JP4151839B2 - Clogging detection device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
[Field of the Invention]
The present invention relates to a technique for detecting clogging of a sick person's throat.
[0002]
[Prior art]
It is very dangerous for a sick person with weak physical strength to have a clogged throat. This is because the clogged sputum cannot be eliminated on its own, resulting in difficulty breathing and a dangerous situation.
[0003]
For this reason, a sick person whose physical strength is weak enough to eliminate sputum on his own is accompanied by a caregiver for 24 hours. It was necessary to contact and take the necessary treatment to remove the sputum from the patient's throat.
[0004]
Observing whether or not the patient's condition has changed suddenly for 24 hours in the vicinity of the patient is a very physical and mental burden for those who should be accompanied. Become.
In order to reduce such a burden, there is a demand for a technique that can accurately detect clogging of a cocoon without relying on an attendant.
[0005]
However, there is currently no technology that can accurately detect the clogged state of a patient.
[0006]
For example, although a technique for monitoring a respiratory state has been proposed (see Non-Patent Document 1), it is intended to measure the amount of carbon dioxide in exhaled breath and cannot detect a clogged state of a patient.
[0007]
[Non-patent literature]
Pharmaceutical Gate 2001 VOL41 Pages 47-51 [0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The present invention has been proposed in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, and aims to provide a clogging detection device capable of accurately detecting the presence or absence of clogging of a patient without human intervention. Yes.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
As a result of various studies, the inventor has paid attention to the fact that in a state where the heel is clogged, a disorder specific to the breathing sound is generated and a movement specific to the rib cage is generated in an attempt to drain the heel.
[0010]
According to the clogging detection device (A) of the present invention, the respiratory sound sensor (for example, the voice sensor 2 such as a microphone) that measures the respiratory sound of the patient (1) and the movement of the thorax of the patient (1) Acceleration sensor (3) for detecting acceleration and control means (control unit) for determining whether patient (1) is clogged based on the measurement results of respiratory sound sensor (2) and acceleration sensor (3) 4), and the control means (4) includes volume data, frequency data, acceleration data, volume threshold, frequency threshold, acceleration threshold obtained from the measurement results of the respiratory sound sensor (2) and the acceleration sensor (3). Storage means (database 10), and threshold value determination means (11) for determining each of the sound volume threshold value, the frequency threshold value, and the acceleration threshold value. Data classification unit (11a) for classifying volume data, frequency data, and acceleration data input via the database 10) into clogging data and normal data, and volume data and frequency classified into clogging data Data storage unit (11b) for storing data and acceleration data, normal data storage unit (11c) for storing volume data, frequency data, and acceleration data classified as normal data, and data for plugging The comparison unit (11d) that compares the data classified into the normal data and the data classified as normal data, and the determination unit that determines the volume threshold, the frequency threshold, and the acceleration threshold based on the comparison result of the comparison unit (11d) (11e), and at a stage before the threshold value is determined by the threshold value determination means (11), it is operated either at the time of clogging or at the normal time, It has the configured external input means so as to output a signal (20) to the chromatography data separating unit.
[0014]
According to the present invention having such a configuration, the respiratory sound sensor (2) can measure the volume and frequency of the breathing sound or the coughing sound. If it is within the volume range at the time of clogging (for example, if the volume is above the volume threshold) and the frequency is within the frequency range at the time of clogging (for example, if the frequency is below the frequency threshold), It is likely that you are in a clogged state, not breathing.
At the same time, for example, the acceleration sensor (3) attached to the thorax (1b) of the patient (1) measures whether the movement of the thorax of the patient (1) is gentle or abrupt. Here, if the phlegm is clogged, coughing or struggling, the movement of the thorax of the patient (1) becomes intense and the acceleration is large. Therefore, for example, if the acceleration is equal to or greater than the acceleration threshold, the measured acceleration is highly likely to be clogged.
In this manner, since the presence or absence of clogging can be confirmed from both the breathing sound and the movement of the thorax, the presence or absence of clogging can be reliably detected without relying on human hands.
