JP7017067B2 - Clothes for measuring biometric information - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to at least a garment for measuring biological information having an electrode that comes into contact with a living body, and preferably a garment for measuring biological information that can be usefully used in the field of long-term care and nursing.

In recent years, wearable biometric information measuring devices have become widespread. Such wearable biometric information measuring devices have come to be used not only for humans but also for physical condition management of pets, livestock, etc., and also for research and study of wild animals.
Attempts have been made to provide such wearable biometric information measuring devices in the form of clothing and utilize them in fields such as watching over patients with illnesses and injuries, the elderly, or infants, nursing care, and nursing. Conventionally, as a method of measuring biological information, a method of measuring biological information of the human body such as an electrocardiogram has been adopted. However, such prior art requires the use of a gel or paste between the electrode and the skin surface to secure the electrode, or the use of adhesive tape. For this reason, there is a problem that unpleasant feeling, itching feeling and discomfort due to sweating occur in continuous measurement for a long time, and dermatitis is more likely to occur in a highly adhesive adhesive electrode such as an adhesive tape.

On the other hand, in order to solve such a problem, an invention has been made as a wearable biometric information measuring device capable of easily measuring biometric information such as an electrocardiogram by wearing it as clothing. (Patent Document 1) However, although the invention has been improved in terms of discomfort due to sweating, itching and discomfort, and dermatitis, it has a problem that it is difficult to put on and take off because of the structure in close contact with the body. Of course, there is no problem if the wearer of the biometric information measurement clothing is healthy and can easily put on and take off the clothing by himself / herself. However, many problems arise when the wearer is elderly, needs care, or is a patient. If the wearer is an elderly person, the movement will be slow and it will be difficult to raise and lower the arms necessary for putting on and taking off clothes. Furthermore, if the wearer is a care recipient or an inpatient, it is difficult to put on and take off by himself / herself, and it is necessary for a caregiver to assist in changing clothes. At this time, if the clothing is front-opening, the wearer can put it on and take it off while lying down. However, in the case of clothing that does not open forward, it is necessary to raise the wearer once, and it goes without saying that a great burden is placed not only on the caregiver but also on the wearer himself. The reason why universal design clothing that opens in front is used for clothing for the elderly and those requiring long-term care is that it is hoped that clothing for universal design that can measure biometric information and is easy to put on and take off will be provided. It is rare. Similar needs exist for pets, livestock, etc.

Japanese Patent No. 6073776

The present invention has been made in the background of the problems of the prior art. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a garment for measuring biometric information having excellent detachability as garment, particularly a garment for measuring biometric information that opens forward, and the subject is lying on his back. It is an object of the present invention to provide clothing for biometric information measurement, which allows a caregiver to easily arrange an electrode for biometric information measurement at an appropriate measurement position.

As a result of diligent studies, the present inventors have found that the above problems can be solved by the means shown below, and have arrived at the present invention.
That is, the present invention has the following configuration.
[1] At least
A measuring unit with a cylindrical structure using a flexible cloth as a base material,
Clothes body and
Flexible strip-shaped measuring unit support member,
Clothes for measuring biological information, which are characterized by having the above as a component.
[2] The clothing for measuring biological information according to [1], wherein both band ends of the band-shaped measuring unit support member are detachably attached to the clothing body.
[3] One side of the band-shaped measuring unit support member is detachably attached to the main body of clothing, and the other end of the band is attached so as not to be detachable [3]. 1] The clothing for measuring biological information.
[4] One of [1] to [3], wherein the strip-shaped measuring unit support member is attached to the clothing main body in a state of penetrating the cylinder of the measuring unit having a tubular structure. The described clothing for measuring biological information.
[5] The biometric information measurement according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the clothing main body portion has a front opening structure, and the left and right bodies in the front opening structure have an engaging member. Clothing for.
[6] The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of [1] to [5], wherein the measuring unit has a plurality of electrodes that come into direct contact with the skin of the subject.
[7] The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of [1] to [6], wherein the measuring unit support member has an elongation degree of 10% or more.
[8] The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of [1] to [7], wherein the clothing body has an opening / closing portion.
[9] The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of [1] to [8], wherein the clothing body is clothing applied to the upper body of a person.

Further, the present invention preferably has the following configuration.
[10] The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of [1] to [9], wherein the electrode is a conductive fiber composite material.
[11] The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of [1] to [10], wherein the electrode is an elastic conductive material.
[12] The clothing for biometric information measurement according to any one of [1] to [11], wherein the wiring connected to the electrode is made of the same material.

