WO2014027379A1

WO2014027379A1 - Body water content meter

Info

Publication number: WO2014027379A1
Application number: PCT/JP2012/005154
Authority: WO
Inventors: 美雪小山; 猛坪内; 近藤　晃
Original assignee: テルモ株式会社
Priority date: 2012-08-14
Filing date: 2012-08-14
Publication date: 2014-02-20
Also published as: JPWO2014027379A1

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to improve the water resistance and anti-fouling properties of a body water content meter while maintaining measurement accuracy. A body water content meter (100) according to the present invention is characterized by the provision of: a main body section (110) that is formed to have a linear shape; an insertion section (120) that extends in a curved manner from one end of the main body section (110); a sensor unit (121) that is affixed to the tip surface of the insertion section (120) and that measures data related to the water content within a living body by being brought into contact with the body surface of a subject; and a grip section (130) that covers the outer peripheral surface of the main body section (110) and slidably supports the main body section (110).

Description

Body moisture meter

The present invention relates to an in-vivo moisture meter that measures the amount of moisture in the living body of a subject.

It is important to measure the amount of water in the subject's body. Dehydration in the living body is a pathological condition in which water in the living body decreases, and it is often expressed during exercise when high water is discharged from the body due to sweating or body temperature rise or when the temperature is high. In particular, in the case of an elderly person, the water retention ability of the living body itself is reduced, and thus dehydration is more likely to occur than in a normal healthy person.

Usually, it is said that body temperature regulation is impaired when water in the body loses 3% or more of body weight. When a body temperature regulation disorder occurs and the body temperature rises, it causes a further decrease in water in the living body and falls into a vicious circle, eventually leading to a disease state called heat stroke. Heat stroke has pathological conditions such as heat convulsions, heat fatigue, and heat stroke, and sometimes systemic organ damage may occur. For this reason, it is important to accurately grasp the amount of water in the living body in order to avoid the risk of causing heat stroke.

Based on this background, the applicant of the present application focuses on the subject's axilla as a part suitable for accurately grasping the amount of water in the living body, and a sensor unit having electrodes disposed on the axilla. Therefore, we are working on the development of an in-vivo moisture meter that calculates the amount of moisture in the living body of a subject by measuring the capacitance between the electrodes.

8a in FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the moisture meter 800 in the body proposed by the applicant of the present application. As shown to 8a of FIG. 8, the moisture meter 800 in a body is provided with the main-body part 810 and the insertion part 820, and the main-body part 810 grasped | ascertained by the measurer is formed in linear form as a whole. A display unit 812 is arranged on the housing surface of the main body unit 810, and a measurement result 831 and the like are displayed.

On the other hand, the insertion portion 820 to be inserted into the axilla extends from one end of the main body 810, and is gently curved downward with respect to the main body 810 as a whole. A sensor portion 821 is slidably supported on the distal end surface 822 of the insertion portion 820.

The sensor unit 821 has a sensor head 823 having a surface substantially parallel to the tip end surface 822, and in the direction of the arrow 841b in order to ensure a pressing force for ensuring the close contact of the sensor head 823 with the skin. It is energized. When the sensor head 823 is pressed against the skin of the subject's axilla, the sensor unit 821 slides by a predetermined amount in the direction of the arrow 841a, thereby starting measurement.

Japanese Patent No. 4417841

However, in the case of the moisture meter 800 in the body having the above-described configuration, the distal end surface 822 is provided with an opening for sliding the sensor portion 821 in the direction of the arrow 841a. 8b in FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional configuration of the distal end region 850 of the insertion portion 820 including the sensor portion 821.

8B, the opening 851 has a larger opening surface than the sensor head 823 of the sensor unit 821, and a gap 852 is provided between the side surface of the sensor unit 821 and the inner wall surface of the opening 851. Is secured. Thereby, the sensor part 821 can be smoothly slid in the direction of the arrow 841a.

On the other hand, when a gap 852 is provided between the side surface of the sensor unit 821 and the inner wall surface of the opening 851, liquid (for example, dirt on the sensor unit 821) is wiped into the body moisture meter 800 through the gap 852. For example, alcohol in order to enter), which may cause the moisture meter 800 in the body to malfunction.

In addition, it is considered that dirt such as dust or skin pieces adhered at the time of measurement accumulates inside the moisture meter 800 through the gap 852, causing malfunction of the moisture meter 800 and infection between patients.

