WO2018088059A1

WO2018088059A1 - Electrode for measuring biological information and method for producing electrode for measuring biological information

Info

Publication number: WO2018088059A1
Application number: PCT/JP2017/035575
Authority: WO
Inventors: 三森　健一
Original assignee: アルプス電気株式会社
Priority date: 2016-11-10
Filing date: 2017-09-29
Publication date: 2018-05-17
Also published as: JPWO2018088059A1; JP6668500B2

Abstract

This electrode for measuring biological information comprises electrode legs (10) and a terminal part (30) electrically connected to the electrode legs (10), and end sections (10a) on one side of the electrode legs (10) can be contacted with a living body. The electrode for measuring biological information is characterized in that: the number of the electrode legs (10) is more than one; the electrode for measuring biological information comprises an annular base part (20) integrally formed with the electrode legs (10); the base part (20) is continuous with end sections (10b) on the other side of the electrode legs (10); the end sections (10a) on one side of the electrode legs (10) are oriented in one direction; the electrode legs (10) and the base part (20) are formed of a plurality of conductive carbon fibers bound together by a binding member made of a synthetic resin; and the carbon fibers are laid while being oriented in one direction.

Description

Biological information measuring electrode and method of manufacturing biological information measuring electrode

The present invention relates to a biological information measuring electrode and a manufacturing method of the biological information measuring electrode.

In recent years, various biological information, for example, biological information such as pulse waves, electrocardiograms, myoelectricity, body fat, brain waves, etc. has been measured. Such measurement of biological information requires a biological information measurement electrode that can be stably brought into contact with a living body, unlike a normal electrode. Therefore, various biological information measurement electrodes have been proposed. . In particular, with respect to electrodes for measuring biological information that are pressed against a living body (skin) having hair or body hair, it is required to contact the skin while avoiding hair growing from the skin, and stability of contact with the skin is required. It was done.

As one of such biological information measuring electrodes, for example, a plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members are provided on a base plate, and the plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members are brought into contact with the skin to generate an electroencephalogram. An electroencephalogram detection electrode for performing measurement is disclosed (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-94979 A

However, the electroencephalogram detection electrode described in Patent Document 1 is heavy because a metal is used, and a process of bending a metal rod to form an inverted U-shaped metal member, or cutting a metal rod Since it is manufactured through a plurality of laborious steps such as a step of forming an inverted U-shaped metal member and a step of fixing a plurality of inverted U-shaped metal members on a base plate, it is expensive. Become.

For this reason, there is a need for an electrode for measuring biological information that is light and can be manufactured at low cost.

According to one aspect of the present embodiment, the electrode for living body information measurement has an electrode leg and a terminal part electrically connected to the electrode leg, and one end part of the electrode leg can contact the living body. A plurality of the electrode legs are provided, and each of the plurality of electrode legs has an annular base part formed integrally with the plurality of the electrode legs, and the base part and the other end of the electrode leg are The one end of the electrode leg is arranged in one direction, and the electrode leg and the base portion are made of a synthetic resin binding member made of a plurality of carbon fibers having conductivity. The plurality of carbon fibers are aligned and laid in the one direction.

According to the disclosed biological information measuring electrode, it can be manufactured lightly and at low cost.

Explanatory drawing of the structure of the electrode for biological information measurement in this Embodiment SEM image of one end of electrode leg of biological information measuring electrode in this embodiment Explanatory drawing which showed typically the SEM image of FIG. SEM image of carbon fiber Illustration of carbon fiber Process drawing (1) of the manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement in this Embodiment Process drawing (2) of the manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement in this Embodiment Process drawing (3) of the manufacturing method of the biological information measuring electrode in this Embodiment Process drawing (4) of the manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement in this Embodiment Process drawing (5) of the manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement in this Embodiment Process drawing (6) of the manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement in this Embodiment

The form for carrying out will be described below. In addition, about the same member etc., the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted. Further, in the following description, as an example, a case where biological information measurement is performed by bringing a biological information measurement electrode into contact with hair that is part of a living body or skin with body hair will be described. As long as the electrode for measurement is a part of the living body, the electrode may be brought into contact with the skin (living body) other than the skin with hair or body hair.

