JP7388852B2 - Ultraviolet irradiation device and catheter sterilizer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an ultraviolet irradiation device and a catheter sterilizer.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, a device disclosed in Patent Document 1 has been proposed as a device for sterilizing catheters by irradiating ultraviolet rays. In this device, an ultraviolet light emitting diode is installed between the inner and outer walls of the catheter connector, thereby making it possible to sterilize the fluid within the catheter and the catheter connector using ultraviolet light.
Furthermore, Non-Patent Document 1 proposes a device that sterilizes the inner surface of a catheter by irradiating ultraviolet rays from the outside of the catheter only when necessary.

Special table 2017-50282 publication

The 289th Research Meeting of the Tohoku Branch of the Society of Instrument and Control Engineers (2014.6.24) Document number 289-3

However, with the method of installing an ultraviolet light emitting diode between the inner and outer walls of the catheter connector, sterilization of the catheter only needs to be carried out during and immediately after connection, when bacteria are likely to adhere; The catheter connector simply has an unnecessary device attached to it, and the provision of an ultraviolet light emitting diode inside the catheter connector has an electrical circuit that could cause an electrical leak in the event of an unexpected accident. It turns out. In particular, in the case of a catheter connector for a urinary catheter, the electrical circuit that causes electrical leakage is located near the patient, which is undesirable.

Furthermore, in the method of irradiating ultraviolet rays from the outside of the catheter only when necessary, it is necessary to pass the ultraviolet rays through the catheter to sterilize bacteria attached to the inner wall. This means that it is necessary to irradiate the entire connector of the catheter with more than a certain amount of ultraviolet rays. Therefore, when using a mercury lamp as a light source, it is necessary to arrange the tubular mercury lamp parallel to the catheter. In this way, installing a mercury lamp on the side of the catheter, especially in the case of a urinary catheter, means that there is a glass tube near the patient that is easily broken, and some of the tubes are toxic. The presence of mercury makes it undesirable to use such sterilizers at the bedside.

In this way, as a method to eliminate the danger of electrical circuits being near the patient and to irradiate the catheter with ultraviolet rays without using a mercury lamp, which is a toxic substance, we have developed a method to irradiate the catheter with ultraviolet rays without using a mercury lamp, which is a toxic substance. It is conceivable to place a solid-state light emitting body such as an LED (light emitting diode). However, since LED is a point light source, it is difficult to uniformly illuminate a tubular catheter, and furthermore, it is difficult to effectively illuminate the inner wall due to loss due to surface reflection.

Therefore, the present invention has been made by focusing on the above-mentioned conventional unresolved problems, and aims to provide an ultraviolet irradiation device and a catheter sterilizer that can safely and efficiently sterilize catheters and the like. The purpose is

An ultraviolet irradiation device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a device main body having a recess, and a recess, the recess and the recess of the device main body facing each other to form a housing space, and the device main body having a recess. a lid portion that closes the entire recess and has an upper bottom portion formed to have an arcuate cross section; a UV reflective member provided on the inner wall of the housing space; and a lid portion that is divided into a plurality of compartments and each compartment is an internal reflection structure having a plurality of cone-shaped compartments, and disposed within the recess on the device main body side such that the bottom of each of the compartments is on the bottom side of the recess in the device main body. and a plurality of solid-state light emitters that are arranged at the bottom of each of the compartments and emit ultraviolet light toward the opening of the recess of the device main body, and the plurality of solid-state light emitters are arranged in the bottom of each of the compartments, and the plurality of solid-state light emitters It is characterized by being arranged along the longitudinal direction .

Further, a catheter sterilizer according to another embodiment is a catheter sterilizer that sterilizes catheters, and includes the ultraviolet irradiation device of the above aspect, and includes an edge of the recess of the device main body and the recess of the lid. a plurality of notches forming communication holes communicating with the accommodation space on at least one of the edges of the catheter connector; the accommodation space has a shape substantially similar to that of the catheter connector; A catheter connector is housed therein, and a catheter connected to the catheter connector is sandwiched between the cutout portions.

According to one aspect of the present invention, catheters and the like can be sterilized safely and efficiently.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of an ultraviolet irradiation device according to the present invention. 1A is a top view and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA' in FIG. This is an example of a device used to measure diffuse transmittance. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a main part of an ultraviolet irradiation section. 1A is a perspective view, FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA' in FIG. 3A, and FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B' in FIG. (a) is a top view, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA' in (a), showing another example of the ultraviolet irradiation part. It is a perspective view showing a modification of the ultraviolet irradiation device. It is a perspective view showing a modification of the ultraviolet irradiation device. It is a sectional view of an ultraviolet irradiation part showing a modification of an ultraviolet irradiation device. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the management circuit in the modification of an ultraviolet irradiation device. This is an example of the measurement results of sterilization ability. This is an example of a sterilizer with a mercury container used as a comparative example. It is a measurement result of the temperature near the light source of an Example and a comparative example.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the description of the drawings below, the same or similar parts are designated by the same or similar symbols. However, the drawings are schematic, and the relationship between thickness and planar dimensions, etc. differs from reality. In addition, the embodiments shown below exemplify devices and methods for embodying the technical idea of the present invention. etc. are not specified as those listed below. The technical idea of the present invention can be modified in various ways within the technical scope defined by the claims.

