JP3626176B1 - Electroencephalogram detection electrode and headset type electroencephalogram measurement apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

In brain wave measurement, it is possible to measure brain waves including alpha waves generated from the back of the head, and the electrodes can be placed on the head without contaminating the user's hair with a conductive paste or the like, and the hair is disturbed. Realization of an electroencephalogram detection electrode and a headset-type electroencephalogram measurement device that can be easily attached and detached without incident.
SOLUTION: A base plate 1 and a plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 formed integrally with or fixed to the base plate 1 are formed, and the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 has a distal end on the outer peripheral side of a curved portion. The plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 have a plane including an inverted U-shape, and each of the plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 has a substantially plate shape or tapered shape having a thickness of 0.8 mm or less, and a leg portion having a substantially cylindrical shape or substantially prismatic shape having a diameter of 0.8 mm or more. The electroencephalogram detection electrodes are arranged so as to be substantially parallel to each other or on the same plane, a frame that is detachable from the head, and the electroencephalogram detection electrodes that are arranged on the frame. The problem has been solved by a headset type electroencephalogram measuring apparatus characterized in that the electroencephalogram detection electrode is located in the back of the head.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an electroencephalogram detection electrode and a headset type electroencephalogram measurement apparatus.

  Conventionally, as an electrode mounting method in electroencephalogram measurement, a method of attaching an electrode on a scalp using an adhesive, a method of using a rubber head band to hold an electrode in a predetermined position, or a plurality of electrodes For example, there is a method of wearing a dedicated head cap in which is disposed. These methods are troublesome to wear, and are accompanied by disturbance of the hair when attaching and detaching. Moreover, since these require an electrically conductive paste when the electrode is brought into contact with the scalp having scalp hair, the hair must be soiled.

  As a method for solving these problems, a method using a headband in which two to three electrodes are placed in contact with the user's forehead, or glasses arranged in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-014787 are arranged. There are methods. Since these are systems in which the electrode is brought into contact with the frontal head without hair, the hair is not soiled by the conductive paste or the like, and the hair is not disturbed during attachment / detachment. However, since alpha waves, which are measurement targets in many electroencephalogram measurements, are generated from the occipital region, it is impossible to perform correct measurement using electrodes disposed only in the frontal region.

  On the other hand, as a method of measuring an electroencephalogram with an electrode arranged on a headphone, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-340312 proposes a method in which an electrode is brought into close contact with the head by the elasticity of a spring. However, this does not mention the contact method or the conduction method of the electrode and scalp in the part having the hair. In contrast, JP-A-2001-187034 proposes a method in which an elastic sponge infiltrated with a conductive liquid is attached to the tip of the electrode body, and the electrode and the scalp are reliably contacted through the conductive liquid that has oozed out of the elastic sponge. ing. Although this is easy to wear, contamination of the hair by the conductive liquid is unavoidable, and when the electrode position is at the top of the head, the measurement of alpha waves is incomplete as described above.

JP 2000-014787 A, JP 2001-340312 A, JP 2001-187034 A Internet homepage (Kuwatec Co., Ltd. http://www.random-grp.com/kuwatec/Products/ibva/)

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and the problem to be solved is that in the electroencephalogram measurement, an electroencephalogram including an alpha wave generated from the back of the head can be measured, and the user can use a conductive paste or the like. An electrode for detecting an electroencephalogram and a headset type electroencephalogram measuring apparatus that can dispose the electrode on the head without contaminating the hair and can be easily attached and detached without disturbing the hair.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and the invention according to claim 1 includes a base plate 1 and a plurality of inverted U-shaped molded integrally with or fixed to the base plate 1. An electroencephalogram detection electrode made of a metal member 2. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the curved portion of the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 is substantially plate-shaped or tapered with the outer peripheral tip having a thickness of 0.8 mm or less. The portion has a substantially cylindrical shape with a diameter of 0.8 mm or more or a substantially prismatic shape with a thickness of 0.8 mm or more, and the plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 have planes including inverted U-shapes substantially parallel to each other or substantially 2. The electroencephalogram detection electrode according to claim 1, wherein the electrodes are arranged so as to be located on the same plane. The invention according to claim 3 is composed of a frame 3 detachably attached to the head and the electroencephalogram detection electrode according to claim 1 disposed on the frame 3, wherein the electroencephalogram detection electrode according to claim 1 is located in the back of the head. Is a headset-type electroencephalogram measuring device.