[0015]
Here, there are many individual differences for every patient whether it is a clogged state. Therefore, the threshold values for the above-described volume, frequency, and acceleration cannot be determined uniformly.
However, in the present invention, the data measured by the respiratory sound sensor and the acceleration sensor are classified into clogging data and normal data, and the threshold is determined after comparing the two.
That is, according to the present invention, the threshold value determined for each patient is a separate numerical value. Therefore, the most appropriate threshold is set for each patient or on a case-by-case basis, and the risk of erroneous determination is reduced.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0017]
In FIG. 1, a clogging detection device, indicated as a whole by reference symbol A, includes a respiratory sound sensor (voice sensor) 2 attached to the throat 1a of a patient 1, an acceleration sensor 3 attached to the thorax 1b, and clogging. It is comprised from the control unit 4 which determines whether it is.
[0018]
The control unit 4 includes a database 10 that stores a threshold value of a sound volume and a frequency threshold value of each patient and a threshold value of acceleration of a patient's thorax, and a threshold value determination unit 11 that determines each threshold value by an external input unit. And have.
Further, the control unit 4 determines the volume generated by the patient 1 based on the information from the voice sensor 2, the determined abnormal or normal volume, and the volume stored in the database 10. Volume comparison unit 13 that compares the threshold value, frequency determination unit 14 that determines the frequency of sound emitted by patient 1 based on information from voice sensor 2, the determined abnormal or normal frequency, and the frequency A frequency comparison unit 15 that compares frequency threshold values stored in the database 10; an acceleration determination unit 16 that determines the acceleration of the rib cage 1b of the patient 1 based on information from the acceleration sensor 3; Further, an acceleration comparison unit for comparing the normal acceleration of the rib cage 1b with the acceleration threshold value stored in the database 10. 17 and a determination unit 18 for determining whether or not the patient is abnormal based on the comparison information from each of the comparison units 13, 15, and 17, and alarm means 19 for warning that there is an abnormality when there is an abnormality And have.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 2, the threshold value determining means 11 includes a data analysis unit 11a, a clogging time data storage unit 11b for storing clogging data, and a normal time data storage unit 11c for storing normal data. And a comparison unit 11d that compares the clogging data with the normal data, and a determination unit 11e that determines the volume threshold value, the frequency threshold value, and the acceleration threshold value based on the comparison result.
[0020]
That is, the data sorting unit 11a sorts the volume data, frequency data, and acceleration data sent via the database 10 into normal data and clogged data.
[0021]
Prior to the determination of the threshold value, the patient 1 is accompanied by an operator (not shown), and if the operator confirms that the patient 1 has clogged the heel, the external input means 5 (FIG. 1, FIG. 2) to send a signal to the data sorting unit 11a. Then, the data classification unit 11a recognizes the data when there is a signal from the external input unit 5 as data at the time of clogging, and stores the data in the clogging time data storage unit 11b.
[0022]
Alternatively, contrary to the above, the operator may operate the external input means 5 and send a signal to the data sorting unit 11a only during normal times. That is, the data classification unit 11a recognizes the data when there is a signal from the external input unit 5 as normal data, and stores the data in the normal data storage unit 11c. If there is no signal from the external input means 5, it is recognized as clogging data, and the data is stored in the clogging data storage means 11c.
[0023]
The comparison unit 11d and the determination unit 11e determine the threshold value by comparing the sorted normal data and the clogged data.
For such comparison and determination, conventional and known methods in software technology may be applied as they are.
[0024]
Here, the volume threshold value, the frequency threshold value, and the acceleration threshold value are respectively determined on the condition that all data at the time of clogging are included so that it is not determined that the normal time is reached even if clogged. This minimizes the possibility of erroneous determination as much as possible.
[0025]
In order to further improve safety, not only the data at the time of clogging is included for all of the volume, frequency, and acceleration, but also other volume, frequency, and acceleration are within the range of clogging. It is preferable to increase the safety factor by setting a threshold value so as to determine that there is.
