JP2014197343A - Kinesthetic sense presentation device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a kinesthetic sense presentation device and kinesthetic sense presentation method capable of appropriately presenting a kinesthetic sense without any need of a sensor for presenting the kinesthetic sense.SOLUTION: The kinesthetic sense presentation device includes: a mechanism that includes a displacement member capable of displacing and can observe a displacement part from the outside; and a hardness control unit that controls the displacement member to that with prescribed hardness. In the kinesthetic sense presentation device, when external force is applied to the displacement member that is controlled to the prescribed hardness, the displacement member is displaced. A displacement magnitude thereof corresponds to a magnitude of the external force, so that the kinesthetic sense presentation device can further appropriately present the kinesthetic sense. Consequently, the kinesthetic sense presentation device can appropriately present the kinesthetic sense without any need of a sensor for presenting the kinesthetic sense.

Description

  The present invention relates to a force sense presentation device and a force sense presentation method for presenting the magnitude of an external force applied to a displaceable displacement member.

  In recent years, the use of robots has progressed when it is desired to replace work performed by humans, particularly when the work is a place where humans cannot enter. For example, a medical robot such as a forceps robot including a forceps manipulator is known as one of the robots. This medical robot is required to have safety that does not unnecessarily damage a living tissue, and it is effective to present a sense of force to an operator (operator or user) of the medical robot. The feedback of the sense of force to the operator can reduce a load force applied to a living tissue such as an organ, and can prevent or reduce damage to the living tissue.

  For example, Non-Patent Document 1 discloses a technique that enables presentation of such a force sense. In the technique disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1, two strain gauges are attached to the tip of the forceps, and a triaxial force sensor and a force sensor for gripping force measurement are attached to the forceps driving unit, respectively, and the translational component has three degrees of freedom. A force sense with one degree of freedom of gripping can be presented.

Phongsaen Pitakwatchara, Shinichi Warisawa, and Mamoru Mitsubishi. Force fedback augmentation models in the laparoscopic minimal invasive therapeutic system. IEEE / ASME Transactions on Mechanicals, Vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 447-454, 2007

  By the way, the technique disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1 requires a sensor such as a strain gauge or a force sensor in order to present a force sense. For this reason, it is necessary to secure a space for mounting the sensor in the robot. In particular, it is difficult to secure a mounting space with a small-sized apparatus such as a surgical robot among medical robots.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to eliminate the need for a sensor for presenting a force sense, and to provide a force sense presentation device and force sense that can appropriately present the force sense. It is to provide a presentation method.

  As a result of various studies, the present inventor has found that the above object is achieved by the present invention described below. That is, the force sense presentation device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a mechanism that includes a displaceable displacement member and that can observe a displacement portion from the outside, and a hardness control unit that controls the displacement member to a predetermined hardness. It is characterized by providing.

  In such a force sense presentation device, when an external force acts on the displacement member, the displacement member is displaced according to the external force. For this reason, the user can recognize the magnitude of the external force acting on the displacement member by observing the displacement amount of the displacement member based on the pseudo force sense. Therefore, such a force sense presentation device does not require a sensor for presenting a force sense. The pseudo force sense is an illusion of force sense generated by perception different from force sense such as vision and vibration stimulus. Here, a first displacement amount of the displacement member when a certain first external force is applied to a displacement member having a certain first hardness, and a displacement member having a second hardness different from the first hardness. This is different from the second displacement amount of the displacement member when the first external force having the same magnitude is applied to the displacement member. Thus, the displacement amount of the displacement member depends on the impedance (viscoelasticity) of the displacement member obtained from the term proportional to the position and the term proportional to the speed. Here, if the term proportional to the speed is constant, the displacement of the displacement member depends on the hardness of the displacement member. And in the said force sense presentation apparatus, the hardness of a displacement member is controlled by the hardness control part. Therefore, in the force sense presentation device, the displacement member is displaced by the application of an external force under the control of the displacement member being controlled to a predetermined hardness. Therefore, the amount of displacement corresponds to the magnitude of the external force. Therefore, the force sense presentation device can present a force sense more appropriately. Therefore, such a force sense presentation device can appropriately present a force sense without requiring a sensor for presenting the force sense.

  In another aspect, the above-described force sense presentation device further includes an external force application unit that applies a known external force to the displacement member.

  In such a force sense presentation device, a known external force is applied to the displacement member by the external force application unit, and the user can observe the amount of displacement of the displacement member. Thereby, the user can learn the relationship between the magnitude of the external force and the amount of displacement. For this reason, such a force sense presentation device can present an accurate force sense to the user.

  In another aspect, in the above-described force sense presentation device, a force measurement unit that measures the force of a predetermined part in the living body, and a force that indicates a correspondence relationship between the force and the hardness of the displacement member A hardness hardness characteristic storage unit for storing hardness characteristics, and the hardness control unit is obtained from the force hardness characteristic, and corresponds to the force measured by the force measurement unit The displacement member is controlled according to the hardness of the displacement member. Preferably, the force measurement unit is a myoelectric signal measurement unit that measures a myoelectric signal based on an action potential of a muscle involved in the predetermined site, and the force hardness characteristic storage unit is the muscle strength measurement storage unit. A myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit for storing a myoelectric signal hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the electric signal and the hardness of the displacement member, wherein the hardness control unit is obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic The displacement member is controlled according to the hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the myoelectric signal measured by the myoelectric signal measurement unit. Preferably, the force measurement unit is a pseudo-tension measurement unit that measures a myoelectric signal based on an action potential of a muscle involved in the predetermined site and measures a pseudo tension based on the measured myoelectric signal. The force hardness characteristic storage unit is a pseudo tension hardness characteristic storage unit that stores a pseudo tension hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the pseudo tension and the hardness of the displacement member, and the hardness control unit is The displacement member is controlled to the hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the pseudo tension measured by the pseudo tension measuring unit, which is obtained from the pseudo tension hardness characteristic.

  Human force sensitivity is influenced not only by the surrounding environment but also by the person's own condition. For example, the haptic sensitivity is reduced by the force that is the force applied to the part of the living body. For example, the haptic sensitivity is lowered in a state where the hand is strongly gripped. Such force of the living body part can be measured by, for example, a myoelectric signal. For example, it can measure with a force sensor. In the force sense presentation device, the displacement member is controlled by the hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the force of the user. That is, in the force sense presentation device, the hardness of the displacement member is controlled to the hardness of the living body part corresponding to the force of the predetermined part in the living body. Therefore, the force sense presentation device can present a force sense according to the degree of force applied to a predetermined part of the user, so that a more accurate force sense can be presented to the user.

