JP5464321B2 - Pressure measuring device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pressure measuring device having a pressure sensor.

  In recent years, daily management of body weight, blood pressure, blood sugar, etc. has been proposed from the viewpoint of prevention of lifestyle-related diseases. In general, an index such as body weight is managed by a subject who operates and records devices such as a weight scale and a blood pressure monitor. Management of such an index is meaningful to be performed over a long period of time, but operation and recording are gradually becoming troublesome and often quit. Therefore, the development of an unconscious measurement method in which the subject does not operate and record the device at all is being promoted. An unconscious measurement method, for example, can measure an electrocardiogram simply by immersing it in a bathtub, or can measure body temperature just by lying on a bed. In particular, this is a measurement method for measuring the above-described index.

  As one of such unconscious measurement methods, Non-Patent Document 1 describes the following blood pressure measurement system. This system incorporates a blood pressure measuring device in a toilet seat and automatically measures blood pressure when the subject sits on the toilet seat. More specifically, in this system, a sensor plate that can move up and down is built in the toilet seat, and when the subject sits on the toilet seat, the sensor plate rises and presses the thigh. As a result, the sensor plate detects the thigh pressure and calculates the blood pressure therefrom.

Yoshinobu Tanaka, 4 others, “Prototype of a built-in toilet seat blood pressure measurement system for home health care”, Biomedical Engineering Vol. 44, No. 3, Japan Society for Biomedical Engineering, September 2006

  By the way, in the measurement method described above, a mechanism for raising and lowering the sensor must be built in a very low member called a toilet seat. Therefore, in the above system, the sensor plate is moved up and down using a helicoid actuator. However, the helicoid actuator has a problem that the cost is high and the stability is low when a high load that compresses the thigh is applied. Such a problem is not limited to the sensor lifting device built in the toilet seat, but is a problem that can occur in general pressure measurement devices that are housed in a low-height space and receive a high load.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a low-cost and highly durable pressure measuring device that can be stored in a low-height space.

  The pressure measuring device according to the present invention includes a base having a support surface, a movable member having a pressure sensor, a rod-shaped member having a screw formed on the surface thereof, a driving unit that rotationally drives the rod-shaped member around an axis, A first slide member that is screwed into the rod-like member and is movable along the support surface in one axial direction by rotation in one direction around the axis of the rod-like member, and a position away from the first slide member And a second slide member that is movable along the support surface to the other side in the axial direction by rotating in one direction around the axis of the rod-shaped member, and one end portion of the first slide is the first slide. A first lift member connected to the member in a swingable manner and having the other end swingably connected to the movable member, and one end connected to the second slide member in a swingable manner; The other end can swing on the movable member And it includes a second lifting member connected, a.

  According to this configuration, the first and second slide members are configured to approach and separate from each other by rotation around the axis of the rod-shaped member on which the screw is formed. A lift member that is swingably connected to each slide member is swingably connected to a movable member having a pressure sensor. Therefore, when both slide members are close to each other, the lift member rises and the inclination angle increases, and thereby the movable member is pushed up and raised. On the other hand, when the slide members are separated from each other, the inclination angle of the lift member is reduced, and thereby the movable member is lowered. Thus, in this invention, since the raising / lowering mechanism is comprised with simple members, such as a rod-shaped member, a slide member, and a lift member, the structure of an apparatus can be simplified. As a result, the manufacturing cost can be reduced. The movable member is supported by a lift member, and the lift member is supported by a slide member. And since a slide member exists on the support surface of a base, the load which a movable member receives can be received on a base. Therefore, durability against a high load can be improved.

  In the above apparatus, the first or second slide member is attached, and one end portion is swingably connected to the movable member, and the other end portion is closer to the end portion side of the rod-like member than the first or second lift member. A third lift member that is swingably connected may be further provided. And this 3rd lift member can be made into the shape bent to the edge part side of the rod-shaped member rather than the straight line which ties the both ends.

