JP5988227B2 - Walking assist device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a walking assistance device that assists walking for a patient with a walking disorder.

  Walking disorders are common in patients with Parkinson's disease, and the muscles of the whole body are tightly stiff and tense, with poor movement, difficult to maintain posture, etc., and walking and daily activities become unstable and difficult It is. On the other hand, patients with Parkinson's disease are not incapable of walking, and can continue walking if they have the chance to start walking.

  The patient walks with a signal from the caregiver, a method of walking while supporting the caregiver, a method of placing obstacles and landmarks within the walking area, and a walking marker, inside the cane We were able to walk by grabbing the trigger by storing obstacles and deploying them at the start of walking, or by installing a light source on the cane and making a light mark on the feet.

  However, there is a problem with such walking, and the caregiver's physical burden is large when helped by the caregiver. If the number of patients increases with an aging society, the burden on the caregiver may increase further. There is. When installing a mark in the walking range, it is only possible to walk through a predetermined route, such as the time and labor required to be installed in advance and a rehabilitation facility or house in the hospital.

  When using a cane, it is very dangerous that the cane cannot be walked because the direction of the cane is different from the direction of travel due to trembling of the body, etc., and the balance falls due to impatience and anxiety from that state and falls. In addition, the cane requires time and effort for the user to remember operations and initial settings. There is a problem with each cane method, and the method of storing a rod-shaped obstacle inside the cane has the risk that the patient will accidentally get caught in the obstacle and fall down, and there will be a narrow road or traffic. It is difficult to deploy in many places. The method of mounting a light source on a cane has a problem that the light serving as a mark cannot be seen by sunlight when used outdoors during the daytime.

JP 2005-34568 A JP 2011-229838 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-73436 JP 2003-164544 A JP 2002-113057 A JP 2001-149426 A JP-A-11-309187 JP 2005-312736 A

  The present invention has been made in view of these problems, and can help the patient to walk independently and can walk without the help of the caregiver and can reduce the burden on the caregiver when walking the patient. The purpose is to provide a cane.

  The invention of claim 1 includes a laser oscillator for making a mark on the patient's foot during walking, a lens or prism, a light source unit incorporating a mirror, a drive unit incorporating an electric motor for rotating the light source based on a command signal, a patient A microcomputer that sends a command signal to the drive unit that senses the direction of the cane, a gravity sensor that senses the direction of tilt and force, a gyro sensor that judges the direction, a GPS that indicates the current position, and a sound and voice The electronic control unit has a built-in speaker, a mounting unit on which the above-described components are mounted, and a tip unit that has a switch for controlling on / off of the light source.

  In the invention of claim 2, the gravitational sensor in the electronic control unit detects the force generated by the movement of the cane that pushes the cane forward when the cane is pushed to create light that serves as a mark of the foot at the start of walking. The direction is sensed and the direction of the traveling direction is memorized. The gyro sensor determines whether the current direction is deviated from the stored direction, and if there is a deviation, it sends a correction value for returning to the traveling direction to the drive unit and rotates the light source unit to adjust the inclination. It has the function of returning and maintaining the mark in the traveling direction.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the light source unit includes a laser oscillator that emits light serving as a mark of walking at the patient's feet, and the light source uses a green laser having high visibility to human eyes, so that it can be used outdoors. It is characterized by a point that is easy to visually recognize and a point that the burden on the eyes is small.

  The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that the intensity of the light of the laser oscillator of the light source unit can be adjusted, and the output is low in a dark place and the output is high in a bright place.

  The invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that a lens, a prism, and a mirror are mounted on the tip of the laser oscillator of the light source unit, and the use of these enables the depiction of the light mark to be changed.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the drive unit has a function of rotating the light source unit by a motor based on a command from the electronic control unit.

  The invention of claim 7 is characterized in that a change in direction is sensed by a gyro sensor of the electronic control unit, and a direction of force when the cane is moved forward is sensed by a gravity sensor.

  The invention according to claim 8 is characterized in that the electronic control unit is equipped with a GPS and transmits the patient's location to a wireless LAN, an IP telephone network, or an ISM wireless.

  The invention of claim 9 is characterized in that the electronic control unit has a function of storing and reproducing voice and sound.

  In the invention of claim 10, the design and the internal configuration of the apparatus are such that the mounting part is mounted with a light source part, a driving part, and an electronic control part, and the shape is a shape with rounded corners in consideration of the case of contact with a person And has the function of being attached to the cane body.

  The invention of claim 11 is characterized in that there is a switch at the tip, the switch is turned on when the wand contacts the ground, and a mark of light is drawn from the light source.

  According to the present invention, the direction of the cane that the patient wants to walk forward matches the direction of travel of the walking stick, thereby removing anxiety about the patient's landmark and effective in prompting the patient to walk. A simple walking assist device.

1 is an overall view of an embodiment for carrying out the present invention. It is a block diagram of a mounting part. It is a figure of the direction function of a cane. It is a figure of the usage method of a cane. It is a figure of the usage method of a cane. It is a figure of the control method of a cane.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

  The cane body 1 is a hollow tube, and is made of a metal material such as a light-weight and high bending strength carbon pipe or aluminum alloy. The mounting portion 2 is attached to the tube portion of the cane body 1, and the tip portion 4 is attached to the lowermost portion of the cane.