  According to another aspect, in the above-described force sense presentation device, the mechanism includes a medical device unit including a medical device used for medical treatment, and one end connected to the medical device unit with a predetermined degree of freedom. It is a medical manipulator provided with a joint part having the above and a support part connected to the other end of the joint part and supporting the joint part.

  According to this, a force sense presentation device can be realized with a medical manipulator.

  Further, the force sense presentation device according to one aspect includes a display unit that displays on a display screen, a weight picture that simulates a weight, and a support picture that simulates a support member that includes a displacement portion and supports the weight. A display control unit to be displayed on the display unit, a touch panel provided on the display screen, and a pressing force hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the pressing force input from the touch panel and the hardness of the displacement portion. A pressure hardness characteristic storage unit, and the display control unit displaces the displacement part with the hardness of the displacement part corresponding to the pressing force input from the touch panel, which is obtained from the pressing force hardness characteristic. The supporting picture is displayed on the display unit.

  In such a force sense presentation device, the user can recognize the magnitude of the external force applied to the displacement member by observing the displacement amount of the displacement member.

  A force sense presentation method according to one aspect includes a myoelectric signal measurement step of measuring a myoelectric signal based on an action potential of a muscle involved in a predetermined movement of a living body, a displaceable displacement member, and a displacement portion from the outside A hardness control step of controlling the displacement member in the observable mechanism to a predetermined hardness, and a myoelectric signal hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the myoelectric signal and the hardness of the displacement member A myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage step stored in a characteristic storage unit, wherein the hardness control step is performed on the myoelectric signal measured in the myoelectric signal measurement step obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic. The displacement member is controlled according to the hardness of the corresponding displacement member.

  In such a force sense presentation method, when an external force is applied to the displacement member under the control of the displacement member being controlled to a predetermined hardness, the displacement member is displaced according to the external force. For this reason, the user can recognize the magnitude of the external force applied to the displacement member by observing the amount of displacement of the displacement member by the pseudo force sense. Therefore, such a force sense presentation method can appropriately present a force sense without requiring a sensor for presenting the force sense.

  The force sense presentation device and the force sense presentation method according to the present invention can appropriately present a force sense without requiring a sensor for presenting the force sense.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the force sense presentation apparatus using the medical manipulator in embodiment. It is the elements on larger scale which expanded each part of the said medical manipulator in the force sense presentation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows a mode that external force is given to the force sense presentation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the mode of the force sense presented by the force sense presentation apparatus of 1st Embodiment, and the state of learning of the force sense. It is a figure which shows the experimental result of the experiment which gives a target external force to the said force sense presentation apparatus, referring the force sense presented by the force sense presentation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the external force given to the force sense presentation apparatus of 1st Embodiment, and the deformation | transformation amount in the case of considering a dead zone. It is a figure which shows the experimental result of the experiment which gives a target external force to the said force sense presentation apparatus, referring the force sense presented by the force sense presentation apparatus of 1st Embodiment when a dead zone is considered. It is a figure which shows the external appearance of the myoelectric signal measurement part in the force sense presentation apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the mode of the said medical manipulator in the force sense presentation apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the experimental result of the experiment which gives a target external force to the said force sense presentation apparatus, referring the force sense presented by the force sense presentation apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the force sense presentation apparatus in 3rd Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the structure which attached | subjected the same code | symbol in each figure shows that it is the same structure, The description is abbreviate | omitted suitably. Further, in this specification, when referring generically, it is indicated by a reference symbol without a suffix, and when referring to an individual configuration, it is indicated by a reference symbol with a suffix.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a force sense presentation device using a medical manipulator according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial view of each part of the medical manipulator in the haptic device according to the first embodiment. 2A is an enlarged view of the distal end portion of the medical manipulator, FIG. 2B is an enlarged view of the joint portion, and FIG. 2C is an enlarged view of the support member. .

  The force sense presentation device S according to the present embodiment includes a mechanism that includes a displaceable displacement member and that can observe a displacement portion from the outside, and a hardness control unit that controls the displacement member to a predetermined hardness. Such a force sense presentation device S responds to the external force when an external force is applied (applied) to the displacement member under a control in which the displacement member is controlled to a predetermined hardness by the hardness control unit. The displacement member is displaced. For this reason, the user can recognize the magnitude of the external force applied to the displacement member by observing the amount of displacement of the displacement member by the pseudo force sense. Therefore, such a force sense presentation device and a force sense presentation method implemented therein can appropriately present a force sense without requiring a sensor for presenting the force sense.

  Such a force sense presentation device S can be applied to a device capable of controlling the hardness of the displacement member. Here, as an example, the force sense presentation device Sa used in a medical manipulator will be described. .

  The force sense presentation device Sa using the medical manipulator in such an embodiment includes, for example, a medical manipulator 10 and a hardness control unit 20a as shown in FIG. As will be described later, an external force acting portion 31 is provided.

  The medical manipulator 10 is a manipulator used for medical treatment such as diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases. The medical manipulator 10 corresponds to an example of a mechanism that includes a displaceable displacement member and that allows the displacement portion to be observed from the outside. As shown in FIG. 1, for example, the medical manipulator 10 includes a medical device unit 11, a joint unit 12, and a support unit 13. In the present embodiment, the medical manipulator 10 further includes a connecting unit 14. The drive unit 15 is provided.

  The medical device unit 11 includes a medical device used for medical treatment. The medical device is a device used for medical treatment such as diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases, such as forceps, a laser knife, an ultrasonic probe, and an endoscope camera. The forceps is a medical instrument mainly used for grasping and pulling an object, and there are various types such as Kelly forceps and Kochel forceps. A laser knife cuts an object by utilizing the thermal energy of laser light, and plays the same role as a medical knife. The laser knife coagulates blood and has a hemostatic effect. An ultrasonic probe is a device that transmits ultrasonic waves into an object (within a subject) and receives ultrasonic waves resulting from the transmitted ultrasonic waves. The ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus main body connected to the ultrasonic probe generates an image in the subject based on the ultrasonic wave received by the ultrasonic probe. The endoscope camera has an imaging optical system that forms an optical image of an object on a predetermined surface (focal position), and an object that is imaged by the imaging optical system with a light receiving surface disposed at the position of the predetermined surface. An image sensor that captures an optical image of an object is provided. An endoscopic camera device body connected to the endoscopic camera generates an image (still image and / or moving image) in the object based on a signal of an optical image of the object imaged by the endoscopic camera. . In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, the medical device of the medical device unit 11 is a forceps. The forceps includes, for example, a pneumatic gripper opening / closing mechanism, and is supplied via an air supply tube 133 (see FIGS. 2B and 2C) disposed in the joint portion 12 and the support portion 13. Driven by working air. The working air is supplied from a pneumatic supply source (not shown) such as a compressor. The opening and closing mechanism of the pneumatic gripper is constituted by known conventional means. For example, the document “Tadano, K., Kawashima, K., Kojima, K., Tanaka, N.,“ Development of a Pneumatic Manipulator IV ”. "Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics, Vol. 22, No. 2, p 179-188 (2010)".

