JPH10314133A - Biological signal radio equipment of arm mounting type - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To automatically and regularly transmit heart beat data, electrocardiogram data, etc., by incorporating a radio data transmitting/receiving means, a data display means, a voice input/output means, an alarming means, a control means, an interface means, etc., in a main body and incorporating an antenna within a band or the main body. SOLUTION: A biological signal radio equipment 1 of an arm mounting type arranges LCD 5a, 5b, a speaker 6, a microphone 7, a solar battery 8, a light emitting lamp 11, etc., on the surface of the main body 2 and arranges a mode switch 9, a setting switch 10, a jack for connecting an external sensor, etc., on the side face of the main body 2 similarly to a wrist watch in terms of an appearance. Then the device 1 arranges the heart beat sensor 12, a battery holder 13, etc., on the rear face of a main body 12 and incorporates the antenna 4 in a band 3 or the main body 2. When it becomes a regular examination time set in advance, heart beat data, electrocardiogram data, etc., is transmitted as radio waves from the antenna 4 by way of a data transmitting/receiving part and an abnormality signal is emitted every time of judging data to be an abnormality value.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to home medical care for remotely monitoring medical information, such as heart rate data and electrocardiogram data, and providing appropriate medical advice by using wireless devices owned by a medical institution and a patient. The present invention relates to a wireless device capable of rescue a patient by enabling an emergency report even when the user is unconscious.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Periodic medical examinations are conducted by visiting nurses as home care for patients with heart disease, elderly people or elderly people living alone. In recent years, with the development of communication technology, a home medical care support system for transmitting electrocardiogram data to a medical institution using a portable electrocardiogram storage device using a telephone line and performing electrocardiogram analysis and the like has begun to operate. At-home medical care support systems that transmit heart rate data to a medical institution using a simple mobile phone (hereinafter, referred to as PHS) and remotely monitor patients are also being studied.

[0003]

However, in a conventional regular checkup by a visiting nurse, only the state of the patient at the time of the checkup can be observed, and the state of the patient other than at the time of the regular checkup cannot be grasped. was there. In addition, when the condition of the patient changes or abnormalities occur at times other than during the regular medical checkup, rescue is performed by notification from the patient or a nearby person, but the patient himself is out or at home at the time of the abnormalities However, there is a problem in that when a family or the like goes out and a patient is alone, if the person is unconscious and cannot move, he / she cannot make a report. In addition, even when the person is conscious and able to move, it is often impossible to report an accurate location when going out. As a result, there is also a problem that the patient is found late and the medical treatment is delayed.

In a home medical care support system for transmitting electrocardiogram data to a medical institution by a portable electrocardiogram storage device using a telephone line and performing electrocardiogram analysis and the like, the state of the patient at that time is observed in the same manner as described above. However, if the patient's condition changed or abnormal, it was not possible to grasp the situation at that time. In addition, data cannot be easily transmitted from outside when using a system using a telephone line.

[0005] Further, in a home medical care support system for transmitting heart rate data to a medical institution using a PHS and remotely monitoring a patient, although the state of the patient can be constantly monitored,
A large capital investment and a long construction period are required to expand the social infrastructure, such as expanding the communicable area of PHS, including rural small cities, mountainous areas with many elderly people, and depopulated areas. There is a problem in that the operation of the home medical care support system using PHS has to wait for these maintenance and expansion. Furthermore, since a telephone line is used, a call fee is charged every time data is transmitted and received, which causes a problem of increasing operation costs.

[0006] Also, PHS is overwhelmingly used for general telephone calls rather than used in home care support systems. In radio frequencies operated by unspecified majority such as PHS, it is an identification process to detect only a specific source from among them and search for the direction of the radio wave transmitted by the change in electric field strength or power strength at the time of reception. Is difficult and time consuming. For this reason, there is also a problem that it is difficult to accurately detect the location of the patient by detecting the radio wave from the PHS when the patient cannot be contacted without being conscious.

