WO2012098751A1

WO2012098751A1 - Electronic thermometer and method for producing same

Info

Publication number: WO2012098751A1
Application number: PCT/JP2011/075807
Authority: WO
Inventors: 勝美森田; 山内　隆伸
Original assignee: オムロンヘルスケア株式会社
Priority date: 2011-01-20
Filing date: 2011-11-09
Publication date: 2012-07-26
Also published as: JP2012150042A

Abstract

An electronic thermometer (100) is provided with: a thermistor (10); a control substrate (20); a display unit (30); a power source unit (40); and a housing (50) having a space formed thereinside in which the thermistor (10), the control substrate (20), the display unit (30), and the power source unit (40) are arranged. The housing (50) comprises: a case body (52) comprising a bottom face (52R) extending in the longitudinal direction of the electronic thermometer (100), an annular wall (52U) standing from the edge of the bottom face (52R), and a flange (52K) arranged at the tip end of the annular wall (52U) in the standing direction; and a sheet member (51), the outer periphery of which is connected to the flange (52K). The sheet member (51) is connected to the flange (52K) of the case body (52) to thereby form the space in which the thermistor (10), the control substrate (20), the display unit (30), and the power source unit (40) are arranged.

Description

Electronic thermometer and method for manufacturing the same

The present invention relates to an electronic thermometer and a manufacturing method thereof.

The thermometer measures the body temperature of the person being measured while sandwiched between the armpit or the tongue. Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-40636 (Patent Document 1), Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 01-167635 (Patent Document 2), Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 60-104738 (Patent Document 3), Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-048060 (Patent Document 1). Various types of thermometers are known as disclosed in Document 4) and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-300310 (Patent Document 5).

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-040636 (Patent Document 1) discloses an electronic thermometer in which a probe portion is formed of a film-like member. Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 01-167635 (Patent Document 2) discloses a thermometer in which a tactile sensation portion is provided in a body constriction portion near a temperature detection portion. Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 60-104738 (Patent Document 3) discloses an electronic thermometer provided with a non-slip portion made of unevenness in the vicinity of a sensor portion of a main body case.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-048060 (Patent Document 4) discloses an electronic thermometer in which the assembly direction of each component is one vertical direction with respect to the wide surface of the sub case, and the internal components are assembled as a sub case unit by automatic assembly. Is disclosed. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-300310 (Patent Document 5) discloses that an opening provided in a housing for attaching a temperature sensor and internal components to the inside of the housing extends from the region where the temperature sensor is disposed along the longitudinal direction. The electronic thermometer divided | segmented so that it might be formed in the magnitude | size which open | releases the area | region including even the arrangement | positioning area | region of components is disclosed.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-040636 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 01-167635 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-104738 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-048060 JP 2009-300310 A

In the inventions disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-040636 (Patent Document 1), Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 01-167635 (Patent Document 2), and Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 60-104738 (Patent Document 3), No consideration is given to reducing the manufacturing cost of thermometers. In the invention disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-048060 (Patent Document 4), the assembly direction of components to the sub case is one direction, and the sub case is configured to be assembled by automation. However, the insertion direction of the thermistor with respect to the main body case is a direction orthogonal to the assembly direction of the sub case. The assembly direction of the electronic thermometer as a whole is not one direction. In the invention disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-300310 (Patent Document 5), there is room for further improvement in terms of reducing manufacturing costs.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an electronic thermometer capable of further reducing manufacturing costs and a manufacturing method thereof.

An electronic thermometer according to the present invention is an electronic thermometer for measuring a body temperature of a measurer, the temperature sensor for measuring the body temperature, and a thermistor including a lead wire having one end connected to the temperature sensor, and A control board to which the other end of the lead wire is connected; a display unit connected to the control board for displaying the body temperature measured by the thermistor; a power supply unit for supplying power to the control board; the thermistor; A housing in which the control board, the display unit, and the power supply unit are disposed in a space formed therein, and the housing includes a bottom surface portion extending along a longitudinal direction of the electronic thermometer, and the bottom surface portion. A sheet-like member having an annular wall portion standing up from a peripheral edge thereof, a case body having a flange portion provided at a tip end of the annular wall portion in the standing direction, and an outer peripheral portion joined to the flange portion , Wherein the said sheet-like member by being joined to the flange portion of the case body, the thermistor, the control board, the display unit, and the space for disposing the power supply unit is formed.