  The joint portion 12 is a member having one end connected to the medical device portion 11 and having a predetermined degree of freedom. The medical device unit 11 may be rotatably connected to the joint unit 12 and may be fixedly connected by, for example, screw fastening or fitting. In the present embodiment, the joint portion 12 is a flexible structure that bends in the radial direction with respect to the axial direction, for example, a cutting spring as shown in FIGS. The cutting spring is produced, for example, by forming a cylindrical metal member in a spiral shape by cutting using, for example, laser processing. The joint portion 12 can be controlled to a predetermined hardness by the driving force of the driving portion 15 and bends with two degrees of freedom by an external force.

  More specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 2B, four wires 134 are inserted in the core portion of the cutting spring in the axial direction. These four wires 134 are each formed of a super-elastic alloy that is difficult to bend, and are arranged at equal intervals (90-degree intervals) in the circumferential direction. One end of each of the four wires 134 is bonded and fixed to the end of the cutting spring on the side to which the medical device unit 11 is connected, and the other end is connected to the connecting portion via the inside of the support portion 13. 14 are fixedly connected to the drive unit 15. As a result, the driving force of the driving unit 15 is transmitted to the cutting spring via the wires 134 and is controlled to a predetermined hardness by the four wires 134.

  Further, for example, four through holes penetrating the cutting spring in the axial direction are formed in the spiral portion of the cutting spring at equal intervals (90 degree intervals) in the circumferential direction. In these four through holes, wires 134 formed of a superelastic alloy that is difficult to bend are inserted. Each one end of these four wires 134 is bonded and fixed in each one end of each of the through-holes on the side where the medical device part 11 is connected, and each other end is in the support part 13. Via the connecting portion 14, the driving portion 15 is fixedly connected.

  These four wires 134 function as so-called extensors and flexors in a pair facing each other at a position of 180 degrees in the circumferential direction. With the above-described configuration, the driving force of the driving unit 15 is transmitted to the cutting spring via each wire 134 and is controlled to have a predetermined hardness by these four wires 134.

  The support portion 13 is a member that supports the joint portion 12 by being fixedly connected to the other end of the joint portion 12 by, for example, screw fastening or fitting. The medical device unit 11 is supported by the support unit 13 via the joint unit 12. For example, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2C, the support unit 13 includes a hollow columnar (cylindrical) rod member 131 and a support annular member 132 that supports the wire 134. The support annular member 132 is a cylindrical member, and four through holes penetrating in the axial direction are formed in the cylindrical peripheral wall portion at equal intervals (intervals of 90 degrees) in the circumferential direction. And the positions of the through holes are aligned and disposed in the rod member 131. In the support portion 13, the above-described air supply pipe 133 is disposed so as to pass through the support annular member 132 along the axial direction around the center, and the four wires 134 described above are supported along the axial direction. Each of the through holes 132 is inserted and arranged. The support portion 13 further includes four guide tubes that are inserted through the through holes of the support annular member 132 along the axial direction, and the wires 134 are disposed so as to be inserted through the guide tubes. Also good. In addition to the material of the wire 134, the bending of the wire 134 may be further prevented by such a guide tube.

  The connecting portion 14 is a member that connects the support portion 13 and the drive portion 15 to each other. In addition, the drive unit 15 and the wire 134 are coupled within the coupling unit 14. The connecting portion 14 includes, for example, a pair of disk-shaped support plates 141 and 142 and a plurality of connecting shafts 143 that connect the pair of support plates 141 and 142 to each other. For example, there are four connecting shafts 143 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and one end of each of these four connecting shafts is fixedly connected to the support plate 141 by, for example, screw fastening, and the other end is For example, the support plate 142 is fixedly connected by screw fastening or the like. Thus, the pair of support plates 141 and 142 are arranged with a predetermined interval.

  The drive unit 15 is a device for giving a predetermined hardness to the joint unit 12, and is, for example, an air cylinder in the present embodiment. An air cylinder is a mechanical element that converts compressed air energy into linear motion. For example, a cylinder, a piston that is housed in the cylinder and is slidable in the axial direction of the cylinder, one end is connected to the piston, and the other end is a cylinder. And a piston rod disposed so as to face the outside of the cylinder, and an air port is formed in the cylinder so that air can be taken in and out of the cylinder in order to slide the piston in the axial direction of the cylinder. The drive unit 15 includes four air cylinders for the joint unit 12 in accordance with the number of the wires 134 that give the joint unit 12 a predetermined hardness. The other end of each wire 134 is fixedly connected to each other end of each piston rod in each air cylinder of the drive unit 15. As a result, when the piston rod advances and retreats, the driving force is transmitted to the wire 134.

  In the present embodiment, an air cylinder is used as the drive unit 15. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the drive unit 15 may be, for example, an electric motor, a hydraulic cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder, or the like. Good.

  And the hardness control part 20a is an apparatus which controls the joint part 12 of the medical manipulator 10 to predetermined | prescribed hardness. The hardness control unit 20a corresponds to an example of a hardness control unit that controls the displacement member to a predetermined hardness. In the present embodiment, the hardness control unit 20a imparts a predetermined hardness to the joint portion 12 via the wire 134 by the air cylinder. For example, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. The drive part 21 and the air cylinder control part 22a are provided.

  The air cylinder driving unit 21 is a device that supplies compressed air to the air cylinder according to the control of the air cylinder control unit 22a in order to generate a driving force in the air cylinder of the driving unit 15. The air cylinder drive unit 21 includes, for example, an air pressure supply source such as a compressor, a pressure adjustment valve that adjusts the air pressure supplied from the air pressure supply source, and compressed air that is supplied from the pressure adjustment valve to the air cylinder through an air port. And a servo valve that adjusts the flow rate according to the control of the air cylinder control unit 22a.

