JPS60122542A - Electronic dynamometer - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Technical Field The present invention relates to an electronic grip dynamometer used for grip strength training and measurement of grip strength for medical examinations.

(b) Prior Art Grip strength trainers conventionally used to increase grip strength do not display grip strength values, so it is not possible to quantitatively know how much grip strength has been increased through training.
It was just a training tool. Furthermore, the grip strength needles conventionally used to measure physical strength mechanically measure grip strength and indicate the grip strength value with the needle, so there is a limit to measurement accuracy, and it is difficult to read the value indicated by the needle. This method had the disadvantage that it took time and measurement values could not be read smoothly.

(C) Purpose of the Invention In view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, an object of the present invention is to automatically measure grip strength with high precision using a pressure sensor, and to display the maximum grip strength measurement value, thereby improving training efficiency. An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic grip dynamometer that can quantitatively grasp the effect and smoothly measure grip strength.

(d1 Structure of the invention The configuration of this invention will be explained with reference to FIG.

The pressure sensor A converts the external force applied against the elasticity of the spring inserted between the main body and the movable part into an electrical signal, and outputs the converted signal to the output direction reading means B. The output of the pressure sensor A is sequentially read by the output direction reading means B within the time required for one stroke of the movable part, and the read values are given to the extreme value determining means C. The extreme value determining means C determines the extreme value of the value read by the output reading means B and outputs it to the display device, and the display device displays the extreme value as the maximum grip strength measurement value. In this way, the present invention measures the change in grip force in one stroke from gripping the movable part to releasing the finger using the pressure sensor A, and calculates the maximum value of the grip force measurement value obtained by the measurement and displays the result on the display. It is designed to be displayed in a similar manner.

TELE EMBODIMENT FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an electronic grip force meter according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the same electronic grip force needle.

The electronic pressure needle of this example uses a load cell 1.2, which is a type of variable resistance type, as a pressure sensor. The device is configured to measure and display the maximum grip strength measurement value, the total sum of the maximum grip strength measurement values, and the number of grip strength measurements. The main body is a guide piece 3 formed in an inverted U-shape.
and a fixed piece 4 fixed to both ends of the guide piece 3 via a load cell 1.2. A compression spring 5 is fitted along the outer periphery of the inverted U-shaped portion of the guide piece 3. Both ends of the compression spring 5 are connected to a movable part 6, and the movable part 6 slides along the mutually parallel shaft parts of the guide piece 3. In such a structure, when a finger is hooked on the movable part 6 and a grip force is applied against the elasticity of the compression spring 5 inserted between the main body and the movable part 6, the load cell 1 is adjusted according to the magnitude of the grip force. .2 output changes. The case part 7 that covers the guide piece 3 and the compression spring 5 has a display screen 8 that displays the maximum value of the measured grip strength, the sum of the maximum values, and the number of measurements, and a display screen 8 that displays the power on/off and the display contents of the display surface 8. A changeover switch 9 is provided for switching. When a person to be measured uses this electronic grip dynamometer to measure grip strength, the person grasps the fixed piece 4 and the movable part 6 and tightens the grip. When using it for grip strength training, repeat the above-mentioned grasp and release measurement operation. - One stroke of the movable part 6 is completed by the measurement operation of squeezing and releasing it twice.

The configuration of the grip force measuring section of the electronic grip dynamometer will be explained with reference to FIG.

The load cells 1 and 2 are well-known devices whose resistance value changes according to external force (load), and the oscillator 10 is configured so that the oscillation frequency changes with a CR time constant according to the resistance change.
It is connected to the. Since the grip force applied via the fixed piece 4 is divided into two parts at both ends of the guide piece 3 to which the load cell 1.2 is attached, the sum of the changes in the resistance values of the load cells 1.2 corresponds to the change in grip force. It is connected to the oscillator lO so as to The oscillator 10 is connected to the load cell 1. A pulse p having an oscillation frequency corresponding to a change in resistance value of 2, that is, a change in grip strength, is output to the AND gate 12. This pulse p is timer 1
Pulse counter 1 every sampling time specified by 1
It is counted by 3.