  In brain wave measurement, it is possible to measure brain waves including alpha waves generated from the back of the head, and it is easy to place the electrodes on the head without contaminating the user's hair with conductive paste etc. and without disturbing the hair An electrode for detecting an electroencephalogram and a headset-type electroencephalogram measuring device that can be attached to and detached from the device can be realized.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electroencephalogram detection electrode according to an embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 denotes a base plate. Reference numeral 2 denotes a plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members formed integrally with or fixed to the base plate 1. 2 is a front view, FIG. 3 is a side view, and FIG. 4 is a top view. As shown in these figures, the curved portion of the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 is substantially plate-shaped or tapered with the outer peripheral tip having a thickness of 0.8 mm or less. The portion has a substantially cylindrical shape with a diameter of 0.8 mm or more or a substantially prismatic shape with a thickness of 0.8 mm or more, and the plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 have planes including inverted U-shapes substantially parallel to each other or substantially It is arranged so that it may be located on the same plane.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the headset type electroencephalogram measuring apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. Reference numerals 1 and 2 denote the electroencephalogram detection electrodes according to claim 1, and 3 denotes a frame that is detachable from the head and indicates that the electroencephalogram detection electrodes are arranged. In this embodiment, the speaker 4 is arranged on the frame 3 and fixed to the head by the elasticity of the speaker. However, the head is sandwiched between the frame 3 without the speaker 4 or the frame 3 is a headband. A method of fixing to the part may be used. 6 is a front view, FIG. 7 is a side view, and FIG. 8 is a top view.

  The present invention is used in the following manner with the above configuration. First, the user 5 wears a headset type electroencephalogram measuring apparatus on the head in order to attach the pair of speakers 4 to both ears. At that time, the frame 3 is arranged on the occipital side so that the tip of the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 contacts the scalp of the occipital region. Since the tip of the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 has a thin plate shape, it can reach the scalp through the hair. By wearing the product of the present invention in this way, the electroencephalogram detection electrode can directly contact the scalp of the user 5 without being blocked by the hair. FIG. 9 is a side view showing an embodiment of the present invention, and shows a state in which the user 5 wears the product of the present invention as described above.

  Next, an electroencephalogram measurement is performed by connecting an electroencephalogram detection electrode and another electrode directly disposed on the user 5 or another electrode separately disposed on the product of the present invention to an electroencephalograph.

  In this embodiment, by reproducing music or the like on the speaker 1, it is possible to measure brain waves including alpha waves generated from the back of the head in order to confirm the psychological effect of the reproduced music.

  Examples of the present invention will be described in detail below. Normally, when electroencephalogram measurement is performed at a medical institution or the like, a dish-shaped silver-silver chloride electrode having a diameter of about 10 mm is placed on a subject's head at 21 locations based on the international standard 10-20 method. A method is adopted in which one or two of the 21 locations are selected as reference electrodes, and the potential difference between the reference electrode and the other electrodes is measured with an electroencephalograph connected to the electrodes. .

  In the case of this method, it takes a very long time to attach the electrodes, and the hair is soiled by the conductive paste. Therefore, this method is very inconvenient in a system for simply measuring an electroencephalogram.

  Therefore, in order to realize a method for performing electroencephalogram measurement without using a conductive paste, a headband in which the two plate-shaped electrodes are arranged in contact with two points on the forehead is created, and this is applied to the head. An electroencephalogram was measured by wearing it. The reason why the electrode is placed on the forehead is that there is no hair and the electrode can directly contact the scalp. However, the alpha wave that is always generated when the eyes are closed could not be detected.

  Therefore, a plate electrode was affixed near the base of the ear with a conductive paste, and another plate electrode was affixed to the area where the hair on the back of the head was scraped, and brain waves were measured. I was able to catch it. This indicates that alpha waves are generated from the occipital region and hardly occur in the frontal region. As a result, there arises a problem of how the electrode can be brought into contact with the scalp of the occipital region having hair without using conductive paste and without disturbing the hair.

  Therefore, 16 sterling silver round bars 1mm in diameter and 10mm in length are arranged in sword-mount on a printed circuit board in 4 rows, 4 rows, and 1 inch intervals, and are soldered on the plus side of the 9V battery. By connecting a pure silver round bar to the negative side and immersing both in saline, a silver chloride film was formed on 16 positive silver round bars, and this was used as an electrode. Two electrodes were prepared, one was placed near the base of the ear, and the other was placed on the headband so that it touched the back of the head. I was able to detect it. In addition, in order to prevent pain when wearing the sword-shaped electrode, the tip of a sterling silver round bar was flattened to flatten the contact surface between the electrode and the scalp, and the edge of the tip surface was further shaved.

  However, when an experiment was performed on a large number of subjects using the sword-shaped electrode, it was found that the hair could enter between the electrode and the scalp depending on the thinness and hair style of the subject. In this case, in order to directly contact the electrode and the scalp, it is necessary to apply a method of pressing the electrode more strongly while moving the electrode in small increments, or a method of reattaching the electrode with the scalp being scraped, both of which are inconvenient. It was. From this fact, it has been found that in order for a large number of users to wear the sword-shaped electrode without feeling inconvenience, the thickness of the pure silver round bar constituting the electrode is too thick when the diameter is 1 mm or more.