(Biological information measurement electrode)
The biological information measuring electrode in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. Fig.1 (a) is a side view of the biological information measuring electrode in this Embodiment, FIG.1 (b) is a bottom view.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electrode for measuring biological information in the present embodiment has a circular and annular (annular) base portion 20 and a broken line arrow A (see FIG. 1A) from the base portion 20. A plurality of electrode legs 10 extending toward one direction shown, and a terminal portion 30 connected to the other direction side opposite to the one direction side of the base portion 20. Yes. In the biometric information measurement electrode according to the present embodiment, one end portion 10a on one side of the electrode leg 10 can be in contact with a living body, and by contacting with the living body, biological information such as an electroencephalogram is measured. It can be used as an electrode.

First, the electrode leg 10 and the base portion 20 of the biological information measurement electrode in the present embodiment are produced by bonding a plurality of conductive carbon fibers with a binding member made of a synthetic resin such as an epoxy resin. The electrode leg 10 and the base portion 20 are integrally formed. The binding member is obtained by curing an uncured or semi-cured synthetic resin material. In addition to the epoxy resin, the binder member may be a relatively soft synthetic resin such as a urethane resin, or may be a synthetic resin having elasticity such as rubber.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the electrode leg 10 and the base portion 20 are configured such that the outer surface of the electrode leg 10 and the outer ring surface (ring-shaped outer surface) of the base portion 20 are flush with each other. Yes. A plurality of electrode legs 10 are extended from the base portion 20, and one end portions 10a of the electrode legs 10 are aligned in one direction (the direction of the broken line arrow A shown in FIG. 1). Moreover, the electrode leg 10 and the base | substrate part 20 are comprised by the same thickness, as shown in FIG.1 (b). The direction in which the carbon fibers forming the electrode legs 10 and the base portion 20 are aligned and laid (hereinafter referred to as the extending direction) is one direction indicated by a broken-line arrow A in which the electrode legs 10 are aligned. Is consistent with

Further, the plurality of electrode legs 10 extending from the base portion 20 are configured to include the other end portion 10b provided continuously to the base portion 20 and one end portion 10a that can come into contact with a living body. Yes. As shown in FIG. 1A, the electrode leg 10 is formed such that the width Wa of the one end portion 10a in contact with the living body is narrower than the width Wb of the other end portion 10b continuous with the base portion 20. Yes. That is, the electrode leg 10 and the base part 20 are continuous with the base part 20 on the base part 20 side in a side view (when the electrode leg 10 and the base part 20 are viewed from the normal direction of the side face of the base part 20). The width Wa of the one end portion 10a in contact with the living body is narrower than the width Wb of the other end portion 10b. In this way, by narrowing the width of the one end portion 10a of the electrode leg 10, the hair is easily separated when the one end portion 10a of the electrode leg 10 is brought into contact with the skin. And reliable measurement of biological information can be performed. In addition, although the electrode leg 10 one end part 10a shown to Fig.1 (a) is formed in flat shape, the front-end | tip part (one end part 10a side) may be an acute angle shape, and a curved-surface shape may be sufficient as it. . Thereby, the hair can be further easily separated.

Further, in the biological information measuring electrode in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1B, a plurality of electrode legs 10 are provided at equal intervals on the base portion 20. Thus, by providing the electrode legs 10 at equal intervals, the one end 10a of each electrode leg 10 can be brought into uniform contact with the skin, and accurate measurement of biological information can be performed.