  The air cylinder control unit 22a is a device that controls the air cylinder driving unit 21 so that the joint unit 12 has a predetermined hardness. More specifically, the air cylinder control unit 22a is constituted by, for example, a microcomputer including a microprocessor, a storage element, and its peripheral circuits, and sends a control signal for adjusting the joint 12 to a predetermined hardness. To 21. The air cylinder driving unit 21 drives the servo valve so that compressed air having a predetermined flow rate corresponding to the control signal flows into the cylinder of the air cylinder. As a result, compressed air having a predetermined flow rate flows into the cylinder of the air cylinder, the piston slides in the axial direction of the cylinder by the inflowing compressed air, and accordingly, the piston rod moves by a predetermined stroke amount. As a result, the wire 134 moves and the joint portion 12 is adjusted to a predetermined hardness. For example, when the four wires 134 are pulled at 0.25 N, the joint portion 12 is hardened at the first hardness, and, for example, when the four wires 134 are pulled at 0.5 N, the second hardness is set. The joint portion 12 is hardened, and the second hardness is harder than the first hardness. Alternatively, the pair of wires 134 and 134 facing each other are pulled by 0.1 N and 0.3 N, respectively, so that the joint portion 12 bends and hardens with the third hardness. By pulling the wires 134 and 134 respectively at 0.4 N and 0.6 N, the joint portion 12 bends and hardens in a similar manner with the fourth hardness, and the fourth hardness is the first. Harder than 3 hardness.

  In the force sense presentation device Sa according to the first embodiment, when an external force is applied to the medical device unit 11 and / or the joint unit 12, as shown in FIG. 4 to be described later, the medical device unit according to the external force. 11 and the joint part 12 are displaced. For this reason, the user recognizes the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device part 11 and the joint part 12 by using a pseudo force sense by observing the displacement amount of the medical device part 11 and the joint part 12. Can do. Therefore, such a force sense presentation device Sa does not require a sensor for presenting a force sense. A and / or B means at least one of A and B.

  Here, the medical device unit 11 and / or the joint unit when a predetermined first external force acts on the joint unit 12 having a predetermined first hardness directly or via the medical device unit 11. The first external force having the same magnitude acts on the joint portion 12 having a first displacement amount of 12 and a second hardness different from the first hardness, directly or via the medical device portion 11. The second displacement amount of the device unit 11 and / or the joint unit 12 is different. We know this empirically. For example, when fishing a fish of the same weight, a thick hard fishing rod does not flex and its tip does not displace very much, while a thin soft fishing rod flexes and its tip greatly displaces. Thus, the amount of displacement of the medical device section 11 and / or the joint section 12 depends on the impedance (viscoelasticity) of the joint section 12 obtained from the term proportional to the position and the term proportional to the speed. Here, assuming that the term relating to the speed is constant, the amount of displacement of the medical device section 11 and / or the joint section 12 depends on the hardness of the joint section 12. In the force sense presentation device Sa in the present embodiment, the hardness of the joint portion 12 is controlled by the hardness control unit 20a. Therefore, in the force sense presentation device Sa in the present embodiment, the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 are displaced by the external force acting under the control in which the joint unit 12 is controlled to a predetermined hardness. The amount of displacement corresponds to the magnitude of the external force, and the force sense presentation device Sa in the present embodiment can present the force sense more appropriately. Therefore, the force sense presentation device Sa in the present embodiment can appropriately present a force sense without requiring a sensor for presenting the force sense.

  Further, in the medical manipulator 10, it is particularly necessary to sterilize the medical device unit 11. Because of this sterilization, the medical device unit 11 is heated to a high temperature or is made disposable, so it is difficult to attach a comparatively expensive sensor. However, the force sense presentation device Sa according to the present embodiment can present a force sense appropriately without using a sensor, and is particularly effective for medical use.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an external force applied to the force sense presentation device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state of force sense presented by the force sense presentation device of the first embodiment and a state of learning of the force sense. FIGS. 4A and 4C show a state of force sense presented by the force sense presentation device of the first embodiment, and FIG. 4B shows force sense by the force sense presentation device of the first embodiment. The state of learning is shown. FIG. 4D is a graph showing the relationship between the amount of displacement acquired by learning and the external force, the horizontal axis is the displacement amount (Displacement), and the vertical axis is the external force (Force). is there.

  In the force sense presentation device Sa according to the present embodiment, as described above, since the joint portion 12 is controlled to have a predetermined hardness by the hardness control unit 20a, the user can connect the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 to each other. By observing the amount of displacement, it is possible to recognize the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 based on a pseudo force sense. More specifically, the user observes the bending state of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 to qualitatively determine whether the external force is large or small based on the past user experience (experience). Can be recognized. Therefore, learning is effective to quantitatively determine the force sense presented by the force sense presenting device Sa in the present embodiment. Therefore, the force sense presentation device Sa according to the present embodiment includes the medical manipulator 10 and the hardness control unit 20a as described above, and further includes the external force acting unit 31.

  The external force application unit 31 is a device that applies a known external force to the displacement member. In the present embodiment, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the external force acting part 31 is a thread 32 connected to the medical device part 11 of the medical manipulator 10, more specifically, a thread tied to the distal end of the forceps. This is a force sensor that applies an external force to the medical device unit 11 (forceps 11) via 32. The external force applied to the medical device unit 11 can also be measured by using the force sensor.

  In such a force sense presentation device Sa, an external force having a known magnitude is applied to the medical device unit 11 via the thread 32 by the external force acting unit 31 to displace the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12. The user knows (understands) the magnitude of the external force and observes the amount of displacement of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12. Thus, the user can learn the relationship between the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device unit 11 and the displacement amounts of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12.

  As a result, when an external force having a different magnitude from the external force having the known magnitude acts on the medical device unit 11, the user can change the displacement amount of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 by the user. Is compared with the amount of displacement of the medical device part 11 and the joint part 12 when the external force having the known magnitude is applied to the medical device part 11, and the displayed force sense (medical use) From the displacement amount of the device unit 11 and the joint unit 12, it is possible to estimate an external force of another magnitude that has acted on the medical device unit 11.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4B, an external force of, for example, 1.0 N is applied to the medical device unit 11 as a known size via the thread 32 by the external force acting unit 31, and the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 is displaced. The user knows (understands) that the magnitude of the external force applied to the medical device unit 11 is 1.0 N, and observes the amount of displacement of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12. Thereby, the user learns the relationship between the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device unit 11 and the displacement amount of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12, for example, the proportional relationship passing through the origin shown in FIG. To do. The joint portion 12 is deformed into an arc shape when a relatively large external force is applied. As a result, the relationship between the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device unit 11 and the amount of displacement of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 becomes nonlinear. For this reason, it is preferable that the displacement amount of the medical equipment part 11 and the joint part 12 is 30 degrees or less which is a range in which the bending angle of the joint part 12 can approximate a minute angle. In such a range, the relationship can be regarded as a proportional relationship (linear) as described above.

