder parts 11 and 11 are overlapped with each other, the cylindrical body 22 of the socket 2 is inserted into the connecting holes 14 and 14, and the distal end side of the cylindrical body 22 is opposite through the connecting holes 14 and 14. Try to stick out to the side. Then, the annular part 4 is pushed into the bamboo concavo-convex surface 23 of the protruding cylindrical body 22 and is closely fitted. Since the resistance of the bamboo-like uneven surface 23 is small when the annular part 4 is pushed in, the holder part 11, 11 is sandwiched between the annular part 4 and the flange part 21 by pressing firmly until it comes into contact with the holder part 11.

When the annular part 4 is tightly fitted to the bamboo concavo-convex surface 23, a large resistance is generated in the direction of pulling out the annular part 4 from the bamboo concavo-convex surface 23. It does not loosen easily.
As a result, the annular part 4 is not loosened and dropped off due to the adhesiveness (elasticity) of the annular part 4 to the bamboo-like uneven surface 23. Further, since the holder part 11 is firmly fixed, the shape of the probe holder does not collapse, and the measurer can face the measurement with peace of mind even when measuring for a long time.

Although typical examples of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the above-described embodiments.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, only the linear holder part 11 having the connection holes 14 formed at both ends is used, but the shape in which three or more connection holes for attaching the socket 2 are provided at a certain distance is provided. These holder parts may be used in combination. Specifically, each of the four linear portions extending in a cross shape has a connecting hole at the center and called the “cross member” in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-111407. A net-shaped body may be formed by using a holder part having a special shape in which a connecting hole is formed at a crossing portion and a total of five connecting holes for attaching probes are formed together with the holder part 11 of the present invention.
In short, it is a holder part having flexibility, and at least two connecting holes are formed at a certain distance, and a probe can be attached to the connecting hole using the socket 2 and the annular part 4. Can be used together.

  The probe holder of the present invention can be used for purposes other than wearing a head as long as the probe is attached to the body surface and optically measures the inside of the living body.

  The present invention can be used as a probe holder for photobiological measurement.

A Probe holder 2 Socket 4 Ring part (fastening part)
6 Light-transmitting probe 7 Light-receiving probe 6a, 7a Optical fiber main body 6b, 7b Probe terminal 6c, 7c Projection 11 Holder part 14 Connection hole 21 Hook 22 Cylindrical body 23 Bamboo-concave surface 24 Flat surface 25 Cylindrical hole 25a

Claims (4)

A plurality of sockets comprising a cylindrical body having a flange on one end side, and inserting and holding a light transmitting probe or a light receiving probe in the cylindrical hole of the cylindrical body;
A plurality of holder parts having at least two connecting holes and having flexibility;
A fastening part for clamping the holder part in cooperation with the flange of the socket;
The socket is inserted into the connection holes of the plurality of holder parts to connect the plurality of holder parts to each other, and the socket is supported at a predetermined interval and can be rotated in a tangential plane of the surface of the measurement object. A probe holder for photobiological measurement that is connected to the network to form a net-like body,
The socket has a bamboo-like uneven surface formed on the outer periphery of the cylinder,
The probe holder for optical biometric measurement, wherein the fastening part is formed of an annular part having an inner diameter capable of being fitted into the bamboo shoot-like uneven surface.   The probe holder for photobiological measurement according to claim 1, wherein the holder part has a linear shape, and one connection hole is formed at each end.   The probe holder for photobiological measurement according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the fastening part is a rubber annular part having adhesiveness. A plurality of sockets comprising a cylindrical body having a flange on one end side, and inserting and holding a light transmitting probe or a light receiving probe in the cylindrical hole of the cylindrical body;
A plurality of holder parts having at least two connecting holes and having flexibility;
A fastening part for clamping the holder part in cooperation with the flange of the socket;
The socket is inserted into the connection holes of the plurality of holder parts to connect the plurality of holder parts to each other, and the socket is supported at a predetermined interval and can be rotated in a tangential plane of the surface of the measurement object. A probe holder for photobiological measurement that is connected to the network to form a net-like body,
The socket has an uneven surface with a sawtooth cross section on the outer periphery of the cylinder,
The probe holder for photobiological measurement, wherein the fastening part is formed of an annular part having an inner diameter capable of being closely fitted to the uneven surface.

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