However, the threshold value here should be determined on a case-by-case basis corresponding to the condition of the patient 1.
[0026]
Each of the determined volume threshold, frequency threshold, and acceleration threshold is stored in the database 10.
[0027]
After each of the volume threshold, the frequency threshold, and the acceleration threshold is stored in the database 10, it is possible to determine whether or not the patient 1 is in a clogged state even if the operator is not near the patient 1.
Hereinafter, the threshold value determination procedure will be described in more detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4 and FIG.
[0028]
First, the measurement results of the voice sensor 2 and the acceleration sensor 3 are input to the control unit 4 (step S1), and the volume, frequency, and acceleration are determined by the volume determination unit 13, the frequency determination unit 15, and the acceleration determination unit 17, respectively ( After step S2), the value is recorded in the database 10.
[0029]
Next, the data classification unit 11a classifies the determined volume, frequency, and acceleration data into clogged data (step S3), and compares normal data with clogged data (step S4). ).
[0030]
Next, a threshold value is determined for each of volume, frequency, and acceleration (step S5), the determined threshold value is transmitted to the database 10 (step S6), and the control unit 4 further determines whether or not to update the threshold value of the database 10. (Step S7), if it is updated (YES in step S7), repeat step S1 and subsequent steps again, and if not updated (NO in step S7), the control is terminated.
Hereinafter, a procedure for detecting clogging will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5.
[0031]
As shown in FIG. 3, the signal detected from the audio sensor 2 attached to the throat 1a of the patient 1 is input to the volume determination unit 12 and the frequency determination unit 14 of the control unit 4 (step S11) (respiratory sound). Alternatively, the volume and frequency of the coughing sound are determined (step S12).
[0032]
The determined volume and frequency are respectively compared with the threshold values stored in the database, and the volume is within the volume range when the throat is clogged (for example, when the volume is equal to or higher than the volume threshold) and the frequency is throat clogged. It is determined whether it is within the frequency range of the hour (for example, when the frequency is equal to or lower than the frequency threshold) (step S13). As a result of the determination, if the volume is equal to or higher than the volume threshold and the frequency exceeds the threshold (NO in step S13), the process is repeated from step S11.
[0033]
At the same time, the acceleration sensor 3 attached to the thoracic portion 1b of the patient 1 measures whether the thoracic movement of the patient 1 is gentle or abrupt, and the measurement result is input to the acceleration determining unit 16 of the control unit 4. (Step S14), and the magnitude of acceleration is determined (Step S15).
The determined acceleration is compared with an acceleration threshold value stored in the database 10 (step S16).
[0034]
During normal breathing, the movement of each part is slow and the measured acceleration is small. If the phlegm is clogged, coughing or struggling, the movement of the patient's thorax will become intense and the acceleration will be great.
Therefore, for example, if the acceleration is equal to or greater than the acceleration threshold value (YES in step S16), it is estimated that the measured acceleration is within the acceleration range at the time of clogging, that is, it is determined that clogging has occurred, and a warning is given. After the means 19 is activated to give a warning to the operator or caregiver (step S17), the control is terminated.
If the acceleration is smaller than the threshold (NO in step S16), it is determined that no clogging has occurred in the patient 1, and step S14 and subsequent steps are repeated again.
[0035]
In the illustrated embodiment, in order to prevent a state other than clogging from being determined as a clogged state, the patient is clogged only when the volume, frequency, and acceleration are all within the clogged range. It is determined that it has become, and an alarm is generated.
[0036]
Here, for the alarm (warning means), methods such as generation of an alarm sound by a buzzer or other sound generation means, lighting of an emergency lamp, display on a management display, and the like can be employed. Of course, other methods may be employed.
[0037]
According to the clogging detection device of the above-described embodiment, the respiratory sound sensor 2 can measure the volume and frequency of the breathing sound or coughing sound. If it is within the volume range at the time of clogging (for example, if the volume is above the volume threshold) and the frequency is within the frequency range at the time of clogging (for example, if the frequency is below the frequency threshold), It is likely that you are in a clogged state, not breathing.