  The mounting unit 2 includes a light source unit 5, an electronic control unit 6, and a drive unit 13. The light source unit 5 includes a laser oscillator 39, a lens, a prism, a mirror, and the like, and is connected to the driving unit 13. The electronic control unit 6 includes a substrate 11, a battery, a microcomputer 37, a GPS 32, a speaker 35, a fan 12, a gravity sensor 30, and a gyro sensor 31, and controls operations. An electric motor 38 is built in the drive unit 13 and rotates the laser oscillator of the light source unit 5. A switch 33 is built in the distal end portion 4.

  The switch 33 of the tip 4 is attached to the lowermost part of the cane. When the cane comes into contact with the ground, the switch is turned on, and the laser oscillator 39 of the light source unit 5 operates. Since continuous use of the laser oscillator 39 leads to damage due to thermal runaway, the cooling fan 12 cools the laser oscillator 39 in conjunction with the operation of the laser oscillator 39.

  The gravity sensor 30 senses the reaction that occurs when the cane tries to push forward, and the direction is stored in the electronic control unit 6 with the direction as the reference of the traveling direction. When the direction changes, it senses that the gyro sensor 31 has deviated from the reference, and issues a command to correct the deviation from the electronic control unit 6 to the drive unit 13, and the electric motor of the drive unit 13 rotates. The drive unit 13 and the light source unit 5 are coupled and operated in conjunction by the joint 14 to correct the position of the mark 3 formed by the light source unit 5. When the cane is released from the ground, the switch 33 is turned off, and the reference stored in the electronic control unit 6 is also deleted.

  When the cane is used, the GPS 32 is activated, and the current position is transmitted by a wireless LAN, an IP telephone line network, an ISM wireless, or the like.

  When using the cane, the recorded voice / sound can be reproduced by the speaker 35.

  How to use a cane will be explained. At the start of walking, a light mark 3 is created from the light source by pushing the cane forward. Even if the direction of the cane changes, the mark 3 shows the same direction as the traveling direction unless the cane is separated from the ground.

  Since patients with Parkinson's disease, etc., do not know how to step on their feet, creating this mark 3 has a standard for straddling the foot and allows them to step on their feet. In addition, the user can be encouraged to walk by using a voice or sound from the speaker 35 to receive a signal in the same manner as a call from a caregiver.

  The present invention is used in the field of nursing care for assisting walking of elderly people and disabled people.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cane body 2 Mounting part 3 Mark 4 Tip part 5 Light source part 6 Electronic control part 10 Laser oscillator 11 Board | substrate 12 Fan 13 Drive part 14 Joint 20 Mark 30 before direction correction Gravity sensor 31 Gyro sensor 32 GPS
33 Switch 34 GPS information transmission 35 Speaker 36 Battery 37 Microcomputer 38 Electric motor 39 Laser oscillator

Claims (11)

A laser oscillator that marks the patient's feet during walking, a lens or prism, a light source that incorporates a mirror, a drive that incorporates an electric motor that rotates the laser oscillator based on a command signal, and the orientation of the patient and the cane Built-in microcomputer that senses and sends command signals to the drive unit, gravity sensor that senses the direction of tilt and force, gyro sensor that judges the direction of patient movement, GPS that indicates the current position, and speaker that emits sound and sound An electronic control unit , a light source unit, a drive unit, a mounting unit on which the electronic control unit is mounted, a fan that cools the laser oscillator, and a tip that incorporates a switch that controls on / off of the light source. A walking assist device.   When the cane of claim 1 pokes on the ground, the gravity sensor in the electronic control unit senses the direction of the force generated by the movement of the wand to poke ahead, and stores the direction of the traveling direction. The gyro sensor determines whether there is a deviation in the current direction with respect to the stored direction, and if there is a deviation, sends a correction value for returning to the traveling direction to the driving unit, and the electric motor of the driving unit Thus, the walking assist device is characterized by the function of rotating the light source unit to return the tilt and maintain the mark in the traveling direction.   The light source unit of claim 1 has a laser oscillator that emits light as a marker for walking at the foot of a patient, and the laser oscillator is easy to see even outdoors by using green with high visibility to human eyes. A walking assist device characterized by a function that places little burden on the eyes.   2. The walking assist device according to claim 1, wherein the laser oscillator of the light source unit can adjust the intensity of light and has a function of low output in a dark place and high output in a bright place. 2. The walking assist device according to claim 1, wherein a lens, a prism, and a mirror are mounted on the tip portion of the laser oscillator of the light source unit, and the function of changing the depiction of the mark of light .   The walking assist device according to claim 1, wherein the driving unit has a function of rotating and moving the light source unit by an electric motor based on a command from the electronic control unit.   The electronic control unit according to claim 1, wherein the electronic control unit has a function of detecting a change in direction by a gyro sensor and detecting a direction of force when the cane is moved forward by a gravity sensor.   2. A walking assist device, wherein the electronic control unit of claim 1 is equipped with a GPS and has a function of transmitting a patient's location to a wireless LAN, an IP telephone network, an ISM wireless, or the like.   The walking assist device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic control unit has a function of storing and reproducing voice and sound.   The shape of the mounting part of Claim 1 is a walking assistance apparatus characterized by the shape which rounded the corner based on the case where it contacts a person.   A walking assist device characterized in that there is a switch at the tip of claim 1, the switch is turned on when the wand touches the ground, and a light mark is drawn from the light source.

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