Timer 11 is activated when the selector switch 9 is switched from the power off position to any of the display modes a to c, and a timing signal t that defines the sampling time of the pulse counter 13 is input to the AND game 12. At the same time, a counter reset signal t1 is output to the pulse counter 13. Further, the timer 11 is connected to a maximum value detection circuit 14 which will be described later.
A timing signal t2 instructing to take the count value of the pulse counter 130 into the memory is given to the pulse counter 130, and a timing signal t3 instructing to transfer the count value taken into the memory to another memory. Above oscillator 10 and timer 1
A time chart showing the operation of step 1 is shown in FIG. The timing signal t is a signal that repeats on and off at intervals of time T, and when it is on, the pulse p is input to the pulse counter 13, and the number of pulses is counted. The time T for intermittently sampling by the pulse counter 13 is set in advance to, for example, 25 milliseconds. The count value of the pulse counter 13 is given to the maximum value detection circuit 14 and a powerlessness detection circuit 15, which will be described later.

The configuration of the maximum value detection circuit 14 is shown in FIG. The maximum value detection circuit 14 is opened after grasping the fixed piece 4 and the movable part 6 by hand (
In one stroke of the movable part 6 up to, the sampling time T
This circuit compares the magnitude of each counted value of the pulse counter 13 sampled by and detects the maximum value, and corresponds to the extreme value determining means C of the present invention. The number of stitches counted by the pulse counter 13 at every sampling time T is sequentially stored in the 1 storage circuit 20. That is, when the timing signal t changes from high to low, the timing signal t2 output from the timer 11 is given to the first storage circuit 20, and the count value counted at that time is stored in the first storage circuit 2.
0 and stored. The second storage circuit 21 is a circuit that stores the maximum value of the count values sequentially taken in by the pulse counter 13 during one stroke of the movable portion 6 described above. Comparison circuit 22 includes first memory circuit 20 and second memory circuit 21
When the count value stored in the second memory circuit 21 is smaller than the count value in the first memory circuit 2o, a high signal is output to the AND gate 23.

Next, the maximum value detection operation will be explained with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. The output of the first memory circuit 20 is given to the AND gate 23, and when the output of the comparison circuit 22 becomes high,
At that time, the count value stored in the first memory circuit 2° is transferred to the second memory circuit 21, and the value stored in the second memory circuit 21 is updated. Further, the output of the first memory circuit 20 is an AND gate 25, and the output of the second memory circuit 21 is an AND gate 24.
At the same time, a timing signal t3 from timer 11 is introduced into AND gates 24 and 25. A
The logic outputs of ND gates 24 and 25 are provided to comparison circuit 22. After the timing signal t2 goes high and a new count value is stored in the first storage circuit 20, the timing signal t3 goes high and the stored values stored in the first storage circuit 20 and the second storage circuit 21 respectively A comparison is made. When the value stored in the second storage circuit 21 is larger than the first storage circuit 20, the output of the comparison circuit 22 becomes low and the value stored in the second storage circuit 21 is not updated. Comparison circuit 2
After the count values are compared in step 2, the counter reset signal t1 is output and the pulse counter 13 is reset.

In this way, the maximum value of the count values obtained by sampling multiple times during one stroke of the movable part 6 is detected. The number of pulses output by the load cell 1.2 and the oscillator 10 within the sampling time T as a reference time generates a pulse p corresponding to the external force applied to the main body at that time, and the maximum value detection circuit The value detected by 14 and finally stored in the second storage circuit 21 corresponds to the maximum value of the grip strength measured at that time. Further, the count value of the pulse counter 13 is calculated by a reset circuit 27 that generates a reset signal R for resetting the second storage circuit 21.
has been introduced. When the count value of the pulse counter 13 exceeds a predetermined value, the reset circuit 27 resets the second
A reset signal R is output for a certain period of time to reset the memory circuit 21.

The powerlessness detection circuit 15 is a circuit that reads the change in the count value of the pulse counter 13 and detects the end of one stroke of the movable part 6, that is, the completion of -times of measurement, and the count value has decreased to a predetermined value A or less. It has a known circuit configuration that determines when one measurement is complete.