At the same time, for example, the acceleration sensor 3 attached to the thoracic portion 1b of the patient 1 measures whether the movement of the thoracic portion of the patient 1 is gentle or rapid. Here, if the phlegm is clogged, coughing or struggling, the movement of the thorax of the patient 1 becomes intense and the acceleration is also large. Therefore, for example, if the acceleration is equal to or greater than the acceleration threshold, the measured acceleration is highly likely to be clogged.
In this manner, since the presence or absence of clogging can be confirmed from both the breathing sound and the movement of the thorax, the presence or absence of clogging can be reliably detected without using human hands.
[0038]
Here, there are many individual differences for every patient whether it is a clogged state. Therefore, the threshold values for the above-described volume, frequency, and acceleration cannot be determined uniformly.
However, in this embodiment, the data measured by the respiratory sound sensor 2 and the acceleration sensor 3 are classified into clogging data and normal data, and the threshold is determined after comparing the two.
That is, according to this embodiment, the threshold value determined for each patient is a separate numerical value. Therefore, the most appropriate threshold is set for each patient or on a case-by-case basis, and the risk of erroneous determination is reduced.
[0039]
It should be noted that the illustrated embodiment is merely an example, and is not a description to limit the technical scope of the present invention.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
The effects of the present invention are listed below.
(1) Since the presence or absence of clogging can be confirmed from both the breathing sound and the movement of the rib cage by the breathing sound sensor, it is possible to reliably detect the presence or absence of clogging without using human hands.
(2) Whether there is a clogged state has many individual differences for each patient, and the threshold values for the volume, frequency, and acceleration detected by the respiration sensor cannot be determined uniformly. However, in the present invention, the data measured by the respiratory sound sensor and the acceleration sensor is classified into clogging data and normal data, and the threshold value is determined after comparing both, so that it is determined for each patient. The threshold value is a separate number. Therefore, the most appropriate threshold is set for each patient or on a case-by-case basis, and the risk of erroneous determination is reduced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration in an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of threshold value determining means in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a view showing an aspect of attachment of the sound sensor in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure for determining a threshold in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a procedure for detecting clogging of a bag in the embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
A ... clogging detection device 1 ... patient 2 ... voice sensor / breathing sound sensor 3 ... acceleration sensor 4 ... control unit / control means 5 ... external input means 10 ... database DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Threshold value determination means 12 ... Volume determination unit 13 ... Volume comparison unit 14 ... Frequency determination unit 15 ... Frequency comparison unit 16 ... Acceleration determination unit 17 ... Acceleration comparison unit 18 ... Determination unit 19 ... Alarm means

Claims (1)

  A respiratory sound sensor for measuring the respiratory sound of the patient, an acceleration sensor for detecting acceleration in the movement of the thorax of the patient, and whether the patient is clogged based on the measurement results of the respiratory sound sensor and the acceleration sensor. Control means for determining, the control means for storing volume data, frequency data, acceleration data, volume threshold, frequency threshold, acceleration threshold obtained from the measurement results of the respiratory sound sensor and the acceleration sensor; Threshold value determining means for determining each of the volume threshold value, the frequency threshold value, and the acceleration threshold value, and the threshold value determining means stores the volume data, frequency data, and acceleration data input via the storage means as clogging data. Data classification part that classifies data into normal data, and data at clogging that stores volume data, frequency data, and acceleration data classified as data at clogging Compare the memory, the normal data storage unit that stores the volume data, frequency data, and acceleration data classified as normal data, and the data classified as clogged data and the data classified as normal data And a determination unit that determines a volume threshold value, a frequency threshold value, and an acceleration threshold value based on a comparison result of the comparison unit, and before the threshold value is determined by the threshold value determination unit, An apparatus for detecting clogging, comprising an external input means that is operated either during clogging or during normal operation and configured to output a signal to the data sorting unit.

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