JP4224335B2 - Rehabilitation orthosis - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the field of medical rehabilitation, the present invention relates to a rehabilitation device for recovering finger movements for patients who have impaired motor function such as contracture of the hand.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In the past, there was a brace that fixed a finger by attaching rubber to the fingertip of the glove that was worn and hooking this rubber on the hook at the wrist position, but it is possible to move the finger only by maintaining one state. However, in order to change the state of the finger, it was necessary to reattach the brace frequently.
[0003]
As another example, there was a rehabilitation device (see Patent Document 1) that opens and closes a finger by fixing a hand with a glove or the like on a main body on a flat balloon and injecting air with an air pump. Each finger cannot be operated independently, and there were problems with the silence and weight of the air pump.
[0004]
As another example, there was a rehabilitation device that injects air into a balloon body and opens and closes the finger (see Patent Document 2), but each finger cannot be operated independently according to symptoms, There was a problem that air injection into the balloon pair had to be done manually and was not possible automatically.
[0005]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-10-33604 [0006]
[Patent Document 2]
JP 2002-95711 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As described above, in the conventional example, in order to change to a different state non-automatically, it is necessary to remount the equipment, and even the automatic type requires a large facility for the power source or requires manpower. In addition, each of them assists the entire finger with the same movement at a time, and there is a problem that a fine response cannot be made.
[0008]
Then, an object of this invention is to provide the rehabilitation equipment which can perform fine treatment simply according to the symptom of each patient.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The rehabilitation apparatus of the present invention is a medical condition in which the finger of a hand cannot be freely moved due to contracture or the like, and the patient needs to perform rehabilitation so that the finger moves again by an external force. An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problem by recovering the function of the finger motion by a rehabilitation device having a driving device using an alloy and capable of automatically bending and extending the finger.
[0010]
The invention according to claim 1 is a rehabilitation apparatus for recovering the movement of a finger of a patient in which a motor dysfunction such as contraction of the hand remains, and a drive unit attached to a wrist part and a wrist part attached to the patient's hand And a drive unit using a shape memory alloy connected to each finger part of the brace part by a wire, a command signal generating part for controlling the drive part, and an input for inputting and confirming command contents parts, Chi lifting power unit for supplying power to the display unit and the respective parts by the current flowing in the shape memory alloy has the effect of assisting the functional recovery of each finger by stretching the shape memory alloy.
[0011]
The invention described in claim 2 has a function of assisting the functional recovery of each finger by connecting a portion corresponding to the fingertip and the shape memory alloy of the drive unit with a wire using a glove-like device for the brace.
[0012]
The invention according to claim 3 is configured such that the brace part is composed of a plurality of ring-shaped rings, and each ring can be attached not only to the fingertip of the patient but also to each joint, and the shape memory alloy of these rings and the drive part Are connected with a wire, and have an effect of assisting functional recovery for each finger and each joint.
[0013]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the brace part is constituted by a metal fitting for fixing four fingers other than the thumb, and the shape memory alloy of the drive part attached to each of the metal part, the palm, and the back of the hand is connected by a wire, Since it is also on the back of the hand, it has the advantage that the finger can be moved in the direction of warping.
[0014]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0015]
FIG. 1 is an overview of an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a brace part to be attached to the patient's hand, 2 is a drive unit, 3 is a drive part using a shape memory alloy 5 connected to each action point of the brace part by a wire 4, and 6 is driven with respect to the drive part. A command signal generation unit that outputs signals and controls the entire drive device, 7 is an input unit for inputting drive conditions, 8 is a display unit that displays the state of the drive device, and 9 is a power supply for the entire control device 2 It consists of a power supply unit.
[0016]
When a command for performing a necessary operation for the patient is input to the instruction signal generation unit 6 using the input unit 7 and the display unit 8, the command signal generation unit 6 outputs a necessary signal to the power supply unit 9. Based on the signal determined by the generating unit 6, a voltage to be applied to the shape memory alloy 5 in the driving unit 3 is generated. The driving unit 3 expands and contracts the shape memory alloy, and the appliance unit 2 worn by the patient is moved. Use it to move each finger of the patient.
[0017]
Power is supplied to the power supply unit 9 by a household 100V outlet, a separately prepared dry battery, a rechargeable battery, or the like.
[0018]
The state when a voltage is applied to the shape memory alloy 5 is shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, 11 is a voltage application point and 12 is an electric wire.
[0019]
The shape memory alloy 5 rises in temperature due to heat generated by energization and changes its shape. When the applied voltage is large, the heat generation amount is large as shown in FIG. 2 (a) and contracts due to contraction. When the applied voltage is small, the heat generation amount is small as shown in FIG. It becomes a state. Therefore, the operation of the driving device can be controlled by adjusting the voltage applied to the shape memory alloy 5. Since the finger rehabilitation operation involves bending and stretching, a command signal for realizing this operation is applied as an applied voltage to the shape memory alloy.