[0007] In view of the above problems, the present invention automatically transmits heart rate data and electrocardiogram data regularly even when going out by simple wireless communication using a dedicated frequency, and changes or abnormalities occur in the patient's condition. In this case, an abnormal signal is automatically transmitted, and the invention is invented for the purpose of early detection and early rescue of a patient.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, in the wrist-worn biological signal radio apparatus 1 of the present invention, a data transmitting / receiving unit 14 and an FM wave receiving unit 1 are provided in a wristwatch-type main body 2.
5, CPU 16, LCD drive unit 17, LCD 5, data memory unit 18, timer unit 19, audio output unit 20, audio input unit 21, vibrator 22, solar cell 8, battery 2
4 and an interface unit 23, and the antenna 4 is built in the band 3 or the main body 2. The mode switch 9 and the setting switch 10 are connected to the interface unit 23, and the heart rate sensor 12, the inclination sensor (not shown), and the light-emitting lamp 11 are further connected. As an external sensor, for example, a signal from an electrocardiographic sensor 47 is
And an external sensor plug 44 for connection to an external sensor connection jack (not shown) of the main body 2.

Further, in order to perform satellite communication for relaying a communication satellite to communicate with a remote place, a separate satellite communication converter 25 and a dedicated parabolic antenna 29 are used, and a signal from the arm-mounted type biological signal radio device 1 is transmitted. This is performed by relaying the satellite communication converter 25 and the dedicated parabolic antenna 29. The satellite communication converter 25 has an antenna 26, a data transmission / reception unit 35, a CPU 36, a converter 37, a data transmission / reception unit 38, a data memory unit 39, a timer unit 40, a power supply unit 41, a battery 43, and an interface unit 42. The mode switch 27 and the monitor lamp 28 are connected to the interface unit 42. The dedicated parabolic antenna 29 includes a reflector 30, a waveguide 31, a support 32, and a fixed base 33, and is connected to the satellite communication converter 25 via a coaxial cable 34.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view and a rear view of an arm-mounted type biological signal wireless device according to the present invention. The wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 is similar in appearance to a wristwatch, and includes a main body 2 and a band 3. On the surface of the main body 2, there are an LCD 5, a speaker 6, a microphone 7, a solar cell 8, a light emitting lamp 11 and the like, and on the side of the main body 2, a mode switch 9, a setting switch 10, and a jack for connecting an external sensor (not shown).
The main body 2 has a heart rate sensor 12, a battery holder 13, and the like on the rear surface thereof. An antenna 4 is built in the band 3 or the main body 2. The heart rate sensor 12 is a stress sensor using a magnetic material, and can capture a slight strain due to blood flow. The battery 24 is a rechargeable secondary battery and is stored in the battery holder 13. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the wrist-mounted type biological signal wireless device of the present invention. Heart rate sensor 12, mode switch 9, setting switch 10,
The light emitting lamp 11, the vibrator 22, and an electrocardiographic sensor 47 as an external sensor are connected to the CPU 16 via the interface unit 23. Similarly, a tilt sensor (not shown) built in the main body 2 is also connected to the interface unit 2.
3 and connected to the CPU 16. The tilt sensor detects the tilt or movement of the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 and, together with the heart rate sensor, determines the state of the patient (whether in an emergency or with the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 removed). Used to judge). The CPU 16 performs arithmetic processing on the signal from the heart rate sensor 12, calculates heart rate data for one minute, performs sampling, and stores the sampling data in the data memory unit 18. In the case where, for example, an electrocardiographic sensor 47 is connected as an external sensor, signals from the electrocardiographic sensor 47 are similarly processed to calculate electrocardiographic data, perform sampling, and store the sampling data in the data memory unit 18. . The timer unit 19 serves as a reference clock for the CPU 16 and generates time data as a clock function. Then, the heart rate data and the time data, and further, for example, when an electrocardiographic sensor 47 is connected as an external sensor, the electrocardiographic data is displayed on the LCD.
The information is displayed on the LCD 5 via the drive unit 17.

[0011] When the predetermined time for the regular examination is reached, the heart rate data, electrocardiogram data and the like are emitted as radio waves from the antenna 4 via the data transmission / reception unit 14. When the data is determined to be an abnormal value, the data is similarly emitted as an abnormal signal from the antenna 4 via the data transmitting / receiving unit 14 each time. The transmission output of the radio wave is 1W
As mentioned above, there is an ability to cover a zone with a radius of 3 km or more.

