JPH08173507A - Suckling motion simulator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To reproduce the suckling motion on a nipple of some kind by presenting the mechanism of the complex suckling motion in the state near the actual suckling motion. CONSTITUTION: This suckling motion simulator is provided with a tongue portion 70, a moving means 14 for peristaltically moving the tongue portion 70, an upper jaw portion 71 arranged to face the tongue portion 70, a holding means 90 holding a nursing bottle H for arranging the nipple of the nursing bottle H between the tongue portion 70 and the upper jar portion 71, a controller 10 controlling the moving means 14, a container 12 containing the tongue portion 70 and the upper jaw portion 71, and a sucking means 29 sucking the container 12.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a baby feeding simulator which is optimal for use in quality control of nipples attached to baby bottles or for presentation of baby feeding.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A nipple made of rubber or the like is detachably attached to the opening of a glass or plastic feeding bottle. This nipple has a suction hole formed at the tip of its head. The drinking hole may have a circular shape in cross section, a cut extending in three directions, or a cut having a cross shape. Conventionally, the mechanism of feeding movement (sucking) of a newborn or an infant using this type of nipple is not well known,
The principle has been elucidated to some extent by fluoroscopy. The principle of the mechanism of the feeding motion is that the expression (occlusion pressure, Expression) and the suction (Suctio).
n), and including swallowing. Pressing is to press the breast and nipple with the tongue and jaw. On the other hand, suction means that the lips are in close contact with the breast and the lower jaw is lowered to generate a negative pressure in the oral cavity. Furthermore, swallowing means swallowing food. Fluoroscopy shows occlusal feeding, suction and swallowing independently of the feeding movement.

[0003]

On the other hand, in recent years, the mechanism of feeding movement has been elucidated by using intraoral radiography, that is, ultrasonic tomography rather than fluoroscopy. The mechanism of feeding movement includes peristaltic movement and negative pressure formation.
In the peristaltic movement, the tip of the tongue is extended in front of the alveolar sac, and the nipple is wrapped around the lingual side to push it up against the upper palate to make it adhere to it. These tongues are designed to move backwards. In negative pressure formation, the tongue is lowered in a narrow space surrounded by the tongue and the upper palate. The mechanism of feeding movement revealed by ultrasonic tomography is the peristaltic movement of the tongue. Thus, the mechanism of feeding movement is complicated,
There is a demand to give a presentation of the complicated feeding movement and reproduce the feeding movement relating to the nipple in order to control the quality of the nipple when the nipple attached to the feeding bottle is developed.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and presents a complex feeding mechanism in a state closer to an actual feeding movement, or reproduces a feeding movement relating to a certain nipple. It is an object of the present invention to provide a feeding exercise simulator that can do the above.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the present invention, the above object is to provide a tongue portion, a movement means for performing a peristaltic movement of the tongue portion, and an upper jaw portion arranged corresponding to the tongue portion. A holding means for holding the baby bottle in order to arrange a nipple of the baby bottle between the tongue portion and the upper jaw portion, a control unit for controlling the exercising means, a housing for holding the tongue portion and the upper jaw portion And a suction means for sucking the inside of the container. In the present invention, preferably, the movement means includes a motor and a cam rotated by the motor to perform a peristaltic movement of the tongue portion. In the present invention, preferably, the suction means suctions the inside of the container in a pulsating manner. In the present invention, preferably the tongue portion is retained in relation to the lower jaw portion. In the present invention,
Preferably the container is made of a transparent material.

[0006]

According to the above construction, the baby bottle is held by the holding means for holding the baby bottle, and the nipple of the baby bottle is arranged between the tongue portion and the upper jaw portion. The control unit controls the exercising means to cause the tongue portion to perform a peristaltic movement and suck the inside of the container to a negative pressure. This makes it possible to present a complicated feeding mechanism in a state closer to an actual feeding movement, and reproduce a feeding movement related to a certain nipple. In the present invention, preferably, the tongue portion can be made to perform a peristaltic movement simply by driving the motor of the movement means to rotate the cam. In the present invention, preferably the suction means is
By sucking the inside of the container in a pulsating manner, it is possible to reproduce the sucking movement in a state closer to the actual state. In the present invention, preferably, the tongue portion is held in association with the lower jaw portion, so that a more realistic state in the oral cavity can be presented in an easy-to-understand manner. In the present invention, preferably the container is formed of a transparent material,
The feeding movement can be observed well from the outside.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The examples described below are
Since it is a preferred specific example of the present invention, various technically preferable limitations are attached, but the scope of the present invention is, unless otherwise stated to limit the present invention, in the following description.
It is not limited to these modes.

FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the feeding motion simulator of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the feeding exercise simulator includes a control unit 10, a container 12, a feeding movement unit 14, a liquid suction means 16 and the like. Control unit 10
Is a computer 30, a keyboard 32, a memory unit 3
4, a monitor unit 36, a manual operation unit 38, and the like. The monitor display 36 displays the operation display of the motor 18 in the feeding simulation and the container 12
A graph display of the internal suction pressure can be displayed. The memory unit 34 can record and reproduce information regarding the operation display and suction pressure display of the feeding exercise, and can store a peristaltic exercise program, a pulsating exercise program, and the like.

The manual operation unit 38 is for operating the liquid suction pump 20, manually controlling the pressure inside the container 12, and displaying the pressure.

FIG. 2 shows the computer 3 of the control unit 10.
0 and the feeding movement part 14 for feeding movement simulation
And the connection relationship of the liquid suction means 16 is shown. As described above, the computer 30 uses the feeding exercise means 14 for feeding.
The motor control signal S1 can be supplied to the motor 18 of FIG. 3, and the computer 30 can supply the solenoid valve control signal S2 in order to adjust the opening degree of each of the solenoid valves 21 and 22 of the liquid suction pump 20. It is like this. Moreover, the computer 30
Digital pressure gauge 39 for measuring the pressure in the container 12
It is possible to input the pressure signal S3 from.

A negative pressure forming means 29 for forming a negative pressure by vacuuming the inside of the container 12 is arranged below the computer 34 as shown in FIG. The negative pressure forming means 29 includes a chamber 29a and a vacuum pump 29b. The chamber 29a of the negative pressure forming means 29 includes the container 12
The chamber 29a is a chamber for keeping negative pressure in the drain tank 50 and the chamber 29a so as not to directly apply negative pressure to the pump 29b. The chamber 29 a is connected to the container 12 via a solenoid valve 22 and a needle valve 23. The adjustment of the opening degree of the solenoid valve 22 is controlled by a solenoid valve control signal S2 provided from the computer 30. The needle valve 23a is a valve for opening the inside of the container 12 to the atmosphere.

Further, the drain tank 5 is provided in the chamber 29a via a solenoid valve 22 and a needle valve 23.
Connected to 0. The drain tank 50 is for discharging the liquid L in the container 12.

Next, the liquid suction means 16 of FIG. 1 will be described. The liquid suction means 16 is a suction means for returning the liquid accumulated in the container 12 to the baby bottle H for circulation. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the liquid suction means 16 includes a drain tank 50, a purge valve 51, a liquid suction pump 20, and the like.

The drain tank 50 is connected to the inside of the container 12 by a tube 52. A liquid suction / discharge switching valve 53 is provided in the middle of the tube 52. The valve 53 is connected to one end of the liquid suction pump 20 via a tube 54. The other end of the pump 20 is connected to the inside of the baby bottle H via a tube 55. The purge valve 51 is used for the drain tank 50.
Is connected inside. The purge valve 51 is configured to release the vacuum in the drain tank 50 and return it to normal pressure after performing the feeding motion simulation. In this way, the inside of the drain tank 50 is returned to normal pressure when the liquid in the baby bottle H is in the tube 55 and the pump 2.
This is to prevent backflow into the drain tank 50 via the tube 0.

3 and 4 show a container 12 and its container 1.
2 shows each element and the like arranged in FIG. 3 is a side view showing the container 12 and the above-described models arranged inside the container 12, and FIG. 4 is a bottom view seen from the direction of the arrow Y1 in FIG. The container 12 is a container whose inside can be decompressed, has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is made of, for example, a transparent acrylic plate. Container 1
A tongue model 70 that is a tongue portion, an upper jaw model 71 that is an upper jaw portion, a lower jaw model 72 that is a lower jaw portion, a drive cam 73 for performing a peristaltic movement of the tongue model 70, and the like are arranged inside the unit 2. The upper jaw model 71 and the lower jaw model 72 are provided on a jaw model fixing hinge 74. Hinge for fixing jaw model 74
Attaches the upper jaw model holder 75 and the lower jaw model holder 76 to the shaft 77.
It is rotatably connected with.