[0020]
An example of the command signal generated by the command signal generator is shown in FIG. By alternately applying voltages V1 and V2 having different binary values under a constant period P, bending and stretching of the finger is realized. The degree of bending of the finger is the magnitude of the applied voltage, and the bending and stretching cycle can be easily adjusted by the cycle of the applied voltage. It is possible to have a plurality of voltages as well as binary values, and it is also possible to change the period finely. It is also possible to apply an appropriate function recovery operation for each finger by applying the voltage to each finger at a different voltage or cycle.
[0021]
【Example】
Example 1
FIG. 4 shows an example of a brace that is worn on the hand and moves a finger. A wire 4 is attached to the fingertip portion of the glove 13, and the wire 4 is connected to the driving device 2 attached to the wrist portion. The length of the wire 4 is adjusted according to the patient to be used.
[0022]
FIG. 5 is a view of the appliance of FIG. 4 seen from the side, and shows a state in which the bending and stretching operation is actually performed. By the expansion and contraction of the shape memory alloy in the driving unit 3, the wire 4 attached to the tip of the hand pulls the fingertip, and alternately creates the bent state shown in FIG. 5A and the extended state shown in FIG. 5B. Since the brace is a glove type, it has the advantage that it can be easily attached.
[0023]
Example 2
FIG. 6 shows another example of an appliance worn on the hand and moving a finger. A wire 4 is attached to a ring 14 to be fitted on a finger portion, and the wire 4 is connected to a driving device 2 attached to a wrist portion. Since the ring 14 attached to the finger portion is attached independently for each joint of the finger, there is an advantage that the bending state for each joint of the finger can be arbitrarily adjusted.
[0024]
Example 3
FIG. 7A shows still another example of an appliance that is worn on the hand and moves a finger, and FIG. 7B is a view seen from the lateral direction. The four fingers other than the thumb are fixed by a metal fitting 15 attached to the glove 13 so that the same movement is possible. The driving device 2 is attached to both the palm and the back of the hand, and the wire 4 on the back of the hand is lifted by the support 16. The method of attaching the wire 4 to the thumb is the same as that of the appliance shown in FIG.
[0025]
Although the four fingers other than the thumb cannot be moved independently, there is an advantage that the finger can be moved in the direction of warping because the drive device 2 is also on the back of the hand. The method of attaching the wire 4 to the thumb is the same as that of the appliance shown in FIG.
[0026]
【The invention's effect】
Since the finger movement is automatically performed by the driving device including the shape memory alloy, rehabilitation can be continued even during another work. In addition, since the movement of the drive device can be finely controlled by the command signal generator, the movement can be easily adjusted according to the degree of recovery from rehabilitation.
[0027]
Moreover, since the shape memory alloy is used for the drive part, it does not make a noise like a motor or a compressor and is excellent in quietness. Therefore, it can be used without disturbing sleep. Moreover, since it is lightweight, it does not give a burden with respect to the patient who utilizes this brace.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a rehabilitation apparatus that performs a bending and stretching operation of a finger according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a state change diagram when a voltage is applied to a shape memory alloy in the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a command signal given to a driving device in order to realize a finger bending and extending operation in the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a view showing a glove-type appliance for performing finger bending and stretching operations in the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a bending and stretching operation by a glove-type appliance in the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a view showing a ring-type appliance for performing finger bending and stretching operations in the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a view showing an appliance using a metal fitting for bending and extending a finger in the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1: Equipment part 2: Driving device 3: Driving part 4: Wire 5 Shape memory alloy 6: Command signal generating part 7: Input part 8: Display part 9: Power supply part 11: Voltage application point 12: Electric wire 13: Gloves 14: Ring 15: Metal fitting 16: Prop

Claims (4)

In the rehabilitation equipment for recovering the movement of the finger of the patient whose motor dysfunction remains in the finger of the hand,
A brace that is attached to the patient's hand and a drive device that is attached to the wrist;
The drive device uses a shape memory alloy connected to each finger part of the appliance part by a wire, a command signal generating part for controlling the drive part, an input part for inputting and confirming command content, and a display part and Chi lifting power unit for supplying power to each unit, by the current flowing in the shape memory alloy, rehabilitation equipment, characterized by an auxiliary functional recovery of each finger by stretching the shape memory alloy.   2. The rehabilitation device according to claim 1, wherein a glove-shaped device is used for the device part, and the shape corresponding to the fingertip and the shape memory alloy of the drive unit are connected by a wire.   The rehabilitation device according to claim 1, wherein the device unit is constituted by a plurality of ring-shaped rings, and the rings and the shape memory alloy of the drive unit are connected by wires.   2. The rehabilitation device according to claim 1, wherein the device part is composed of a metal fitting for fixing four fingers other than the thumb, and the shape memory alloy of the drive unit attached to each of the metal fitting, the palm and the back of the hand is connected by a wire.

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