Here, the carbon fiber that forms the electrode leg 10 and the base portion 20 and the characteristics thereof will be described in more detail. FIG. 2 is an SEM image of the one end portion 10a of the electrode leg 10, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory view schematically showing the positions of carbon fibers corresponding to the SEM image of FIG. 4 is an SEM image of the carbon fiber, and FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the carbon fiber. In FIGS. 2 to 5, the carbon wire is indicated by being numbered CF, and in FIGS. 2 and 3, the binding member is indicated by being numbered BR.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the electrode leg 10 (one end portion 10a) is cured by the epoxy resin serving as the binding member (BR) entering the gaps between the plurality of carbon fibers (CF). A plurality of carbon fibers (CF) are bound by a cured epoxy resin that is a member (BR). Note that the carbon fiber (CF) in FIGS. 2 and 3 is an end face of the carbon fiber (CF).

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the carbon fiber (CF) has a circular cross-sectional shape, and the diameter thereof is about 10 μm as shown in FIG. 4 (9.68 μm in FIG. 4). )belongs to.

The carbon fiber (CF) has a specific resistance in the fiber axis direction of the carbon fiber (CF) (broken arrow B shown in FIG. 5) and a specific resistance in the direction perpendicular to the fiber axis direction (broken arrow C shown in FIG. 5). Is very different. Specifically, the specific resistance in the fiber axis direction of the carbon fiber (CF) is lower by about 2 to 3 digits than the specific resistance in the direction perpendicular to the fiber axis direction. Accordingly, since the electrode legs 10 laid with the fiber axis direction of the carbon fibers aligned extend from the base portion 20 in the extending direction, the gap between the one end portion 10a of the electrode leg 10 and the end portion 20a of the base portion 20 is the same. The resistance in (see FIG. 1A) is low. For this reason, the living body information, such as skin, can be measured with low resistance by contacting the one end portion 10a of the electrode leg 10 through the electrode leg 10 and the base body portion 20. This makes it possible to measure biological information with an accuracy equal to or higher than that in which the biological information measuring electrode is made of metal.

Further, in the biological information measuring electrode according to the present embodiment, for example, the diameter D (shown in FIG. 1A) of the base portion 20 is preferably 15 mm to 25 mm. The number of electrode legs 10 is 3 to 8 and is provided at equal intervals. The length L (shown in FIG. 1A) of the electrode legs 10 is 8 mm to 20 mm, and one end 10a of the electrode legs 10 is provided. The width Wa (shown in FIG. 1 (a)) is preferably 1 mm to 3 mm, and the width Wb (shown in FIG. 1 (a)) of the other end portion 10b is preferably 1 mm to 3 mm.

Finally, the terminal part 30 of the electrode for measuring biological information in the present embodiment is formed of a conductive material such as a metal material, and as shown in FIG. 1, a disk-shaped base part 30k and a base part 30k. And a convex portion 30t that protrudes from the central portion.

The terminal portion 30 has a base portion 30k of the terminal portion 30 and an end portion 20a opposite to the side where the electrode legs 10 of the base portion 20 are continuous, for example, a conductive adhesive or conductive material (not shown). It is fixed and connected by paste or the like. Thereby, the terminal portion 30 is electrically connected to the base portion 20 formed integrally with the electrode leg 10. Accordingly, the terminal portion 30 is electrically connected to the terminal portion 30 through the other end surface of the carbon fiber (CF) at the end portion 20a of the base portion 20 from one end surface of the carbon fiber (CF) exposed at the one end portion 10a of the electrode leg 10. Will be connected. In addition, the terminal part 30 and the edge part 20a of the base | substrate part 20 should just be electrically connected even if not connected directly. For example, the base portion 20 may be held by a holding member having conductivity, and the holding member and the terminal portion 30 may be connected via a lead wire or the like.

The terminal unit 30 has a function of connecting to a measurement device (not shown), and transmits an electrical signal from the skin obtained through the electrode leg 10 and the base unit 20 to the measurement device. Specifically, the terminal unit 30 is connected to a lead wire (not shown) and a terminal (not shown), and this terminal and the measuring device are connected.