Preferably, unevenness is provided at the joint between the flange and the sheet-like member.

Preferably, the temperature sensing part is disposed at one end of the electronic thermometer in the longitudinal direction, and the lead wire extends from the temperature sensing part toward the other end of the electronic thermometer, and the flange part and Of the joint between the sheet-like members, the unevenness is provided in a portion located around the temperature sensing part and the lead wire.

The manufacturing method of the electronic thermometer based on this invention is a manufacturing method of said electronic thermometer based on this invention, Comprising: The said unevenness | corrugation is, when the said sheet-like member is joined to the said flange part of the said case body, or It is formed after the sheet-like member is joined to the flange portion of the case body.

According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an electronic thermometer capable of further reducing the manufacturing cost and a manufacturing method thereof.

It is a perspective view which decomposes | disassembles and shows the electronic thermometer in Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the state which the electronic thermometer in Embodiment 1 assembled. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing functional blocks of the electronic thermometer in the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing an electronic thermometer in a modification of the first embodiment. 6 is a perspective view showing an electronic thermometer according to Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a perspective view which expands and shows the area | region enclosed by the VII line in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the other form of the unevenness | corrugation provided in the electronic thermometer in Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the further another form of the unevenness | corrugation provided in the electronic thermometer in Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the 1st modification of the electronic thermometer in Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the 2nd modification of the electronic thermometer in Embodiment 2. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an example of a method for manufacturing an electronic thermometer in Embodiment 2. FIG.

Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the description of each embodiment, when referring to the number, amount, or the like, the scope of the present invention is not necessarily limited to the number, amount, or the like unless otherwise specified. In the description of each embodiment, the same parts and corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description may not be repeated. Unless there is a restriction | limiting in particular, it is planned from the beginning to use suitably combining the structure shown to the structure shown to each embodiment.

[Embodiment 1]
An electronic thermometer 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which the electronic thermometer 100 is disassembled. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the electronic thermometer 100 is assembled. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing functional blocks of the electronic thermometer 100.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic thermometer 100 includes a thermistor 10, a control board 20, a display unit 30, a power supply unit 40, and a housing 50. As shown in FIG. 2, in a state where the electronic thermometer 100 is assembled, a probe portion 82 is formed on one end side (tip end side) of the electronic thermometer 100.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the thermistor 10 is a so-called radial lead type, and includes a temperature sensing part 11 for measuring the body temperature of the measurement subject and a lead wire 12 having one end connected to the temperature sensing part 11. The other end of the lead wire 12 is connected to the control board 20.

The control board 20 has, in a predetermined position, an operation unit (operation unit 21 in FIG. 4), a control unit (control unit 22 in FIG. 4), a memory unit (memory unit 23 in FIG. 4), and a notification unit (in FIG. 4). A notification unit 24). The operation unit is disposed at a predetermined position on the front surface of the control board 20 (such as a side surface or a back surface of the control board 20) so that it can be pressed from the outside.

The display unit 30 is connected to the control board 20 by wiring 61. The display unit 30 includes a display panel 31 such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). The display panel 31 displays the body temperature of the subject measured by the thermistor 10.

The power supply unit 40 includes a button battery 42 and an electrode terminal 41 arranged to face the button battery 42. The electrode terminals 41 arranged to face each other are positioned with respect to each other by the resin 43. The electrode terminal 41 is connected to the control board 20 by a wiring 62. The button battery 42 is disposed between the electrode terminals 41 and supplies power to the control board 20 through the electrode terminals 41 and the wirings 62.

In the electronic thermometer 100, the thermistor 10, the control board 20, the display unit 30, and the power supply unit 40 are arranged in this order along the longitudinal direction of the electronic thermometer 100 (housing 50). This order may be changed as appropriate.

The housing 50 includes a sheet-like member 51 and a case body 52. The sheet-like member 51 includes, for example, a base material layer made of paper or a polyethylene film, a sealant layer arranged on the lower surface side of the base material layer, and a PET layer (Polyethylene Terephthalate layer arranged on the upper surface side of the base material layer) ) And are stacked.

The thickness of the sheet-like member 51 is, for example, 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm. A predetermined nameplate can be affixed or printed on the surface of the PET layer on the base material layer side. The sheet-like member 51 can be manufactured by cutting or the like. The sheet-like member 51 is configured to be substantially tapered so that the width gradually decreases toward the side where the thermistor 10 is disposed (probe portion 82 side).

