KR102619006B1 - Indenter apparatus for non-weight bearing plantar pressure and stiffness measurement - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an indenter device for measuring sole pressure and stiffness in a non-weight bearing state. The indenter device for measuring sole pressure or stiffness according to the present invention has a top plate on which the sole is placed, and the top plate has an opening. A housing formed with; an indenting tip that penetrates the opening and has a hemispherical upper end so as to press a desired measurement area on the sole of the foot; a pressure sensor connected to the indenting tip to measure pressure or rigidity applied to the indenting tip; a driving motor for vertical linear movement of the indenting tip; A controller is installed in the housing, controls the drive motor to control the speed and height of the indenting tip, and displays the pressure or stiffness measured through the pressure sensor.

Description

Indenter apparatus for non-weight bearing plantar pressure and stiffness measurement}

The present invention relates to an indenter device for measuring sole stiffness. More specifically, the present invention relates to plantar pressure, that is, plantar pressure or stiffness-related diseases that can be diagnosed by measuring the pressure or stiffness of the sole in a non-weight-bearing state. This relates to an indenter device for measuring stiffness.

A disease related to plantar pressure is a disease in which excessive pressure is applied to a specific area of the sole of the foot and is accompanied by pain in that area. Representative plantar pressure-related diseases include metatarsalgia and morton's neuroma. Additionally, a stiffness-related disease is a disease in which the stiffness of a specific area of the sole increases and the shock absorption capacity of that area decreases, making human tissue vulnerable to external shocks. Representative stiffness-related diseases include diabetic foot.

These foot diseases related to plantar pressure or stiffness are caused by a combination of factors such as blood circulation disorders, neuropathic disorders, and skin diseases. In the case of neuropathic disorders, foot injuries occur due to pressure changes in the soles of the feet due to motor nerve disorders, weakening of protective functions due to sensory nerve disorders, and skin drying due to autonomic nerve disorders. Blood circulation disorders are caused by arteriosclerosis that occurs in the area of the tibio-peroneal artery, which branches from large blood vessels to small blood vessels, which blocks the blood supply to the skin or extremity tissues, resulting in gangrene. Foot wounds caused by this mechanism easily cause ulcers or infections, and in these cases, the wounds generally do not heal well, take a long time to heal, and have a poor prognosis.

These diseases are usually diagnosed by measuring the pressure or stiffness of the soles of the feet with the patient standing upright with both feet using an insole-type pressure gauge or plate-type pressure distribution measuring device, and then finding areas where more pressure is applied or stiffness increases than other areas. Diagnose and find the cause of foot pain.

However, for patients who have difficulty standing upright due to pain in the soles of their feet, it is difficult to measure sole pressure or stiffness under existing weight bearing conditions. Accordingly, there has been a demand for a method that can measure sole pressure or stiffness in a non-weight bearing state.

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-1299075 (2013.08.16.)

Therefore, the purpose of the present invention is to provide an indenter device for measuring sole pressure and stiffness in a non-weight bearing state that can overcome the problems of the prior art.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an indenter device for measuring sole pressure and stiffness in a non-weight-bearing state, which can easily measure the pressure or stiffness of the sole in a non-weight-bearing state and can adjust the size of the indenting tip in response to the measurement area. It is to provide.

Another object of the present invention is an indenter for measuring sole pressure and stiffness in a non-weight-bearing state, which can automatically detect the sole measurement site through camera images and move the indenting tip to the measurement site to measure sole pressure or stiffness. To provide a device.

According to embodiments of the present invention for achieving some of the above technical problems, an indenter device for measuring sole rigidity according to the present invention includes a housing having an upper plate on which the sole is placed and an opening formed in the upper plate; an indenting tip that penetrates the opening and has a hemispherical upper end so as to press a desired measurement area on the sole of the foot; a pressure sensor connected to the indenting tip to measure pressure or rigidity applied to the indenting tip; a driving motor for vertical linear movement of the indenting tip; A controller is installed in the housing, controls the drive motor to control the speed and height of the indenting tip, and displays the pressure or stiffness measured through the pressure sensor.