The biological information measurement electrode in the present embodiment configured as described above is formed of a plurality of carbon fibers and a binding member such as an epoxy resin that binds the plurality of carbon fibers, so that the biological information is made of metal. It is lighter than when measuring electrodes are formed. Therefore, for example, when a plurality of electrodes for measuring biological information are worn on the head for measuring biological information, the electrodes for measuring biological information are lightweight, so the feeling of wearing does not bother and the user feels uncomfortable feelings, etc. Measurement of biological information can be performed without any problem. That is, when a plurality of biological information measurement electrodes are attached to the head, if the biological information measurement electrodes are heavy, the head may feel a sense of weight and may cause discomfort while measuring the biological information. . However, since the biological information measuring electrode in the present embodiment is light, the biological information can be measured without much discomfort.

In the above description, the case where an epoxy resin or the like is used as the binding member has been described. However, when the binding member is rubber or a relatively soft resin material, the electrode leg 10 has elasticity. As described above, when the electrode leg 10 has elasticity, it is possible to ensure contact with the skin as compared with the case where the electrode leg 10 is made of metal, and elastic deformation when contacting the skin. Therefore, the pressing force on the skin is relieved and pain can be relieved.

In addition, the biological information measurement electrode formed of metal cannot be used for a person who is allergic to metal, but as in the present embodiment, if it is a biological information measurement electrode formed of carbon fiber, It can also be used for those who are allergic to metals.

(Manufacturing method of biological information measuring electrode)
Next, a method for manufacturing the biological information measuring electrode in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 11, the broken line arrow D indicates the direction (extending direction) in which the carbon fibers are aligned and laid.

The manufacturing method of the biological information measuring electrode in the present embodiment mainly includes a winding process P2 in which the sheet 110 is wound around the core material 120, and a curing process in which the synthetic resin material of the sheet 110 is cured to form the annular band 111. P3 and a cutting step P5 for cutting the annular band 111. In addition, in the present embodiment, in addition, a preparation process P1 for preparing the sheet 110 having carbon fibers, a removal process P4 for removing the annular band 111 from the core member 120, and a connection process P6 for mounting the terminal portion 30. And.

First, the manufacturing method of the biological information measuring electrode in the present embodiment includes a sheet 110 (see FIG. 6A) in which carbon fibers are aligned in one direction and impregnated with a synthetic resin material, and this sheet. A core material 120 (see FIG. 6B) for winding 110 is prepared (preparation step P1).

In this preparatory process P1, a base material called a so-called prepreg sheet in which the synthetic resin material is uncured or semi-cured is used as such a sheet 110. Specifically, in the present embodiment, for example, a prepreg sheet (UD prepreg, HyEJ28M80QD (manufactured by Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd.)) in which an epoxy resin is impregnated with a coal pitch-based carbon fiber may be used. This prepreg sheet contains 32 wt% of an uncured or semi-cured resin component. The thickness of this prepreg sheet is about several tens of μm to several hundreds of μm.

Further, although not shown in detail as the core material 120, a cylindrical or cylindrical shape is used, and a heat-resistant material that can withstand the curing conditions of the curing step P3 described later, for example, a metal material such as iron, A heat-resistant synthetic resin such as polyphenylene sulfide resin (PPS, Poly Phenylene Sulfide) is used. Further, a core material 120 whose surface is coated with fluorine may be used. Thereby, in the removal process P4 mentioned later, it can make it easy to remove the sheet | seat 110 (refer the cyclic | annular band 111 mentioned later, FIG. 8) from the core material 120. FIG.

Also, since the diameter of the outer periphery of the core member 120 becomes a factor that determines the size of the biological information measurement electrode, it is preferable to use a desired size. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, when the length (height) of the core member 120 is larger than the width (height) of the sheet 110, in the winding step P2 described later, the sheet 110 can be easily wound around the core member 120. In addition, although the column shape or cylindrical shape was used suitably as the core material 120, it is not restricted to this shape. For example, the cross-sectional shape may be a polygonal shape.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 7A to 7B, a winding step P2 for winding the sheet 110 around the core member 120 is performed. FIG. 7A shows a state in the middle of winding the sheet 110 around the core material 120, and FIG. 7B shows a state where the sheet 110 is completely wound around the core material 120. The sheet 110 shown in FIGS. 6A and 7A shows a part of the sheet 110 and has a size longer than the illustrated length.