In the present invention, in clothing for measuring biological information, the measuring unit is made independent from the clothing body, and the measuring unit is loosely coupled to the clothing body with a degree of freedom to detect the sensor of the measuring unit particularly with respect to the clothing. It is possible to give a degree of freedom to the position of the site, for example, the skin contact electrode site on the body. By giving a degree of freedom to the placement position, it is possible to avoid large individual differences when the detection site is fixed to ready-made clothes depending on the body size, or the detection site does not come into contact with the site damaged by injury or inflammation. be able to.
In addition, since the garment body can move with a degree of freedom with respect to the position of the detection unit of the measurement unit, for example, when the wearer moves due to the electrode attached to the skin when having a skin contact type electrode. It is possible to reduce the discomfort caused by the pulling of clothes.
Further, by applying the present invention to a form having an open flat portion (for example, a front-opening upper body garment, a front-opening lower body garment, a garment wrapping a limb, a head, etc.), universal with excellent detachability. It is possible to provide clothing for measuring biometric information of the design. By opening the front, not only is it easy for the wearer to put on and take off, but it is also easy for the changing caregiver to assist. Since the chest can be easily exposed, it is easy to examine and care such as wiping the sweat of the body. Furthermore, the clothing for measuring biological information of the present application can remove the measuring part, and further remove the measuring part support member. Since it includes a form that enables it, if such a part is removed, the wearer can be provided with a wearing feeling equivalent to that of general clothing. Therefore, it is possible to attach a measuring unit only when biometric information measurement is required.
Further, in the present invention, the degree of freedom in the position of the measuring unit is high, and the caregiver can install the measuring unit at an appropriate position. Not only can it be installed on a bridge suitable for biometric information measurement, but it is also easy to install the measurement unit while avoiding damage due to injuries or skin conditions, for example.

FIG. 1 is a view of the front outer surface of a front-opening garment, which is an example of a garment for measuring biological information in the present invention. FIG. 2 is a view of the rear outer surface of the front-opening garment, which is an example of the garment for measuring biological information in the present invention. FIG. 3 is a view of the front skin surface of the front-opening garment, which is an example of the garment for measuring biological information in the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing an example of the skin surface side in a state where the measuring unit support member in the present invention is passed through the cylinder of the measuring unit. FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing the back side of FIG. 4. FIG. 6 shows a production example as an example of clothing for measuring biological information in the present invention, in which the front opening portion is opened, the measurement portion and the measurement portion support member are removed, and the mannequin is placed inside out, that is, originally on the skin surface. This is an exterior photograph taken by showing the side in contact. FIG. 7 shows a production example of clothing for measuring biological information in the present invention, in which the measuring unit and the measuring unit support member are attached, and the mannequin is turned inside out, that is, the side that is originally in contact with the skin surface is shown and photographed. It is an external photograph. FIG. 8 is a photograph taken with the measuring unit and the measuring unit support member removed from the state of FIG. 7.

The biological information in the present invention includes electrocardiography, myoelectricity, body temperature, temperature inside clothing, respiratory rate, respiratory state, sweating amount, sweating state, joint angle, and displacement amount of each part of the body that can be detected by electrodes and / or other sensors. , Acceleration of each part of the body, position information of each part of the body, etc. The electrodes and / or other sensors are appropriately selected according to the biological information to be measured. Of these, the present invention preferably has at least a plurality of electrodes that come into contact with the living body, and further preferably includes electrodes that can measure electrocardiogram as biometric information. Generally, the measurement result of the electrocardiogram is generally recorded as an electrocardiogram or an electrocardiographic waveform in which time is plotted on the horizontal axis and the potential difference is plotted on the vertical axis. The waveform that appears on the electrocardiogram for each heartbeat is mainly composed of five typical waves, P wave, Q wave, R wave, S wave, and T wave. In addition to this, U wave exists, and Q The period from the beginning of the wave to the end of the S wave may be referred to as a QRS wave. Of these waves, it is preferable to provide an electrode capable of detecting at least an R wave. The R wave shows the excitement of both the left and right ventricles, and is the wave with the largest potential difference. The time between the peak of the R wave and the peak of the next R wave is generally referred to as RR time (RRI), but the formula (heart rate) = 60 / (RR time (seconds)) is used. You can calculate your heart rate per minute. That is, the heart rate can be known by detecting the R wave with an electrode capable of detecting the R wave. In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the QRS complex is also included in the R wave.

The present invention is not limited to the form of front-opening upper body clothing, but for convenience, the present invention will be described with reference to an example of front-opening upper body clothing that can be preferably applied.
1 to 3 are examples of front-opening garments, which are examples of the garments of the present invention. Hereinafter, an example of front-opening clothing will be abbreviated as this example. In this example, the garment is composed of basic parts consisting of a right front body 2, a left front body 3, and a back body 7, and an engaging member 13 for attaching a measuring unit support member 9 is at least a right front body 2. It is attached to either of the left front body 3. Sleeve 5 may or may not be present.