<Configuration of ultraviolet irradiation device>
FIG. 1 is an external view showing an example of an ultraviolet irradiation device 1 according to the present invention.
The ultraviolet irradiation device 1 includes a device body 2 and a lid portion 3 whose one side is attached to the device body 2 with a hinge or the like. It has a shape in which a substantially rectangular parallelepiped-shaped lid portion 3 with a low height is stacked.
The device main body 2 includes an ultraviolet irradiation section 11 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and support sections 12 and 13 provided at both ends of the ultraviolet irradiation section 11 in the longitudinal direction.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of the ultraviolet irradiation section 11, in which (a) is a top view and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA' in (a).
The ultraviolet irradiation unit 11 includes a casing 51 having an open upper end and a katakana U-shaped cross section, and a casing 51 that closes the opening of the casing 51 and opens the inside of the casing 51. An internal reflection structure 52 divided into a bottom side and a bottom side, a circuit board 54 on one surface of which a plurality of solid light emitters 53 that emit light in the deep ultraviolet region are mounted in a linear row, and a heat sink 55. , a transparent window portion 56 , and a drive circuit 57 for driving and controlling the solid-state light emitter 53 .

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the internal reflection structure 52 is divided into three sections having the same shape. Each compartment is rectangular in top view, with a central part P, which is the intersection of the diagonals of the rectangle, being concave, and rising gently from the central part P toward each side of the rectangle forming the compartment, so that it is shaped like a mortar. There is. Furthermore, a through hole 52a is formed in the central portion P. The internal reflection structure 52 is fixed to the housing 51 such that its upper end is located at a lower position than the upper end near the upper end of the housing 51 .

The internal reflection structure 52 is formed of an ultraviolet reflective material, and the ultraviolet reflective material preferably has a total reflectance of 50% or more in the ultraviolet region, more preferably 80% or more. It is most desirable for the ultraviolet reflective material to have a total reflectance of 100%, but this is difficult to achieve with actually existing substances, and the effects of the present invention can be exerted even if the total reflectance is 99% or less. Examples of ultraviolet reflective materials that can be used as the internal reflective structure 52 for this purpose include polytetrafluoroethylene PTFE, a composite material in which boron nitride powder is fixed with silica, and high-purity silica microcrystals coagulated. Examples include materials with excellent diffuse reflection properties, such as materials with Specifically, the PTFE is preferably, for example, a PTFE having an average crystallinity of 0.51 or more and 0.61 or less, and a crystallite size in the (110) direction of 60 nm or more and 250 nm or less.

Further, the ultraviolet reflective material used for the internal reflection structure 52 has a wall thickness of 1 mm or more and 50 mm or less, a diffuse transmittance of 1%/1 mm or more and 20%/1 mm or less, and a total reflectance in the ultraviolet region. PTFE in which the ratio is 80%/1 mm or more and 99%/1 mm or less is preferable. Furthermore, it is preferable that the sum of the diffuse transmittance and the total reflectance in the ultraviolet region is 90%/1 mm or more. Other examples of ultraviolet reflective materials include silicone resin, quartz glass containing bubbles of 0.05 μm or more and 10 μm or less, partially crystalline fossil silica glass containing crystal grains of 0.05 μm or more and 10 μm or less, and 0.05 μm. Examples include alumina sintered bodies in the form of crystal grains of 10 μm or more, and mullite sintered bodies in the form of crystal grains of 0.05 μm or more and 10 μm or less.

Here, when using a diffusely reflective material as the internally reflecting structure 52, if the diffused transmittance is set to 20%/1 mm or less, the effective amount of ultraviolet reflection can be maintained even if the internally reflecting structure 52 is made thinner. The optical design is easy, and the entire ultraviolet irradiation device can be miniaturized. The higher the optical density of the scatterer and the lower the diffused transmittance, the better, but in the case of non-porous materials, the difference in density inside the material, such as crystalline and amorphous parts, acts as a scatterer, so it should be 1%/1mm. That is difficult.
Further, in order to obtain an effective multiple reflection effect of ultraviolet rays in the ultraviolet region of the internal reflection structure 52, the total reflectance is preferably 80%/mm or more. The higher the total reflectance, the better, but in the case of non-porous materials, the difference in density inside the material, such as crystalline parts and amorphous parts, becomes a scatterer, so it is generally not recommended to set the total reflectance to 99%/1 mm or more. Have difficulty.

Furthermore, from the viewpoint of obtaining an effective multiple reflection effect of ultraviolet rays, a material whose sum of diffuse transmittance and total reflectance in the ultraviolet region is 90%/1 mm or more, that is, the energy absorbed internally is 10% or less. is preferable as a component of the internal reflection structure 52.
Note that the diffuse transmittance is measured using a plate-shaped sample obtained by slicing an ultraviolet reflective material. Specifically, when measuring the diffuse transmittance of PTFE as an ultraviolet reflective material, for example, an integrating sphere is used to measure the diffuse transmittance as shown in FIG. 3, for example. As the spectrophotometer, a device commonly used for measuring the diffuse transmittance of suspended substances can be used.

In FIG. 3, 101 is a plate-shaped sample, 102 is a detector, 103 is measurement light, 104 is control light, and 105 is a standard white plate.
The solid-state light emitter 53 is a light emitter that does not contain mercury, and may be any light emitter that emits ultraviolet light in the UVC region of 220 nm or more and 300 nm or less, preferably 250 nm or more and 280 nm or less, such as inorganic EL (Electro Luminescence) or It is also possible to use a light source in which light with a wavelength shorter than the UVC region is made longer by using a phosphor or the like, or it is also possible to use a light source in which light with a longer wavelength than the UVC region is made into a shorter wavelength by a wavelength conversion element, etc. A light emitting diode that emits UVC light through gap transition is desirable, and from the viewpoint of durability and luminous efficiency, a light emitting diode fabricated on aluminum nitride single crystal is more preferred.