In recent years, there has been a concern that electromagnetic waves including radio waves may affect the human body. Wrist-mounted biological signal wireless device 1 of the present invention
In the above, the antenna 4 is built in the band 3 or the main body 2 to emit radio waves, but an electromagnetic wave absorption band or an electromagnetic wave shielding band (not shown) made of carbon material or the like is bonded to the back surface of the band 3. Thus, the magnetic flux density on the human body side can be reduced, and the influence on the human body can be avoided. In addition, the possibility of causing malfunction of medical equipment such as a pacemaker is also regarded as a problem. It is possible to avoid affecting medical equipment.

Further, as described above, since the transmission output of the wrist-worn biological signal radio device 1 of the present invention is as high as 1 W or more, the current consumption of the battery 24 also increases. For this reason, the solar cell 8 can be connected to the battery 24 for replenishing the current capacity of the battery 24, and can be constantly charged. The solar cell 8 is provided on a part of the surface of the main body 2,
A structure provided below D5 and utilizing transmitted light from LCD5 may be used.

A speaker 6 is connected to the CPU 16 via an audio output unit 20, and a microphone 7 is connected via an audio input unit 21. As described above, when an abnormality is found in the periodic examination data collected at a preset time or when an abnormal signal is transmitted, the medical institution transmits a voice signal or a message signal as medical advice. The wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 receives the signal, and in the case of a voice signal, emits a voice message or an alarm from the speaker 6 via the voice output unit 20. In the case of a message signal, a character message is displayed on the LCD 5 via the LCD drive unit 17. As a response to these messages, the mode switch 9 and the setting switch 10 may return a response, or may speak directly to the microphone 7. If there is no response, it is determined that an emergency has occurred in the patient, and an alarm can be sounded from the speaker 6 or the light-emitting lamp 11 blinks to alert surrounding people to rescue. If the speaker 6 is not desired to be blown when receiving the medical advice, it is possible to know the reception by vibration by selecting the vibrator 22 with the mode switch 9 and the setting switch 10.

Further, as shown in the schematic view of the satellite communication converter and the dedicated parabolic antenna of the present invention in FIG.
It has a function to communicate with a communication satellite by way of a separate satellite communication converter 25 and dedicated parabolic antenna 29, and communicates with a medical institution in a remote place where communication is not possible by simple wireless communication, Mutual communication and telephone conversation can be performed with a person having another wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1. FIG.
1 is a block diagram of a satellite communication converter according to the present invention.
The radio signal transmitted from the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 enters the antenna 26, undergoes signal processing via the data transmitting / receiving unit 35, and is then input to the CPU 36. The CPU 36 performs signal processing, and performs conversion on the converter 37 and the data transmitting / receiving unit 3.
8 and is emitted as a radio wave from a dedicated parabolic antenna 29. The CPU 36 is connected to a data memory unit 39 for storing the signals and a timer unit 40 for generating a reference clock for the CPU 36. A mode switch 27 for setting the mode of the satellite communication converter 25 and a monitor lamp 28 for monitoring the communication state are provided in the interface unit 4.
2 are connected. The power supply unit 41 can receive an AC power supply and a DC power supply, and can be connected to a commercial power supply, a car battery, or the like. A battery 43 is connected to the secondary side of the power supply unit 41 and constantly charges the battery.
It can also be used in places where power cannot be taken.

[0016]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG.
1A and 1B are a front view and a rear view of a wrist-worn biological signal wireless device of the present invention. The wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 is worn on the wrist of a patient who needs home nursing. The wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 has a built-in heart rate sensor 12 as a biological signal sensor, and can also be connected to an external sensor. FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing a state in which an electrocardiographic sensor is connected to the wrist-mounted biological signal wireless device of the present invention. When the electrocardiographic sensor 47 is connected as an external sensor, the signal cable 4 is connected to an external sensor connecting jack (not shown) of the main body 2.
5 and the electrocardiographic sensor 4 via the external sensor plug 44
7 is input. Since the electrocardiographic sensor 47 is provided with the adhesive pad 46, electrocardiogram data can be obtained by attaching the adhesive pad 46 to a certain part of the heart. As a method of inputting a signal from an external sensor to the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1, there is a method of performing signal processing in advance on the sensor side and transmitting data to the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 by weak radio. Either method may be used.