3 and 4, the drive cam 73 is attached to the motor shaft 80 of the motor 18. The drive cam 73 has a substantially elliptical shape as shown in FIG.
By operating the stepping motor 18, the drive cam 73 rotates in the R direction integrally with the motor shaft 80 of the motor 18 via the motor shaft joint 81. The motor 18 and the drive cam 73 constitute the movement means 14 of the tongue model 70. The baby bottle H is detachably attached to a holding means 90 for holding the baby bottle of the container 12. The baby bottle holding means 90 is adapted to detachably attach a baby bottle lid 91. A rubber nipple C is set to the baby bottle H via the baby bottle lid 91. This rubber nipple C is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, it is located between the upper jaw model 71 and the tongue model 70.

By driving the stepping motor 18 shown in FIG. 4, the drive cam 73 rotates in the direction of arrow R about the motor shaft 80. By this rotation in the direction of the arrow R, the sucking movement of the tongue model 70 as shown in FIG. 5 can be approximately performed.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show the mechanism of the feeding movement (that is, the peristaltic movement) of the newborn or the infant.
FIG. 6 briefly shows the structure of the oral cavity of a normal human. In FIG. 5, when the tongue is in position 1, the tip of the tongue extends just beyond the gums.
In position 2, the center of the tongue is flat and flat. In position 3, the tip of the tongue rises. At position 4, the mountain of the tongue moves to the back. In position 5, the mountain of the tongue has moved further back. The mechanism of such a feeding movement is shown by an illustration obtained based on ultrasonic tomography. The movement of the tongue as shown in FIG. 5 can be realized by the drive cam 73 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

In FIG. 3, a tube 52, a tube 95, and a tube 96 are connected to the container 12. The tube 52 is for guiding the liquid accumulated in the bottom portion 12a of the container 12 to the drain tank 50 side with respect to the drain tank 50, as shown in FIG. 2, when the feeding motion is completed or during the feeding motion. It is a thing.
The tube 95 is connected to the digital pressure gauge 39, and the pressure inside the container 12 can be measured by the digital pressure gauge 39 and fed back to the control unit 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the tube 96 is connected to the chamber 29 a via the solenoid valve 22 and the needle valve 23. In FIG. 2, the direction of arrow F1 indicates the exhaust direction of the air in the container 12. Conversely, arrow F2
Indicates the direction in which air is drawn into the container 12 from the chamber 29a side.

7 and 8 are more practical views of the container 12 shown in FIG. 3 and the components housed therein. FIG. 7 shows the container 12 viewed from the side corresponding to FIG.
And FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the elements housed therein and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a reverse view of the container and its contained elements. The container 12 includes flat plate-shaped transparent members 12b, 12
C, 12d, 12e, 12f and 12g are formed in a hermetically sealed manner with 6-sided plates. The inside of the container 12 is evacuated through the chamber 29a, the needle valve 23, and the solenoid valve 22 by driving the vacuum pump 29b of the vacuum suction means 29 of FIG. By this exhaust, a negative pressure corresponding to the suction pressure for sucking the nipple by the infant or the newborn baby is created inside the container 12. Inside the container 12, as described above, the upper jaw model 7
1, lower jaw model 72, jaw model fixing hinge 74, tongue model 70
Etc. are housed. The lid 91 of the baby bottle H is detachably attached to the holding means 90 of the baby bottle H. A rubber nipple C is attached to the lid 91,
The nipple C is held so as to be sandwiched between the tongue model 70 and the upper jaw model 71 of the lower jaw model 72. A drinking hole C2 is formed in the head C1 of the nipple C. The member 12c of the container 12 has a holding means 90 for holding the baby bottle H, and this member 12c is detachable by a thumbscrew 12h.

The upper jaw model 71 includes the upper jaw positioning means 100.
Thereby, the position of the upper jaw model 71 can be moved and aligned with the lower jaw model 72 and the tongue model 70 in the arrow J direction. Upper jaw alignment means 1
00 has a screw 100a and a nut 100b,
The nut 100b is fixed to the member 12b of the container 12. A handle 100c is attached to the upper end of the screw 100a, and the lower end of the screw 100a is attached to the upper jaw model 7
It is attached to 1. This allows the handle 100c
By rotating in the direction of arrow Z in FIG.
1 can be moved in the direction of arrow J. This upper jaw model 71
By moving, the pressure and the interval for pinching the head C1 of the nipple C between the tongue model 70 and the upper jaw model 71 can be adjusted. Nipple attachment opening 91 of holding means 90 shown in FIG.
Is made of rubber, for example. As a result, the nipple C can be held in close contact with the nipple mounting opening 91.