  According to this configuration, since the movable member is also supported by the third lift member, durability against a load can be further improved. Further, the third lift member is formed in a shape bent toward the end side of the rod-like member with respect to the straight line connecting both end portions thereof, for example, an L shape, an arc shape or the like. Therefore, it is possible to prevent interference with other lift members when the inclination angle of the third lift member becomes small as the movable member descends. In other words, the lift member connected to the same slide member may interfere with the tilting angle when the movable member is lowered, and may interfere with each other, but if it is bent as described above, interference is prevented. it can.

  In the above apparatus, the first and second slide members can be disposed on the support surface via an impact absorbing material. As described above, since the load received by the movable member is supported by each slide member, durability against the load can be improved by disposing an impact absorbing material between the base and the slide member. As the shock absorbing material, for example, rubber, resin or the like can be employed.

  Further, in the above apparatus, the movable member includes a contact member having a measurement surface that contacts the surface to be measured, the pressure sensor is disposed on a surface opposite to the measurement surface of the contact member, and the contact member receives It can be configured to detect pressure. In addition, the contact member can be constituted by a central portion having elasticity and an annular portion that surrounds the periphery of the central portion and has elasticity, and has a lower hardness than the central portion.

  The movable member receives pressure from the surface to be measured. At this time, the contact member in contact with the surface to be measured may be crushed and spread in a direction perpendicular to the pressing direction. Then, there is a possibility that an accurate pressure cannot be measured. Therefore, in the present invention, the contact member is composed of the central portion and the annular portion having a lower hardness than that, so that the annular portion having a low hardness can absorb the deformation of the central portion that receives pressure. . Therefore, even if the central portion is crushed and deformed to the annular portion side, the annular portion follows the deformation of the central portion, so that it is possible to prevent the received pressure from being distributed to the annular portion. Therefore, the pressure acting on the contact member can be concentrated on the central portion, and accurate pressure measurement is possible.

  In the above apparatus, a housing having an opening through which the movable member advances and retreats can be further provided, and the opening can be covered with an extendable cover. This configuration has the following advantages. First, when the movable member moves back and forth through the opening, there is a possibility that the object to be measured is sandwiched in the gap between the movable member and the periphery of the opening. On the other hand, when the opening is covered with an extendable cover as described above, the gap between the movable member and the periphery of the opening is covered, so that the object to be measured can be prevented from being caught. Note that, when the movable member is raised, the cover is pushed up, but the cover is stretchable, so that it can follow the rise of the movable member.

  The pressure measuring device according to the present invention can be housed in a low-height space, and can be low in cost and high in durability.

1 is a perspective view of a biological measurement system to which an embodiment of a pressure measurement device according to the present invention is attached. It is a top view which shows the state which removed the toilet seat cover in FIG. It is a side view of the state which removed the toilet bowl in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the lower surface of a toilet seat. It is a top view which shows the state which removed the cover member from the base. It is an AA arrow directional view of FIG. It is a top view of a pressure measuring device. It is sectional drawing of FIG. It is sectional drawing (a) and a top view (b) of a sensor accommodating part. It is sectional drawing when a movable member exists in a bottom dead center in a pressure measuring device. It is sectional drawing after the operation | movement start of a movable member.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a pressure measuring device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This embodiment demonstrates the case where this pressure measuring device is used by incorporating in a living body measurement system for toilets. The toilet living body measurement system described here automatically measures a subject's weight, blood pressure, and the like. 1 is a perspective view of the living body measurement system, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a state in which the toilet seat cover is removed in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a side view of the state in which the toilet bowl is removed in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, this living body measurement system for toilets is attached to a Western-style flush toilet, and has a U-shaped base 2 that surrounds the lower end of a toilet body 1 having a toilet bowl. doing. On both sides of the base 2, trapezoidal side frames 3 are vertically attached. A side bar 31 extending in the horizontal direction is attached to an intermediate portion of each side frame 3 in the height direction. And the plate-shaped toilet seat support body 4 is being fixed so that both the side bars 31 may be connected. The toilet seat support 4 has a through hole 41 facing the toilet bowl, and is disposed above the toilet seat body 1. An O-shaped toilet seat 5 having a through hole 51 is disposed on the toilet seat support 4 and is fixed to the toilet body 1 so as to be swingable.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the lower surface of the toilet seat. As shown in the figure, a casing 61 of a pressure measuring device 6 to be described later is attached to the right side of the lower surface of the toilet seat 5, and three cushion members 42 having the same height as the casing 61 are provided on the lower surface of the toilet seat. It is attached. The toilet seat 5 is horizontally supported on the toilet seat support 4 via the three cushion members 42 and the casing 61 of the pressure measuring device 6.