The sole of the foot is placed on the upper plate with the examiner's knees bent, and a knee fixing bar is further provided to limit the movement of the assessor's knee in the up and down direction while the sole of the foot is placed on the upper plate, and the knee fixing bar is positioned up and down. It may have a structure that can adjust its position in any direction.

A measurement structure including the drive motor, the pressure sensor disposed on the upper side of the drive motor, and the indenting tip disposed on the upper side of the pressure sensor in a structure capable of moving up and down by the drive motor in the left and right directions. and a moving means for moving the device in the forward and backward directions. The moving means may be built into the housing and controlled by the controller.

The opening may be formed in an area where the rear foot of the sole is located, or may be formed in an area where the forefoot of the sole is located.

The opening has a first opening formed in a region where the rear foot of the sole is located and a second opening formed in a region where the forefoot of the sole is located, and the measuring structure includes the sole. In order to measure the pressure or stiffness of the heel portion of the rearfoot, it is moved to the lower part of the first opening by the moving means, and the first to fifth metatarsal heads of the forefoot are moved to the bottom of the first opening. head) may be moved to be positioned below the second opening by the moving means.

The hemispherical size of the indenting tip for measuring the pressure or stiffness of the heel portion of the rearfoot through the first opening is the first metatarsal head of the forefoot through the second opening. It may be formed larger than the hemispherical size of the indenting tip for measuring the pressure or stiffness of the head to fifth metatarsal head.

At least one camera is provided inside the housing to photograph the sole of the foot placed on the upper plate through the opening and transmit the captured image to the controller,

The controller may measure sole pressure or stiffness by specifying a measurement site on the sole of the foot through the captured image and controlling the moving means to move the measurement structure to the measurement site.

According to the present invention, plantar pressure or stiffness can be easily measured in a non-weight bearing state, and the size of the indenting tip can be adjusted according to the measurement area, allowing easy diagnosis and etiology of diseases related to plantar pressure or plantar stiffness. There are possible advantages. In addition, the sole measurement area can be automatically detected through camera images and the indenting tip can be moved to the measurement area to measure sole pressure or stiffness, which can be helpful for patients with diseases related to plantar pressure or plantar stiffness.

1 is a schematic perspective view of an indenter device according to an embodiment of the present invention,
Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the measurement structure of Figure 1,
Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of the indenting tip of Figure 1 or 2 by size;
Figure 4 shows the process of measuring sole pressure or stiffness,
Figure 5 shows the pressure or stiffness measurement area of the sole of the foot;
Figures 6 and 7 show the measurement process in the case where there are two openings,
Figure 8 shows the measurement process when a camera is provided.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, with no intention other than to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.

Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of an indenter device according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the measurement structure of Figure 1, and Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the indenting tip of Figure 1 or Figure 2 by size. .

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the indenter device 100 for measuring sole stiffness according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 110, a measurement structure 120, and a controller 130. . Additionally, a knee fixing unit 150 including a knee fixing bar 156 for fixing the knee may be further included.

In the present invention, stiffness measurement and pressure measurement are used confusingly, but since it means that the sole stiffness increases as the sole pressure increases, the expressions of measuring pressure and measuring stiffness are just different expressions, and the measured value Even if there is a level difference or unit difference, they can be used interchangeably in the sense that they have the same meaning or are correlated with each other.

The housing 110 has the measurement structure 120 and the controller 130 built in, and has a top plate 112 on which the sole of the foot of the person being measured is placed. The top plate 112 can be made of any flat material such as an acrylic plate, and has a structure in which an opening 114 is formed in the top plate 112. The openings 114 can be one or more, and are formed at a location where the measurement area of the sole is located. The opening 114 may be formed in an area where the rear foot of the sole is located, or may be formed in an area where the forefoot of the sole is located. For example, the opening 114 may be formed in the area where the rear foot of the sole is located or the area where the forefoot of the sole is located, and the opening 114 may be formed in the area where the rear foot of the sole is located. Two may be formed, one each in the area where is located and the other in the area where the forefoot of the sole is located.