In the winding process P2, the sheet 110 is wound around the core member 120 in an overlapping manner. At that time, as shown in FIG. 7, winding is performed so that the bus bar of the columnar (cylindrical) core member 120 and the carbon fiber extending direction (broken arrow D) in the sheet 110 are parallel to each other. . That is, the sheet 110 is wound around the core member 120 so that the carbon fibers aligned in one direction are along one direction. The number of windings is determined according to the desired thickness of the electrode leg 10 and the base portion 20.

Next, in a state where the sheet 110 is completely wound around the core member 120 (see FIG. 7B), a curing step P3 for curing the epoxy resin of the synthetic resin material impregnated in the sheet 110 is performed.

In this curing step P3, the sheet 110 and the core material 120 shown in FIG. 7B are put into a heating furnace, and for example, heated at 130 ° C. for 1 hour to thermally cure the epoxy resin (synthetic resin material). Is done. In this manner, the annular band 111 as shown in FIG. 8 is formed by thermosetting the epoxy resin in the sheet 110 wound around the core member 120. That is, the annular band 111 is formed by a sheet 110 cured in a cylindrical shape as shown in FIG. 8A, and a plurality of carbon fibers are bound by a cured synthetic resin material that is a binding member. . When this prepreg sheet is used, the specific resistance in the fiber axis direction after curing (also the extending direction indicated by the broken line arrow D shown in FIG. 8B) is 2.7 × 10 ⁻³ Ω · cm. is there.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 9, a removal step P4 for removing the annular band 111 from the core member 120 is performed.

In this removal step P4, the outer side of the annular band is fixed, the core member 120 positioned inside the annular band 111 is grasped with a jig or the like, and the core member 120 is extracted. Thereby, the annular belt 111 shown in FIG. 9 is easily removed from the core member 120.

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, a cutting step P5 for cutting the annular band 111 is performed.

In this cutting step P5, the annular band 111 formed by the cured sheet 110 shown in FIG. 9 is cut into a comb-like shape as shown in FIG. 10A, and along this cutting line, FIG. As shown in b), separation into two is performed. Thereby, two things which have the some electrode leg 10 and the base | substrate part 20 are producible.

Further, the cutting of the annular band 111 in the cutting step P5 is performed by laser processing or machining by laser light irradiation. When laser light is used when cutting the annular band 111, it can be cut in a short time, so that the biological information measuring electrode can be manufactured at a lower cost. The laser light source used at this time may be an excimer laser or the like. Further, the step of cutting and separating the annular band 111 by irradiation with laser light may be performed before the epoxy resin is thermally cured.

Further, in this cutting step P5, a cut is made so as to intersect at a slight angle with respect to the extending direction of the carbon fiber. Thus, when the electrode leg 10 is separated into two along the cut line, the width Wa (see FIG. 1A) of the one end 10a of the electrode leg 10 is the width Wb (see FIG. 1) of the other end 10b of the electrode leg 10. The electrode legs 10 formed narrower than (a) can be easily produced. In addition, by aligning the cut angles that form the leg shapes of the respective electrode legs 10, the electrode legs 10 of the two obtained biological information measurement electrodes can be easily made to have the same shape.

Further, in this cutting step P5, incisions are made so that the plurality of electrode legs 10 are equally spaced. Moreover, when the two pieces are separated along the cut line, the number of electrode legs 10 of the (two) biological information measuring electrodes is the same. By these things, the biological information measuring electrode of the same shape can be easily produced. In addition, in this application, as shown to Fig.10 (a), cutting the cyclic | annular belt | band 111 formed with the hardened | cured sheet | seat 110, and separating as shown in FIG.10 (b) is described as "separation cutting". There is a case.

Finally, as shown in FIG. 11, a connection process P6 for mounting the terminal portion 30 is performed.