  Next, the base will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a state in which the lid member is removed from the base, and FIG. 6 is a view taken along line AA in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the base 2 is configured by covering a plate body assembly portion 21 in which a plurality of plate bodies are combined with a U-shaped lid member 22 (see FIG. 3). The above-described side frame 3 is attached to the upper surface of the lid member 22. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the plate assembly part 21 includes a pair of first plate bodies 211 extending on both sides of the toilet body 1, and three second plate bodies 212 that connect the first plate bodies 211. And is formed in a U-shape as a whole. Each plate 211, 212 is formed by bending a metal plate into a U-shape, and load cells 2111 are attached to both ends of each first plate 211, and the load cell 2111 is located in the vicinity thereof. A substrate 2112 for amplifying the signal is attached. The lid member 22 described above is supported by four load cells 2111.

  According to the above-described configuration, the toilet seat support 4 is disposed with a slight gap without contacting the toilet body 1 and is supported only by the side frame 3. Since the side frame 3 is attached to the lid member 22 disposed on the load cell 2111, all loads acting on the toilet seat support 4 are detected by the load cell 2111. Since the toilet seat 5 is supported by the toilet seat support 4, the weight of the subject sitting on the toilet seat 5 can be sequentially detected by the load cell 2111 via the toilet seat 5, the toilet seat support 4, the side frame 3, and the lid member 22. It has become.

  Next, a pressure measuring device built in the toilet seat will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 is a plan view of the pressure measuring device, and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. This pressure measuring device measures blood pressure according to the following principle. That is, the thigh of the subject sitting on the toilet seat 5 is pressed with a movable member, the contact pressure between the thigh and the movable member at that time, and the photoelectric volume pulse wave are measured, and based on the principle of the volume vibration method Determine systolic and mean blood pressure. Note that the sectional view of FIG. 7 shows the movable member at the top dead center. In the following description of the pressure measuring device, for convenience of explanation, the vertical direction in FIG. 7 is referred to as the width direction, and the horizontal direction in FIGS. 7 and 8 is referred to as the longitudinal direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the pressure measuring device 6 includes a rectangular parallelepiped casing 61 having an upper opening, and the casing 61 is attached to the lower surface of the toilet seat 5. Thus, various components of the pressure measuring device 6 are built in the space formed by the casing 61 and the toilet seat 5. Further, a circular opening 53 is formed in a portion of the toilet seat 5 where a casing is attached, and a movable member 62 provided with various sensors is moved up and down from the opening 53. The movable member 62 includes a cylindrical casing 621 and a sensor housing portion 622 disposed on the upper portion thereof.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view (a) and a plan view (b) of the sensor housing portion 622. As shown in the figure, the sensor housing portion 622 is provided with a contact member 623 that contacts the surface to be measured at the center. The contact member 623 is fitted in a circular recess formed in the center of the sensor housing portion 622, and includes a cylindrical central portion 6231 and an annular portion 6232 surrounding the periphery. The central portion 6231 is formed of, for example, a resin material having an Asker C hardness (SRIS0101 regulation) of 30 to 35, and the annular portion 6232 has a lower hardness than the central portion 6231, for example, an Asker C hardness of 0 to 2 It is made of a resin material. As such a resin material, for example, so-called human skin gel can be used. What is human skin gel? Human skin gel is an ultra-soft urethane molding resin with softness similar to human skin. The contact member 623 can be formed, for example, by arranging the central portion 6231 at the center of the concave portion and then pouring a resin having low hardness into the annular portion 6232 in the surrounding gap. Thereby, the contact member 623 is firmly fixed to the recess. A thin plate-shaped pressure sensor 624 is attached to the lower surface of the contact member 623, and detects the pressure acting on the contact member 623.