The measuring structure 120 is for measuring the pressure or rigidity of the sole through the opening 114, and may include an indenting tip 122, a pressure sensor 124, and a driving motor 126.

The indenting tip 122 penetrates the opening 114 and moves downward from the measuring part 122a and the measuring part 122a provided in a hemispherical shape at the upper end so as to press the desired measuring part of the sole of the foot. It has a support portion (122b) that is extended and connected to the pressure sensor 124 and the drive motor 126.

As shown in FIG. 3, the indenting tip 122 has a hemispherical shape at the upper end, that is, the size of the measuring part 122a can be configured in various ways depending on the measuring part. Figure 5 shows the pressure or stiffness measurement area of the sole. As shown in Figure 5, the calcaneus (heel) portion of the rear foot of the foot has a relatively large area, so when measuring pressure or stiffness, the area (c) of Figure 3 ), it is possible to measure the pressure or stiffness of the sole of the foot in the calcaneus region by mounting an indenting tip 122 having a diameter of approximately 3 cm according to the size of the measurement unit 122a. In addition, areas such as the first to fifth metatarsal heads have a relatively small area, and when measuring plantar pressure or stiffness, as shown in (a) of FIG. 3, the size of the measurement unit 122a is relatively small. In smaller versions, hemispherical indenting tips with a diameter of approximately 0.5 cm are available. In addition, considering the size of the sole or the area of the measurement area, as shown in Figure 3 (b), the size of the measurement part 122a is relatively medium and a hemispherical indentation with a diameter of approximately 1.5 cm. It is also possible to use tips. In addition, it is possible to measure sole pressure or stiffness by constructing a measuring unit 122a of various sizes.

The pressure sensor 124 is connected to the indenting tip 122 to measure the pressure or rigidity applied to the indenting tip 122, and the indenting tip 122 drives the drive motor. When the sole of the foot is pressed while rising in the vertical direction, a corresponding reaction force presses the indenting tip 122, and the pressure sensor 124 measures this reaction force. The pressure sensing sensor 124 is generally a load cell, and can also be composed of various pressure sensing sensors well known to those skilled in the art. The pressure sensor 124 continues to measure pressure or stiffness while the indenting tip 122 moves in a vertical direction, and the measured value is transmitted to the controller 130, and the controller (130) is displayed through a built-in monitor or a separately connected display device.

The drive motor 126 is controlled by the controller 130 and is used for linear movement of the indenting tip 122 in the vertical (or vertical) direction. The drive motor 126 is controlled by the controller 130 to raise the indenting tip 122 from the preset initial position to the preset highest position before measuring pressure or stiffness, and maintains it for a preset certain time. After doing so, it operates to descend to the lowest position or the first position. Accordingly, it is possible to measure sole pressure or stiffness without applying pressure or force equivalent to body weight to the sole. The driving motor 126 may be provided as a step motor.

The controller 130 is built into the housing 110 and controls the driving motor 126 to control the moving speed and height of the indenting tip 122 and measures it through the pressure sensor 124. It displays the pressure or stiffness.

The controller 130 may have a built-in touch screen monitor or be separately connected to the touch screen monitor through a cable, through which it is possible to set the operating environment of the indenter device 100. For example, the initial height (initial height) of the indenting tip 122, the speed at which the indenting tip 122 presses the sole, the depth or pressure at which the indenting tip 122 presses the sole, and the indenting tip 122. After the tip 122 reaches a set height, the time it stays in that position can be adjusted. Additionally, the start and end of the pressure or stiffness measurement described above can be selected. In addition, when measuring sole pressure or stiffness through the indenter device 100, the real-time pressure or stiffness value measured by the pressure sensor 124 and the position (height) of the indenting tip 122 are displayed on the monitor. It is possible to check in real time.