The circuit board 54 is desirably a circuit board with good thermal conductivity from the viewpoint of dissipating heat generated from the solid-state light emitter 53 mounted on one surface thereof. The circuit board 54 is made of, for example, FR-4 (Flame Retardant Type 4), CEM3 (Composite epoxy material 3), or by thickening the copper foil thereof. A circuit board with improved thermal conductivity is desirable. More preferably, a circuit board made of aluminum, copper, or the like is preferred. When using a metal circuit board as the circuit board 54, it is important to ensure electrical insulation between the electric circuit and the circuit board and thermal conduction. The thermal conductivity of the layer that insulates the electric circuit and the circuit board is preferably 1 W/m·K or more, preferably 2 W/m·K or more, and preferably 3 W/m·K or more. More desirable. The thickness of the layer insulating the electric circuit and the circuit board is preferably 200 μm or less, more preferably 150 μm or less, and more preferably 80 μm or less. Further, the volume electrical resistivity of the layer insulating the electric path and the circuit board is preferably 10 ¹² Ω·cm or more, more preferably 10 ¹³ Ω·cm or more.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the heat sink 55 is disposed on the opposite surface of the circuit board 54 to the surface on which the solid-state light emitter 53 is mounted, and the heat sink 55 is fixed to the internal reflection structure 52. At this time, the circuit board 54 on which the solid-state light emitter 53 is mounted is placed in a position facing the through hole 52a formed in the internal reflection structure 52, and the solid-state light emitter 53 is inserted into the housing through the internal reflection structure 52. It is arranged so as to protrude toward the opening side of the body 51.
The heat sink 55 is preferably made of a material with good thermal conductivity, such as aluminum or aluminum alloy, metal such as copper or copper alloy, alumina, mullite, zirconia, polycrystalline aluminum nitride ceramic, etc. Ceramic materials can also be used.

The transparent window portion (ultraviolet rays transparent member) 56 is made of a plate-like ultraviolet rays transparent member, and is located closer to the opening end of the housing 51 than the internal reflection structure 52 and closer to the opening end near the opening end. It is provided at a low position and is provided so as to close the opening.
The drive circuit 57 is provided in a space closed by the internal reflection structure 52 on the side surface of the housing 51 . The drive circuit 57 controls the drive current of the solid state light emitter 53. Note that the drive circuit 57 may be provided separately from the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 main body.

Returning to FIG. 1, the support portion 12 is formed with a ventilation hole 12a. The ventilation opening 12a is arranged at a position where the housing 51 of the ultraviolet ray irradiation unit 11 and the space closed by the internal reflection structure 52 face each other when the support part 12 and the ultraviolet ray irradiation unit 11 are fixed. An attempt is made to avoid an increase in temperature within the space due to the drive circuit 57. Further, a notch 12b having a semicircular cross section and extending in the longitudinal direction of the device main body 2 is formed in the center portion of the upper end of the support portion 12 in the width direction.
The support portion 13 is provided with, for example, a power source for the drive circuit 57 and the like. Further, a notch 13a having a semicircular cross section and extending in the longitudinal direction of the device main body 2 is formed in the widthwise center of the open end of the support portion 13.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of the lid section 3. As shown in FIG. In FIG. 5, (a) is a perspective view, (b) is a sectional view taken along line AA' in (a), and (c) is a sectional view taken along line BB' in (a). As shown in FIG. 5(c), the lid portion 3 has an upper base portion that is rectangular in top view and four side surfaces rising from the four sides of the upper base portion. The upper base has an arcuate shape in a cross section in the width direction, with the thickness being the thinnest at the center in the width direction. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1, notches 3a and 3b are formed at the edges of both longitudinal ends of the lid 3 at the center in the width direction, and have a semicircular cross section and extend in the longitudinal direction of the lid 3. has been done.
The lid part 3 covers at least the entire opening of the ultraviolet irradiation part 11, and is arranged so that the notches 12b and 13a formed in the support parts 12 and 13 are opposed to the notches 3a and 3b formed in the lid part 3. It has become.

At least the inner surface of the lid part 3 is formed of an ultraviolet reflective material. The ultraviolet reflective material preferably has a total reflectance of 50% or more in the ultraviolet region, more preferably 80% or more. Although it is most desirable for the total reflectance to be 100%, this is difficult to achieve with actually existing materials, and the effects of the present invention can be exhibited even if the total reflectance is 99% or less. Ultraviolet reflective materials that can be applied to the inner cylinder for this purpose include materials with excellent diffuse reflection properties, such as PTFE, composite materials made of boron nitride powder fixed with silica, and materials made of condensed high-purity silica microcrystals. The following substances can be mentioned. Specifically, the PTFE is preferably, for example, a PTFE having an average crystallinity of 0.51 or more and 0.61 or less, and a crystallite size in the (110) direction of 60 nm or more and 250 nm or less. Further, as the ultraviolet reflective material, a sheet made of an ultraviolet reflective material may be attached to the inner surface of the lid 3, or the lid 3 itself may be formed of an ultraviolet reflective material.