The front opening structure in the present invention is a structure in which the front body is divided into two parts, a right front body and a left front body. When the right front body and the left front body overlap, the right side may be on the top or the left side may be on the top. You may. The engaging member for engaging the left and right bodies is not particularly limited, but snap buttons and hook-and-loop fasteners are preferable from the viewpoint of universal design because they are easy to engage even for elderly people and persons requiring nursing care.

In this example, the measuring unit support member 9 in the present invention is a band-shaped member provided in a portion located on the skin side on the front side of the body portion, and is preferably made of a stretchable material. The measuring unit support member is attached with an engaging member 13 for engaging at least one side of both ends of the band with the clothing body in a removable state. The engaging member is not particularly limited, but a hook-and-loop fastener, a snap button, preferably a resin snap button, a self-adhesive tape, or the like can be used. It is preferable to use a resin snap button because it causes less discomfort due to unevenness. It is preferable that the engaging portion on the main body side of the garment is provided with an engaging portion skin pad for alleviating the discomfort caused by the engaging member directly contacting the skin. When the engaging members are attached to both ends, the measuring unit and the measuring unit support member can be completely removed from the garment body.

The measuring unit in the present invention has a tubular structure having a through hole, and has openings at the top and bottom of the cylinder. A measuring unit support member is arranged through this hole, and both ends of the measuring unit support member are attached to the garment body, whereby the measuring unit is attached to the garment body with a degree of freedom.
In this example, the measuring unit is located on the skin side of the front side of the body of the clothing body. Since the measuring part is attached to the garment body with a degree of freedom, the garment is pulled when the wearer moves the body even if the detection part of the measuring part, for example, the electrode is in close contact with the skin. Discomfort can be reduced.

The measuring unit has a tubular shape, but it is also possible to cut open the tube. For example, an engaging member is attached to one side of a rectangle and one side facing the one side, and the engaging member is engaged to form a tubular shape. In this case, it becomes easy to arrange a removable electronic unit or the like used for measuring biological information inside the cylinder.
Further, a take-out port for attaching / detaching the removable electronic unit to / from the cylinder may be provided. The electronic unit may be attached to the outside of the cylinder, but in that case, it is preferable to wire the electronic unit so that it is located on the opposite side of the skin side instead of the skin side.

An electrode 10 for measuring biological information is arranged on the skin side of the measuring unit. In this example as a preferred example, the electrode centers are arranged so as to be approximately 100 mm to 180 mm to the left and right from the center of the entire surface of the body, and the wiring portion 11 is arranged from the electrodes toward the center of the body. .. In this example, an example of using a sheet-shaped electrical wiring material is shown, and the wiring part is abbreviated as a rectangle for simplicity, and although omitted in the figure, the parts other than the electrode part are covered with the insulating sheet material. As a result, the portion not covered with the insulating sheet is used as the electrode portion, and the portion covered with the insulating sheet is used as the wiring portion.
In the present invention, as another example, an electrode material and wiring made of a conductive fiber material or the like may be used. As the conductive fiber material, preferably, a carbon paste, a conductive rubber sheet, a conductive plastic sheet, or the like can be arranged on the surface of the electrode portion in contact with the skin to optimize the electrical contact impedance with the skin. ..
A stainless snap hook 12 is attached as a connector to a portion corresponding to the center of the chest of the left and right wiring portions, and is connected to the detachable electronic unit via the connector.

A reinforcing material can be inserted inside the tubular measuring portion to reinforce the strength of the connector portion. The contact point between the snap hook and the wiring portion is crimped, but it is preferable to perform electrical reinforcement with a conductive adhesive, low-temperature solder, or the like to ensure an electrical connection. It is also a preferable embodiment to sew with metal wire or conductive fiber.

As a preferable example in the present invention, the skin pad is arranged on the skin side of the measuring unit, particularly on the skin side of the portion overlapping the connector and the removable electronic unit, and at the same time as the connector portion is reinforced, the unevenness of the connector and the removable electronic unit is formed. It is possible to reduce the discomfort of directly touching the skin.
For the skin, it may be placed on the skin side in the vicinity where the electronic unit of the measuring unit is attached. The skin pad has an area that can cover at least the connector of the electrode portion. The material for the skin pad is not particularly limited, but a material having flexibility and cushioning such as a urethane foam sheet or a foam rubber sheet is preferable. Foamed chloroprene rubber sheet used for wet suits and the like is a material that can be preferably used. Further, an insulating reinforcing material may be arranged on the connector side of the measuring unit for reinforcing the connector portion and protecting the insulation. A material preferably used as a reinforcing material is a polyurethane sheet, a silicone rubber sheet, and other synthetic rubber sheets and natural rubber sheets.

