JP7508158B1 - Eye drop auxiliary device - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide an eye drop auxiliary device that can inform a patient of the optimal position for instilling eye drops, can easily attach and remove eye drop containers of various shapes, and prevents the eye drop container from falling off unintentionally. [Solution] An eye drop auxiliary device 1 that assists a patient in instilling eye drops into the eyeball, comprising a bottomed cylindrical auxiliary device body 10 that is inserted around an eye drop container 2 filled with eye drops, holding parts 20, 21 that hold the eye drop container on the inner surface of the auxiliary device body, a pressing auxiliary part 30 that is provided on the side of the auxiliary device body 10 and assists the patient in pressing the eye drop container 2, and a first light source 40 that is provided on the bottom part 11 of the auxiliary device body and irradiates visible light toward the inlet hole 23 of the eye drop container 2. [Selected Figure] Figure 7

Description

The present invention relates to an eye drop assistance device that assists a patient in applying eye drops to the eye.

Conventionally, eye drops are filled into an elastic eye drop container, and the eye drop is dispensed by pressing the side of the container so that the inlet hole of the eye drop container faces the patient's eyeball. However, this has been problematic in that it is difficult to determine the position of the eye drop container when administering the drops. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a stabilizing device that is attached to an eye drop container with a connecting part that allows the eye drop container to be detachably attached, a lower eyelid pressing part at the upper end of the stabilizing device, and an eye drop reservoir below that.

JP 8-71125 A

If the patient's eye or eyelashes adhere to the tip of the eye drop container, bacteria will adhere to it and cause contamination of the eye drop container. Therefore, in order to apply the eye drops accurately to the eyeball without the patient's eye or eyelashes adhering to the tip of the eye drop container and without removing the eye drops, it is necessary to inform the patient of the optimal position for applying the eye drops. Furthermore, eye drop containers come in a wide variety of shapes, and there is a demand for an eye drop aid that is easy to attach and remove the eye drop container and that does not allow the eye drop container to fall off unintentionally.

To achieve the above object, the eye drop assisting device of the present invention is an eye drop assisting device that assists a patient in applying eye drops to the eyeball, and includes a bottomed, cylindrical assisting device main body that is inserted into an eye drop container filled with the eye drop, a holding section that holds the eye drop container on the inner surface of the assisting device main body, a pressing assisting section that is provided on the side of the assisting device main body and assists the patient in pressing the eye drop container, and a first light source that is provided on the bottom of the assisting device main body and irradiates visible light toward the inlet hole of the eye drop container.

According to the above eye drop auxiliary device, when an eye drop container is inserted from above the auxiliary body, the holder holds the eye drop container from the side on the inner surface of the auxiliary body, so that the eye drop container is held regardless of the shape of the eye drop container. Furthermore, when the eye drop container is pulled from above the auxiliary body, the holder releases the hold and the eye drop container can be removed. Therefore, the eye drop container can be easily attached and detached, and the eye drop container will not fall off unintentionally. Furthermore, since the first light source irradiates visible light toward the injection hole of the eye drop container, the patient can recognize the position of the injection hole and the optimal position for instilling eyes.

The eye drop assistant device of the present invention can be equipped with a holder that supports the assistant body from the patient's face and positions it relative to the eyeball.

The eye drop auxiliary device of the present invention is equipped with an angle sensor that detects the inclination angle of the auxiliary device body, and the first light source can be irradiated when the angle sensor reaches a predetermined angle.

The eye drop auxiliary device of the present invention can be equipped with a second light source arranged on the side of the auxiliary device body.

The present invention also provides an eye drop assisting device that assists in the instillation of eye drops into a patient's eyeball, comprising: an assisting device main body that is fitted onto an eye drop container filled with the eye drop and into which the eye drop is dripped from an eye drop hole; a rotatable pressure part that presses against the face of the patient with the patient's lower eyelid open; and a holding part that is provided on the inner surface of the assisting device main body and holds the eye drop container so that the eye drop hole is perpendicular to the patient's eyeball in the vertical direction when the patient tilts it at a predetermined angle and is positioned above the patient's eyeball.

In some cases, such as with elderly patients, it may be difficult for the patient to tilt their face perpendicular to the vertical. In such cases, with conventional eye drop devices, the amount of eye drops dispensed varies depending on the viscosity of the eye drop solution, as it is assumed that the eye drop will be dispensed from a vertical direction. With the present invention, it is possible to provide an eye drop assistance device in which the tip of the eye drop container is positioned above the eyeball, even if the patient is not facing perpendicular to the horizontal plane. In addition, since the pressure attachment part is rotatable, it can be pressured to both the left and right.

