JP4137850B2 - Data input device for electric wheelchair using palate plate - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a data input device using a palate plate, and more particularly to a data input device that can be used to control an external device using a tongue instead of limbs, for example.

  As a conventional data input device using this type of palatal plate, an electric paragraph that detects the position where the tongue contacts the palate with an electrode provided on the palate surface has been put into practical use. As a result, it was observed that the tongue touches the palate, which was applied to research in speech science and rehabilitation of dysarthria.

  However, this prior art only observes the manner in which the tongue comes into contact with the palate, and there has been no idea of controlling the external device by it.

  Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a data input device using a novel palate plate capable of controlling an external device according to the manner of contact of the tongue with the palate plate.

The present invention includes a resin-molded palate plate, a plurality of sensors provided on the palate plate and capable of detecting whether at least the tongue is in contact, and a data transmission device that wirelessly transmits a sensor signal to an electric wheelchair through an antenna. A data input device using a palate plate, wherein both the antenna and the data transmission device are sealed in the resin of the palate plate, and each of the plurality of sensors is determined according to the relative arrangement position of the plurality of sensors. is the least advanced for an electric wheelchair, backward, characterized in that allocated to control information of the left turn and right turn, a data input device to the electric wheelchair using the palatal plate.

In the data input device to the electric wheelchair using the palate plate, a plurality of sensors are provided on the resin-molded palate plate. The sensor detects whether the tongue has touched. The data transmission device wirelessly transmits a sensor signal (data) corresponding to an output of the sensor, that is, a mode in which the tongue is in contact with the sensor (contact mode) to the electric wheelchair . In the electric wheelchair , the processing or operation is controlled according to the transmitted sensor signal. For example, at least forward, backward, left turn, and right turn control information about the electric wheelchair determined according to the relative arrangement positions of the plurality of sensors is assigned to each of the plurality of sensors .

For example, if a plurality of on / off sensors are used, a sensor signal of a contact state represented by on / off is transmitted to the electric wheelchair .

Further, the use of the pressure sensor, in addition to the sensor in contact, since the tongue can detect the pressure (contact pressure) in contact with the sensor, continuously according to electric wheelchair sensor signal (analog ) Can be controlled.

Furthermore, if both the antenna and the data transmission device are sealed in the palate plate, there is no member that protrudes from the palate plate, so that discomfort when the user wears can be reduced and unnecessarily stressed. Absent. Moreover, the antenna does not rust due to saliva or moisture contained in the outside air.

According to this invention, since the sensor signal corresponding to the contact mode of the tongue is transmitted to the electric wheelchair , the electric wheelchair can execute processing or operation in accordance with this. That is, the electric wheelchair can be controlled by the tongue contact mode.

  The above object, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments with reference to the drawings.

  Referring to FIG. 1, a data input device (hereinafter simply referred to as “data input device”) 10 using a palate plate of this embodiment includes a palate plate 12 formed of resin. Although the palate plate 12 is shown in a planar shape in FIG. 1, it is actually formed in a substantially mortar shape so as to be in close contact with the user's palate 14. The palate plate 12 is provided with an IC 16, an antenna 18, and a plurality (eight in this embodiment) of sensors 20 a to 20 h. The antenna 18 and the sensors 20a to 20h are connected to the IC 16. Each sensor 20a-20h is arrange | positioned as shown, for example in FIG. 1, However, The arrangement | positioning and number are not limited to an Example. Further, the IC 16 and the antenna 18 are sealed in a resin forming the palate plate 12, as shown in FIG.

  With reference to FIG. 2, the palate plate 12 is also provided with a palate-side electrode 22 formed in a thin film shape so as to spread on one surface of the palate 14 side. Note that the palate-side electrode 22 does not need to be formed on the entire surface on the palate 14 side, and may be provided in part. The palate side electrode 22 is insulated from the tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h of the sensors 20a to 20h by the palate plate 12. The lingual electrodes 24a to 24h are also insulated from each other. Thus, each sensor 20a-20h shown in FIG. 1 is comprised by the palate side electrode 22 and the tongue side electrodes 24a-24h, Therefore, although each electrode 22 and 24a-24h are not illustrated in FIG. , Each connected to an IC 16 sealed in a palate plate 12.

  The tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h are also formed in a thin film like the palate side electrode 22, but in FIG. 2, the palate plate 12, the palate 14 and the palate side electrode are shown for easy understanding. 22 is shown by a simple plane, and what is actually formed as a thin film is shown with a thickness. Further, the connection line connecting the IC 16 to the palate side electrode 22 and the tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h and the antenna 18 are omitted.