For this reason, the in-vivo moisture meter has a structure for ensuring a pressing force that ensures the close contact of the sensor head 823 with the skin in order to accurately measure the amount of moisture in the living body of the subject. However, it is desirable to have a structure excellent in waterproofness and antifouling properties.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to improve waterproofness and antifouling properties while maintaining measurement accuracy in an in-vivo moisture meter.

In order to achieve the above object, the moisture meter in the body according to the present invention has the following configuration. That is,
A body moisture meter,
A body portion formed in a straight line;
An insertion portion that is curved and extended from one end of the main body portion;
A sensor unit that measures data on moisture in the living body by being fixed to the distal end surface of the insertion unit and contacting the body surface of the subject,
A grip portion that covers an outer peripheral surface of the main body portion and slidably supports the main body portion.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve waterproofness and antifouling properties while maintaining measurement accuracy in the moisture meter in the body.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings, the same or similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The accompanying drawings are included in the specification, constitute a part thereof, show an embodiment of the present invention, and are used to explain the principle of the present invention together with the description.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an external configuration of a moisture meter in the body according to the first embodiment of the present invention and an internal configuration of a gripping portion. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of the moisture meter in the body. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a measurement circuit of the moisture meter in the body. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the moisture meter in the body. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration of measurement information. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an external configuration of the moisture meter in the body according to the second embodiment of the present invention, an external configuration of the moisture meter in the body, and an internal configuration of the gripping unit. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the external configuration of the moisture meter in the body according to the third embodiment of the present invention, the external configuration of the moisture meter in the body, and the internal configuration of the gripping portion. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the external configuration of the moisture meter in the body and the configuration of the tip region of the moisture meter in the body.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiment described below is a preferred specific example of the present invention, and thus various technically preferable limitations are given. However, the scope of the present invention is particularly limited in the following description. Unless otherwise stated, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.

[First Embodiment]
<1. External structure of moisture meter in the body>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the external configuration of the moisture meter 100 in the body according to the first embodiment of the present invention and the internal configuration of the gripping portion. The moisture meter 100 in the body detects the amount of moisture in the body of the subject by bringing the sensor part into contact with the skin of the axilla, which is the body surface of the subject, and detecting a physical quantity corresponding to the electrical signal supplied in the sensor part To do. In the body moisture meter 100 according to the present embodiment, the wetness of the skin of the axilla is detected by measuring the capacitance of the subject as the physical quantity (data on the moisture in the living body), and the moisture content in the living body Is calculated.

As shown to 1a of FIG. 1, the moisture meter 100 in a body is a hollow and bottomed body which covers the main-body part 110, the insertion part 120 extended curvedly from the end of the main-body part 110, and the tail part side of the main-body part 110. And a cylindrical grip 130. The main body 110 has an upper surface 114, a lower surface 115, and

side surfaces

116 and 117 that are formed substantially parallel to the major axis direction (not shown), respectively, and are formed in a straight line as a whole. Various user interfaces are arranged on the surface of the casing of the main body 110, and an electronic circuit for calculating the amount of moisture in the body is housed inside the casing.

In the example of 1a in FIG. 1, a power switch 111 and a display unit 112 are shown as user interfaces. The power switch 111 is disposed in a recess on the upper surface 114 of the main body 110. By adopting a configuration in which the power switch 111 is arranged in the recess in this way, an erroneous operation of the power switch 111 can be prevented. When the power switch 111 is turned on, power supply from the power supply unit 211 (FIG. 2), which will be described later, to each part of the moisture meter 100 in the body is started, and the moisture meter 100 in the body enters an operating state.

The display unit 112 is arranged on the side surface 117 of the main body unit 110 slightly forward in the long axis direction. This is because when the moisture content in the body of the subject is measured using the moisture meter 100 in the body, even if the measurer grips the grip portion 130, the display unit 112 is completely displayed by the hand gripped by the measurer. In order to prevent the measurement result from being visually recognized even in a gripped state.

The display unit 112 displays the current moisture content measurement result 131. For reference, the previous measurement result 132 is also displayed. Further, the battery display unit 133 displays the remaining amount of the battery (power supply unit 211 in FIG. 2). Further, when an invalid measurement result is obtained or a measurement error is detected, “E” is displayed on the display unit 112, and the measurement person is notified of this. Note that characters and the like displayed on the display unit 112 are displayed with the upper surface 114 side of the main body unit 110 as the upper side and the lower surface 115 side as the lower side.