The sheet-like member 51 is provided with an opening 51H for visually recognizing the display panel 31 from the outside. A transparent protective member 56 made of resin or the like is disposed in the opening 51H. In addition, when the sheet-like member 51 has transparency, the opening 51H and the transparent protective member 56 are unnecessary. The opening 51H for visually recognizing the display panel 31 from the outside may be provided in the case body 52 described below. In this case, the display panel 31 of the display unit 30 is arranged toward the case body 52 side (arranged as shown on the opposite side of FIG. 1).

The case body 52 is formed into a container shape by vacuum molding or the like from a thermoplastic member such as PET, PVC (polyvinyl chloride), PE (polyethylene), or PP (polypropylene). The thickness of the case body 52 is, for example, 0.5 mm to 1.0 mm.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, case body 52 includes bottom portions 52 S and 52 R extending along the longitudinal direction of electronic thermometer 100, an annular wall portion 52 U standing from the periphery of bottom portions 52 S and 52 R, and It has a flange portion 52K provided at the tip end in the standing direction of the annular wall portion 52U. The flange portion 52K in the present embodiment extends from the tip of the annular wall portion 52U in the standing direction toward the outside of the case body 52, and has an annular shape as a whole.

The bottom surface portion 52S is located on one end side (front end side) of the electronic thermometer 100. The bottom surface portion 52R is continuous with the bottom surface portion 52S and is located on the other end side (rear end side) of the electronic thermometer 100. The bottom surface portion 52S is formed shallower than the bottom surface portion 52R so that the probe portion 82 (see FIG. 2) can be easily inserted toward the measurement subject's armpit or tongue, etc. ).

A long groove 52T is provided along the longitudinal direction of the electronic thermometer 100 at the approximate center of the bottom surface portion 52S. In the state where the electronic thermometer 100 is assembled, the thermistor 10 (the temperature sensing part 11 and the lead wire 12) is accommodated in the long groove 52T. The long groove 52T may be provided as necessary.

The

partition walls

52M and 52N are erected on the bottom surface portion 52R. The control board 20 is disposed between the partition wall 52M and the rear end of the bottom surface portion 52S. The display unit 30 is disposed between the partition wall 52M and the partition wall 52N, and the power supply unit 40 is disposed in a region surrounded by the partition wall 52N and the annular wall 52U. In the state where the electronic thermometer 100 is assembled, the positional deviation of the control board 20, the display unit 30, and the power supply unit 40 is suppressed.

The annular wall portion 52U and the flange portion 52K in the case body 52 can accommodate the thermistor 10, the control board 20, the display unit 30, and the power supply unit 40 in one direction (see arrows in FIG. 1) with respect to the case body 52. Thus, the opening is formed toward the side where these are accommodated.

When the electronic thermometer 100 is assembled, the thermistor 10, the control board 20, the display unit 30, and the power supply unit 40 are disposed in the case body 52. In this state, the sheet-like member 51 is joined to the flange portion 52K of the case body 52. By the bonding, a space 53 (see FIG. 3) in which the thermistor 10, the control board 20, the display unit 30, and the power supply unit 40 are sealed in a substantially airtight manner is formed.

In order to join the sheet-like member 51 and the flange portion 52K to each other, the sheet-like member 51 and the flange portion 52K of the case body 52 are arranged to face each other. In this state, ultrasonic waves are applied to the contact portion between the sheet-like member 51 and the flange portion 52K. The sheet-like member 51 (such as a sealant layer) is temporarily dissolved by the applied ultrasonic waves. By the melting, the sheet-like member 51 is welded (crimped) to the flange portion 52K of the case body 52.

As described above with reference to FIG. 4, the electronic thermometer 100 includes a temperature sensing unit 11, an operation unit 21, a control unit 22, a memory unit 23, a notification unit 24, a display unit 30, and a power supply unit 40. Include as. The operation unit 21, the control unit 22, the memory unit 23, and the notification unit 24 are provided on the control board 20.

The temperature sensing unit 11 detects the body temperature of the measurement subject by being sandwiched between measurement sites such as the armpit and the tongue. The operation unit 21 includes, for example, a push button, accepts an operation by a person to be measured (or a user of the electronic thermometer 100), and inputs an external command to the control unit 22 or the power supply unit 40. The control part 22 is comprised from CPU (Central Processing Unit), for example, and controls the whole electronic thermometer 100. FIG.