  As a result of such learning, for example, as shown in FIG. 4A, the amount of displacement of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 is the medical device unit 11 in the case of learning shown in FIG. When the user visually determines that the amount of displacement is smaller than the amount of displacement of the joint portion 12 and half of the amount of learning shown in FIG. 4B, the user can use the medical device shown in FIG. The magnitude of the external force applied to the part 11 can be estimated to be 0.5N, which is half of 1.0N. Further, for example, as shown in FIG. 4C, the displacement amounts of the medical device portion 11 and the joint portion 12 are the displacement amounts of the medical device portion 11 and the joint portion 12 in the case of learning shown in FIG. If the user visually determines that the displacement amount is twice as large as the learning shown in FIG. 4B, the user is given to the medical device unit 11 in the case shown in FIG. It can be estimated that the magnitude of the external force is 2.0N which is twice 1.0N.

  An example of the haptic presentation experiment result by such learning will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an experimental result of an experiment in which a target external force is applied to the force sense presentation device while referring to the force sense presented by the force sense presentation device according to the first embodiment. 5A to 5C show the results of subjects A, B, and C, respectively. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the external force applied to the haptic device according to the first embodiment and the amount of deformation when the dead zone is considered. The horizontal axis in FIG. 6 is an external force (Force), and the vertical axis is a displacement amount (Displacement). FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an experimental result of an experiment in which a target external force is applied to the force sense presentation device while referring to the force sense presented by the force sense presentation device according to the first embodiment when the dead zone is considered. .

  In the experiment, a NANO sensor manufactured by BL Autotech was used as the force sensor of the external force application unit 31, and the displacement of the tip of the forceps of the medical device unit 11 was detected by a stereoscopic endoscope manufactured by Shinko Kogaku Seisakusho. The image was taken from directly above by 11 mmφ direct view LS-101D and presented to the user by the monitor. The test subjects were three men in their twenties, and the intention of the experiment was not explained to the test subjects. For each subject, an external force of 1.0 N is applied to the distal end of the forceps of the medical device unit 11 via the thread 32 by the force sensor of the external force acting unit 31, and the forceps and joint portion 12 of the medical device unit 11 are applied. The displacement of was observed and learned by the user. After learning, the user refers to (depends on) the forceps of the medical device unit 11 and the displacement of the joint unit 12 (force sense presented by the force sense presentation device Sa) presented by the monitor. An external force is applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 so that the target external force is 1.0 N. In this case, the external force actually applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 was measured by the force sensor. This was repeated 10 times. Next, the target external force is changed, and second, the user becomes the target external force 0.5 N while referring to (relatively) the displacement of the forceps and the joint portion 12 of the medical device unit 11 presented by the monitor. As described above, an external force is applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11. In this case, the external force actually applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 was measured by the force sensor. This was repeated 10 times. Next, the target external force is changed, and thirdly, the user becomes the target external force 0.25 N while referring to (relatively) the displacement of the forceps and the joint portion 12 of the medical device unit 11 presented by the monitor. As described above, an external force is applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11. In this case, the external force actually applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 was measured by the force sensor. This was repeated 10 times.

  Each result of the experiment for each subject is shown in FIGS. 5 (A) to 5 (C). 5A to 5C show the average value and standard deviation of the external force actually applied to the forceps of the medical device section 11 for each target external force Fref. As shown in FIG. 5, by learning the displacement amounts of the forceps and joints 12 of the medical device unit 11 with an external force of 1.0 N, the subject can move the forceps and joints 12 of the medical device unit 11 (force) By referring to the sense of force presented by the sense presentation device Sa), when the target external force is 1.0 N which is the same as the learned external force of 1.0 N (Fref = 1.0 N), the magnitude is approximately equal to the target external force of 1.0 N. Now, an external force can be applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11. When the target external force is 0.5 N (Fref = 0.5 N), the external force can be applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 with a magnitude smaller than the external force applied when the target external force is 1.0 N. When the target external force is 0.25N (Fref = 0.25N), the external force can be applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 with a magnitude smaller than the external force applied when the target external force is 0.5N.

  Therefore, by learning, in the force sense presentation device Sa in the present embodiment, the user observes the displacement amount of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12, and thereby, by using the pseudo force sense, the medical device unit 11 and The magnitude of the external force acting on the joint portion 12 can be estimated quantitatively. For this reason, the force sense presentation device Sa according to this embodiment can present an accurate force sense by the user.

  Here, as shown in FIGS. 5A to 5C, when the target external force is 0.5 N or the target external force is 0.25 N, the target external force is actually applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11. The difference from the external force, that is, the error is included to the same extent. In the above-described force sense presentation device Sa, the joint portion 12 is given a predetermined hardness by driving the air cylinder 15. For this reason, it can be inferred that the driving force transmission path and the frictional force of the air cylinder 15 affect the joint portion 12, and there is a dead zone that does not act on the joint portion 12 even if the driving force is generated in the air cylinder 15. It can be inferred that

  In the above description, since there is only one learning location, the user can obtain the relationship between the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device unit 11 and the displacement amounts of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 as described above. It learns that it is a proportional relation which passes along the origin as shown to 4 (D). As a result, the user does not learn the dead zone. Therefore, by letting the user learn with a plurality of different external forces, the relationship between the amount of displacement of the medical device part 11 and the joint part 12 having the dead zone can be learned. That is, a plurality of known external forces having a plurality of different sizes are applied to the medical device unit 11 via the thread 32 by the external force acting unit 31, and the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 have a plurality of displacement amounts. Is displaced by.

  For example, a first external force of, for example, 1.0 N is applied to the medical device unit 11 through the thread 32 by the external force acting unit 31 as a known first magnitude, and the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 are moved to the first displacement amount. Displace with. The user knows (understands) that the first magnitude of the first external force applied to the medical device unit 11 is 1.0 N, and the first displacement amount of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12. Observe. Further, a second external force of, for example, 0.25 N is applied to the medical device unit 11 through the thread 32 by the external force acting unit 31 as a known second magnitude, and the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 are moved to the second displacement amount. Displace with. The user knows (understands) that the second magnitude of the second external force applied to the medical device unit 11 is 0.25 N, and the second displacement amount of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12. Observe. Thus, the user can learn the relationship between the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device unit 11 and the displacement amount of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12, for example, the proportional relationship having the dead zone shown in FIG. it can.