The apparatus main body 2 and the lid part 3 have a cutout 3a formed in the lid part 3 and a notch formed in the support part 12 when the lid part 3 is closed so that the apparatus main body 2 and the lid part 3 face each other. The notches 12b face each other, and a circular communication hole is formed when viewed from the support portion 12 side. Similarly, the notch 3b formed in the lid part 3 and the notch 13a formed in the support part 13 face each other, so that a circular communication hole is formed when viewed from the support part 13 side. Further, the diameter of the communication hole formed by the notch 3a and the notch 12b and the communication hole formed by the notch 3b and the notch 13a are the diameter of the catheter or tube connected to the catheter connector that is the object of ultraviolet irradiation. It is set to be equal to or less than the same, and is designed to limit the movement of the catheter or tube connected to the catheter connector without deforming the catheter or tube.

Further, an accommodation space is formed in which the ultraviolet irradiation unit 11 and the lid 3 face each other, and is surrounded by the transparent window 56, the side surface of the housing 51, and the inner surface of the lid 3. It is designed to house the catheter connector that is the object of irradiation. 1 and 2, a case has been described in which the transparent window portion 56 is provided near the opening end of the housing 51, but the present invention is not limited to this. It is sufficient that the light emitting surface of the solid state light emitter 53 can be covered, and for example, a transparent window portion that covers the light emitting surface of the solid state light emitter 53 may be individually provided for each section.

<Operation of ultraviolet irradiation device>
In the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 having such a configuration, when the lid part 3 is closed, the ultraviolet irradiation part 11 side has one solid-state light emitting body 53 in the center part P of each section formed in a mortar shape. It is located. Further, the internal reflective structure 52 is made of an ultraviolet reflective material, and the inner surface of the lid portion 3 is made of an ultraviolet reflective material.
Therefore, the ultraviolet rays emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53 are reflected by the internal reflection structure 52 and the inner surface of the lid part 3. As a result, the light emitted by the three solid-state light emitters 53 is not directly irradiated onto the entire ultraviolet irradiation target placed between the lid part 3 and the transparent window part 56, but the solid-state light emitters Since the light emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53 is reflected by the internal reflection structure 52 and the inner surface of the lid part 3 and is irradiated onto the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays, the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays is exposed to both the light itself emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53 and the reflected light. The light will be irradiated. Therefore, as a result, the entire object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays can be irradiated with ultraviolet rays, and the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays can be irradiated with ultraviolet rays efficiently with a smaller number of solid light emitters 53.

Further, the solid-state light emitter 53 is provided only on the device main body 2 side, and is not provided on the lid portion 3 side. If the solid-state light emitter 53 is provided on the lid 3 side, the heat generated by the solid-state light emitter 53 may transfer to the lid 3, and the lid 3 itself may have heat. In particular, when the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 is used at the bedside, it is not preferable that the lid portion 3 generates heat. In the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 according to this embodiment, the solid-state light emitter 53 is not provided on the lid portion 3 side. Therefore, the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 can be used more safely by arranging the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 so that the device main body 2 side faces a direction that is unlikely to come into contact with people.

Further, the internal reflection structure 52 is divided into three sections, and each section is formed in a mortar shape, and the solid-state light emitter 53 is disposed in the most recessed central portion P. Further, the lid portion 3 is formed such that the upper base portion has an arcuate cross section. The object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays is placed at the boundary between the lid 3 and the ultraviolet irradiator 11. The object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays is placed in a space surrounded by the ultraviolet reflective member, and spaces are formed above and below the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays. As a result, the light reflected from the solid-state light emitter 53 is easily reflected in various directions within the area surrounded by the lid and the ultraviolet irradiation unit 11, and the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays can be more efficiently irradiated with ultraviolet rays. can.

Furthermore, the solid-state light emitters 53 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the ultraviolet irradiation device 1, that is, along the longitudinal direction of the housing space, for example. Therefore, the ultraviolet rays can be irradiated along the ultraviolet irradiation object placed in the accommodation space, that is, the ultraviolet rays can be efficiently irradiated.
As the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays, for example, a catheter connector or a catheter can be used. As the catheter, a Foley catheter used for securing the urinary tract can be used.
Further, any object can be applied as long as it can be accommodated in the accommodation space surrounded by the ultraviolet reflective member formed by the device main body 2 and the lid 3. That is, the space surrounded by the ultraviolet reflective member formed by the device body 2 and the lid 3 may be formed in a size and shape that can accommodate the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays.

For example, when applying a catheter connector or a catheter as the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays, the shape of the accommodation space is approximately similar to that of the catheter connector, and the space is slightly larger than the catheter connector and is large enough to accommodate the catheter connector. The device main body 2 and the lid part 3 are formed in the device body 2 and the lid part 3, and the diameter of the communication hole formed by the notches 3a and 12b and the communication hole formed by the notches 3b and 13a is slightly larger than the diameter of the catheter. Each notch is formed to have a size that allows restricting movement of the catheter without significantly deforming the catheter. In an ultraviolet irradiation device having such a shape, when sterilizing a catheter connector, the catheter connector is stored in the housing space, and the lid portion 3 is closed so that the catheter connected to the catheter connector is sandwiched between the notches. As a result, movement of the catheter connector within the housing space is restricted without deformation, and the catheter can be moved without deformation due to the communication hole formed by the notch in the device main body 2 and the lid portion 3. is limited.
In addition, when used as a sterilizer for catheters, for example, if the accommodation space is formed into a hollow cylindrical shape with a length of 20 cm or more and 5 m or less and a diameter of 2 mm or more and 20 mm or less, various types of catheters can be used. It can be applied as a sterilizer for use.