The memory unit 23 is composed of, for example, a ROM (Read-Only Memory) or a RAM (Random-Access Memory), and stores a program for causing the control unit 22 to execute a processing procedure for body temperature measurement, or a measurement result. Or remember. The notification unit 24 is configured by a buzzer, for example, and notifies the measurement subject that the measurement has been completed or that the measurement subject's operation has been accepted. The alerting | reporting part 24 is good to be provided as needed.

The display unit 30 includes a display panel 31 (see FIG. 1) such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and displays measurement results and the like. The power supply unit 40 includes, for example, a button battery 42 (see FIG. 1) and supplies power as a power source to the control unit 22.

The control unit 22 includes a processing circuit for performing body temperature measurement, and measures body temperature based on a program read from the memory unit 23. At that time, the control unit 22 calculates the body temperature as the measurement result by processing the temperature data input from the temperature sensing unit 11. The control unit 22 displays the calculated body temperature on the display unit 30, stores the calculated body temperature in the memory unit 23, or notifies the measurement subject that the measurement is completed using the notification unit 24. Next, the electronic thermometer 100 is controlled.

(Action / Effect)
The housing 50 of the electronic thermometer 100 is simply composed of a sheet-like member 51 and a case body 52. The sheet-like member 51 is an extremely thin member made of PET or the like. Since the sheet-like member 51 is thin and manufactured by cutting or the like, it can be prepared at low cost. Since the case body 52 is also an extremely thin member formed by vacuum molding or the like from PET or the like, it can be prepared at a low cost. According to the electronic thermometer 100, the manufacturing cost can be reduced as compared with a general so-called pencil-type electronic thermometer in which the entire casing is made of molded resin.

Since the electronic thermometer 100 is manufactured at low cost, the electronic thermometer 100 is suitable for use as a so-called disposable type. If it is a disposable type, it is discarded every time the electronic thermometer 100 is used (or every predetermined number of times of use), for example, at a medical site. According to the electronic thermometer 100, it is possible to reduce the cost burden on the user side or the person to be measured that occurs at each disposal.

In the electronic thermometer 100, the annular wall portion 52U and the flange portion 52K of the case body 52 are arranged in one direction (the arrow in FIG. 1) with respect to the case body 52, the thermistor 10, the control board 20, the display section 30, and the power supply section 40. An opening is formed toward the side where these are accommodated. The thermistor 10, the control board 20, the display unit 30, and the power supply unit 40 can be easily assembled in one direction with respect to the opening. According to the electronic thermometer 100, it is possible to automate the assembling work and further reduce the manufacturing cost.

[Modification of Embodiment 1]
The flange portion 52K in the first embodiment described above extends from the tip of the annular wall portion 52U in the standing direction toward the outside of the case body 52.

Referring to FIG. 5, the flange portion 52 K may extend from the front end of the annular wall portion 52 U toward the inside of the case body 52. Also with this configuration, the same operations and effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[Embodiment 2]
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing electronic thermometer 101 in the present embodiment. FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view showing a region surrounded by a line VII in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, unevenness 59 may be provided at the joint between the flange portion 52 K and the sheet-like member 51. In the present embodiment, unevenness 59 is provided over the entire circumference of the joint between the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51.

Here, the unevenness 59 is not limited to the unevenness 59 having a wave shape with a smooth surface as shown in FIG. The unevenness 59 here includes the unevenness 59 having a triangular wave shape with an angular surface as shown in FIG. 8, the unevenness 59 having an angular surface with an angular surface as shown in FIG. 9, and a combination thereof. .

As shown in the electronic thermometer 102 in FIG. 10, the unevenness 59 may be provided at a part of the joint between the flange portion 52 K and the sheet-like member 51. In the electronic thermometer 102, the projections and depressions 59 are formed only on the portion where the probe portion 82 (the portion located around the temperature sensing portion 11 and the lead wire 12) is formed in the joint portion between the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51. Is provided.

As shown in the electronic thermometer 103 of FIG. 11, the unevenness 59 is formed only on the side where the display panel 31 is disposed (the rear end side of the housing 50) in the joint between the flange portion 52 K and the sheet-like member 51. It may be provided. The side on which the display panel 31 is disposed is a portion that is generally gripped by a person to be measured.