  When the tongue (not shown) contacts one of the lingual electrodes 24a to 24h shown in FIG. 2, the palate 14 and the tongue are part of the same human body, so the lingual electrodes 24a to 24h and the palatal electrode An electrical circuit is formed between Therefore, by detecting the electrical resistance of the electrical circuit, it is possible to detect which of the tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h is in contact with the tongue. In the example shown in FIG. 3, by detecting the electrical resistance between the tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h and the palate side electrode 22 as a voltage, the tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h that are in contact with the tongue at that time are recognized. I have to.

  For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 3, the lingual electrodes 24 a to 24 h are connected to multiplexers (MPX) 32 included in the data acquisition circuit 30 via signal lines. Accordingly, the MPX 32 receives a voltage corresponding to the electrical resistance between the tongue-side electrodes 24a to 24h and the palate-side electrode 22. The MPX 32 is controlled to be switched by a CPU 38, which will be described later, and sequentially outputs inputs designated by the CPU 38 (that is, voltages from the tongue side electrodes 24a to 24h).

  The voltage between the tongue side electrodes 24 a to 24 h and the palate side electrode 22 sequentially output from the MPX 32 is input to the A / D converter 36 through the sample hold (S / H) circuit 34. The A / D converter 36 is a 1-bit A / D converter, and determines the voltage from each of the lingual electrodes 24a to 24h as a threshold. When the voltage is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold, “1” is indicated. “0” is output. In this way, the data collection circuit 30 outputs data “1” or “0” indicating on / off for each of the lingual electrodes 24a to 24h.

  The on / off signals of the lingual electrodes 24a to 24h are given to the CPU 38. The CPU 38 includes a CPU core 38a and a memory 38b. The CPU core 38a applies the above-mentioned on / off data “1” or “0” to an input register (not shown) formed in a predetermined area of the memory 38b. The side electrodes 24a to 24h, that is, the sensors 20a to 20h are temporarily stored. That is, the CPU core 38a selects the voltage signal from the MPX 32, and at this time, the A / D converter 36 outputs “1” or “0” for each specified lingual electrode 24a to 24h. “1” or “0” can be set in the input register.

  In this manner, the CPU 38 can detect the tongue-side electrodes 24a to 24h with which the tongue is in contact, that is, the sensors 20a to 20h (FIG. 1) that are turned on. Therefore, for example, when only the sensors 20a, 20b and 20c are on and the other sensors 20d to 20h are off, data such as “11100000” is input to the transmission / reception circuit 40.

The transmission / reception circuit 40 includes a carrier generation circuit (not shown), and modulates the carrier (carrier wave) generated by the carrier generation circuit with the data as described above. This modulated signal (data) is radiated through the antenna 18 toward the external device 50, that is, the external device antenna 54. On the other hand, data information relating to the external device 50 which has been transmitted from the external device 50, i.e. the data that when the controlled device (external device 50) is, for example, electrostatic dynamic wheelchairs are electric dynamic wheelchair is received by the antenna 18, The data is given to the CPU 38 via the transmission / reception circuit 40. Therefore, CPU core 38a determines a memory area (use area) used in the memory 38b based on data of the information relating to the external device 50 (data that the controlled device is electrostatic dynamic wheelchair). That is, the usage area of the memory 38b can be determined according to the type of the controlled device.

  The IC 16 shown in FIG. 3 has a built-in power supply circuit 42, and this power supply circuit 42 transmits a carrier (carrier wave) transmitted from the transmission / reception circuit 52 provided in the external device 50 via the antennas 54 and 18. A rectifier circuit (not shown) for rectification is included. A battery (not shown) is charged by a DC voltage obtained by rectifying the carrier transmitted from the external device 50, and power is supplied from the battery to the circuits 30, 38, 40, and the like. However, such a configuration of the power supply circuit 42 is merely an example, and the power supply circuit 42 using only batteries (primary and secondary) may be used.

  On the other hand, the external device 50 is a device controlled according to data transmitted from the data input device 10, that is, the IC 16, and includes a CPU 50a for the control. The external device 50 includes a controlled circuit (not shown) controlled by the CPU 50 a and a transmission / reception circuit 52. The transmission / reception circuit 52 includes a demodulation circuit for demodulating a modulation signal sent from the IC 16 and restoring data, a modulation circuit for sending data to the IC 16, and the like. An antenna 54 is connected to the transmission / reception circuit 52. The CPU 50a of the external device 50 controls the controlled circuit according to a control program preset in a memory (not shown) of the CPU 50a in accordance with the on / off state of each sensor sent from the IC 16.

  Usually, such control is digital control uniquely determined by which sensor is turned on, but when two or more of the sensors 20a to 20h are turned on, the combination Analog control can be performed according to the size of the tongue contact area.

  The transmission / reception circuit 54 of the external device 50 transmits the carrier for power supply to the IC 16 as described above, and also when the external device 50, that is, the CPU 50a accesses the CPU core 38a or the memory 38b of the IC 16, that is, the CPU 38. Used. In this case, by modulating the carrier described above with access data, the access data is demodulated by the transmission / reception circuit 40 of the IC 16 and supplied to the CPU 38.