The knee fixing unit 150 allows the sole of the foot to be placed on the upper plate 112 with the examiner's knee bent, and limits the vertical movement of the examiner's knee when the sole of the foot is placed on the upper plate 112. It is for.

Generally, when measuring the sole pressure or stiffness in a weight-bearing state, the pressure or stiffness can be measured by the body weight pressing the sole, while in the non-weight-bearing state, as in the present invention, the indenting tip 122 presses the sole. Pressure or stiffness is calculated. A non-weight bearing state can be achieved by having the patient lie down or sit in a chair. Among these, when measuring the pressure or stiffness of the sole of the foot while sitting on a chair, the indenting tip 122 presses the sole of the foot and is lifted in the upward direction where the knee presses the sole of the foot, which may cause an error in the pressure or stiffness measurement. Accordingly, in order to accurately measure plantar pressure or stiffness in a non-weight bearing state, it is important that the knee is well fixed so as not to move. In addition, because each person's physical conditions are different, the position and height of the knee fixation must be freely adjustable. The knee fixing unit 150 is designed to solve this problem, and includes two vertical supports (152a, 152b) whose lower ends are fixed to both sides of the housing 110, respectively, and the two vertical supports (152a, 152b). It is provided with a horizontal support 154 that connects and fixes the upper ends, is arranged in parallel with the horizontal support 154, and is configured to connect the middle portion of each of the two vertical supports 152a and 152b, and is provided in the vertical direction. It is provided with a knee fixing bar (156) having a structure whose position can be adjusted.

The knee fixing unit 150 may be manufactured from an aluminum profile, and the knee fixing bar 156 has a structure that allows it to move up and down and be fixed at a specific position. For example, it consists of an insert bracket, a “ㅁ”-shaped plate steel bracket, a nut, and a t-track stopper. The insert bracket is located in the groove of the profile, and the “ㅁ”-shaped plate is inserted through the nut and handle. It may have a structure connected to a plate-type steel bracket. You can loosen the fixation by turning the handles on both sides counterclockwise to adjust the position of the bar up and down, and after adjusting the position, you can turn the handles clockwise again to fix it firmly. In addition, it can be configured in various ways.

The knee fixing bar 156 is configured to change its position according to the length from the top of the thigh to the sole of the foot when the knee is bent at 90 degrees, and when measuring pressure or stiffness, the knee is adjusted by raising the indenting tip 122. The position is fixed so that it is not heard.

Figure 4 shows the process of measuring sole pressure or stiffness when the knee fixing unit 150 is installed.

As shown in FIG. 4, the sole pressure or stiffness measurement using the indenter device 100 according to the present invention is performed when a person sits on a chair, bends the knees to 90 degrees, and does not apply body weight to the sole. Therefore, if the knee fixing bar 156 is not present, the knee may rise together due to the force of the indenting tip 122 pressing the sole when measuring sole pressure or stiffness. In this case, accurate pressure or stiffness measurement becomes difficult and errors occur. Pressure or stiffness is calculated as the ratio of the force measured by the sensor and the contact area between the sole and the sensor, so calculating the exact size of force and contact area is important. Accordingly, the indenter device 100 according to the present invention is provided with the knee fixing bar 156 to eliminate variables due to movement of the knee, enabling accurate pressure or stiffness measurement and easy pressure or stiffness measurement. There is an advantage. The knee fixing unit 150 allows the position of the knee fixing bar 156 to be changed according to the length from the top of the thigh to the sole of the foot when the knee is bent at approximately 90 degrees or close to 90 degrees.