When the unevenness 59 is provided in the portion where the probe portion 82 is formed, such as the electronic thermometer 101 (see FIG. 6) and the electronic thermometer 102 (see FIG. 10), the person to be measured can make the probe portion 82 suitable for the portion to be measured. It becomes possible to grasp sensuously whether or not it is sandwiched between. Although the sheet-like member 51 and the case body 52 are made of extremely thin and flexible members, the presence of the unevenness 59 allows the measurement subject to place the probe portion 82 at an appropriate position. As a result, the person to be measured can accurately and accurately measure the body temperature. In particular, the

electronic thermometers

101 and 102 are suitable when used while being sandwiched between armpits.

Further, as in the case of the electronic thermometer 101 (see FIG. 6) and the electronic thermometer 103 (see FIG. 11), the unevenness 59 is provided on the side where the display panel 31 is disposed (portion held by the person to be measured). The unevenness 59 exhibits an anti-slip effect. According to the

electronic thermometers

101 and 103, the touch feeling or the touch feeling to the user is improved. The

electronic thermometers

101 and 103 are easy to be held by a person to be measured and are not dropped.

As a method of manufacturing the electronic thermometers 101 to 103, the unevenness 59 may be formed when the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51 are ultrasonically welded. In this case, the unevenness 59 is formed by pressure-bonding the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51 using a mold corresponding to the shape of the unevenness 59. By forming the unevenness 59 at the time of pressure bonding, the bonding force (bonding strength) between the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51 is improved. As a result, the waterproofness of the electronic thermometers 101 to 103 is also improved.

Referring to FIG. 12, as a manufacturing method of the electronic thermometer 101, the unevenness 59 may be formed in the sheet-like member 51 in advance. In this case, the unevenness 58 corresponding to the unevenness 59 is formed in the flange portion 52K of the case body 52. When the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51 are joined by the

irregularities

58 and 59, the flange portion 52K and the sheet-like member 51 can be easily positioned. The same applies to the electronic thermometers 102 (see FIG. 10) and 103 (see FIG. 11).

As mentioned above, although each embodiment based on this invention was described, each embodiment disclosed this time is an illustration and restrictive at no points. The technical scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

10 thermistors, 11 temperature sensing units, 12 lead wires, 20 control boards, 21 operation units, 22 control units, 23 memory units, 24 notification units, 30 display units, 31 display panels, 40 power supply units, 41 electrode terminals, 42 buttons Battery, 43 resin, 50 housing, 51 sheet-like member, 51H opening, 52 case body, 52K flange, 52M, 52N partition wall, 52R, 52S bottom surface, 52T long groove, 52U annular wall, 53 space, 56 transparent Protective member, 58, 59 irregularities, 61 wiring, 62 wiring, 82 probe part, 100-103 electronic thermometer.

Claims

An electronic thermometer (100) for measuring the body temperature of a subject,
A thermistor (10) including a temperature sensing part (11) for measuring the body temperature, and a lead wire (12) having one end connected to the temperature sensing part;
A control board (20) to which the other end of the lead wire is connected;
A display unit (30) connected to the control board and displaying the body temperature measured by the thermistor;
A power supply unit (40) for supplying power to the control board;
A housing (50) for disposing the thermistor, the control board, the display unit, and the power supply unit in a space formed therein;
The housing (50)
The bottom surface portion (52R) extending along the longitudinal direction of the electronic thermometer, the annular wall portion (52U) rising from the periphery of the bottom surface portion, and the flange portion provided at the tip of the annular wall portion in the standing direction A case body (52) having (52K);
A sheet-like member (51) whose outer peripheral part is joined to the flange part,
By joining the sheet-like member to the flange part of the case body, the space (53) in which the thermistor, the control board, the display part, and the power supply part are arranged is formed.
Electronic thermometer.
Concavities and convexities (59) are provided at the joint between the flange and the sheet-like member.
The electronic thermometer according to claim 1.
The temperature sensing part (11) is disposed at one end in the longitudinal direction of the electronic thermometer,
The lead wire (12) extends from the temperature sensing portion toward the other end of the electronic thermometer,
Of the joint portion between the flange portion (52K) and the sheet-like member (51), the unevenness (59) is provided in a portion located around the temperature sensitive portion and the lead wire,
The electronic thermometer according to claim 2.
It is a manufacturing method of the electronic thermometer according to claim 2,
The unevenness (59) is formed when the sheet-like member (51) is joined to the flange portion (52K) of the case body (52) or when the sheet-like member is joined to the flange portion of the case body. Formed after
Manufacturing method of electronic thermometer.