The eye drop assist device of the present invention can include a pressing assist section provided on the side of the assist device main body to assist the patient in pressing the eye drop container, an angle sensor that detects the angle between the assist device main body and the patient's eye, and a guidance device that guides the patient so that the angle detected by the angle sensor becomes the optimal angle for eye drop application.

The eye drop assistance device of the present invention can include an infrared light source, an angle sensor that detects the angle between the main body of the assistance device and the patient's eye, a guidance device that guides the patient so that the angle detected by the angle sensor becomes the optimal angle for eye drop, a camera that recognizes the patient's pupil, an eye drop dripping device that presses the eye drop container to drip the eye drops from the eye drop container, and a control device that identifies the optimal angle for eye drop and the patient's pupil and controls the dripping operation of the eye drop dripping device.

The present invention provides an eye drop auxiliary device that can inform the patient of the optimal position for instilling eye drops, can easily attach and remove eye drop containers of a wide variety of shapes, and prevents the eye drop container from falling off unintentionally.

1 is a perspective view of an eye drop auxiliary device according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a top view of an eye drop auxiliary device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing a state in which an eye drop auxiliary device according to a first embodiment of the present invention is used. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing a state in which an eye drop auxiliary device according to a first embodiment of the present invention is used 1 is a diagram showing a positional relationship between an eyedrop auxiliary instrument according to a first embodiment of the present invention and a patient's eyeball. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a positional relationship between an eyedrop auxiliary instrument according to a first embodiment of the present invention and a patient's eyeball. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a positional relationship between an eyedrop auxiliary instrument according to a first embodiment of the present invention and a patient's eyeball. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an eye drop auxiliary device according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state in which an eye drop auxiliary device according to a second embodiment of the present invention is used. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state in which an eye drop auxiliary device according to a third embodiment of the present invention is used. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view according to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state in which an eye drop auxiliary device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is used. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment described below is an example for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to this example. Furthermore, the configurations and processing functions described in the above embodiments can be selected and combined as desired, and it is self-evident that a person skilled in the art can adopt modified forms based on the technical ideas and teachings of the present invention.

In this specification, the optimal angle for instilling eye drops using each eye drop assistant device is defined as the optimal instillation angle.

First Embodiment
Regarding the first embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1 , an eye drop auxiliary device 1 comprises an auxiliary device main body 10, a holding portion 20, a holding portion 21, a pressing auxiliary portion 30, a pressing auxiliary portion 31, a first light source 40, and a holding portion 50.

The auxiliary device main body 10 is generally cylindrical with a bottom 11. The shape of the auxiliary device main body 10 may be any shape as long as it is a bottomed cylinder, and may be polygonal or a combination of a circular shape and a polygonal shape. The inside of the auxiliary device main body 10 only needs to be large enough for an eye dropper container to be inserted into, and the inside diameter of the auxiliary device main body 10 is about 25 to 30 mm.

The support device main body 10 can be molded, for example, by injection molding or sheet molding. The support device main body 10 can be made of plastics such as nylon, ABS, polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate. The same applies to the pressing support part 30, the pressing support part 31, and the holding part 50.

The holding parts 20 and 21 are installed in an arc shape facing each other on a part of the inner surface of the aid body 10. When an eye drop container is inserted from above the aid body 10, the holding parts 20 and 21 elastically clamp the eye drop container toward the center of the aid body 10, thereby holding the eye drop container. (Hereinafter, this state will be referred to as the attached state.) This allows the eye drop container 2 to be held regardless of its shape. Furthermore, when the eye drop container 2 is pulled from above the aid body 10, the holding parts 20 and 21 are released, allowing the eye drop container 2 to be easily removed.

This allows the eye drop container 2 to be attached and detached without touching the area around the injection hole 23 with fingers, etc., thereby preventing bacterial contamination when attaching and detaching. Furthermore, the patient can close the cap on the eye drop container 2 even when it is attached, so it can be stored while maintaining the attached state.