The upper portion 124 and the lower surface 125 of the insertion portion 120 of the moisture meter 100 in the body have a curved shape, and are gently curved downward as a whole with respect to the main body portion 110.

The sensor unit 121 is fixed to the distal end surface 122 of the insertion unit 120. The sensor unit 121 includes a sensor head 123 having a surface substantially parallel to the distal end surface 122. In this way, by configuring the sensor unit 121 to be fixed to the distal end surface 122 of the insertion unit 120, a liquid (for example, the inside of the in-vivo moisture meter 100 is interposed through the gap between the sensor unit 121 and the insertion unit 120. , Alcohol for wiping off the dirt of the sensor unit 121) does not enter, and the waterproofness / antifouling property of the moisture meter 100 in the body can be improved.

The grasping portion 130 of the moisture meter 100 in the body covers the outer peripheral surface (the rear end surface 113, the upper surface 114, the lower surface 115, and the side surfaces 116 and 117) of the main body portion 110 from the tail portion of the main body portion 110 to the display portion 112. The gripping part 130 urges the rear end surface 113 of the main body part 110 in the direction of the arrow 141b by an elastic member such as a spring in order to ensure a pressing force for ensuring the close contact of the sensor head 123 with the skin. (For example, an urging force of about 150 kgf). When the sensor head 123 is pressed against the skin of the subject's axilla, the entire main body 110 slides by a predetermined amount (for example, 1 mm to 10 mm, 3 mm in the present embodiment) in the direction of the arrow 141a, thereby measuring. Is started (hereinafter, the direction of the arrow 141a is referred to as a slide direction).

1b in FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the gripping unit 130. As shown in 1b of FIG. 1, a support member 171 is disposed between the rear end surface 113 of the main body 110 and the inner bottom surface of the grip 130, and supports the main body 110 so as to be slidable. In addition, an elastic member 172 such as a spring is provided to urge the main body 110 in the direction of the arrow 141b (see the left side of the drawing). Then, when the sensor head 123 is pressed against the skin of the subject's axilla, the elastic member 172 contracts and the entire main body 110 slides in the direction of the arrow 141a (see the right side of the drawing).

In this manner, by providing a mechanism (sliding mechanism) for sliding the main body 110 outside the housing of the main body 110 (not the insertion section 120), the body moisture meter 100 is introduced into the body moisture meter 100 via the sliding mechanism. It is possible to prevent liquid from entering. As a result, it is possible to improve the waterproofness / antifouling property of the moisture meter 100 in the body while adopting a configuration for ensuring the pressing force that ensures the close contact of the sensor head 123.

Under such a configuration, when it is detected that the sensor head 123 is pressed against the axilla of the subject after the measurer turns on the power switch 111 to activate the moisture meter 100 in the body, The quantity measurement is started. Alternatively, after the measurer turns on the power switch 111 to activate the moisture meter 100 in the body, the sensor head 123 applies a predetermined load (for example, 20 gf to 200 gf, more preferably 100 gf to 190 gf, more preferably) on the subject's axilla. In the embodiment, when it is detected that it is pressed at 150 gf (when it is detected that the state on the right side of 1b in FIG. 1 has continued for a predetermined time or longer), the measurement of the moisture content in the body is started. With such a mechanism, the degree of adhesion of the sensor head 123 to the axilla at the time of measurement can be made constant, so that the moisture content in the living body of the subject can be accurately measured.

<2. Functional configuration of body moisture meter>
Next, the functional configuration of the moisture meter 100 in the body will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the moisture meter 100 in the body. In FIG. 2, the control unit 201 includes a CPU 202 and a memory 203, and the CPU 202 executes various programs in the body moisture meter 100 by executing a program stored in the memory 203.

For example, the CPU 202 performs display control of the display unit 112, which will be described later with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4, drive control of the buzzer 222 and the LED lamp 223, measurement of moisture in the body (capacitance measurement in the present embodiment), and the like. The memory 203 includes a nonvolatile memory and a volatile memory. The nonvolatile memory is used as a program memory, and the volatile memory is used as a work memory for the CPU 202.