The above has described the front-opening garment as an example of the present invention. The present invention is not limited to front-opening clothing, and can be widely applied to both men's and women's clothing as long as it is clothing.
The garment of the present invention can be applied to armor garments used in various sports, martial arts, work sites, guards, and the like. Further, the present invention can be applied as hospital clothing and nursing care clothing in which caregivers and medical staff often put on and take off clothing when the wearer is sleeping.
Further, in the present invention, for convenience of explanation, the description is made for a person such as a subject, a wearer, and a care recipient in the specification, but the present invention is not limited to the clothing for measuring biological information for humans. It can be applied to all vertebrates living on land, including mammals, such as pets and livestock.

In the present invention, the main material (base material) constituting clothing is a cloth made of a fiber material. Examples of the cloth include woven fabrics, knitted fabrics, and non-woven fabrics, and resin-coated and resin-impregnated coated cloths can also be used as the base material. Further, a synthetic rubber sheet typified by chloroprene or the like can also be used as a base material. The fabric used in the present invention preferably has stretchability capable of repeatedly expanding and contracting by 10% or more. Further, the substrate of the present invention preferably has a breaking elongation of 50% or more. The base material of the present invention may be a cloth cloth, a ribbon, a tape, a braid, a net, or a single-wafer cloth cut from the cloth.
When the cloth is a woven fabric, for example, plain weave, twill weave, satin weave, and the like can be exemplified. When the fabric is knitted, for example, flat knit and its deformation, Kanoko, Amunzen, lace, eyelet, yarn net, pile, rib net, ripple, turtle shell, blister, Milan rib, etc. Double picket edition, single picket knitting, diagonal edition, heliborn edition, punch roma edition, basket edition, tricot edition, half tricot edition, satin tricot edition, double tricot edition, quinz cord edition, striped soccer edition, Russell edition, Examples of tulle mesh knitting and their variations / combinations can be given. The cloth may be a non-woven fabric made of an elastomer fiber or the like.

The fiber material in the present invention is not particularly limited, and if it is a natural fiber, it may be cotton, wool, linen or the like, and if it is a chemical fiber, it may be nylon, acrylic, polyester, polyurethane or the like. Each of these can be used alone or can be blended at any ratio. As the fiber material of the clothing for measuring biological information of the present application, it is preferable to blend a cotton material with a weight ratio of 25% or more. More preferably, it is preferable to blend a stretchable material with a weight ratio of 5% or more. Preferred blended materials are cotton-polyurethane blended materials and cotton, polyester and polyurethane blended materials. In particular, the fiber material of the measuring unit is preferably a material containing cotton in a weight ratio of 35% or more.
Further, the fabric made of the fiber material constituting the garment of the present invention may be either a woven fabric or a knit (knit), but the front-opening garment exemplified in this example is preferably composed mainly of a knit.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the material of the measuring unit support member has elasticity of 10% or more. The elasticity of the material in the present invention is a value obtained by the fabric test method of JIS L 1096: 2010 woven fabric and knitted fabric.
The material of the measuring section support member of the present invention is preferably a material having a friction coefficient such that the measuring section having a tubular shape does not cause the measuring section support member to fall off. The material of the measuring unit support member preferably has a coefficient of friction of 0.5 to 0.7 with the material inside the cylinder of the measuring unit. More preferably, one side of the strip-shaped measuring unit support member exhibits a high coefficient of friction, and the other surface preferably has a low coefficient of friction of 0.01 to 0.5. This is because if the coefficient of friction is high on both sides and it is not slippery, the friction between the measuring unit and the supporting member of the measuring unit becomes too large, and the free movement of the supporting member of the measuring unit is hindered. It is more preferable to use a nanofiber belt as the belt of the measuring unit.
The coefficient of friction of the measuring unit support member can be evaluated by the following method. Here, the front and back of the band-shaped form are defined as the one that is hard to slip and the one that slips rather than the front.