  Then, when the thickness of the sterling silver round bar was changed to 0.6 mm and an electrode similar to that described above was created and tested, there was considerable pain when worn even though the tip was flattened. The cause was that the contact area between the electrode and the scalp was narrowed. Especially when the attached electrode body was tilted even a little, the contact pressure was supported by a very small contact area, which caused considerable pain.

  Therefore, nine sterling silver round bars with a diameter of 0.5 mm and a length of 28 mm, curved in an inverted U shape, are arranged in 3 rows at 1 inch intervals and 3 rows at 2 inch intervals in all directions. Were arranged on a printed circuit board, a silver chloride film was formed by the same method as described above, and the same experiment was conducted with the two electrodes mounted on the headband as described above. EEG was detected. This is because the thin U-shaped members with a thickness of 0.5 mm are arranged in the same direction, and the contact surface of the above-mentioned sword mountain electrode is a point. On the other hand, if the inverted U-shaped member is used, the contact surface can be made a line, so that the contact area can be increased, and even when the electrode body is tilted back and forth and left and right, the contact remains round, and the electrode is on the scalp It turned out to be because there was no piercing. However, this time, it was found that due to the thinness of the inverted U-shaped metal member made of a pure silver round bar having a diameter of 0.5 mm, the member would bend when the headband was repeatedly attached and detached.

  Therefore, nine sterling silver round bars with a diameter of 1 mm and a length of 28 mm were bent into an inverted U shape, and the curved portion at the tip was crushed with a hammer into a horseshoe shape and made into a substantially plate shape with a thickness of 0.5 mm. As described above, it was arranged on a printed circuit board and a silver chloride film was formed by the same method as described above, and when two electrodes were mounted on the headband as described above, the same experiment was conducted, and pain was caused when the electrodes were mounted. The brain waves could be detected, and the bending of the members was completely eliminated. As a result, it was found that even a silver, which is a soft metal, can withstand the contact pressure during measurement if the leg portion has a diameter of 1 mm or more. It was also found that the four U-shaped members arranged at the four corners of the square base plate are difficult to tilt when mounted.

  Further, when the same experiment was performed with the thickness of the curved portion at the tip of the inverted U-shaped member increased by 0.5 mm to 0.1 mm, the thickness of about 0.8 mm was required for easy contact between the electrode and the scalp. Was found to be the limit. In addition, when the same experiment was conducted by reducing the thickness of the sterling silver round bar constituting the inverted U-shaped member by 1 mm to 0.1 mm in diameter, the member was not bent when mounting the electrode. It turns out that the diameter is about 0.8mm. Therefore, as a configuration of an electroencephalogram detection electrode that is highly reliable and easy to manufacture, a pure silver round bar having a diameter of 0.8 mm or more is bent into a U shape, and the curved portion is formed into a substantially plate shape of 0.8 mm or less. It turned out to be best to consist of crushed material.

  Separately from the above-described headband-type headset electroencephalogram measurement apparatus, one electrode using the horseshoe-shaped inverted U-shaped member is disposed on the headphone frame so as to be in contact with the top of the head. One electrode using a wire fixed to the headphone frame such that the electrode contacts the back of the head or the horseshoe-shaped inverted U-shaped member is disposed on the headphone frame so as to contact the back of the head. One electrode fixed to the headphone frame so that one electrode touches the earlobe, or one electrode using the horseshoe-shaped inverted U-shaped member is near the base of the ear, and the other is in contact with the back of the head As a result, it was placed on a U-shaped frame, and by doing this, an experiment was made with a method of fixing with a shape sandwiching the head, and in all cases, correct measurement could be carried out without causing pain at the time of wearing .

1 is a perspective view of an electroencephalogram detection electrode according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a front view of the electrode for electroencephalogram detection concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view of the electrode for electroencephalogram detection concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of the electrode for electroencephalogram detection concerning the embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of a headset type electroencephalogram measurement apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a front view of a headset type electroencephalogram measurement apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view of a headset type electroencephalogram measurement apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a top view of a headset type electroencephalogram measurement apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view which shows the Example of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 Base plate 2 Inverted U-shaped metal member 3 Frame 4 Speaker 5 User

Claims (3)

An electroencephalogram detection electrode comprising a base plate 1 and a plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 formed integrally with or fixed to the base plate 1. The curved portion of the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 is substantially plate-shaped or tapered with the outer peripheral tip having a thickness of 0.8 mm or less, and the leg portion of the inverted U-shaped metal member 2 has a diameter of 0.8 mm or more. It has a substantially cylindrical shape or a substantially prismatic shape with a thickness of 0.8 mm or more, and the plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members 2 are arranged such that planes including the inverted U-shape are positioned substantially parallel to each other or substantially on the same plane. The electroencephalogram detection electrode according to claim 1, wherein A headset type electroencephalogram measurement comprising: a frame 3 detachably attached to the head; and an electroencephalogram detection electrode according to claim 1 disposed on the frame 3, wherein the electroencephalogram detection electrode according to claim 1 is located at the back of the head. apparatus.

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