The predetermined value A, which serves as a reference for determining the completion of one stroke of the movable part 6 by the powerlessness detection circuit 15, is set to be slightly larger than the value B that defines turning on of the reset signal R in the reset circuit 27 (A >B). The reset signal R transmitted from the reset circuit 27 is not transmitted when the value C of the pulse counter 13 becomes smaller than the above value B, but when the value C exceeds the value B from a value smaller than the value B. 11 pulses are transmitted for a certain period of time. When you apply grip force between the fixed piece 4 and the movable part 6 and release the force at the highest point, a reset signal R is generated.
The count value decreases to the point where no load is generated, but since the judgment level is set as described above, one measurement is completed by the powerlessness detection circuit 15 before the reset signal R is turned on. is detected. Note that the second memory circuit 21
The maximum grip force measurement value stored in is reset by the reset signal R when the -stroke ends and the next stroke begins. Therefore, the maximum grip strength measurement value can be read at the end of the -stroke.

When the powerlessness detection circuit 15 detects the completion of measurement, it outputs a pulse K to the AND gate 26 and the decrement counter 16. When the pulse K is output to the AND gate 26, the value stored in the second storage circuit 21 at that time is used as the maximum grip force measurement value Cmaxi (value in the 'iith measurement) in the maximum value integration circuit 17 and the display switching circuit 18. given to. The decrease count counter 16 counts the pulses K given from the powerlessness detection circuit 15, and outputs the counted value to the display switching circuit 18 as the number of times of grip strength measurement. The maximum value integration circuit 17 receives the maximum grip force measurement value Cmax from the maximum value detection circuit 14 every time the end of the i-th measurement is detected by the helplessness detection circuit 15.
It is constituted by a well-known circuit that introduces and integrates the maximum value ΣCmax i to the display switching circuit 18.

The display switching circuit 18 displays the maximum grip force measurement value Cmax'i detected by the maximum value detection circuit 14 and the decrease count counter 1.
This is for displaying either the number of measurements counted by 6 or the total sum ΣCmax i of the maximum value integrated by the maximum value integration circuit 17 on the display 19, and the changeover switch 9 selects the display mode a''- By setting c, the display value corresponding to the setting position is displayed on the display 19. That is, the changeover switch 9 is moved to the display mode position a.
When set to ``-c, the maximum grip force measurement value, the number of grip force measurements, and the total sum of the maximum grip force measurement values are displayed on the display screen 8 corresponding to each set position.While measurements are being made continuously, The display switching circuit 18 extracts and displays display data from the decrement counter 16 and the maximum value integration circuit 17.The display switching circuit 18 also includes a memory for storing and holding the maximum value transferred from the maximum value detection circuit 14, Each time the maximum value is transferred, the memory is updated and the lightning displays the latest maximum value.

The grip strength measurement section having the above configuration measures and displays the above three data, namely, the maximum grip strength measurement value, the sum of the maximum grip strength measurement values, and the number of grip strength measurements. When performing grip strength training by viewing the display of the maximum grip strength measurement value, the changeover switch 9 is set in advance to the display mode a position.

When the force is gradually applied from the beginning of the grip at the start of training, the reset signal R is turned on and the second memory circuit 21 is reset until it reaches a predetermined level. Subsequently, the maximum value is detected from the gripper, the reset signal R is turned off, the detected maximum value is stored in the second storage circuit 21, and the force is applied to the maximum point. When the pulse K falls below a certain value, the maximum value detection circuit 14
is output to. When the pulse K is generated, the value stored in the second storage circuit 21 at that time is displayed as the maximum grip strength measurement value, as described above. When the above measurement operation is repeated, the maximum grip force measurement value is displayed every time one stroke of the movable part 6 is completed, each maximum value is sequentially integrated by the maximum value integration circuit 17, and the number of operations is reduced by the number of times counter. The number of stitches is 16. By switching the changeover switch 9 to the display mode b or C at a desired time, the total number of grip force measurements counted or accumulated up to that time and the maximum grip force measurement value can be displayed.

In this way, the maximum value of grip force can be displayed automatically and with high precision using the load cell 1.2, and therefore, the data can be read smoothly by digitally displaying the maximum grip force measurement value. You can clearly understand the quantitative effects of grip strength training. Moreover, by switching the changeover switch 9, the sum of the maximum grip strength measurements and the number of grip strength measurements are displayed, so by using these three types of display data, the grip strength enhancement effect of grip strength training can be significantly improved. . Furthermore, since such a digital display is performed,
Even when the electronic grip dynamometer is used for measuring grip strength in a health checkup, the measured value of grip strength can be read smoothly, and the measurement of grip strength can be carried out smoothly.