  The sensor housing portion 622 houses a reflective photoelectric sensor for detecting the photoelectric volume pulse wave. This photoelectric sensor is composed of six near infrared light emitting diodes 625 as light sources and three photodiodes 626 as detectors. The six near-infrared light emitting diodes 625 are arranged at equal intervals along the periphery of the sensor housing portion 622. On the other hand, the three photodiodes 626 are arranged radially inward of the light emitting diodes 625 so as to form triangular sides surrounding the contact member. With such a symmetrical arrangement, the photoelectric sensor can stably detect the photoelectric volumetric pulse wave even with respect to the physique of the subject and sitting again.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a fixing portion 627 to which a later-described lift member is connected is attached to the lower surface of the housing 621. The fixed portion 627 is formed in a cross shape in plan view such that the right and left sides in the longitudinal direction are narrow and the center is wide.

  Then, the structure in a casing is demonstrated. As shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, a rod-like member 71 on which a screw is formed is disposed in the casing 61 so as to extend in the horizontal direction, and both ends thereof are rotatably supported by bearings 72. A motor 74 is connected to the right end of the rod-like member 71 via a coupling 73, and the rod-like member 71 is rotated about its axis when the motor 74 is driven to rotate. Various motors can be used as the motor 74. For example, a motor with a planetary reduction gear can be used. Thereby, the raising / lowering speed and torque setting of the movable member 62 can be selected easily.

  The rod-like member 71 is formed with oppositely directed screws 711 and 712 on both sides of the axial center portion. A rectangular parallelepiped first slide member 81 is screwed into the left screw 711 of the rod-like member 71. A shock absorber 811 formed in a sheet shape is attached to the bottom surface of the first slide member 81, and the first slide member 81 contacts the bottom surface of the casing 61 through the shock absorber 811. ing. Thus, since the direction of the bottom surface of the first slide member 81 is fixed on the casing 61, when the rod-like member 71 rotates around the axis, it moves to the right side or the left side in FIG. The shock absorber 811 can be formed of a hard and lubricious resin such as a polyacetal resin (POM) such as Delrin (registered trademark).

  The second slide member 82 is screwed into the left screw 712 of the rod-like member 71. The second slide member 82 is longer in the longitudinal direction than the first slide member 81, and has a wide left side facing the first slide member 81 and a narrow right side width opposite to the first slide member 81. That is, the wide portion 821 having a large width and the narrow portion 822 having a narrow width are formed, and the narrow portion 822 has substantially the same width as that of the first slide member 81. An impact absorbing material 823 is similarly attached to the bottom surface of the second slide member 82. Further, since the screws of the rod-like member 71 are opposite to each other on the right side and the left side, when the rod-like member 71 rotates, both slide members 81 and 82 move in the opposite directions. That is, the slide members 81 and 82 are moved closer to each other by the rotation of the rod-shaped member 71.

  Each of the slide members 81 and 82 is attached with three lift members 91, 92, and 93 that support the movable member 62 from below. A first lift member 91 is attached to the first slide member 81. The first lift member 91 includes a pair of swinging pieces 911 extending in parallel and a rectangular connecting plate 912 that connects them. One end of each swing piece 911 is connected to both sides of the first slide member 81 (vertical direction in FIG. 7) by pins so as to be swingable. On the other hand, the other end of each swing piece 911 is connected to the left side of the fixed portion 627 on the lower surface of the movable member 62 with a pin so as to be swingable.

  Two lift members are attached to the second slide member 82. First, the second lift member 92 will be described. The second lift member 92 includes a pair of swing pieces 921 attached to both sides of the wide portion 821. One end of each swing piece 921 is connected to both sides of the wide portion 821 by a pin so as to be swingable. On the other hand, the other end of each swing piece 921 is pivotally connected to the center of the fixed portion 627 of the movable member 62 with a pin.