<Modified example>
Although the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is described as having three solid-state light emitters 53 as shown in FIG. 4, it may include more solid-state light emitters, or one Only one solid-state light emitter 53 may be provided. When a plurality of solid-state light emitters are provided, the plurality of solid-state light emitters 53 may be arranged in a straight line as shown in FIG. 2(a), or in a straight line as shown in FIG. A plurality of rows of solid-state light emitters 53 may be arranged in a plurality of rows. The required number of solid-state light emitters 53 may be arranged depending on the size and range of the required irradiation area.

Furthermore, when a plurality of rows of solid-state light emitters 53 are arranged in a straight line, the irradiation direction of the solid-state light emitters 53 is perpendicular to the transparent window portion 6 as shown in FIG. 2(b). As shown in FIG. The solid-state light emitters may be arranged at an angle so that they intersect in the vicinity. Note that FIG. 6(a) is a top view, and FIG. 6(b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA' in FIG. 6(a).
In this case, the heat sinks 55 each having the solid-state light emitter 53 fixed to one surface may also be arranged at an angle.

Further, as the heat sink 55, a heat sink having performance that can obtain a sufficient heat dissipation effect according to the number of solid-state light emitters 53 arranged may be used.
Further, in FIG. 1, the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 includes a heat sink 55, but this can be changed depending on the magnitude of the driving current of the solid-state light emitter 53. For example, when the driving current of the solid-state light emitter 53 is relatively large and the amount of heat generated by the solid-state light emitter 53 is expected to be large, a cooling fan (not shown) may be used in addition to the heat sink 55. What is necessary is to use a heat sink having a size that can sufficiently radiate the predicted amount of heat generated by the above, or a cooling fan having a cooling performance that can sufficiently radiate the predicted amount of generated heat.

Further, it is not always necessary to provide both a heat sink and a cooling fan, and if the heat generated by the solid-state light emitter 53 can be sufficiently radiated, heat may be radiated by the heat sink 55 and the circuit board 54 without providing a cooling fan. Alternatively, the heat sink 55 may not be provided, and heat may be dissipated only by the circuit board 54.
Further, in the above embodiment, a case has been described in which the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 has a shape in which two rectangular parallelepiped shapes overlap, but the present invention is not limited to this.

As shown in FIG. 7, it has a rectangular shape when viewed from the top and arcs at both ends in the longitudinal direction, and the device main body 2 side has the shape of a cylinder halved in the longitudinal direction, including the ultraviolet irradiation part 11, the support part 12, Support members 21 and 22 that support the device main body 2' portion are provided so that the device main body 2' portion corresponding to 13 does not come into direct contact with the placement surface of the ultraviolet irradiation device 1. The support members 21 and 22 may be in contact with each other, and by providing the support members 21 and 22 in this manner, heat can be radiated from the lower side of the device main body 2'. Further, by forming both ends of the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 into an arc shape, it is possible to prevent the ultraviolet ray irradiation device 1 from getting entangled with the user's clothes, etc., resulting in a structure that is more suitable for bedside use.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 8, the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 is capable of storing half of the height of the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays at the upper end of the ultraviolet irradiation unit 11, instead of providing the ultraviolet ray irradiation unit 11 with a mortar shape. In addition, a recess whose bottom surface is flat is provided, and similarly, the inner surface of the lid part 3 has a surface symmetry with the recess formed on the ultraviolet irradiation part 11 side, which can accommodate half of the height of the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays. A recessed portion having a shape may be formed, and the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays may be stored in a space (accommodation space) formed by the recessed portion of the ultraviolet irradiation unit 11 and the recessed portion of the lid portion 3. Then, a hole for arranging the solid-state light emitter 53 is provided on the flat bottom surface of the recess on the side of the ultraviolet irradiation unit 11, and a transparent window portion 56 is inserted so as to close the entire opening of the hole in which the solid-state light emitter 53 is embedded. is provided for each solid-state light emitter 53.

In this state, ultraviolet irradiation may be performed by housing the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays in the accommodation space formed between the ultraviolet irradiation section 11 and the lid section 3.
In this case, by forming the accommodation space formed by the ultraviolet irradiation section 11 and the lid section 3 to have the same shape as the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays, the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays can be Movement of objects can be restricted. As a result, by housing the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays in the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 when irradiating ultraviolet rays, it is possible to avoid, for example, placing an excessive burden on the tube of the catheter. Further, by reducing the internal volume of the accommodation space, it is possible to increase the probability that UVC light will be irradiated onto the catheter body during multiple reflections. Also, in this case, since the solid-state light emitter 53 is provided only on the device main body 2 side, by arranging the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 so that people do not come into contact with the device main body 2 side, the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 Even when the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 is used at the bedside, the heat generated by the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 can be prevented from affecting people.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the device main body 2 side is a rectangular box with an open top end in the shape of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped, and an internal reflection structure that supports three solid-state light emitters 53 is provided in the box. The structure may be such that the body 52 is provided and the heat sink 55, drive circuit 57, power supply, various circuits, etc. are housed in the space between the internal reflection structure 52 and the box body, as described above. Furthermore, ventilation holes 2a may be provided on the four sides of the box to radiate heat generated by the solid-state light emitter 53, the power source, and various circuits. When the ventilation holes 2a are provided on the side surface extending in the longitudinal direction of the device main body 2, as shown in FIG. The mouth may be provided on the entire side.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, a light detection section 71 may be provided that detects the intensity of light emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53 as a light source. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the light detection unit 71 may be placed near the solid-state light emitter 53 on the same surface of the internal reflection structure 52 as the solid-state light emitter 53 is arranged. A detection signal processing circuit (computation section) 72 is provided in a space surrounded by the internal reflection structure 52 and the housing 51, and the detection signal processing circuit 72 inputs the detection signal of the photodetection section 71. Based on the detection signal from the unit 71, the integrated value of the amount of ultraviolet light emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53 is calculated, and when the integrated value of ultraviolet light exceeds a preset threshold, a predetermined amount of ultraviolet light is emitted onto the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet light. It is assumed that the ultraviolet irradiation has ended, that is, the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays has been sufficiently sterilized, and the driving of the solid-state light emitter 53 by the drive circuit 57 is stopped. In addition, the detection signal processing circuit 72 generates an alarm to notify the outside by audio, display, etc., depending on the timing when the integrated value of ultraviolet rays exceeds a threshold value, such as when the integrated value of ultraviolet rays exceeds a threshold value. A circuit (notification unit) (not shown) is driven to notify that the ultraviolet irradiation of the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays has ended. By providing the alarm circuit in this way, it is possible to notify the outside that the ultraviolet irradiation has ended, and the usability can be improved. As the light detection section 71, for example, a fluorescent glass element that emits fluorescence in the visible light range when excited by ultraviolet rays, and a photodetection element that detects the intensity of the fluorescence emitted by the fluorescent glass element can be used.