The holding parts 20 and 21 may be made of any material that can elastically clamp the eye drop container, such as natural rubber, chloroprene rubber, urethane rubber, ethylene propylene rubber, or silicone rubber, and may have an uneven surface to improve their ability to hold the eye drop container. The holding parts 20 and 21 may also be of any shape that can elastically clamp the eye drop container, such as elastic members that are dotted on the inner surface of the auxiliary device main body 10.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the pressing auxiliary parts 30 and 31 each have a convex part 33 that protrudes from the outer surface of the eye drop auxiliary device 1 and a convex part 34 that protrudes from the inner surface. When the patient presses the convex part 33, the convex part 34 applies pressure to the inside of the eye drop container, causing the eye drop to flow out of the inlet hole. The pressing auxiliary parts 30 and 31 make it easier for the patient to apply pressure to the inside of the eye drop container. In addition, the convex part 33 also has the effect of preventing the finger from slipping, making it even easier to apply pressure to the inside of the eye drop container.

The pressing auxiliary parts 30 and 31 may be formed with convex parts as shown in the figure, or may be formed with concave parts. When the pressing auxiliary parts 30 and 31 are formed with concave parts, the patient can easily apply pressure, making it easier to apply pressure to the inside of the eye drop container 2. Furthermore, the pressing auxiliary parts 30 and 31 may be formed with multiple convex parts, multiple concave parts, or a combination of convex parts and concave parts. For example, a convex part may be formed inside a concave part, or a concave part may be formed inside a convex part. The pressing auxiliary parts 30 and 31 are formed with convex parts and/or concave parts to assist the patient in pressing with their fingers, making it easier for the user to apply pressure to the inside of the liquid container.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the pressing auxiliary part 30 and the pressing auxiliary part 31 are installed so as to face each other on a part of the inner surface. When viewed from above the eye drop auxiliary device 1, the pressing auxiliary part 30 and the pressing auxiliary part 31 are arranged so that the straight line segment L connecting the centers of the pressing auxiliary part 30 and the pressing auxiliary part 31 is perpendicular to the center G of the opening of the auxiliary device main body 10.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first light source 40 is installed at or near the center G of the opening of the bottom 11. When the bottom 11 is placed on a horizontal surface in the installed state, the first light source 40 and the injection hole 23 are arranged so as to be on a vertical line. As shown in FIG. 3, when the first light source 40 emits visible light upward from the bottom 11, the visible light is irradiated from the injection hole 23 of the eye drop container 2. The light color of the first light source 40 is red, but light sources of other colors such as white, green, and blue can also be used. The patient can confirm the position of the injection hole 23 by the visible light irradiated from the injection hole 23 and administer eye drops accurately.

The type of light source for the first light source 40 is not particularly limited, but for example, commonly used light bulbs, EL, LEDs, etc. can be used, and these may be used in combination, or parallel light may be used. The lighting pattern can also be modified in various ways, such as a pattern in which the light turns on when the eyeball is in the optimal position for instilling the eye drops and turns off when the eyeball is not in the optimal position for instilling the eye drops, or a pattern in which the luminance gradually changes depending on the positional relationship between the optimal position for instilling the eyeball and the eyeball.

As shown in FIG. 1, the holding part 50 extends upwards by 50 to 100 mm in an arc shape from a part of the side of the support device main body 10. As shown in FIG. 4, by pressing the holding part 50 against the patient's face, the holding part 50 supports the support device main body 10 from the patient's face and positions the support device main body 10 on the patient's face so that the position of the support device main body 10 does not change. Although not shown, the holding part 50 has a convex part at the lower end, and the support device main body 10 has a slit on the side of the support device main body 10 that has a shape corresponding to the shape of the convex part, and by inserting the convex part into the slit, the holding part 50 is detachably installed on the side of the support device main body 10. The holding part 50 may be foldable so as to be rotatable.

The holding part 50 may be of any shape and size as long as it supports the main body 10 and determines the position of the patient's eyeball and the injection hole 23. For example, it may be configured to extend upwards by 50 to 100 mm in a plate shape from a portion of the side of the main body 10.

As shown in FIG. 4, the eye drop assistance device 1 may include an angle sensor 60 and an angle sensor 61. In the embodiment of the present invention, multiple angle sensors are provided, but a single angle sensor may also be provided. The angle sensor of the present invention detects the inclination angle of the assistance device main body 10. For example, the angle sensor 60 and the angle sensor 61 detect the center G, the position of the patient's eyeball, and the vertical direction to detect the inclination angle of the assistance device main body 10.

By detecting the inclination angle of the auxiliary device main body 10, it is possible to detect the optimal position for instilling the eye drops. For example, as shown in FIG. 5a, when the center G, the injection hole 23, and the patient's eyeball are positioned on a vertical line, this is optimal for instilling the eye drops. However, if the center G, the injection hole 23, or the patient's eyeball are displaced horizontally, some or all of the eye drops will fall off the eyeball, which is not the optimal position for instilling the eye drops.

