TW201914523A - Method and system for determining respiratory frequency capable of easily achieving the effect of monitoring respiration condition by simple device and determination process - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a method and system for determining respiratory frequency, in which a non-contact type thermal sensor with distance sensing is adopted to sense the temperature of a region around the mouth and nose of the subject from a side surface, and then a processing unit analyzes an exhalation number of the subject to determine the respiratory rate of the subject. With the simple device and determination process, it is able to easily achieve the effect of monitoring the respiration condition, so as to allow the system and method to be widely spread and applied to the society at a low cost for improving the existing products and applications.

Description

 Respiratory frequency judgment method and system  

The present invention relates to the application of thermal array sensing technology, and more particularly to a breathing frequency determining method and system for determining respiratory frequency by sensing temperature changes.

With the advancement of medical technology, the prevention of respiratory symptoms is no longer out of reach. The suffocation surveillance system was originally proposed in the 1960s. It mainly monitors the heart and lung function to take care of premature babies who are seriously observed for a long time. When the baby is detected to be slow, the warning can be issued early. Handle it properly during prime time to compensate for the 24-hour manpower time and relieve stress.

However, the currently known asphyxia monitoring system is mainly used to measure the physiological information required by the physiological monitoring device mounted on the nose, mouth and body of the patient, thereby determining whether the breathing is suspended, and the equipment and equipment required thereof. Often it corresponds to huge medical expenses, and it is difficult to popularize and apply to home care. In view of this, the inventors have made research on the improvement of the prior art, and have completed the present invention through continuous experimentation and design.

The main object of the present invention is to provide a respiratory frequency determination method and system, which can easily achieve the effect of monitoring respiratory conditions by simple equipment and judgment process, can be widely spread at low cost and is suitable for the public to improve existing Insufficient products and applications.

The technical means adopted by the invention mainly measures the difference of the exhaled temperature and the room temperature of the subject, measures the number of times the subject breaths in a certain period of time, and further infers the respiratory rate of the subject.

The respiratory frequency judging method provided by the present invention includes the following processes: (1) providing a non-contact type thermal sensor; and (2) sensing a temperature of a region around the nose and mouth from a side of the subject's face; (3) Analyze the number of exhalations of the subject according to the number of temperature changes sensed; (4) Infer the respiratory rate of the subject from the number of exhalation times in a certain period of time.

In practice, after determining the respiratory rate of the subject, it can further determine whether the respiratory frequency is lower than the preset warning value, and issue a warning notice early to achieve the purpose of monitoring and pre-alarming of the breathing suspension.

According to the technical means of the present invention, the main structure of the provided respiratory frequency judging system comprises a sensing sensor with a sensing distance and a processing unit; wherein the sensing sensor with sensing distance is used for receiving The side of the face of the tester senses the temperature of the area around the nose and mouth, and analyzes and outputs the sensed temperature information; the processing unit is telecommunicationally connected to the thermal sensor for receiving the temperature information of the thermal sensor, and according to The number of temperature changes analyzes the number of exhalations of the subject to determine the respiratory rate of the subject.

Preferably, the respiratory frequency judging system further comprises a warning unit, wherein the warning unit is connected to the processing unit to receive the respiratory frequency information determined by the processing unit, and can issue an early warning according to the respiratory frequency.

According to the above, the thermal sensor of the present invention is an array type infrared thermal sensor, which has a built-in thermal array sensing element and a main control unit, and the thermal array sensing element is an N*M array type thermopile ( ThermalPile) The sensing component (N, M is a natural number) is used to detect the temperature condition within a predetermined range. Generally, a higher resolution thermal array sensing element can be selected, and the sensing distance can be up to 1~ 90 or 1~100cm, of course, 8*8 is preferred. The sensing distance is preferably 1-50cm, and the sensing range is about 35 degrees. The main control unit mainly contains a data. The data capture module is configured to capture array data measured by the thermal array sensing element, and the value detection module is configured to analyze the ratio For the array data and determining the effective value of the temperature, the data broadcast module is used to process the RMS data and the broadcast control.