Additionally, the indenting device 100 may be further equipped with moving means (not shown) for moving the measurement structure 120 in the left-right and front-back directions. As described above, the measurement structure 120 moves up and down by the operation of the drive motor 126, the pressure sensor 124 disposed on the upper side of the drive motor 126, and the drive motor 126. It has already been described that it has a structure including the indenting tip 122 disposed on top of the pressure sensor 124 as possible. The moving means is for moving the measurement structure 120 in the left-right and forward-forward directions, and various moving means well known to those skilled in the art can be adopted. The moving means may be built into the housing 110 and controlled by the controller 130.

The moving means may be necessary to move the measurement structure 120 to an accurate measurement site when the sole of the foot is placed on the upper plate 112. That is, the moving means moves the measuring structure 120 so that the indenting tip 122 is located at the exact measuring part of the sole of the foot at the lower part of the opening 114, and drives the driving motor 126. By raising the indenting tip 122, it is possible to measure the pressure or stiffness of the sole of the foot at an accurate measurement site.

Meanwhile, Figure 1 shows that an opening 114 is formed in the upper plate 112 for measuring the pressure or stiffness of the rear part of the sole, such as the calcaneus region. However, the opening 114 formed in the upper plate 112 ) As shown in Figure 6, the first opening 114a formed in the area where the rear foot of the sole is located and the second opening (114a) formed in the area where the forefoot of the sole is located ( 114b) can be provided. In this case, the pressure or stiffness of the calcaneus area of the sole can be measured through the first opening (114a), and the first, second, and fifth metatarsal bones of the sole can be measured through the second opening (114b). It becomes possible to measure pressure or stiffness of the head area.

At this time, the measurement structure 120 can be moved by the moving means by finding an accurate measurement site within the first opening 114a or the second opening 114b, but as shown in FIG. 6, the When the measuring structure 120 is provided as one, it is moved to the lower part of the first opening 114a to measure the pressure or stiffness of the heel portion of the rearfoot portion of the sole by the moving means, and the measuring structure 120 of the forefoot portion of the sole It may have a structure that can be moved to the lower part of the second opening (114b) to measure the pressure or stiffness of the first to fifth metatarsal head portions, and accordingly, one It may be possible to sequentially measure pressure or stiffness of the rear of the foot and the forefoot of the foot using the measuring structure 120. In this case, the size of the measurement part 122a of the indenting tip 122 will have to be changed according to the measurement part.

And, as shown in Figure 7, the opening 114 is formed in the area where the rear foot of the sole is located and the first opening 114a is formed in the area where the forefoot of the sole is located. In the case where the second opening 114b is formed, the measurement structure 120 may be provided in two pieces, with measurement structures 120a and 120b corresponding to each opening. That is, a first measurement structure 120a corresponding to the first opening 114a and a second measurement structure 120b corresponding to the second opening 114b may be provided. In this case, the moving means operates to move the first measurement structure 120a to find an accurate pressure or stiffness measurement site within the first opening 114a, and also moves the second measurement structure 120b to the second measurement structure 120b. It operates to find the exact pressure or stiffness measurement site within the opening 114b. In this case, the size of the measurement part 122a of the indenting tip of the first measurement structure 120a is larger than the size of the measurement part 122a of the indenting tip of the second measurement structure 120b in response to the measurement area. It can be provided in large quantities.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 8, inside the housing 110 is at least one device for photographing the sole of the foot placed in the opening 114 and transmitting the photographed image to the controller 130. A camera 160 may be provided. The at least one camera 160 captures the sole of the foot placed on the upper plate 110 through the opening 114 to find an accurate location for measuring pressure or stiffness at the portion of the sole placed in the opening 114. An image of the sole of the foot placed in the opening 114 is captured and transmitted to the controller 130. In this case, the controller 130 has a built-in AI algorithm, and it is possible to find the exact area for measuring pressure or stiffness in the image of the sole through long-term learning using deep learning technology using big data. Accordingly, the controller 130 can measure the sole pressure or stiffness by specifying the exact measurement site through the sole image and moving the measurement structure 120 to the best position for measurement through the moving means. . Here, when there are two openings 114, it is possible to take pictures sequentially using one camera, but it is also possible to take pictures of the soles of the feet placed in each opening by using two cameras according to the number of openings.