FIG. 9 shows the container 12 as seen from the nipple mounting opening 91 side of the holding means 90 of the baby bottle H of FIG.
The member 12c side of the container 12 is seen in the front, and the member 12c
The stepping motor 18, the motor shaft joint 81, and the reduction gear 110 described above are provided on the e side. The reduction gear 110 meshes with a gear 112 that rotates integrally with the motor shaft joint 81, and the reduction gear 110 is decelerated to drive the lower jaw model 72 by driving the stepping motor 18.
In other words, the shaft 114 of the reduction gear 110 drives the mandibular model 72 so as to swing up and down by about 5 mm in the same cycle with respect to the peristaltic motion of the tongue model for presentation in a state closer to the actual feeding motion. It has become.

FIG. 10 is a view of the container 12 of FIG. 9 viewed from the opposite side. In FIG. 10, a gear 112 for performing a peristaltic movement of the tongue model 70 is shown. A gear 112 is attached to the shaft 80. FIG. 11 is a view of the container 12 viewed in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 7. That is, the member 12e of the container 12 is visible, and the lower jaw model 72
The shaft 77 and the like are shown. FIG. 12 corresponds to FIG.
It is the figure seen from the direction of arrow K. That is, the member 12d on the upper surface side of the container 12 can be seen in front, and the handle 10
0c is also visible.

13 and 14 show the suction means 16 of FIG. 1 in a larger scale. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 13,
The container 12 can be held in an inclined state by the support member 130. That is, the bolt 131 is attached to the support member 130, and the bolt 131
The angle of the container 12 can be changed by loosening. The tongue model is made of an elastic material such as silicone rubber, isoprene rubber, latex, or thermoplastic elastomer, and the upper and lower jaw models are, for example, acrylic resin, epoxy resin, polyamide resin, polyacetal resin, polycarbonate resin, melamine resin. Is made by.

Next, the operation of the above-mentioned feeding exercise simulator will be described. In FIG. 1, a liquid of your choice, such as clear or colored water, or another milk-like liquid or milk, is left in the bottle H as it is. The lid 91 of the baby bottle is fitted and attached to the attachment port 92 of the baby bottle as shown in FIG. As a result, the attachment port 92 and the lid 91 of the baby bottle are in close contact with each other. Therefore, the liquid in the container 12 does not leak, and the pressure does not leak when the pressure in the container 12 is reduced.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the nipple C is disposed between the tongue model 70 of the upper jaw model 71 and the lower jaw model 72.
At this time, by rotating the handle 100c in FIG. 1 in the arrow Z direction, the position in the arrow J direction with respect to the lower jaw model 72 and the tongue model 70 of the upper jaw model 71 is adjusted, and the pressure of the head C1 of the nipple C to be pinched and the like. Adjust the sandwiching width appropriately.
Next, as shown in FIG. 2, the computer 30 side applies the solenoid valve control signal S2 to the solenoid valve 22 and the drive signal S4 to the vacuum pump 29b. Thereby, the air in the container 12 is pulled toward the vacuum pump 29b through the solenoid valve 22, the needle valve 23 and the chamber 29a, so that the pressure in the container 12 is set to a predetermined negative pressure. By setting the negative pressure in this manner, the negative pressure sucked by the newborn baby or the infant can be artificially applied to the nipple C. At this time, the computer 30 receives the input signal S3 of the pressure on the digital pressure gauge 39 side, and the negative pressure in the container 12 can be made a constant value by reading the value of the input signal S3.

The computer 30 of FIG. 1 provides the motor control signal S1 to the stepping motor 18. As a result, the stepping motor 18 is moved to the lower jaw model 7 of FIG.
2 is moved up and down in the direction of arrow T, and the drive cam 73 is rotated in the direction of arrow R in FIG. 3 to cause the peristaltic movement as shown in FIG. As a result, the nipple C can suck the liquid L from the drinking hole C2 by the peristaltic movement of the tongue model 70. The liquid L sucked by driving the liquid suction pump 20 passes through the liquid discharge / suction switching valve 53 from the container 12 of FIG.
4. It can be returned to the feeding bottle H side via the liquid suction pump 20 and the tube 55. When such feeding simulation is completed, the computer 30 closes the solenoid valves 21 and 22 and opens the purge valve 51 by the solenoid valve control signal S2 to return the negative pressure in the drain tank 50 to the normal pressure. . Then, the liquid discharge / suction switching valve 53 is switched to connect the tube 52 to the drain tank 50. In this way, the pressure in the drain tank 50 is returned to normal pressure because the liquid is pumped from the baby bottle H to the liquid suction pump 20 and the tube 54.
This is to prevent backflow into the drain tank 50 after passing through.