<Friction coefficient measurement method>
The average coefficient of friction MIU was measured with a KES-SE surface tester. N = 5 measurements with 5 pieces of each sample.
・ Friction: Standard (fingerprint type) 1 cm x 1 cm
・ Friction force sensitivity: H
・ Sample movement speed: 1 mm / sec
・ Load: 25gf / cm ²
-Measurement environment: 20 ° C, 55% RH
The evaluation method of the coefficient of friction between the measuring unit support member and the fabric is shown below.
The average friction coefficient MIU was measured with the KES-SE surface tester with the fabric attached to the friction element. N = 3 measurement with 3 pieces of each sample.
・ Friction: Standard (fingerprint type) 1 cm x 1 cm
・ Friction force sensitivity: H
・ Sample movement speed: 1 mm / sec
・ Load: 25gf / cm ²
-Measurement environment: 20 ° C, 55% RH

As the material used for the electrical wiring and / or the electrode in the present invention, a metal foil, a conductive fabric, an elastic conductor sheet or the like can be used. An electrode surface layer may be provided on the electrode portion as needed. The wiring portion is preferably covered with an insulating cover layer, preferably an elastic insulating cover layer. Further, both the electrode and the wiring may be provided with a base layer at the boundary with the fabric to improve the adhesiveness and to bear the insulating property.

The metal foil used as the electrical wiring in the present invention has a thickness of 50 μm or less, preferably 25 μm or less, more preferably 15 μm or less, still more preferably 8 μm or less, still more preferably 4 μm or less, and 0.08 μm or more. It is preferable that the metal foil is at least one selected from copper foil, phosphorus bronze foil, nickel-plated copper foil, tin-plated copper foil, nickel / gold-plated copper foil, aluminum foil, silver foil, and gold foil.
These metal foils can be muddy by a conventional method such as an electrolytic method, a non-electrolytic method, a rolling method, a vapor deposition method, and a sputtering method. The metal leaf can be processed into a predetermined pattern shape by an etching method, a lift-off method, an additive method, a punching method, a laser cutting method, or the like.

Geometric redundancy in the present invention means a path Y longer than the shortest distance with respect to the shortest distance X between the two points when two points A and B are defined in space. By connecting two points using the above, it means that the connected state is maintained with a margin even when the distance between the two points is extended.
Here is the redundancy factor
Redundancy coefficient = Y / X
Defined in. The length here is the length of the line passing through the center of the line if it has a width.
The redundancy coefficient in the present invention is 1.41. The above is preferable, 1.8 or more is further preferable, 2.2 or more is still preferable, and 2.8 or more is further preferable. In order to increase the redundancy coefficient, the metal leaf may be simply arranged in a zigzag or sinusoidal shape or a repeated horseshoe shape.

For the metal foil having such a preferably zigzag pattern, for example, after forming a laminate of a stretchable sheet such as a rubber sheet, a urethane sheet, or a silicone rubber sheet and the metal foil, the metal foil is removed by a subtractive method. It can be processed with a predetermined pattern. The subtractive method is synonymous with the etching method used in a general printed wiring board manufacturing method. The stretchable sheet may also serve as a base layer or may function as a part of the base layer.

When a metal foil is used as an electrode in the present invention, the surface of the metal foil is preferably plated with a noble metal such as gold, silver, platinum, rhodium, or ruthenium, or a metal that is less likely to undergo oxidative deterioration due to passivation, such as chromium, molybdenum, and tungsten. It can be protected by plating, such as nickel or corrosion resistant alloys. Further, the electrode surface protective layer can be provided by printing carbon paste or the like on the electrode surface. Alternatively, it can be covered with a stretchable conductive composition composed of a conductive filler and a flexible resin.

In the present invention, conductive threads (including conductive threads and conductive fibers) can be used as wiring. Wiring with conductive threads is preferably used in combination with electrodes using conductive fabric. The conductive yarn in the present invention means a yarn having a resistance value of 100 Ω or less per 1 cm of fiber length. Here, the conductive yarn is a general term for a conductive fiber, a fiber bundle of the conductive fiber, a twisted yarn obtained from a fiber containing the conductive fiber, a braided yarn, a spun yarn, and a blended yarn. As the conductive yarn of the present invention, metal-coated chemical fiber, metal-coated natural fiber, chemical fiber more coated with conductive oxide, natural fiber coated with conductive oxide, carbon-based conductive material ( Chemical fibers coated with graphite, carbon, carbon nanotubes, graphene, etc.), natural fibers coated with carbon-based conductive materials, chemical fibers coated with conductive polymers, natural fibers coated with conductive polymers Examples of conductive threads obtained from the above can be exemplified. For this type of conductive yarn, a polymer film having a polymer film coated with one or more conductive materials selected from metals, carbon-based conductive materials, conductive metal oxides, and conductive polymers is 800 μm or less in width. Includes a conductive ultrafine slit film with fine slits.
The conductive yarn in the present invention is a conductive fiber obtained by spinning a polymer kneaded with one or more conductive materials selected from metals, carbon-based conductive materials, conductive metal oxides, and conductive polymers. Can be used as a conductive thread obtained from.
Further in the present invention. A metal fine wire having a thickness of 250 μm or less, preferably 120 μm or less, more preferably 80 μm or less, still more preferably 50 μm or less can be used as the conductive fiber or the conductive thread. Further, in the present invention, a conductive yarn obtained by supporting and impregnating a fiber bundle such as a microfiber nanofiber with a conductive filler, a conductive polymer, or the like can be used.
In the present invention, it is particularly preferable to use at least one kind of conductive yarn selected from metal-coated chemical fibers, fiber bundles impregnated with a conductive polymer, and metal fine wires having a thickness of 50 μm or less.
Wiring with conductive threads is preferably redundant. Redundancy can be given by, for example, embroidering the conductive thread in a zigzag pattern, incorporating the conductive thread into the knit, creating a loop in the conductive thread portion to ensure redundancy, and using the knit fabric itself as wiring. ..