  In the data transmission from the IC 16 and the data transmission from the external device 50, the modulation method may be different using the carrier of the same frequency, the modulation method may be the same and the carrier frequency may be different, or The transmission time may be divided by making both the same.

  As described above, the sensors 20a to 20h are sensors that can detect on / off, but by using the pressure sensor, the tongue is in contact with which of the sensors 20a to 20h is in contact. Pressure (contact pressure) can also be detected. In this case, for example, a strain gauge type pressure sensor can be used, and a pressure sensor described in PCT / JP98 / 03669 filed by the present applicant as an international patent may be used. In accordance with the change in the contact pressure, the electrical resistance between any of the individual electrodes 24 a to 24 h that are in contact with the palate-side electrode 22 is changed. A voltage corresponding to this electrical resistance is input to the MPX 32. Accordingly, a voltage corresponding to the electrical resistance is applied to the A / D converter 36 through the S / H circuit 34, and for example, 3-bit pressure data is input from the A / D converter 36 to the CPU 38. That is, the voltage value corresponding to the contact pressure is converted into pressure data “000” to “111”, for example, and stored in the input register. In this case, a multi-bit A / D converter 36 such as 4 bits or 8 bits is used. However, although the number of bits of pressure data is arbitrary, it goes without saying that increasing the number of bits improves the resolution.

  The pressure data for each of the lingual electrodes 24a to 24h is transmitted to the external device 50. Therefore, the CPU 50a controls the external device 50 according to the sensor in contact with the tongue and the magnitude or change of the contact pressure. The circuit can be controlled.

For example, data input device 10 can be applied to the data input device of electrostatic Dosha椅 child.

When this data input device 10 is used for controlling an electric wheelchair, it is possible to drive using the tongue by assigning directions to the sensors 20a to 20h, for example. For example, the sensor 20a is right front, 20b is straight ahead, and 20c is left front. Further, the sensor 20d is right rear, 20e is backward, and 20f is left rear. Furthermore, the sensor 20g is turning right, 20 h is the left turning. Therefore, you are possible to operate the electric wheelchair according to any of the sensors 20A～20 h the tongue is in contact. In this case, for safety, the forward traveling speed and the backward traveling speed are set to constant values, and only the direction is controlled by turning on / off the sensors 20a to 20h. When the tongue does not touch any of the sensors 20a to 20h, the electric wheelchair is stopped. Therefore, when the tongue moves away from the sensors 20a to 20h when the electric wheelchair is moving, the operation is shifted to the braking operation.

  In addition, when a pressure sensor is used, the contact pressure can also be detected. Therefore, the speed of the electric wheelchair and the angle of the left / right bend are changed continuously (analogously) according to the contact pressure (pressure data). be able to. That is, operations such as a steering wheel and an accelerator of an automobile are possible. Further, it is possible to control deceleration such as sudden braking according to the change in contact pressure.

According to this embodiment, since the data corresponding to the tongue contact mode is transmitted to the electric wheelchair , the electric wheelchair can execute the process or the operation accordingly. That is, the electric wheelchair can be controlled according to the tongue contact mode.

  The IC 16 shown in this embodiment includes a multi I / O type CMOS gate array IC “BU123606L” manufactured by Rohm Co., Ltd., a high speed type CMOS gate array IC “BU25306” manufactured by the same company, and a further manufactured by the same company. ICs “BU35S”, “BU253S”, “BU163S”, etc. of the CMOS cell base IC family can be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the palate side electrode 22 is formed on the palate side (back surface) of the palate plate 12. However, the palate-side electrode 22 may be provided at an arbitrary position in the palate, and may be provided other than the palate, such as a gum.

It is an illustration figure which shows one Example of this invention. It is an illustration figure which shows a palate plate in the FIG. 1 Example. It is an illustration figure which shows IC shown in the FIG. 1 Example.

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Data input device using palate plate 12 ... Palate plate 16 ... IC
30 ... Data collection device 32 ... MPX
38 ... Control circuit

Claims (3)

Resin-molded palate plate,
A data input device using a palate plate, comprising a plurality of sensors provided on the palate plate and capable of detecting at least whether the tongue is in contact, and a data transmission device that wirelessly transmits a sensor signal to an electric wheelchair through an antenna. There,
Sealing both the antenna and the data transmission device in the resin of the palate plate,
To each of the plurality of sensors, it is determined according to the relative positions of the plurality of sensors, at least forward of the electric wheelchair, backward, that have assigned control information in the leftward turning and right turning A data input device for an electric wheelchair using a palate plate, which is characterized. Wherein the sensor comprises an on / Ofusensa, data input device to the electric wheelchair using the palatal plate according to claim 1 Symbol placement. Wherein the sensor comprises a pressure sensor, a data input device to the electric wheelchair using the palatal plate according to claim 1 Symbol placement.

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