  FIG. 7 shows the results of experiments on the subject when learning was performed with two external forces (1.0 N and 0.25 N) having different sizes. In this experiment, the subject was made aware of the presence of the dead zone, learning was performed at two locations of external force 1.0N and 0.25N, and the target external force was 1.0N, 0.75N, and 0.5N. Except for the case, it is the same as described above. FIG. 7 shows the average value and standard deviation of the external force actually applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 for each target external force. As shown in FIG. 7, the subject can learn the displacement amounts of the forceps and the joint portion 12 of the medical device section 11 at two locations of external forces of 1.0 N and 0.25 N, respectively. By referring to the displacement of the forceps and the joint portion 12 (force sense presented by the force sense presentation device Sa), the target external force is 1.0 N, the target external force is 0.75, and the target external force is 0.5 N. In each case, the external force can be applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 with a magnitude substantially equal to the target external force.

  Therefore, by learning with a plurality of external forces having different sizes, in the force sense presentation device Sa according to the present embodiment, the user observes the displacement amounts of the medical device unit 11 and the joint unit 12 to thereby simulate the pseudo force. By the sense, the magnitude of the external force acting on the medical device part 11 and the joint part 12 can be estimated quantitatively and accurately. For this reason, the force sense presentation device Sa according to the present embodiment can present a more accurate force sense to the user.

  Next, another embodiment will be described.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of a myoelectric signal measurement unit in the force sense presentation device according to the second embodiment. Human force sensitivity is influenced not only by the surrounding environment but also by the person's own condition. For example, the haptic sensitivity is reduced by force, and the haptic sensitivity is reduced, for example, in a state where the hand is gripped strongly. The force sense presentation device according to the second embodiment adjusts the presentation of force sense according to the degree of force (degree of force). For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the force sense presentation device Sb in the second embodiment includes a medical manipulator 10, a hardness control unit 20 b, an external force application unit 31, and an electromyogram signal measurement unit 41. And a myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit 42. Since the medical manipulator 10 and the external force application unit 31 in the second embodiment are the same as the medical manipulator 10 and the external force application unit 31 in the first embodiment, respectively, the description thereof is omitted.

  The myoelectric signal measuring unit 41 is a device that measures a myoelectric signal based on an action potential of a muscle involved in a predetermined part in a living body. The myoelectric signal measurement unit 41 is connected to the hardness control unit 20b, more specifically to an air cylinder control unit 22b described later in the present embodiment, and outputs a measurement result to the air cylinder control unit 22b.

In the present embodiment, the myoelectric signal measurement unit 41 measures the myoelectric signal, and further converts the measured myoelectric signal into a pseudo tension associated with the magnitude of the tension exerted by the muscle of the living body. . Such a myoelectric signal measurement unit 41 includes, for example, a surface electrode, a differential amplifier, a division circuit, a full-wave rectifier, and a low-pass filter (LPF). The surface electrode is attached to a living body part that performs the predetermined exercise, and detects an action potential of a muscle involved in the predetermined exercise. In the present embodiment, the myoelectric signal is measured by a surface induction method in which an action potential is recorded by attaching an electrode to the surface of the skin, as shown in FIG. Each myoelectric signal is sampled, for example, at a sampling period of 1 kHz and 12 bits (bits) by each surface electrode, and is amplified to a predetermined level by the differential amplifier. Each amplified myoelectric signal is input to the dividing circuit and divided by a predetermined value. This predetermined value will be described later. Each of the divided myoelectric signals is input to the full-wave rectifier and full-wave rectified (absolute value). For each myoelectric signal, this full-wave rectified signal is averaged every 10 points (EMGave), and a moving average is calculated every 5 points based on the following equation (EMGma). The value EMGma obtained in this way is called a smooth myoelectric signal. In the calculation of the predetermined value of the division circuit, the maximum value (EMGmax) and the minimum value (EMGmin) of the myoelectric signal in the subject are measured in advance and obtained by the following equation 2, and this NEMG is calculated by the division circuit. It is set to a predetermined value.
EMGma (t) = (1/5) × [ΣEMGave (t−i)] (where Σ is the sum of i = −2 to +2) (1)
NEMG = [(EMG−EMGmin) / (EMGmax−EMGmin)] (2)

  Each of these smooth myoelectric signals is input to the low-pass filter. This low-pass filter converts a smooth myoelectric signal into pseudo tension and outputs it. The output signal (pseudo tension) of the low-pass filter is output to the air cylinder control unit 22b of the hardness control unit 20b. The pseudo tension is a value corresponding to the tension generated by the muscle. The LPF 15 is a second-order filter for correcting a delay in muscle contraction with respect to a nerve impulse, and its cutoff frequency is determined from the viewpoint of accurately matching the pseudo tension and the tension actually generated by the muscle. It is set to several Hz, more preferably 2 Hz to 3 Hz. In this embodiment, the cutoff frequency is set to 2.2 rad / s.

  In the above description, the myoelectric signal is measured by the surface electrode. However, the myoelectric signal may be measured by the needle electrode inserted into the muscle.

  Such a myoelectric signal measurement unit 41 corresponds to an example of a force measurement unit that measures force of a predetermined part in a living body.

  The myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit 42 is connected to the air cylinder control unit 22b of the hardness control unit 20b, and stores the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic indicating the correspondence between the myoelectric signal and the hardness of the displacement member. For example, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) which is a rewritable nonvolatile storage element. In the present embodiment, the myoelectric signal measurement unit 41 obtains not only the myoelectric signal but also the pseudo tension based on the myoelectric signal. Therefore, the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit 42 includes the pseudo tension based on the myoelectric signal. And a pseudo-tension hardness characteristic indicating the correspondence between the displacement member and the hardness of the displacement member. Such a myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit 42 corresponds to an example of a force hardness characteristic storage unit that stores a force hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the force and the hardness of the displacement member. The pseudo-tension hardness characteristic is a characteristic that the hardness of the joint portion 12 becomes harder as the pseudo-tension is larger. In other words, the force hardness characteristic is a characteristic that the hardness of the joint portion 12 increases as the force increases.