In the present invention, a conductive fabric can be used as the electrode. The conductive fabric in the present invention is a general term for fiber structures having conductivity. As an example of the conductive fabric of the present invention, a woven fabric, a knitted fabric, or a non-woven fabric composed of fibers containing conductive yarns (including conductive yarns and conductive fibers) can be used. Further, in the present invention, a conductive fabric can be obtained by embroidering a conductive thread on a non-conductive fabric. Further, a fiber structure obtained by impregnating a non-conductive cloth with a solution of a conductive polymer or a solution of a composition containing a conductive filler and a binder resin and drying the cloth can be used.
As the conductive fabric in the present invention, it is preferable to use a fiber structure impregnated with a conductive polymer. Further, the conductive fabric of the present invention is a conductive fabric in which the fiber structure is impregnated with the conductive polymer by applying a dispersion liquid in which a conductive polymer and a binder are dispersed in a solvent to the fabric. It is preferable to use. In the present invention, as the conductive polymer, a mixture of poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and polystyrene sulfonic acid can be preferably used. In the present invention, it is preferable that the conductive fabric used for the electrode is made of a woven or knitted fabric, and the basis weight of the woven or knitted fabric is less than 50 g / m2 or more than 300 g / m2. The fabric used for the electrode of the present invention is made of a synthetic fiber multifilament, and at least a part of the synthetic fiber multifilament is an ultrafine filament having a fineness of less than 30 dtex, or has a fineness of more than 400 dtex, and has a single yarn fineness. It is preferably a synthetic fiber multifilament having 0.2 dtex or less.

In the present invention, an elastic conductor layer (or an elastic conductor layer sheet) can be used as a material for electrodes and wiring. The stretchable conductor layer is a layer having elasticity and having a specific resistance of ¹ × 100 Ωcm or less. The stretchable conductor layer of the present invention has stretchability. The stretchability in the present invention means that it can be repeatedly expanded and contracted by 10% or more while maintaining conductivity. Further, the stretchable conductor layer of the present invention preferably has a breaking elongation of 40% or more, preferably 50% or more of breaking elongation, and more preferably 80% or more of breaking elongation of the conductor layer alone. Further, the elastic conductor layer of the present invention preferably has a tensile elastic modulus of 10 to 500 MPa. A material capable of forming a stretchable conductor layer having such stretchability is called a stretchable conductor composition.
The stretchable conductor composition can be obtained via the conductive paste described below. Hereinafter, the conductive paste, which is one of the means for realizing the constituent elements of the present invention, will be described. The conductive paste is composed of at least conductive particles, a stretchable resin, and a solvent.

The conductive particles of the present invention are particles having a particle diameter of 100 μm or less and made of a substance having a specific resistance of 1 × 10 ^-1 Ωcm or less. Examples of the substance having a specific resistance of 1 × 10 ^-1 Ωcm or less include metals, alloys, carbons, doped semiconductors, and conductive polymers. The conductive particles preferably used in the present invention include metals such as silver, gold, platinum, palladium, copper, nickel, aluminum, zinc, lead and tin, alloy particles such as brass, bronze, white copper and solder, and silver-coated copper. Hybrid grains, as well as metal-plated polymer particles, metal-plated glass particles, metal-coated ceramic particles, and the like can be used.

In the present invention, it is preferable to use flake-shaped silver particles or amorphous aggregated silver powder. The particle size of the flake-like powder is not particularly limited, but the average particle size (50% D) measured by the dynamic light scattering method is preferably 0.5 to 20 μm. More preferably, it is 3 to 12 μm. If the average particle size exceeds 15 μm, it becomes difficult to form fine wiring, and clogging occurs in the case of screen printing or the like. If the average particle size is less than 0.5 μm, the particles cannot be contacted with each other at low filling, and the conductivity may deteriorate. The particle size of the amorphous agglomerated powder is not particularly limited, but the average particle size (50% D) measured by the light scattering method is preferably 1 to 20 μm. More preferably, it is 3 to 12 μm. If the average particle size exceeds 20 μm, the dispersibility deteriorates and it becomes difficult to make a paste. If the average particle size is less than 1 μm, the effect as agglomerated powder is lost, and good conductivity may not be maintained with low filling.