In the above embodiment, the light detection section 71 including a fluorescent glass element and a light detection element is used as a light detection section that detects the intensity of light emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53, and the light detected by the light detection section 71 is A management circuit is provided to monitor the light emission state of the solid-state light emitter 53 based on the intensity of fluorescence and the temperature detected by the temperature sensor, and the control circuit is used in the light detection unit 71 while maintaining the light emission intensity of the solid-state light emitter 53. It is also possible to drive and control the solid-state light emitting body 53 so as to suppress deterioration of the component and the deterioration of a group of electronic components such as other electronic components and to extend the lifespan.
As the management circuit, the light emitting element management circuit described in International Publication No. 2019/009343 can be preferably applied.

FIG. 10 shows an example of the circuit configuration of the management circuit 111.
The management circuit 111 includes a setting circuit 111a that sets the current value of the driving current of the solid-state light emitter 53 as a target value for causing the solid-state light emitter 53 to emit light at a desired light emission intensity, and a setting circuit 111a that sets the current value of the drive current of the solid-state light emitter 53 to make the solid-state light emitter 53 emit light at a desired light emission intensity. It includes an automatic power control circuit (automatic power control section) (Auto Power Control: APC) 111b for maintaining the power supply, and a drive circuit (drive section) 111c. The drive circuit 111c corresponds to the drive circuit 57 shown in FIG.

As described above, the fluorescent glass element 121 is an element that emits, for example, green fluorescence (for example, the wavelength is 560 nm) when excited by the ultraviolet light (for example, the wavelength is 265 nm) emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53. That is, the fluorescent glass element 121 is an element that converts light with a wavelength of 265 nm into light with a wavelength of 560 nm.
The photodetecting element 114 is composed of, for example, a photodiode (PD), converts the fluorescence emitted from the fluorescent glass element 121 into a current, and outputs the current to a current/voltage conversion circuit (IV conversion circuit) 1114.

The setting circuit 111a includes an amplifier (PGA) 1110 that amplifies the voltage based on the detection signal of the photodetector 114, a bias adjuster (DAC) 1111 that adjusts the DC bias of the output voltage output from the amplifier 1110, and an amplifier. An offset adjustment section (DAC) 1112 that adjusts the offset voltage included in the output voltage output by the section 1110; When setting a target drive current for the solid-state light emitter 53, a voltage based on the light emission intensity of the solid-state light emitter 53 driven by the target drive current is output as a feedback voltage Vfb. Furthermore, when the solid-state light emitter 53 sterilizes the object to be sterilized, the adder 1113 outputs a voltage based on the light emission intensity of the solid-state light emitter 53 as the feedback voltage Vfb.

The automatic power control circuit 111b includes a current/voltage conversion circuit 1114 whose input terminal is connected to the anode of the photodetection element 114. The current/voltage conversion circuit 1114 converts the current input from the photodetection element 114 into a voltage and outputs the voltage to the amplification section 1110.
The automatic power control circuit 111b further includes an analog/digital converter (ADC) 1115 that converts the analog signal output from the setting circuit 111a into a digital signal, and an analog/digital converter (ADC) 1115 that converts the analog signal output from the setting circuit 111a into a digital signal. A microprocessor (μP) 1116 that determines whether the light emitter 53 maintains a desired light emission intensity and sets a target drive current for controlling the solid state light emitter 53 to maintain the desired light emission intensity. and a pulse width modulation signal generation unit (PWM) 1117 that generates a pulse width modulation (PWM) signal to control the drive circuit 111c (drive circuit 57) based on instructions from the microprocessor 1116. are doing. The automatic power control circuit 111b determines whether the solid-state light emitter 53 is operating at a desired light emission intensity based on the feedback voltage Vfb during the sterilization operation. The automatic power control circuit 111b also includes a temperature sensor (temperature detection unit) 115 that detects the temperature of the solid-state light emitter 53, and controls the drive circuit 111c based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 115. The temperature sensor 115 includes, for example, a thermistor and a resistor, and further includes a comparator that compares the voltage at the connection point of the thermistor and the resistor with a predetermined voltage. The output terminal of this comparator becomes the output terminal of the temperature sensor 115. This predetermined voltage is set to a voltage corresponding to a predetermined temperature (for example, 80° C.) of the solid-state light emitter 53. The microprocessor 1116 instructs the pulse width modulation signal generation unit 1117 to change the duty ratio of the duty signal Sduty depending on whether the temperature of the solid-state light emitter 53 detected by the thermistor is higher or lower than a predetermined temperature, and When it is notified from the sensor 115 that the temperature of the solid-state light emitter 53 is higher than a predetermined temperature, the pulse width modulation signal generation unit 1117 is instructed to increase the duty ratio of the duty signal Sduty. The amount of drive current flowing through the solid-state light emitter 53 is increased to compensate for the reduced luminous intensity caused by the solid-state light emitter 53 becoming hot.