  A third lift member 93 is attached to the narrow portion 822 of the second slide member 82. The third lift member 93 includes a pair of swinging pieces 931 attached to both sides of the narrow portion 822 and a connecting plate 932 that connects them. However, while the swing pieces 911 and 921 of the first and second lift members 91 and 92 extend linearly, the swing piece 931 of the third lift member 93 is formed in an L shape. . One end of each swing piece 931 is connected to both sides of the narrow portion 822 with a pin so as to be swingable. On the other hand, the other end of each swing piece 931 is connected to the right side of the fixed portion 627 of the movable member 62 with a pin so as to be swingable. Thus, as shown in FIG. 8, the swinging pieces 921, 931 of the second and third lift members 92, 93 form a parallel link, and the movable member 62 can be moved up and down stably.

  Two stoppers that restrict the movement of the slide members 81 and 82 are attached to the bottom surface of the casing 61. The first stopper 65 is attached slightly to the left from the center of the rod-shaped member 71 and restricts the movement of the first slide member 81 to the right side. The stopper 65 defines the top dead center of the movable member 62. The second stopper 66 is attached in the vicinity of the right end of the rod-shaped member 71 and restricts the movement of the second slide member 82 to the right. The stopper 66 defines the bottom dead center of the movable member 62. In the casing 61, a pressure sensor amplifier board 77 is fixed above the motor 74. The amplifier board 77 is connected to the photoelectric sensor and the pressure sensor described above via a conducting wire 78 that passes through the housing 621. Signals from the sensors are amplified by the amplifier board 77, A / D converted at a predetermined sampling frequency, and sent to a personal computer (not shown). Then, the maximum blood pressure and the average blood pressure are calculated by the personal computer based on the volume vibration method.

  An elastic mesh cover 101 is attached to the upper surface of the casing 61 and covers the opening 53 of the toilet seat 5. Thereby, when the movable member 62 rises, the cover 101 is stretched.

  Next, the operation of the system configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view when the movable member is at bottom dead center in the pressure measuring device, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view after the operation of the movable member is started.

  In the initial state, as shown in FIG. 10, the movable member 62 is at the bottom dead center and is housed in the opening 53. In this state, when the subject sits on the toilet seat 5, the weight acting on the toilet seat 5 acts on the toilet seat support 4 and the side frame 3, and this is detected by the load cell 2111 of the base 2. Thus, the body weight is measured. And when urination or defecation is performed, the body weight is sequentially measured, whereby the amount of excretion and the rate of excretion are measured. These data are transmitted to and stored in the personal computer.

  Further, while the subject is sitting on the toilet seat 5, the above-described pressure measuring device 6 is also driven. In the initial state in which the movable member 62 is accommodated in the casing 61, the first and second slide members 81 and 82 are separated from each other and are disposed near both ends of the rod-shaped member 71. Therefore, each of the lift members 91 to 93 has a small inclination angle and is inclined in a horizontal state or a state close thereto. When the motor 74 is driven in this state, the rod-shaped member 71 rotates around the axis. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 11, the first and second slide members 81 and 82 are close to each other, and accordingly, the lift members 91 to 93 rise while the inclination angle increases. Thus, the movable member 62 is pushed up by the lift members 91 to 93 and protrudes from the opening 53 to press the thigh of the subject. Then, as shown in FIG. 8, when the first slide member 81 comes into contact with the first stopper 65, the top dead center is reached, and the driving of the motor 74 is stopped.

  In this state, a photoelectric volume pulse wave is detected by the reflective photoelectric sensor. Further, since the contact member 623 presses the thigh of the subject, the pressure is detected by the pressure sensor 624. These detected values are sent to the personal computer via the amplifier board 77, and the maximum blood pressure and the average blood pressure are calculated. Thereafter, when the pressure measurement is completed, the motor 74 reversely rotates the rod-like member 71 and separates both the slide members 81 and 82. Thereby, the inclination | tilt angle of each lift member 91-93 becomes small, and the movable member 62 descend | falls below. When the second slide member 82 comes into contact with the second stopper 66, the bottom dead center is reached as shown in FIG. 10, and the drive of the motor 74 is stopped. As described above, the living body measurement system described here can perform so-called unrestricted living body measurement in which the body data such as body weight can be automatically measured without the subject's unconsciousness.