Examples of the flexible resin in the present invention include thermoplastic resins, thermosetting resins, and rubber having an elastic modulus of 1 to 1000 MPa, but rubber is preferable in order to exhibit the elasticity of the film. Examples of rubber include urethane rubber, acrylic rubber, silicone rubber, butadiene rubber, nitrile group-containing rubber such as nitrile rubber and hydride nitrile rubber, isoprene rubber, sulfide rubber, styrene butadiene rubber, butyl rubber, chlorosulfonated polyethylene rubber, and ethylene propylene. Examples include rubber and vinylidene fluoride copolymer. Among these, nitrile group-containing rubber, chloroprene rubber, and chlorosulfonated polyethylene rubber are preferable, and nitrile group-containing rubber is particularly preferable. The preferred elastic modulus range in the present invention is 3 to 600 MPa, more preferably 10 to 500 MPa, and even more preferably 30 to 300 MPa.
The rubber containing a nitrile group is not particularly limited as long as it is a rubber containing a nitrile group or an elastomer, but nitrile rubber and hydrogenated nitrile rubber are preferable. Nitrile rubber is a copolymer of butadiene and acrylonitrile, and when the amount of bound acrylonitrile is large, the affinity with the metal increases, but the rubber elasticity that contributes to elasticity decreases. Therefore, the amount of bonded acrylonitrile in the acrylonitrile butadiene copolymer rubber is preferably 18 to 50% by mass, particularly preferably 40 to 50% by mass.
The blending amount of the flexible resin in the present invention is 7 to 35% by mass, preferably 9 to 28% by mass, and more preferably 12 to 20% by mass with respect to the total of the conductive particles and the flexible resin. The solvent is not limited, and a known organic solvent or aqueous solvent may be used.

The base layer of the present invention is a layer that bears insulation on the base material side of the wiring portion. Here, insulation includes not only electrical insulation but also mechanical, chemical, and biological insulation, and it is necessary to have a function of insulating the conductor layer from water, chemical substances, and biological substances that permeate the base material.
The underlying layer of the present invention is preferably a flexible polymer material. As the flexible polymer material, a material called so-called rubber or elastomer can be used. As the rubber and elastomer of the present invention, the resin material exemplified as the flexible resin used in the stretchable conductor composition can be preferably used.
It is preferable that the base layer of the present invention has stretchability capable of repeatedly expanding and contracting by 10% or more. Further, the base layer of the present invention preferably has a breaking elongation of 50% or more. Further, the underlying layer of the present invention preferably has a tensile elastic modulus of 10 to 500 MPa.
The underlayer of the present invention is preferably applied onto the substrate via a coating liquid, a dipping liquid, a liquid form such as a printing ink or a printing paste, or a slurry state. It is also possible to make a sheet in a separate process in advance and attach it to the fabric by a method such as hot pressing.

The electrical wiring of the present invention is preferably covered with an insulating cover coat layer. The cover coat layer can be made of a stretchable resin material or the like like the base layer.

The detachable electronic unit in the present invention has at least a function of receiving and measuring an electric signal obtained from an electrode in contact with a living body via wiring and a connector, and more preferably a calculation function, a display function, a storage function, and a communication function. It is a small electronic unit having. In the present invention, it is preferable to use a detachable electronic unit having a function of communicating an AD-converted biological signal to an external device by a Bluetooth (registered trademark) function or the like.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited by the following examples as well as the present invention, and appropriate modifications are made to the extent that it can meet the purposes of the preceding and the following. Of course, it is possible to carry out, and all of them are included in the technical scope of the present invention.
The resin for forming the insulating layer and the conductive paste used in the following examples were prepared as follows.

[Adjustment of conductive paste]
Coatlon KYU-1 manufactured by Sanyo Kasei Kogyo Co., Ltd. (glass transition temperature -35 ° C) as a binder, micro-diameter silver powder SPH02J (average particle diameter 1.2 μm) manufactured by Mitsui Metal Mining Co., Ltd. as silver particles, and Lion Specialty as carbon particles. Ketjen Black EC600JD manufactured by Chemicals Co., Ltd., using butyl carbitol acetate as a solvent, and conducting conductivity for forming elastic conductors in a blend of 10 parts by mass of binder, 70 parts by mass of silver particles, 1 part by mass of carbon particles, and 19 parts by mass of solvent. Adjusted the paste. First, the binder resin is dissolved in half the amount of the predetermined solvent, metal particles and carbon particles are added to the obtained solution, premixed, and then dispersed in a three-roll mill to form a paste. did.
The obtained stretchable conductor layer (stretchable conductor sheet) obtained by screen-printing the obtained stretchable conductor forming paste to a thickness of 25 μm and drying at 100 ° C. for 20 minutes has an initial resistivity. It had a stretchability of 250 μΩ · cm and maintained conductivity even after repeating 20% stretching 100 times.