In addition, the microprocessor 1116 requires input bit values of the bias adjustment section 1111 and the offset adjustment section 1112 when the target drive current of the solid-state light emitter 53 is set and when the solid-state light emitter 53 is in the sterilization operation state of the object to be sterilized. Change accordingly. Further, the microprocessor 1116 changes the amplification factor of the amplification section 1110 as necessary when the target drive current of the solid-state light emitter 53 is set.
The drive circuit 111c includes a control section 1118 and a constant current source 1119. The control unit 1118 controls the amount of current output by the constant current source 1119 based on the duty signal Sduty input from the pulse width modulation signal generation unit 1117, and when the duty ratio of the duty signal Sduty becomes small, , the constant current source 1119 is driven so that the amount of current output is small. On the other hand, when the duty ratio of the duty signal Sduty becomes large, the constant current source 1119 is driven so that the amount of current to be output becomes large.

Since the solid-state light emitter 53 is connected in series to the constant current source 1119, a constant current of the amount of current outputted by the constant current source 1119 flows through the solid-state light emitter 53, and the intensity of the ultraviolet light emitted by the solid-state light emitter 53 increases. is determined by the amount of constant current output by the constant current source 1119.
The fluorescent glass element 121, the photodetector element 114, and the temperature sensor 115 are attached to, for example, a circuit board 54 on which a solid-state light emitter 53 is mounted. Further, like the drive circuit 57 shown in FIG. 1, the management circuit 111 is arranged on the inner surface of the casing 51 between the internal reflection structure 52 and the casing 51.

<Example>
Examples of the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 according to the present invention will be described below.
<Evaluation of sterilization ability>
The ultraviolet irradiation device 1 having the above configuration was used as a catheter sterilizer for an elastomer catheter connector, and its sterilization performance was evaluated by measuring the sterilization ability of water containing Escherichia coli.

[Sterilization operation]
1. A silicone catheter (18 Fr) ("All Silicone Foley Catheter" (trade name) manufactured by Top Co., Ltd.) is taken out of the sterilized bag and clamped and sealed at about 7 cm from the bag connection.
2. A bacterial solution (approximately 1.0×10 ⁶ CFU/ml) of Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739) is introduced through the catheter connector and sealed with a sterilized plug.
3. The catheter connector with the bacterial liquid sealed is placed in a catheter sterilizer consisting of the ultraviolet irradiation device 1. A control sample is prepared in which the same operation is performed without UVC irradiation to distinguish it from sterilization caused by physical damage and to separate the sterilization effect caused by UVC irradiation. For the control sample, at this time, the transparent window 56 of the device main body 2 is covered with aluminum foil to prevent the bacterial solution from being irradiated with UVC light.
4. The lid 3 of the catheter sterilizer is closed, and the solid-state light emitter 53 is turned on for a predetermined period of time.
5. Open the lid 3 of the catheter sterilizer, take out the catheter connector, and collect the bacterial solution into a sterilized vial (using a centrifuge tube).
6. Escherichia coli was cultured in a standard agar medium at a temperature of 35° C. for 24 hours using the pour method in a petri dish, and the number of bacteria was counted.

[Calculation of sterilization performance LRV]
Sterilization performance LRV (Log Reduction Value) was calculated from the following formula (1).
LRV
=-log10 (number of bacteria in bacterial solution after irradiation (CFU/ml)/number of bacteria in undiluted bacterial solution (CFU/ml))... (1)

Figure 11 shows the measurement results of the sterilizing ability. In FIG. 11, the horizontal axis is irradiation time (sec), and the vertical axis is sterilization performance LRV.
As shown in FIG. 11, the catheter sterilizer in the example to which the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 is applied reaches LRV6 within one minute as shown by the characteristic line L1. Generally, LRV6 is said to be at a sterilization level, so sterilization can be achieved within a one-minute waiting time that does not cause stress to the user.
On the other hand, in a comparative example using a mercury vessel in which the same operation was performed, as shown by the characteristic line L2, it took more than two minutes to reach the sterilization level, which caused great stress for the user.
In addition, as a sterilizer as a comparative example, for example, a sterilizer using a mercury vessel shown in FIG. 12 was used.

The sterilizer 200 shown in FIG. 12 includes an apparatus main body 201 and a lid part 202 with one side rotatably attached to the apparatus main body 201, and each of the apparatus main body 201 and the lid part 202 has a semicircular cross section. A concave portion extending in the longitudinal direction of the sterilizer 200 is formed so that when the lid portion 202 is closed and the device main body 201 and the lid portion 202 are overlapped, a substantially cylindrical space is formed within the sterilizer 200. It has become. Furthermore, a mercury lamp 203 is disposed along the longitudinal direction in each of the device main body 201 and the lid 202 at a portion corresponding to the bottom of the recess. By placing the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays in a substantially cylindrical space formed within the sterilizer 200, the object to be irradiated with ultraviolet rays is irradiated with ultraviolet rays.