Preferably, the respiratory frequency judging system of the present invention can further analyze and determine the lung vitality value of the subject, wherein the processing unit can analyze the exhalation intensity of the subject according to the distance relationship between the subject and the temperature change region. And further, the lung vitality value of the subject is determined.

In order to achieve a more specific understanding of the above objects, features and effects of the present invention, the preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings:

10‧‧‧ Thermal Sensor

20‧‧‧Processing unit

30‧‧‧Warning unit

40‧‧‧RF unit

50‧‧‧ Subjects

S01~S04‧‧‧Steps

A‧‧‧near area around the nose and mouth

B1‧‧‧Exhalation timing

B2‧‧‧Inhalation timing

1 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a flow chart for determining respiratory frequency in the embodiment; FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are schematic diagrams showing the front and side of the sensor, respectively; The figure is a schematic diagram of the time-temperature relationship sensed by this embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the main structure of the present invention includes a thermal sensor 10 , a processing unit 20 , and a warning unit 30 , which are capable of communicating with each other. In practice, the thermal sensor 10 , the The processing unit 20 and the warning unit 30 can be respectively disposed in the same or different devices according to the requirements. In the embodiment of the present invention, the thermal sensor 10 is a telecommunications connection processing unit 20, and the telecommunications connection includes a wired connection. Or the manner in which the wireless electronic signal is connected, and the processing unit 20 is communicatively connected to the alert unit 30 via a radio frequency unit 40.

Please refer to FIGS. 3 and 4 again, wherein the thermal sensor 10 is a non-contact type thermal sensing element having a sensing distance for sensing the mouth from the side of the face of the subject 50. The temperature of the area around the nose is analyzed, and the sensed temperature information is analyzed and outputted. The processing unit 20 is electrically connected to the thermal sensor 10 for receiving the temperature information sensed by the thermal sensor 10 and changing according to the temperature. The number of times of exhalation of the subject 50 is analyzed, and the respiratory rate of the subject 50 can be determined according to the number of exhalation times in a certain period of time; the radio frequency unit 40 is connected to the processing unit 20 for the processing unit 20 The processed information is transmitted to the remote end; the alert unit 30 can receive the respiratory frequency information analyzed and determined by the processing unit 20 through the radio frequency unit 40, and determine according to the preset alert value, when the measured subject 50 When the respiratory rate is lower than the warning value, a warning notice can be issued for the medical staff to deal with it early.

As shown in Figure 5, during the breathing process, especially during sleep, there will be some pause between one breath and one spit, that is, the exhalation timing B1 and the inhalation timing B2 shown in the bold line segment. Generally speaking, the human body temperature is higher than the temperature of the general environment (ie, room temperature). When the human body exhales gas, the temperature of the newly ejected gas is higher than the temperature of the external environment. The present invention uses the sensing to analyze the temperature difference. Change, to estimate the respiratory rate of the subject; as shown, when the subject 50 exhales gas at the exhalation timing B1, the thermal sensor 10 can sense higher than room temperature from the area around the nose and mouth (dashed line The temperature, and when the exhalation is over, the temperature sensed by the thermal sensor 10 gradually returns to normal temperature (i.e., room temperature) due to the conduction of air, and then when the subject 50 inhales the gas at the inhalation timing B2 The thermal sensor 10 still detects the temperature of the room temperature until the subject 50 senses a temperature higher than room temperature again when the next exhalation timing B1 discharges gas; by the thermal sensor 10 Outputting the sensed temperature change information to the processing unit 20, the respiratory rate of the subject 50 can be inferred.