The power supply unit 211 has a replaceable battery or a rechargeable battery, and supplies power to each part of the moisture meter 100 in the body. The voltage regulator 212 supplies a constant voltage (for example, 2.3 V) to the control unit 201 and the like. The battery remaining amount detection unit 213 detects the remaining amount of the battery based on the voltage value supplied from the power supply unit 211 and notifies the control unit 201 of the detection result. The control unit 201 controls the display of the battery display unit 133 based on the remaining battery level detection signal from the remaining battery level detection unit 213.

When the power switch 111 is pressed, power supply from the power supply unit 211 to each unit is started. When the control unit 201 detects that pressing of the power switch 111 by the measurer has continued for 1 second or longer, the control unit 201 maintains the power supply from the power supply unit 211 to each unit and puts the moisture meter 100 in the body into an operating state. As described above, the measurement switch 214 is turned on simultaneously with the start of power supply from the power supply unit 211. The control unit 201 starts measuring the amount of moisture when the distal end insertion portion 120-2 is pushed in the direction of the arrow 141a by a predetermined amount or more, and when the measurement switch 214 is on for a predetermined time (for example, 2 seconds), the measurement is started. Exit. In order to prevent the power supply unit 211 from being consumed, if the measurement does not start even after 2 minutes have passed since the in-vivo moisture meter 100 is in the operating state, the control unit 201 automatically turns on the in-vivo moisture meter 100. Transition to the off state.

The measurement circuit 221 is connected to the sensor head 123 and measures the capacitance. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the measurement circuit 221. As shown in FIG. 3, a CR oscillation circuit is formed by

inverters

301 and 302,

resistors

303 and 304, and subject capacitance 310. Since the oscillation frequency of the output signal 305 is changed by the subject volume 310, the control unit 201 calculates the subject volume 310 by measuring the frequency of the output signal 305. Note that the sensor head 123 of the present embodiment is configured such that two comb-shaped electrodes are arranged so that their comb teeth are arranged alternately.

Return to Figure 2. The display unit 112 performs display as described in FIG. 1 under the control of the control unit 201. The buzzer 222 rings when the measurement starts when the main body 110 slides or when the measurement of the amount of moisture in the body is completed, and notifies the measurer of the start and completion of the measurement. The LED lamp 223 also performs the same notification as the buzzer 222. That is, the LED lamp 223 is turned on when the measurement by the slide of the main body 110 or the measurement of the moisture content in the body is completed, and notifies the measurement person of the measurement start and completion. The timer unit 224 operates by receiving power supply from the power supply unit 211 even when the power is off, and notifies the control unit 201 of the time in the operation state.

<3. Operation of body moisture meter>
The operation of the moisture meter 100 in the body according to the present embodiment having the above configuration will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In step S401, the control unit 201 detects a measurement start instruction. In the present embodiment, the state of the measurement switch 214 is monitored, and it is determined that the measurement start instruction has been detected when the measurement switch 214 is on for 2 seconds or longer. When detecting the measurement start instruction, the control unit 201 measures the oscillation frequency of the output signal 305 from the measurement circuit 221 in step S402.

In step S403, the moisture content in the body of the subject is calculated based on the oscillation frequency of the output signal 305 measured in step S402.

In step S404, it is determined whether or not the subject is dehydrated based on whether or not the amount of water in the body calculated in step S403 exceeds a predetermined threshold value. The threshold value in this case is preferably a value corresponding to 35% when water is 100% and air is 0%.

In step S405, the current measurement information is stored in the memory 203. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration of measurement information stored in the memory 203. In FIG. 5, a measured value 501 is the amount of water in the body calculated by the current measurement. The determination result 502 is information indicating whether the dehydrated state or the non-dehydrated state is determined in step S404 with respect to the in-vivo moisture amount calculated by the current measurement. The measurement time 503 is information indicating the time notified from the time measuring unit 224 in the current measurement. The measurement time 503 can be, for example, the time notified from the time measuring unit 224 when the measurement is performed in step S402.

In step S406, the water content in the body calculated by the current measurement is displayed on the display unit 112. At this time, display is performed in a display form according to the determination result of the dehydrated state or the non-dehydrated state (for example, in the case of the dehydrated state, the amount of water in the body is displayed in red, and in the case of the non-dehydrated state, The amount of water in the body is displayed in blue).