  As described above, according to this embodiment, the rod-like member 71 on which the screws 711 and 712 are formed, the first and second slide members 81 and 82 that are screwed to the rod-like member 71, and the slide members 81 and 82 are swung. A lift mechanism for the movable member 62 is constituted by lift members 91 to 93 that are freely connected. Therefore, compared with a helicoid actuator, the structure can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

  The movable member 62 is supported by lift members 91 to 93 and slide members 81 and 82, and the slide members 81 and 82 are supported on the bottom surface (support surface) of the casing 61 via the shock absorbers 811 and 823. Has been. Thus, since the load which the movable member 62 receives can be received by the casing 61, durability to a load can be improved. In addition, since the shock absorbers 811 and 823 are disposed on the lower surfaces of the slide members 81 and 82, durability against a load can be further improved.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the screws 711 and 712 having different directions are formed at both ends of the rod-like member 71. However, the screw directions of the rod-like member 71 are made the same, and the orientation of the female screw of each slide member 81 and 82 May be reversed. Further, the rod-like member 71 can form a trapezoidal screw, for example, in order to improve the strength against the load. Further, the sensor may be other than those described above, as long as the pressure can be measured. In the above embodiment, the third lift member 93 is attached to the second slide member 82. However, the additional slide member is screwed to the rod-like member 71 so as to be adjacent to the second slide member 82, and the The three lift member 93 can also be attached to be swingable. That is, a dedicated slide member can be provided for each lift member.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the pressure measuring device was used as a blood pressure measuring device, it is not limited to this, It can be raised to the whole device which presses a target object and measures a pressure. The housing in the present invention means, for example, a casing composed of the toilet seat and the casing in the above-described embodiment, and can be used in a casing in which an opening through which a movable member advances and retreats is formed. .

61 Casing (housing)
62 movable member 623 contact member 6231 central portion 6232 annular portion 624 pressure sensor 71 rod-shaped member 81 first slide member 811 shock absorber 82 second slide member 823 shock absorber 91 first lift member 92 second lift member 93 third lift Element

Claims (5)

A base having a support surface;
A movable member having a pressure sensor;
A rod-like member having a screw formed on the surface;
Driving means for rotationally driving the rod-shaped member around an axis;
A first slide member threadably engaged with the rod-shaped member and movable along the support surface in one axial direction by rotation in one direction around the axis of the rod-shaped member;
A second slide member that is threadedly engaged with the rod-like member at a position away from the first slide member, and is movable along the support surface in the other axial direction by rotating the rod-like member in one direction around the axis. When,
A first lift member, one end of which is swingably connected to the first slide member, and the other end of which is swingably connected to the movable member;
A pressure measuring device comprising: a second lift member having one end portion pivotably connected to the second slide member and the other end portion pivotably connected to the movable member. It is attached to the first or second slide member, and one end portion is swingably connected to the movable member, and the other end portion is swung closer to the end portion side of the rod-like member than the first or second lift member. A third lift member movably connected;
2. The pressure measuring device according to claim 1, wherein the third lift member has a shape bent toward an end portion of the rod-shaped member with respect to a straight line connecting both end portions thereof.   The pressure measuring device according to claim 1, wherein the first and second slide members are disposed on the support surface via an impact absorbing material. The movable member includes a contact member having a measurement surface that contacts the surface to be measured;
The pressure sensor is disposed on a surface opposite to the measurement surface of the contact member, detects the pressure received by the contact member,
The contact member is
A central portion having elasticity;
The pressure measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: an annular portion that surrounds the periphery of the central portion and has elasticity, and has a lower hardness than the central portion. A housing having an opening through which the movable member advances and retracts;
The pressure measuring device according to claim 4, wherein the opening is covered with an extendable cover.

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