Here, the external shape of the measurement structure 120, 120a, and 120b of FIGS. 6 and 7 is different from the measurement structure 120 shown in FIG. 2, but this only means that the external shape can be expressed in various ways. , it is clear that only the external shape is different, but the internal composition and operation are the same.

As described above, according to the present invention, plantar pressure or stiffness can be easily measured in a non-weight bearing state, and the size of the indenting tip can be adjusted according to the measurement area, making it easy to treat diseases related to plantar pressure or plantar stiffness. It has the advantage of being able to diagnose and determine the cause. In addition, the sole measurement area can be automatically detected through camera images and the indenting tip can be moved to the measurement area to measure sole pressure or stiffness, which can be helpful for patients with diseases related to plantar pressure or plantar stiffness.

The description of the above-described embodiment is merely an example with reference to the drawings for a more thorough understanding of the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. In addition, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the basic principles of the present invention.

110: top plate 114: opening
120: Measurement structure 122: Indenting tip
124: pressure sensor 126: drive motor
130: Controller 150: Knee fixing unit
160: camera

Claims (7)

In the indenter device for measuring plantar pressure or stiffness:
a housing having a top plate for placing the sole of the foot and an opening formed in the top plate;
an indenting tip that penetrates the opening and has a hemispherical upper end so as to press a desired measurement area on the sole of the foot;
a pressure sensor connected to the indenting tip to measure pressure or rigidity applied to the indenting tip;
a driving motor for vertical linear movement of the indenting tip;
a controller built into the housing, controlling the drive motor to control the speed and height of the indenting tip, and displaying pressure or stiffness measured through the pressure sensor;
The soles of the feet are placed on the upper plate with the examiner's knees bent, and a knee fixing bar is provided to limit the upward and downward movement of the measurement person's knees while the soles of the feet are placed on the upper plate,
The knee fixing bar is an indenter device characterized in that it has a structure that can adjust its position in the vertical direction.
delete In claim 1,
A measurement structure including the drive motor, the pressure sensor disposed on the upper side of the drive motor, and the indenting tip disposed on the upper side of the pressure sensor in a structure capable of moving up and down by the drive motor in the left and right directions. and a moving means for moving the indenter device forward and backward, wherein the moving means is built into the housing and controlled by the controller.
In claim 3,
The indenter device is characterized in that the opening is formed in the area where the rear foot of the sole is located, or the opening is formed in the area where the forefoot of the sole is located.
In claim 3,
The opening has a first opening formed in a region where the rear foot of the sole is located and a second opening formed in a region where the forefoot of the sole is located,
The measuring structure is moved to the bottom of the first opening by the moving means to measure the pressure or stiffness of the heel portion of the rear portion of the sole, and is located between the first metatarsal head and the first metatarsal head of the forefoot portion of the sole. An indenter device, characterized in that it is moved to be positioned below the second opening by the moving means to measure the pressure or stiffness of the fifth metatarsal head portion.
In claim 5,
The hemispherical size of the indenting tip for measuring the pressure or stiffness of the heel portion of the rearfoot through the first opening is the first metatarsal head of the forefoot through the second opening. An indenter device characterized in that it is formed larger than the hemispherical size of the indenting tip for measuring the pressure or rigidity of the portion of the head to the fifth metatarsal head.
In claim 3 or claim 5,
At least one camera is provided inside the housing to photograph the sole of the foot placed on the upper plate through the opening and transmit the captured image to the controller,
The controller is an indenter device characterized in that it specifies the measurement site of the sole of the foot through the captured image, controls the moving means to move the measurement structure to the measurement site, and measures sole pressure or stiffness.

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