Normally, the wrist-worn biological signal radio apparatus 1 is provided with a heart rate data, an electrocardiogram data when an electrocardiographic sensor 47 is connected as an external sensor, and a patient ID number at a regular medical examination time preset for a medical institution. , Area ID number and patient position data, etc. are automatically transmitted. When an abnormality is found in the data, the data is automatically transmitted each time as an abnormality signal.

The surface of the arm mounted type biological signal radio apparatus 1 has L
A CD 5 is provided. The heart rate data and the electrocardiogram data are displayed on a data display section 5b of the LCD 5, and a time display section 5a
Can display time data.

The periodic examination data or the abnormal signal transmitted from the wrist-worn biological signal radio apparatus 1 to the medical institution are immediately analyzed by the doctor in charge and an information processing system installed in advance. Therefore, if any abnormality is found, if the abnormality is light, a voice signal or a message signal is transmitted to the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 carried by the patient as medical advice. The patient can confirm the reception of the medical advice signal by the sound of the speaker 6 on the surface of the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1 or the vibration by the vibrator 22 built in the main body 2. The operation of the sound of the speaker 6 or the vibration of the vibrator 22 can be selected by the mode switch 9 and the setting switch 10.

In the case of a voice signal, a voice message is emitted from the speaker 6. In the case of a message signal, LC
A text message is displayed on the data display section 5b of D5.
As a response to these messages, the user may directly talk to the doctor in charge of the microphone 7 or return a response using the mode switch 9 and the setting switch 10. If there is no response in a state where the biological signal is fluctuating, it is determined that an emergency has occurred in the patient, and an alarm is sounded from the speaker 6 or the light-emitting lamp 11 blinks to alert the surrounding people to receive rescue. It is possible.

If it is determined from the analysis result of the data that an emergency has already occurred, an alarm is sounded immediately from the speaker 6 or the light-emitting lamp 11 is blinked immediately instead of the medical message to pay attention to the surroundings. And get ready for rescue. Furthermore, medical institutions dispatch nursing care vehicles or ambulances to rescue patients. The position of the patient is searched for based on the GPS car navigation system mounted on the nursing car or the ambulance and the position data of the patient transmitted from the arm-mounted type biological signal wireless device 1 carried by the patient, and rushes to the patient. be able to. The car navigation system is compatible with D-GPS, receives FM multiplex broadcasting, and corrects the position to search for the position of the patient with high accuracy (within an error of several meters).

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a satellite communication converter and a dedicated parabolic antenna according to the present invention. By using such a separate satellite communication converter 25 and dedicated parabolic antenna 29, an arm-mounted biosignal radio is provided. Home medical care can be performed even with a medical institution located in a remote place where radio waves emitted from the device 1 cannot reach. The radio wave emitted from the wrist-worn biological signal radio device 1 enters the antenna 26 of the satellite communication converter 25, converts the signal, and emits the radio wave from the dedicated parabolic antenna 29 toward the communication satellite. Medical institutions located in remote places (including foreign countries) receive the radio waves to transmit treatment information to the nearest medical institution to the patient or transmit a medical message to the patient according to the latest medical treatment. Home medical care is possible. As a method of performing communication with a medical institution located in a remote place where radio waves emitted from the wrist-worn biosignal radio device 1 do not reach, a radio wave zone of the wrist-worn biosignal radio device 1 is used. There is a method of arranging a plurality of wireless relay stations to relay signals, but either method may be used.

In addition, not only home medical care but also mutual communication and call functions can be used. In this case, mutual communication and communication can be performed in the same manner as a mobile phone by providing the other party with the same wrist-worn biological signal wireless device 1, satellite communication converter 25, and dedicated parabolic antenna 29.