Please refer to the figures 3 and 4 again. The flow of determining the respiratory frequency in this embodiment mainly includes the following steps: (1) Step S01, providing a non-contact type thermal sensor 10, and letting the heat The sensor 10 is electrically connected to a processing unit 20; (2) Step S02, the thermal sensor 10 is placed on the side of the subject 50 so that the thermal sensor 10 can be from the side of the face of the subject 50. Sensing the temperature of the area A around the nose and mouth; (3) Step S03, after the detection is started, the thermal sensor 10 can continuously transmit the detected temperature information to the processing unit 20, and the processing unit 20 can sense the sense The number of times of temperature change measured is analyzed for the number of times of exhalation of the subject 50; (4) Step S04, the processing unit 20 estimates the respiratory rate of the subject 50 based on the number of exhalation times of the subject 50 and the preset judgment time.

In a possible embodiment, the thermal sensor 10 includes a thermal array sensing element and a main control unit. The thermal array sensing element is connected to the main control unit and has a predetermined sensing range and distance for detecting the range. The temperature condition of the area, and the measured array data is provided to the main control unit; and the main control unit has one of the data acquisition modules, a numerical detection module, a data broadcast module and a device control module The main function of the data capture module is to control the thermal array sensing element and capture the array data measured by the thermal array sensing element. The main function of the numerical detection module is from the array data. Analyze and detect the location of the temperature and its changes, and compare with the historical data to determine the effective value. The main function of the data broadcast module is to smooth the effective value and control the data broadcast, and the device controls The main functions of the module are the setting of the control device, the processing system command and return, and the control of the external sending and receiving of messages and data.

In practical applications, when the respiratory rate of the subject 50 is estimated by the foregoing method, it can be further applied to various environmental warning mechanisms (such as a nursing station for a medical institution or a mobile device APP for a home user). Judgment and warning according to the preset warning value. Of course, it can also be matched with appropriate medical equipment. When it is judged that the respiratory rate of the subject is lower than the warning value, it can automatically provide initial medical care and early rescue.

In addition, in the system architecture of the present embodiment, in addition to determining the respiratory rate, the processing unit 20 can simultaneously analyze the distance of the exhalation according to the region in which the subject 50 emits a temperature change caused by the gas, as a consideration of the respiratory intensity. Further, the lung vitality value of the subject 50 can be calculated, and it is more helpful to assist in grasping the physiological state of the subject and providing appropriate early warning and care.

In the above, the present invention is not limited to the scope of the patent protection of the present invention, and the specific scope of protection should be based on the scope of the patent application, and the simple extension of the technical means according to the present invention. Variations or equivalent substitutions are intended to fall within the scope of the invention.

Claims (8)

 A breathing frequency judging method includes the following steps: providing a non-contact type thermal sensor; sensing the temperature of the area around the nose and mouth from the side of the subject's face; and judging by the temperature change caused by the exhalation The respiratory rate of the subject.    The respiratory frequency judging method according to claim 1, wherein the thermal sensor is an array type infrared thermal sensor.    The respiratory frequency judging method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the sensing distance of the thermal sensor is 1 to 50 cm.    A respiratory frequency judging system includes: a sensing sensor with a sensing distance for sensing the temperature of the area around the nose and mouth from the side of the subject's face, analyzing and outputting the sensed temperature information; The processing unit is connected to the thermal sensor for receiving the temperature information of the thermal sensor, and analyzing the number of exhalation times of the subject according to the number of temperature changes to determine the respiratory rate of the subject.    The respiratory frequency judging system of claim 4, wherein the thermal sensor is an array type infrared thermal sensor.    The respiratory frequency judging system of claim 4 or 5, wherein the thermal sensor has a sensing distance of 1 to 50 cm.    The respiratory frequency judging system of claim 6, wherein the processing unit is further configured to be connected to an alert unit via a radio frequency unit for transmitting the respiratory frequency information of the subject to the alert unit, and the alert unit is It can be judged according to the breathing frequency of the subject to issue a warning.    The respiratory frequency judging system according to claim 6, wherein the processing unit is configured to further analyze the exhalation intensity of the subject according to the distance relationship between the subject and the temperature change region to determine the lung vitality value of the subject. .