As shown in Figure 5b, even if the patient's eyeball is located on the extension line of center G and injection hole 23, if this extension line is not parallel to the vertical line, some or all of the eye drops will fall off the eyeball, which is not the optimal position for instilling the eye. Also, as shown in Figure 5c, even if the patient's eyeball is not located on the extension line of center G and injection hole 23, the optimal position for instilling the eye is if the injection hole 23 and the patient's eyeball are vertical.

When the auxiliary device main body 10 reaches the optimal tilt angle for instilling, the angle sensor 60 and the angle sensor 61 output an angle detection signal to a microcomputer (not shown) built into the auxiliary device main body 10. The microcomputer that receives the angle detection signal outputs a turn-on signal to the first light source 40, causing the first light source 40 to turn on.

The main body 10 of the aid may be provided with a record button (not shown), and the tilt angle detected by the angle sensor when the eye drops are successfully administered may be recorded in the microcomputer. In addition, the recorded tilt angle may be used to control the device so that the tilt angle is reproduced from the next time onwards.

As shown in FIG. 6, the eye drop assistance device 1 may be provided with a second light source 70 arranged in a ring shape on the side of the assistance device body. When the first light source 40 irradiates visible light toward the injection hole 23 of the eye drop container 2, the light may not be sufficiently transmitted depending on the material of the eye drop container 2 and the type of eye drop solution filled in the eye drop container 2. In such a case, by turning on the second light source 70 as an auxiliary to the first light source 40, it is possible to inform the patient of the optimal position for instilling the eye drops, regardless of the material of the eye drop container 2 and the type of eye drop solution.

When the eye drop assistance device 1 is equipped with the angle sensor 60 and the angle sensor 61, the microcomputer may output a lighting signal to the second light source 70, and the second light source 70 may be controlled to light up. In this way, when the patient is unable to adequately recognize the visible light from the infusion hole 23, the second light source 70 can be turned on to enable the patient to recognize the optimal position for instilling the eye drop.

The light emitted by the second light source 70 is red, but white, green, or blue light sources can also be used, and the light may be the same color as the first light source 40 or a different color. The type of light source and the lighting pattern of the second light source 70 are the same as those of the first light source 40.

In this embodiment, the second light source 70 is turned on at the same time as the first light source 40, but the control of the turning on of the first light source 40 and the second light source 70 is not limited to this. For example, the second light source 70 may be controlled to turn on when the patient's eyeball is in a predetermined range around the optimal position for eye drops, and the first light source 40 may be controlled to turn on when the auxiliary device main body 10 is at a predetermined angle.

Second Embodiment
7, an eye drop auxiliary device 100 according to the second embodiment of the present invention has a holding part 101 and a pressure-bonding part 102. An eye drop container 103 is attached to the eye drop auxiliary device 100 at the holding part 101.

The holder 101 is positioned so that the eye drop hole of the eye drop container is at the top of the patient's eyeball, and the eye drop solution container is perpendicular to the vertical direction. The position of the holder 101 changes depending on how far up the patient is facing (represented as θ in Figure 7), but in this specification it is designed as θ = 45°. Therefore, in the following embodiment, the optimal eye drop angle is 45°.

The pressure-bonding part 102 is configured to be pressed against the patient's face, opening the patient's lower eyelids at that time. Furthermore, when the patient wears the pressure-bonding part 102, the nose side is low and the eye corner side is high, and the pressure-bonding part 102 is configured to be rotatable 180 degrees, so that it can be used for both eyes. There are no particular limitations on the configuration for opening the patient's lower eyelids in the vertical direction, and for example, the pressure-bonding part 102 may be configured to have a pressure-bonding protrusion on the lower eyelid inside or at the end thereof, so that when the patient looks up, the pressure-bonding protrusion pulls the lower eyelid, opening the lower eyelid.

Third Embodiment
Regarding the third embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 8, an eye drop auxiliary device 200 has a pressing auxiliary part 201 and a pressure bonding part 202.