[0024]

As described above, the following effects can be obtained by employing the wrist-worn biological signal radio apparatus of the present invention for home care. Since the patient always wears the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device, the heart rate sensor or the external sensor can be used to automatically transmit heart rate data or electrocardiogram data obtained from an electrocardiographic sensor or the like at regular or abnormal times. , Remote monitoring of home medical care. Since the patient always wears the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device, it is easy to grasp the condition of a home patient who is difficult to go to the hospital. Because the location can be easily searched even for patients on the go,
It can be easily rescued even in abnormal situations. For this reason, the restriction on going out of the patient is relaxed, and the living environment of the patient requiring care can be changed. It is possible to receive a voice message or a text message as medical advice from a medical institution according to the content of the periodic examination data or the abnormal signal transmitted from the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device, so that appropriate emergency measures can be taken by the patient or a nearby person. . This makes it easier for patients to become home caregivers, and reduces hospital and hospital expenses for individuals and insurance institutions, as well as personnel and hospital equipment costs for medical institutions. By relaying a separate satellite communication converter and a dedicated parabolic antenna, it is possible to communicate with a medical institution in a remote place, and to perform mutual communication and communication with a person having another wrist-worn biological signal radio device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view and a rear view of a wrist-worn biological signal wireless device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a satellite communication converter and a dedicated parabolic antenna of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a satellite communication converter of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing a state where an electrocardiographic sensor is connected to the wrist-worn biological signal wireless device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Arm-worn biological signal radio apparatus 2 Main body 3 Band 4 Antenna 5 LCD 5a Time display section 5b Data display section 6 Speaker 7 Microphone 8 Solar cell 9 Mode switch 10 Setting switch 11 Light emitting lamp 12 Heart rate sensor 13 Battery holder 14 Data transmission / reception section 15 FM wave receiving unit 16 CPU 17 LCD driving unit 18 Data memory unit 19 Timer unit 20 Audio output unit 21 Audio input unit 22 Vibrator 23 Interface unit 24 Battery 25 Satellite communication converter 26 Antenna 27 Mode switch 28 Monitor lamp 29 Dedicated parabolic antenna 30 Reflector 31 Waveguide 32 Support 33 Fixing stand 34 Coaxial cable 35 Data transmission / reception unit 36 CPU 37 Converter 38 Data transmission / reception unit 39 Data memory unit 40 Timer unit 41 Power supply unit Socket 42 interface unit 43 battery 44 external sensor plug 45 signal cable 46 adhesive pad 47 electrocardiographic sensor

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI H04B 7/26 H04B 7/26 E H04Q 7/14 103E 7/20 H04Q 7/04 Z

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. It comprises a main body (2) and a band (3),
The main body (2) incorporates a wireless data transmission / reception means, a data display means, a voice input / output means, an alarm means, a control means, an interface means for inputting signals from switches and sensors, and the like. 2) The patient has a device having a built-in antenna inside, and the data obtained by arithmetically processing the biological signal from the sensor is periodically transmitted to the medical institution by simple wireless communication. An arm-mounted biological signal radio device, having a function of receiving an instruction. 2. It has a function of receiving a GPS signal and a function of receiving a D-GPS compatible FM multiplex broadcast as wireless data transmission / reception means, and when a patient falls down or goes missing due to wandering or the like. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a function of searching for the position of the patient with high accuracy based on the position information of the patient transmitted from the wireless data transmitting / receiving means and easily rescuing the patient. Wrist-mounted biological signal wireless device. 3. A medical institution which has a function of communicating with a communication satellite by way of a wireless data transmitting / receiving means and a separate satellite communication transmitting / receiving means, and which is located in a remote place where communication is not possible by simple wireless communication. 3. The wrist-worn biological signal wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the device has a function of performing communication and mutual communication and communication with a person having another wireless data transmitting / receiving means. 4. When receiving an instruction from a medical institution, a function of notifying the patient of an incoming call by voice, alarm, vibration, or the like, and an alarm and a warning when the patient is determined to be in a dangerous state because there is no response to the instruction. 4. The wrist-worn biological signal radio device according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting means can alert a person around the patient and receive rescue.