[Preparation of elastic carbon paste]
The carbon paste for the electrode protective layer was prepared according to the composition shown in Table 2.
After 40 parts by mass of nitrile butadiene rubber resin with a glass transition temperature of -19 ° C, 20 parts by mass of Ketjen Black EC300J manufactured by Lion Specialty Chemicals Co., Ltd., and 50 parts by mass of ethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate as a solvent. Dispersion was performed with a three-roll mill to obtain an elastic carbon paste.

A urethane sheet (corresponding to the insulating cover layer) having a predetermined shape with the electrode part and the connector part cut out is temporarily adhered to the PET mold release sheet whose surface is treated with a silicone-based mold release agent, and the electrode part is elastic. The carbon paste is screen-printed, the elastic conductor paste is printed in a predetermined pattern from the electrode part to the connector position, and the double-sided hot melt sheet (corresponding to the insulating base layer) is laminated so as to cover the urethane sheet, and the release sheet is released. Electrodes and wiring were formed on top.
Then, it is formed on the previously obtained release sheet at a predetermined position of the measurement unit of the front opening garment having the structure shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 manufactured of the knit fabric using the polyester-cotton-polyurethane blend yarn. The electrodes and wiring were overlapped (so that the double-sided hot melt sheet side touched the fabric of the measurement unit), and the electrodes and wiring were transferred to the measurement unit together with the insulating base layer and the insulating cover layer by heating and pressurizing with a hot press. Then, a reinforcing material was installed at a predetermined position so as to have the cross-sectional structure shown in FIG. 6, a snap hook as a connector was attached, and a skin pad was further attached to obtain a front-opening garment having the configuration of the present invention.
The external photographs of the obtained front-opening garment are shown in FIGS. 6, 7, and 8.

Table 1 shows the coefficient of friction (MIU) when a nanofiber belt or a rubber belt is used as a material for a measuring unit support member, which is an example of clothing for measuring biological information in the present invention.
Table 2 shows the coefficient of friction in the combination of the measuring unit support member and the fabric, which is an example of the clothing for measuring biological information in the present invention. The contents of the dough in Table 2 are shown in Table 3.

As described above, the garment for measuring biological information of the present invention can be widely applied to both men and women, and is used for various sports, martial arts, work sites, guards, etc. Can be applied to. Further, the present invention can be applied as hospital clothing and nursing care clothing in which caregivers and medical staff often put on and take off clothing when the wearer is sleeping. Further, the clothing for measuring biological information of the present invention does not require a large movement of the arm when putting on and taking off by opening the front, and can be put on and taken off even while lying down. It is expected that it will be possible to provide clothing for biometric information measurement with excellent detachability, and it will be possible to wear clothing for biometric information measurement more conveniently, which will greatly contribute to the industrial world.
Further, the present invention has been described in the specification for humans such as subjects, wearers, and care recipients for convenience of explanation, but the present invention is not limited to clothing for measuring biological information for humans. It can be applied to all terrestrial vertebrates including mammals such as pets and livestock.

1 Clothes for measuring biological information 2 Right front body 3 Left front body 4 Front opening structure 5 Sleeve 6 Front body engaging member 7 Back body 8 Measuring unit 9 Measuring unit support member 10 Electrode unit 11 Wiring unit 12 Connector 13 Measuring unit support member engaging Member 14 Detachable electronic unit

Claims (8)

at least,
A measuring unit with a cylindrical structure using a flexible cloth as a base material,
Clothes body and
Flexible strip-shaped measuring unit support member,
As a component ,
A garment for measuring biological information , wherein the strip-shaped measuring unit support member is attached to the garment main body in a state of penetrating the cylinder of the measuring unit having a tubular structure . The clothing for measuring biological information according to claim 1, wherein both band ends of the band-shaped measuring unit support member are detachably attached to the clothing body. 1. The described clothing for measuring biological information. The clothing for biometric information measurement according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the clothing main body portion has a front opening structure, and the left and right bodies in the front opening structure have an engaging member. The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the measuring unit has a plurality of electrodes that come into direct contact with the skin of the subject. The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the extension degree of the measuring unit support member is 10% or more. The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the clothing body portion has an opening / closing portion. The clothing for measuring biological information according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the clothing body is clothing applied to the upper body of a person.

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