FIG. 15 briefly shows the operation procedure of the above-mentioned feeding simulator. This operation procedure flow is performed by software stored in the memory 34 of the computer 30 shown in FIG. When a main switch (not shown) is turned on (step S1), the control computer 30 is activated (step S2). The vacuum pump 29b for negative pressure shown in FIG. 2 is operated (step S3) to suck the liquid L into the baby bottle H (step S4). Turn on the pulsation suction program of the computer 30 (step S
5) Pulsatingly suction the inside of the container 12.

Then, the peristaltic movement program of the computer 30 is turned on (step S6), and the tongue model 70 of FIG. 2 is made to perform peristaltic movement (step S6). The peristaltic movement and pulsatile suction are observed and measured (step S7). When the observation and measurement are completed, the peristaltic movement program of the tongue model 70 is stopped (step S8), and the pulsating suction program in the container 12 is stopped (step S9). If re-measurement is necessary, steps S4 to S9
repeat. After that, the vacuum pump 29b for decompression is stopped (step S10), and the control by the computer 30 is ended (step S11). Then, the main switch is turned off (step S12). When re-measuring, the process returns from step S9 to step S4. As described above, the feeding motion simulator of the present invention provides a mechanism of complicated feeding motion in a state closer to an actual feeding motion, or when a certain nipple is developed, the feeding motion related to the feeding motion Can be reproduced.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The lower jaw model is not always necessary, and of course a means for holding the tongue model may be provided.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention, a complicated feeding mechanism can be presented in a state closer to an actual feeding movement, or a feeding movement relating to a certain nipple can be reproduced. it can.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an entire feeding exercise simulator of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a suction system, a liquid circulation system, and a control system of the feeding motion simulator of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing the container of the nursing exercise simulator of FIG. 1 and the components housed therein.

FIG. 4 is a schematic bottom view seen from the direction of arrow Y1 in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing movement of the tongue based on ultrasonic tomography.

FIG. 6 is a view showing the structure of the oral cavity.

FIG. 7 is a side view more specifically showing the container shown in FIG. 3 and the components inside thereof.

8 is a rear view of the container of FIG. 7 and the elements contained therein.

9 is a front view of the container of FIG. 7 and the elements contained therein.

FIG. 10 is a rear view of the container and the elements contained therein.

FIG. 11 is a bottom perspective view of the container and the elements contained therein.

FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a container and elements contained therein.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged perspective view showing the suction means of FIG. 1.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged view showing the container of FIG. 1, a portion housed therein, and a suction unit.

15 is a diagram showing an example of a procedure of a simulation operation in the nursing exercise simulator of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 H Baby bottle C Nipple 10 Control part 12 Container 14 Movement means for feeding 16 Liquid suction means 18 Motor 29 Negative pressure forming means (air suction means) 30 Computer 70 Tongue model (tongue part) 71 Upper jaw model (upper jaw part) 72 Lower jaw model (lower jaw) 73 Cam 90 Holding means

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Shoichi Utsumi 1-5, Kanda Toyama-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A tongue portion, an exercising means for performing a peristaltic movement of the tongue portion, an upper jaw portion arranged corresponding to the tongue portion, and a nipple of a baby bottle between the tongue portion and the upper jaw portion. A holding means for holding the baby bottle, a control section for controlling the exercising means, a container for accommodating the tongue part, the upper jaw part, and a suction means for sucking the inside of the container. A feeding exercise simulator characterized by being provided. 2. The feeding motion simulator according to claim 1, wherein the movement means includes: a motor; and a cam rotated by the motor to perform a peristaltic movement of the tongue portion. 3. The suckling exercise simulator according to claim 1, wherein the suction means suctions the inside of the container in a pulsating manner. 4. The feeding motion simulator of claim 3, wherein the tongue portion is held in relation to the lower jaw portion. 5. The feeding motion simulator according to claim 3, wherein the container is made of a transparent material.