  The hardness control unit 20b is obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic stored in the myoelectric signal hardness storage unit 42, and has a hardness corresponding to the myoelectric signal measured by the myoelectric signal measuring unit 41. The joint portion 12 of the medical manipulator 10 is controlled. The hardness control unit 20b includes an air cylinder driving unit 21 and an air cylinder control unit 22b. Since the air cylinder drive part 21 of the hardness control part 20b is the same as the air cylinder drive part 21 of the hardness control part 20a, the description thereof is omitted.

  An air cylinder control unit 22b, which replaces the air cylinder control unit 22a of the hardness control unit 20a, has a joint unit 12 that is obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristics stored in the myoelectric signal hardness storage unit 42. The air cylinder driving unit 21 is controlled so as to have a hardness corresponding to the myoelectric signal measured by the signal measuring unit 41. Such a hardness control unit 20b is a hardness that controls the displacement member to the hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the force measured by the force measurement unit, which is obtained from the force hardness characteristic. This corresponds to an example of a control unit. More specifically, the air cylinder control part 22b is comprised by the microcomputer provided with the microprocessor, the memory | storage element, and its peripheral circuit, for example. The air cylinder control unit 22b is jointed to the hardness corresponding to the myoelectric signal measured by the myoelectric signal measuring unit 41, which is obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic stored in the myoelectric signal hardness storage unit. A control signal for adjusting the unit 12 is output to the air cylinder driving unit 21. The air cylinder driving unit 21 drives the servo valve so that compressed air having a predetermined flow rate corresponding to the control signal flows into the cylinder of the air cylinder. As a result, compressed air having a predetermined flow rate flows into the cylinder of the air cylinder, the piston slides in the axial direction of the cylinder by the inflowing compressed air, and accordingly, the piston rod moves by a predetermined stroke amount. As a result, the wire moves and the joint has a hardness corresponding to the myoelectric signal measured by the myoelectric signal measuring unit 41, which is obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic stored in the myoelectric signal hardness storage unit 42. Part 12 is adjusted.

  Such a force sense presentation device Sb according to the second embodiment measures the force of the living body part using a myoelectric signal, and the hardness of the joint portion 12 corresponding to the user's myoelectric signal, that is, the user's The joint portion 12 is controlled by the hardness of the joint portion 12 corresponding to the force. In other words, in the force sense presentation device Sb in the second embodiment, the hardness of the joint portion 12 is controlled to the hardness of the living body part corresponding to the force of the predetermined part in the living body. Therefore, the force sense presentation device Sb according to the second embodiment can present a force sense according to the degree of force of the predetermined part of the user, and thus can present a more accurate force sense to the user.

  An example of the haptic presentation experiment result regarding the haptic presentation device Sb of the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a state of the medical manipulator in the haptic device according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an experimental result of an experiment in which a target external force is applied to the force sense presentation device while referring to the force sense presented by the force sense presentation device of the second embodiment.

  In the experiment, a Bagnoli EMG System manufactured by DELSYS was used for the myoelectric signal measurement unit 41, and was mounted near the thumb adductor muscle of the subject's dominant hand, and the myoelectric signal was measured. The test subjects were five men in their twenties, and the intention of the experiment was not explained to the test subjects. Each such subject was trained at 1.0 N. As shown in FIG. 9, the external force is applied by pushing the tip of the medical manipulator 10 into the floor, and the external force applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 is measured by a force sensor. After learning, the user refers to (reliance) the forceps of the medical device unit 11 and the displacement of the joint unit 12 (force sense presented by the force sense presentation device Sb) presented by the monitor while relying on the target external force 1. An external force is applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 so as to be 0N. This was repeated ten times alternately in a weak state (relaxed with relatively small force) and a tension state (strained with relatively large force). The hardness of the joint portion 12 is adjusted corresponding to each of the weak state and the tension state. Then, learning is performed again, and similarly, the user can obtain a target external force of 1.0 N while referring to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 and the displacement of the joint unit 12 presented by the monitor. An external force is applied to the forceps of the section 11. This was repeated ten times alternately in a weak state and a tension state. The experimental results were recorded only in the last 5 times.

  Here, typically, each result of the experiment for two of these subjects is shown in FIGS. 10 (A) and 10 (B), respectively. 10A and 10B show the average value and standard deviation of the external force actually applied to the forceps of the medical device section 11 for each target external force. In addition, the bar graph without hatched hatching is a result when the hardness of the joint portion 12 is not adjusted corresponding to each of the weak state and the tension state (result using the force sense presentation device Sa of the first embodiment). The bar graph with hatched hatching is the result when the hardness of the joint 12 is adjusted corresponding to each of the weak state and the tension state (result using the force sense presentation device Sb of the second embodiment) ). As shown in FIG. 10, by adjusting the hardness of the joint portion 12 corresponding to each of the weak state and the tension state, the hardness of the joint portion 12 corresponding to each of the weak state and the tension state, respectively. Compared to the case where the adjustment is not performed, the subject can use the learned external force 1.0N by referring to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 and the displacement of the joint unit 12 (force sense presented by the force sense presentation device Sb). An external force can be applied to the forceps of the medical device unit 11 with an approximate size.

  Therefore, by adjusting the hardness of the joint portion 12 according to the force, the force sense presentation device Sb in the present embodiment can present a more accurate force sense to the user by the user's pseudo force sense. it can.

  In the above description, the force condition of a predetermined part in the living body is measured by measuring the myoelectric signal by the myoelectric signal measuring unit 41. However, instead of the myoelectric signal measuring unit 41, the force grasped and gripped is measured. A gripping force sensor may be used. Correspondingly, instead of the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit 42, a gripping force hardness characteristic storage unit that stores a gripping force hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the gripping force and the hardness of the displacement member is used. In place of the hardness control unit 20b, the hardness control unit that controls the displacement member to the hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the grip force measured by the force sensor, which is obtained from the grip force hardness characteristic. Is used. The force sensor is a device that detects, for example, a force applied to the grip portion by a piezoelectric element provided on a bottom portion of the grip portion, with a rod-like grip portion projectingly from the base portion.

  In the above description, the hardness control of the joint 12 is forward control. However, a potentiometer (position sensor) for detecting the position of the piston rod in the air cylinder is further provided, and the hardness control unit 20b Feedback control may be performed based on the detection result of the potentiometer.

  Next, another embodiment will be described.

(Third embodiment)
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the force sense presentation device according to the third embodiment. The force sense presentation devices Sa and Sb in the first and second embodiments are devices that present a force sense with a displacement amount as a result of the actual application of external force, while the force sense presentation device Sc in the third embodiment is This is a device that presents a force sense with a displacement amount as a result of virtual external force acting.