In this connection step P6, as shown in FIG. 11, the terminal portion 30 is bonded to the end portion 20a of each base portion 20 with a conductive adhesive. Thereby, in the connection process P6, the terminal part 30 will be adhere | attached and connected to each of the edge part equivalent to the both ends of the cyclic | annular belt 111 before cut | disconnecting in the cutting process P5. Thereby, the terminal portion 30 and the plurality of electrode legs 10 are electrically connected via the base portion 20.

Moreover, if the connection process P6 which adhere | attaches the terminal part 30 with a conductive adhesive is after forming the cyclic | annular band 111 hardened cylindrically or cyclically | annularly, before the cutting process P5 which cut | disconnects and separates the cyclic | annular band 111 It is also possible to do this.

As described above, in the manufacturing method of the biological information measurement electrode in the present embodiment, the sheet 110 (prepreg sheet) in which the carbon fiber is impregnated with the synthetic resin material is wound around the core material 120 (winding step P2) and cured ( The biometric information measurement electrode can be easily produced by a simple and few steps such as the curing step P3) and the separation and cutting (cutting step P5). For this reason, the number of processes is small, and the biological information measuring electrode can be manufactured at low cost.

As mentioned above, although embodiment was explained in full detail, it is not limited to specific embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible within the range described in the claim.

Note that this international application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2016-220053 filed on November 10, 2016, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Electrode leg 10a One end part 10b The other end part 20 Base part 20a End part 30 Terminal part 110 Sheet | seat 111 Annular band 120 Core material BR Binding member CF Carbon fiber

Claims

An electrode leg, and a terminal portion electrically connected to the electrode leg,
One end of the electrode leg is a biological information measuring electrode that can contact a living body,
A plurality of the electrode legs are provided,
An annular base portion formed integrally with the plurality of electrode legs,
The base portion and the other end of the electrode leg are provided continuously,
The one end of the electrode leg is aligned in one direction;
The electrode legs and the base portion are formed by binding a plurality of conductive carbon fibers with a synthetic resin binding member,
The biological information measuring electrode, wherein the plurality of carbon fibers are aligned and laid in the one direction.
The biological information measuring electrode according to claim 1, wherein the electrode leg has elasticity.
The biological information measurement according to claim 1, wherein the electrode leg has a width of the one end of the electrode leg narrower than a width of the other end in a side view of the electrode leg. Electrode.
The outer ring surface of the base portion and the outer surface of the electrode leg are formed flush with each other,
The biological information measuring electrode according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the plurality of electrode legs are provided at equal intervals on the one-direction side of the base portion.
The biological information measuring electrode according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the terminal portion is connected to the other direction side opposite to the one direction side of the base portion.
An electrode leg, and a terminal part electrically connected to the electrode leg, wherein one end of the electrode leg is a method for producing an electrode for biological information measurement that can contact a living body,
A winding step of winding a sheet in which a synthetic resin material is impregnated into a carbon fiber aligned in one direction around the core material along the one direction;
Curing the wound synthetic resin material to form an annular band formed by binding the carbon fibers with the binding member of the cured synthetic resin material; and
A cutting step of cutting the annular band to form an annular base portion and a plurality of the electrode legs continuous with the base portion;
The manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement characterized by having.
The method for producing an electrode for measuring biological information according to claim 6, wherein, in the cutting step, the annular band is irradiated with laser light to separate and cut the annular band into two.
7. The cutting step is characterized in that the annular band is cut so that the width of the one end of the electrode leg is narrower than the width on the base part side when the electrode leg is viewed from the side. Or the manufacturing method of the electrode for biological information measurement of Claim 7.
The biological information measuring electrode according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein, in the cutting step, the annular band is cut so that the plurality of electrode legs are equidistant. Production method.
Having a connection step of mounting the terminal portion for electrical connection with the electrode leg;
The method for manufacturing an electrode for measuring biological information according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein, in the connecting step, the terminal portion is connected to end portions corresponding to both ends of the annular band.