In the above embodiment, load cell 1. Although a pressure sensor consisting of 2 is used, the grip force may be measured using a pressure sensor consisting of a piezoelectric element.

FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of the main parts of the grip force measuring section when a piezoelectric element is used as the pressure sensor in the above example. Since the grip force is measured as analog data by the piezoelectric element 30, the output of the piezoelectric element 3o is A/D converted through the amplifier 31 and the A/D conversion circuit 32, and the converted data is sent to the maximum value detection circuit 14 and the powerlessness detection circuit 15. , to the reset circuit 27.

In this case, since a pulse counter is not used, the counter reset signal t1 is not required, and the timing signal generation circuit 33 generates the timing signal t2. It is only necessary to generate t3.

As another example of a pressure sensor, a variable capacitance pressure sensor consisting of an element whose capacitance changes according to an external force is used, and the output of the sensor is introduced into the oscillator 10 to generate a pulse corresponding to the magnitude of the grip force. You may also do so.

In the example shown in Fig. 2, the movable part 6 is held by four fingers, but as shown in Fig. 7, the movable part is divided into four fingers and a pressure sensor is attached to each movable part. The movable parts 41 to 44 provided for each term protrude from the case part 40, and inside the case part 40 are the ends of each movable part and the pressure sensor attached to the substrate 53. Compression springs 45-48 are interposed between 49-52. Movable part 41~
When you put your finger on the tip of 44 and squeeze it, the compression spring 45
The grip force of each finger against the elasticity of ~48 is detected by the pressure sensor 49~
Added to 52. The grip force applied in this way is measured by pressure sensors 49 to 52 for each stroke of each movable part, and the maximum value is determined from the combined value of the output of each pressure sensor in the same manner as in the embodiment shown in FIG. Then, the maximum grip strength measurement value is displayed on the display surface (not shown) of the case part 40. In the electronic grip force needle described above, each movable part is provided with compression springs 45 to 48, so that force is applied to each term. Therefore, an increase or decrease in the force exerted by each finger appears as a change in grip strength value, and this change can be clarified on a digital display of the maximum grip strength measurement value, which can be used for grip strength training to strengthen all four fingers.

(Effects of the f1 invention As described above, according to the present invention, the grip force is measured automatically and with high precision using a pressure sensor, and the maximum grip force value in the same measurement operation of grasping and releasing is determined for each measurement. The display allows you to read the measurement data smoothly.Also, in grip strength training without repeating the above measurement operations continuously, the maximum grip force measurement value is displayed after each successive measurement operation, so you can easily read the measurement data. By understanding this quantitatively, it is possible to improve the grip strength enhancement effect of grip strength training.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is an invention configuration diagram for clearly showing the configuration of this invention.
Fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an electronic grip force needle according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a block diagram of a grip force measuring section of the electronic grip force needle.
FIG. 4 is a time chart for explaining the maximum value detection operation of the grip force measurement value in the grip force measuring section, FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration around the maximum value detection circuit 14 of the grip force measuring section, and FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the main parts of a grip force measuring section showing an example of using a piezoelectric element in the pressure sensor of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of an electronic grip force needle showing an example of the present invention in which movable parts are provided for each of four fingers. It is. 1.2-load cell (as a pressure sensor), 3-guide piece, 4-fixed piece, 5-compression spring, 6-movable part, 8-(
) display surface of the display device 19;

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) In a device that measures the grip force applied to the main body against the elasticity of a spring inserted between the main body and the movable part,
A pressure sensor that converts an external force applied to the main body into an electrical signal, an output reading means that sequentially reads the output of the pressure sensor within the time required for one stroke of the movable part, and a value read by the output reading means. 1. An electronic grip strength needle comprising: an extreme value determining means for determining the extreme value; and a display device displaying the extreme value determined by the extreme value determining means as a maximum grip strength measurement value. (2) The electronic grip force needle according to claim 1, wherein the pressure sensor comprises a piezoelectric element. (3) The pressure sensor includes a load cell, and the output reading means introduces the output of the load cell into an oscillator that generates a pulse corresponding to an external force applied to the main body, and the pulse of the oscillator is transmitted to the movable part. 2. The electronic grip force hand according to claim 1, further comprising a pulse counter that counts the time required for one stroke at each sub-time divided into a plurality of times and outputs the hand value to the extreme value determining means.