  The force sense presentation device Sc according to the third embodiment includes a display unit, a display control unit, a touch panel, a pressure hardness characteristic storage unit, and a relatively thin rectangular box shape shown in FIG. Housing HS.

  The display unit is a device that performs display on a display screen DS arranged on one main surface of the housing HS. As shown in FIG. 11, the display control unit includes, for example, a rectangular pyramid diagram 51 simulating a weight, a linear support pictorial diagram 52 simulating a support member that includes a displacement portion and supports the weight 51, and a push button. This is a device that displays on the display screen DS of the display section a press button picture 53 that displays a position on the touch panel TP for receiving and inputting pressure. The weight of the diagram 51 is represented by its size. The force sensation according to the support picture 52 is represented by the degree of bending of the tip portion that is the displacement portion. The touch panel TP is disposed on the display screen DS of the display unit, and detects and inputs an operation position by, for example, a resistance film method or a capacitance method. The pressing force hardness characteristic storage unit is a device that stores a pressing force hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the pressing force input from the touch panel TP and the hardness of the displacement portion (tip portion). Then, the display control unit further determines the displacement portion (tip portion) corresponding to the pressing force input from the position of the touch panel TP corresponding to the position of the pressing button picture 53, which is obtained from the pressing force hardness characteristic. The displacement part is displaced by the hardness, and the supporting picture 52 is displayed on the display unit.

  Such a force sense presentation device Sc in the third embodiment includes, for example, an input device that accepts an input, a display device that performs display, a CPU, a force sense presentation program that virtually presents a force sense, and the pressing force hardness characteristic. This can be realized by a non-volatile storage element that stores information, a storage element such as a RAM that serves as a working memory of the CPU, and a personal computer such as an ipad provided with peripheral devices thereof. In such a personal computer, when the CPU executes a force sense presentation program stored in advance in the storage element, the display control unit is functionally configured in the CPU.

  In such a force sense presentation device Sc according to the third embodiment, when the spindle diagram 51 is displayed so as to contact the tip of the support picture 52, an external force corresponding to the size of the spindle picture 51 is virtually supported. Acting on the tip of 52, as shown in FIG. 11, the tip of the supporting picture 52 bends (bends) in response to this external force. Therefore, similarly to the force sense presentation device Sa of the first embodiment, the user virtually acts on the support picture 52 by the pseudo force sense by observing the bending condition (deflection condition) of the support picture 52. The magnitude of the external force can be recognized.

  In the force sense presentation device Sc according to the third embodiment, when the user presses the touch panel TP corresponding to the position of the push button diagram 53 with a finger, the display control unit stores the pressure in the pressing force hardness storage unit. The support picture 52 is displayed on the display unit by displacing the tip thereof with the hardness corresponding to the pressure inputted from the touch panel TP on the push button picture 53, which is obtained from the pressed pressure hardness characteristic. It is displayed on the screen DS. Since the contact area of the finger with the touch panel increases as the pressing force increases, the degree of the user's pressing force is determined according to the size of the contact area of the finger with the touch panel. Therefore, similarly to the force sense presentation device Sb of the second embodiment, the force sense presentation in the third embodiment is adjusted by adjusting the hardness of the distal end portion of the support picture 52 according to the pressing force, that is, the force of the fingers. The device Sc can present an even more accurate force sense to the user by the user's pseudo force sense.

  In addition, since the force sense presentation device Sc in the third embodiment virtually presents a force sense, it does not use the actual medical manipulator 10 as in the first and second embodiments, or is actually medical. Before using the manipulator 10 (before production), the sense of force can be practiced.

  In addition, although the force sense presentation apparatus S (Sa-Sc) of the above-mentioned 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment showed the force sense by the bending condition, a force sense may be shown by the twist condition.

  In order to express the present invention, the present invention has been properly and fully described through the embodiments with reference to the drawings. However, those skilled in the art can easily change and / or improve the above-described embodiments. It should be recognized that this is possible. Therefore, unless the modifications or improvements implemented by those skilled in the art are at a level that departs from the scope of the claims recited in the claims, the modifications or improvements are not covered by the claims. To be construed as inclusive.

Sa, Sb, Sc Force sense presentation device 10 Medical manipulator 12 Joint part 20a, 20b Hardness control part 31 External force action part 41 Myoelectric signal measurement part 42 Myoelectric signal hardness storage part

Claims (6)

A mechanism that includes a displaceable displacement member and is capable of observing the displacement portion from the outside;
A force sense presentation device comprising: a hardness control unit configured to control the displacement member to a predetermined hardness. The force sense presentation device according to claim 1, further comprising an external force application unit that applies a known external force to the displacement member. A force measurement unit that measures the force of a predetermined part of the living body;
A force hardness characteristic storage unit that stores a force hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the force and the hardness of the displacement member;
The hardness control unit controls the displacement member to a hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the force measured by the force measurement unit, which is obtained from the force hardness characteristic. The force sense presentation device according to claim 1 or 2. The mechanism includes a medical device unit including a medical device used for medical treatment, a joint portion having one end connected to the medical device portion and having a predetermined degree of freedom, and a joint portion connected to the other end of the joint portion. The force sense presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the force sense presentation device is a medical manipulator including a support portion that supports the joint portion. A display unit for displaying on the display screen;
A display controller that displays on the display unit a weight picture that simulates a weight, and a support picture that simulates a support member that includes a displacement portion and supports the weight;
A touch panel disposed on the display screen;
A pressing force hardness characteristic storage unit that stores a pressing force hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the pressing force input from the touch panel and the hardness of the displacement portion;
The display control unit displaces the displacement portion with the hardness of the displacement portion corresponding to the pressing force input from the touch panel, which is obtained from the pressing force hardness characteristic, and displays the supporting picture on the display portion. A force sense presentation device characterized by displaying. A myoelectric signal measuring step for measuring an electromyographic signal due to an action potential of a muscle involved in a predetermined movement of a living body;
A hardness control step of controlling the displacement member to a predetermined hardness in a mechanism that includes a displaceable displacement member and is capable of observing the displacement portion from the outside;
A myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage step of storing in the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic storage unit a myoelectric signal hardness characteristic indicating a correspondence relationship between the myoelectric signal and the hardness of the displacement member,
The hardness control step controls the displacement member to a hardness of the displacement member corresponding to the myoelectric signal measured in the myoelectric signal measurement step obtained from the myoelectric signal hardness characteristic. A haptic presentation method as a feature.