As shown in Figures 8 and 9, two pressing assistant parts 201 are arranged on the side of the eye drop container 203, and the patient presses the pressing assistant parts 201 from both sides. In this embodiment, the pressing assistant parts 201 have the same shape as the pressing assistant parts 30 and 31, but the shape is not limited to this and any shape that assists the patient in administering eye drops may be used. In addition, the pressing assistant parts 201 may be configured to automatically promote eye drops when the patient and the eye drop device are measured, as shown below. The pressing part 202 has the same configuration as the pressing part 102 in the second embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 9, the eye drop assistance device 200 has an eye drop container 203 attached to a holder 205. The arrangement of the holder 205 is the same as in the second embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 9, the eye drop assistance device 200 includes an LED light 204, a speaker 207, an angle sensor 208, and a control device 209. The angle sensor 208 measures the angle between the horizontal plane and the patient's head when the eye drop is administered, and determines whether the angle of the patient's head is the optimal angle for eye drop administration. The determination result is transmitted to the control device 209, which controls the LED light 204 and the speaker 207 according to the determination result. For example, if the angle of the patient's head is not at the optimal angle for eye drop administration and the patient needs to look up, the speaker 207 issues a voice guidance such as "Look up," and the LED light 204 lights up in red, and if the patient needs to look down, the speaker 207 issues a voice guidance such as "Look down further," and the LED light 204 lights up in green. The mechanism for guiding the patient's head may be a guidance mechanism using both voice guidance and a light source as in this embodiment, or only one of them.

Fourth Embodiment
10 and 11, an eye drop auxiliary device 300 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention has a pressure-bonding portion 302 and a holding portion 315. The respective configurations are similar to those of the above-mentioned embodiments.

As shown in Figures 10 and 11, the eye drop assistance device 300 has a second control device 310, a battery 311, and a camera 312. The camera 312 recognizes the patient's pupils and transmits the position and open/closed state of the patient's pupils to the first control device 309 and the second control device 310, which will be described later. In addition, the camera 312 is equipped with an infrared LED as a light source, so it is possible to take pictures in dark places and also to take pictures of the fundus with the pupils dilated. This information is transmitted to the second control device 310, which determines whether the patient's pupils are in the optimal position for eye drop administration. The result of this determination is transmitted to the first control device 309, which will be described later.

As shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the eye drop assistance device 300 has an LED light 304, a speaker 307, an angle sensor 308, and a first control device 309. The first control device 309 judges whether the position of the patient's eyeball and the patient's head are in the optimal position and angle for eye drop administration based on the information from the angle sensor 308 and the information from the second control device. Depending on the judgment result, the first control device 309 controls the operation of the LED light 304 and the speaker 307. For example, in addition to the guidance on the tilt of the patient's head in the second embodiment, the speaker 307 can provide detailed guidance such as "move left and right" based on the information from the camera 312. Although the guidance is complicated, even patients who have almost lost their eyesight can administer eye drops by themselves.

When the patient's eyeball is positioned optimally for eye drops based on the above guidance, the first control device 309 controls the automatic eye drop pressure device 301 based on the judgment result. This automatically dispenses eye drops into the patient's eyeball.

The first and third embodiments, as well as the fourth embodiment (not shown), have a built-in rechargeable lithium battery. This is because it is difficult for visually impaired patients to replace the battery. For example, 206 in the third embodiment is a USB connector that is connected to a charging circuit such as the control device 209.

Although not shown in the drawings, the first, third and fourth embodiments are equipped with a mechanism for communicating with an external network, and can record the date and time when the patient administered the eye drops. This can prevent patients from forgetting to administer the drops. In addition, in the fourth embodiment, the photographs taken can be transferred to an external device, allowing doctors to check the progression of the disease, etc.

1, 100, 200, 300: Eye drop assistant device 10: Assistant device main body 11: Bottom 20, 21, 101, 205, 315: Holder 30, 201: Press assistant part 40: First light source 50: Holder 60, 61: Angle sensor 70: Second light source 102, 202, 302: Pressure part 103, 203, 303: Eye drop container 207, 307: Speaker 208, 308: Angle sensor 301: Automatic eye drop pressing device 304: LED light 209, 310: Control device 312: Camera

Claims (2)

An eye drop assisting device for assisting a patient in applying eye drops to an eyeball, comprising:
a bottomed tubular auxiliary tool body that is fitted onto the eye drop container filled with the eye drop;
a holder for holding the eye drop container on an inner surface of the auxiliary tool body;
A pressing assistant part provided on a side surface of the assisting tool main body and assisting the patient in pressing the eye drop container;
a first light source provided at a bottom of the auxiliary tool body and configured to irradiate visible light toward an injection hole of the eye drop container;
An angle sensor for detecting an inclination angle of the assisting tool main body;
A second light source disposed on a side surface of the auxiliary tool body;
Equipped with
The eye drop assistance device is characterized in that the first light source and the second light source are caused to emit light when the angle sensor reaches a predetermined angle. 2. The eye drop assistant device according to claim 1, further comprising a holder for supporting the assistant body from the face of the patient and positioning the assistant body relative to the eyeball.

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