As is clear from the above description, the in-vivo moisture meter 100 according to the present embodiment fixes the sensor part 121 to the distal end surface 122 of the insertion part 120, while extending from the tail part 110 of the main part to the display part. The outer peripheral surface of 110 is covered with a gripping portion 130, and the entire main body 110 is slidably supported by the gripping portion 130.

Accordingly, it is possible to ensure a pressing force for ensuring the close contact of the sensor head 123 with the skin without providing a slide mechanism in the sensor unit, while the main body unit 110 and the insertion unit 120 are liquidated. It became possible to construct densely.

In other words, in the moisture meter in the body, it became possible to improve the waterproofness and antifouling properties while maintaining the measurement accuracy.

[Second Embodiment]
In the first embodiment, the grip 130 is configured to cover from the tail of the body 110 of the body moisture meter 100 to the display. However, the present invention is not limited to this, for example, the rear end surface of the body 110 It is good also as a structure which covers only the outer peripheral surface except 113. FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the external configuration of the moisture meter 600 in the body according to the second embodiment of the present invention and the internal configuration of the gripping portion. In addition, about the same structure as the structure demonstrated using FIG. 1 in the said 1st Embodiment, the same reference number is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted here. Hereinafter, the difference from the first embodiment will be mainly described.

6A, in the case of the moisture meter 600 in the body, the gripping part 630 does not cover the rear end surface 113 of the main body part 110, and covers only the upper surface 114, the lower surface 115, and the side surfaces 116 and 117 of the main body part 110. It has a hollow and bottomless cylindrical shape.

Further, as shown in 6b of FIG. 6, a spring is disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the main body 110. One end of the spring is connected to the main body side protruding portion 601 protruding on the outer peripheral surface of the main body portion 110, and the other end is connected to the holding portion side protruding portion 611 protruding on the inner peripheral surface of the holding portion 630. ing. As a result, the main body 110 is urged in the direction of the arrow 141 a by the grip 630.

Under such a configuration, when the sensor unit 121 is pressed against the axilla of the subject with the gripper 630 gripped by the measurer, the main body 110 slides in the direction of the arrow 141a (the paper surface of 6b in FIG. 6). See right).

As described above, the elastic member 172 is disposed between the outer peripheral surface of the main body 110 and the inner peripheral surface of the gripping portion 630, and the entire main body 110 is slidably supported by the gripping portion 630. The same effect as the embodiment can be enjoyed.

[Third Embodiment]
In the first and second embodiments, the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the grip portion is not particularly mentioned, but the outer peripheral surface of the grip portion is gripped when the measurer measures the moisture content in the subject's body. It is desirable to be configured in a shape that is easy to do.

7a and 7b in FIG. 7 show a state in which the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the gripping portion shown in the second embodiment is configured to be easily gripped by the measurer. When the measurer brings the sensor unit 121 into contact with the subject's axilla using the in-vivo moisture meter 600 according to the second embodiment, the measurer's thumb is arranged on the upper surface 114 side of the main body 110, and the main body The remaining finger of the measurer is arranged on the lower surface 115 side of the unit 110.

Therefore, in the in-vivo moisture meter 700 according to the present embodiment, the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the grip portion 730 is formed on the premise of such finger arrangement.

In the present embodiment, the case where the outer peripheral surface of the grip portion 630 shown in the second embodiment is formed in a shape that can be easily gripped by the measurer has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and You may make it form the outer peripheral surface of the holding part 130 shown in 1st Embodiment similarly.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, in order to make the scope of the present invention public, the following claims are attached.

Claims

A body moisture meter,
A body portion formed in a straight line;
An insertion portion that is curved and extended from one end of the main body portion;
A sensor unit that measures data on moisture in the living body by being fixed to the distal end surface of the insertion unit and contacting the body surface of the subject,
A body moisture meter, comprising: a grip portion that covers an outer peripheral surface of the main body portion and slidably supports the main body portion.
The said holding part has a bottomed cylindrical shape, The bottom face of this holding part and the rear-end surface of the said main-body part are connected through the elastic member. Body moisture meter as described.
The gripping portion has a bottomless cylindrical shape, and the inner peripheral surface of the gripping portion and the outer peripheral surface of the main body portion are connected via an elastic member. 2. The body moisture meter according to 1.