<Light source temperature evaluation>
Next, for the catheter sterilizer (example) to which the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is applied and the sterilizer using a mercury container as a comparative example shown in FIG. Measured with a thermocouple.

As shown in Fig. 13, the catheter sterilizer (Example L11) consisting of the ultraviolet irradiation device 1 using LEDs reaches a steady state in about 300 seconds, does not reach a temperature higher than 40°C, and the outer wall is almost at room temperature. It was the temperature. On the other hand, as shown in Figure 13, in the sterilizer using a mercury container as a comparative example, the temperature inside the sterilizer exceeded 60°C in about 300 seconds (L12), and the temperature in the outer wall exceeded 55°C in about 300 seconds. (L13). If the temperature exceeds 43° C., the risk of causing low-temperature burns to the human body increases, so it is considered undesirable to use the sterilizer of the comparative example near the human body. On the other hand, in the catheter sterilizer of the example, the temperature does not exceed 40° C. even inside the device, and there is substantially no difference from room temperature on the outer wall, so it can be seen that it can be used with confidence near the human body.
In FIG. 13, the horizontal axis is the elapsed time, and the vertical axis is the temperature near the light source measured with a K thermocouple.

Here, the scope of the invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments shown and described, but also includes all embodiments which give an equivalent effect to the object of the invention. Moreover, the scope of the invention also includes any desired combinations of specific features of each and every disclosed feature.

1 Ultraviolet irradiation device 2 Device main body 3 Lid part 11 Ultraviolet irradiation part 12 Support part 13 Support part 51 Housing 52 Internal reflection structure 53 Solid light emitter 54 Circuit board 55 Heat sink 56 Transparent window part 71
111 Management circuit 111b Automatic power control circuit 114 Photodetection element 115 Temperature sensor 121 Fluorescent glass element

Claims (12)

a device body having a recess;
The device has a recessed portion, the recessed portion and the recessed portion of the device main body face each other to form a housing space , and close the entire recessed portion of the device main body, and the upper base portion is formed to have an arcuate cross section. The lid part that is
an ultraviolet reflective member provided on the inner wall of the accommodation space;
It has a plurality of compartments divided into a plurality of compartments and each compartment is formed in a mortar shape, and the bottom of each compartment is on the bottom side of the recess of the device main body. an internal reflective structure disposed within the recess;
a plurality of solid -state light emitters that are arranged at the bottom of each of the partitions and emit ultraviolet light toward the opening of the recess of the device main body ,
In the ultraviolet irradiation device, the plurality of solid-state light emitters are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the housing space . The ultraviolet irradiation device according to claim 1 , wherein a plurality of said solid-state light emitters are arranged in a linear manner. The ultraviolet irradiation device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an ultraviolet transmitting member that covers at least a light emitting surface of the solid light emitter. The ultraviolet irradiation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the ultraviolet reflective member is a member having at least a surface made of polytetrafluoroethylene. The ultraviolet irradiation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the solid-state light emitter includes a light emitting diode. The ultraviolet irradiation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the solid-state light emitter emits light with a wavelength of 220 nm or more and 300 nm or less. a light detection unit that detects the intensity of light emitted by the solid-state light emitter;
a calculation unit that calculates the amount of light emitted by the solid-state light emitter per predetermined time based on the detection signal of the light detection unit;
a notification unit that notifies in accordance with a timing when the amount of light emission calculated by the calculation unit exceeds a preset threshold;
The ultraviolet irradiation device according to any one of claims 1 to 6. The photodetector includes:
A fluorescent glass element that emits fluorescence in the visible light range when excited by ultraviolet light,
The ultraviolet irradiation device according to claim 7, further comprising a photodetection element that detects the intensity of fluorescence emitted by the fluorescent glass element. the solid state light emitter is disposed on one side of the substrate;
An electronic component group consisting of a plurality of electronic components is provided on a side opposite to the side on which the solid-state light emitting body is arranged with respect to the substrate,
The electronic component group includes a management circuit that includes at least a portion of the plurality of electronic components and manages the solid-state light emitter based on the intensity of light emitted by the solid-state light emitter detected by the light detection unit. The ultraviolet irradiation device according to claim 7 or 8, having: further comprising a temperature detection unit that detects the temperature of the solid-state light emitter,
The management circuit is
a driving section that drives the solid-state light emitter;
an automatic power control unit that maintains the solid state light emitter at a desired light emission intensity;
Equipped with
The ultraviolet irradiation device according to claim 9, wherein the automatic power control section controls the drive section based on the temperature detected by the temperature detection section. The ultraviolet irradiation device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the accommodation space has a hollow cylindrical shape with a length of 20 cm or more and 5 m or less and a diameter of 2 mm or more and 20 mm or less. A catheter sterilizer that sterilizes catheters,
comprising the ultraviolet irradiation device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
a plurality of notches forming communication holes communicating with the accommodation space in at least one of an edge of the recess of the device main body and an edge of the recess of the lid;
The accommodation space has a substantially similar shape to a catheter connector,
A catheter sterilizer, wherein the catheter connector is housed in the housing space, and a catheter connected to the catheter connector is sandwiched between the notch portions.

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