KR20210064836A - Apparatus for measuring blood pressure and method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus and method for measuring blood pressure are disclosed. The blood pressure measuring device according to the present invention may include a sensor.

Description

Blood pressure measuring device and method {APPARATUS FOR MEASURING BLOOD PRESSURE AND METHOD THEREFOR}

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for measuring blood pressure, and more particularly, to a portable blood pressure measurement apparatus and method.

Hypertension, which is a representative chronic disease and a major cause of cardiovascular disease, increased by more than 6% in the two years from 2014 to 2016 in Korea. The number of patients with hypertension as the main disease is also on the rise, increasing by 6.1% over two years to 5.55 million in 2014, 5.68 million in 2015, and 5.89 million in 2016.

Although the average blood pressure of the Korean adult population has hardly changed in the past 10 years, the number of people suffering from hypertension has continuously increased due to the aging of the population, and is estimated to exceed 11 million.

The number of people diagnosed with hypertension at medical institutions tripled from 3 million in 2002 to 8.9 million in 2016, and the number of people who were prescribed antihypertensive drugs more than tripled from 2.5 million to 8.2 million.

Among the hypertensive patients, the proportion of those aged 65 and over increased from 34% in 2002 to 46% in 2016, and the proportion of those receiving hyperlipidemia treatment also increased rapidly from 25% to 57%.

In general, hypertension refers to when the systolic blood pressure is 140 mmHg or more or the diastolic blood pressure is 90 mmHg or more. It can also decrease kidney function and increase the risk of blindness.

When the American Heart Association (ACC) and the Heart Association (AHA) announced new hypertension guidelines at the end of 2017, they lowered the threshold for hypertension by applying the 130-139/80-89 mmHg range, previously classified as prehypertensive, as the first stage of hypertension. In the case of Korea, the standard for hypertension was maintained in the 'Korea Hypertension Medical Guidelines 2018', but it was subdivided into attentional blood pressure (120-129, <80) and prehypertensive stage (130-139, 80-89), and Beware of complications.

Management of optimal blood pressure is the most effective way to prevent serious complications such as myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, and renal failure, but blood pressure has a high displacement depending on location, time, and behavioral environment, so continuous measurement (24 hours/7 days) The need for is emerging. It is widely known that cardiovascular diseases and complications caused by blood pressure are a very major cause of death, and various studies are being conducted to detect abnormal signs of blood pressure to prevent them.

It is an object of the present invention to solve the above problems, to provide a portable blood pressure measuring apparatus and method.

In order to solve the above problems, the blood pressure measuring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a sensor.

According to the present invention, since the blood pressure is measured by the portable device, the blood pressure can be measured in real time.

According to the present invention, since the blood pressure is measured by the portable device, the measurement sensor and the posture may be constant.

1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a blood pressure measurement method according to a general method.
2 is a conceptual diagram of a blood pressure measurement system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a conceptual diagram of a portable blood pressure measuring device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a function between a portable device and a blood pressure measuring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a function between a portable device and a blood pressure measuring apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a method for a smart device to acquire a PAT according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a conceptual diagram of a blood pressure measurement system according to another embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a flowchart illustrating a blood pressure measuring method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a health management platform system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
10 is a conceptual diagram of an application according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Since the present invention can have various changes and can have various embodiments, specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to specific embodiments, and it should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Terms such as first, second, etc. may be used to describe various elements, but the elements should not be limited by the terms. The above terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, a first component may be referred to as a second component, and similarly, a second component may also be referred to as a first component. and/or includes a combination of a plurality of related listed items or any of a plurality of related listed items.

When a component is referred to as being “connected” or “connected” to another component, it is understood that the other component may be directly connected or connected to the other component, but other components may exist in between. it should be On the other hand, when it is mentioned that a certain element is "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another element, it should be understood that the other element does not exist in the middle.

The terms used in the present application are only used to describe specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The singular expression includes the plural expression unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the present application, terms such as “comprise” or “have” are intended to designate that a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification exists, but one or more other features It should be understood that this does not preclude the existence or addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Terms such as those defined in a commonly used dictionary should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the related art, and should not be interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in the present application. does not

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In describing the present invention, in order to facilitate the overall understanding, the same reference numerals are used for the same components in the drawings, and duplicate descriptions of the same components are omitted.

1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a blood pressure measurement method according to a general method.

Referring to FIG. 1 , Pulse Arrival Time (PAT) may mean the time it takes for blood from the left ventricle valve to reach other peripheral parts of the body. Electrocardiogram (ECG, electrocardiogram) and photoplethysmogram (PPG, photoplethysmogram) signals may be used for the calculation of PAT. ECG may be an electrical signal that confirms heart activity through an electrode, and PPG may indicate a change in blood vessel volume caused by heart activity through an optical sensor. The R-peak of the ECG signal indicates the time point at which the left ventricle is depolarized. Therefore, the PAT can be confirmed by calculating the time interval to any feature point of the PPG signal. According to the PPG key points, the PAT may be defined differently, and a key point extraction algorithm of the PPG signal and the ECG signal may be implemented in order to automatically extract it from the obtained signal.

2 is a conceptual diagram of a blood pressure measurement system according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of a portable blood pressure measurement apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a portable device according to an embodiment of the present invention It is a conceptual diagram for explaining a function between and a blood pressure measuring apparatus, and FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a function between a portable device and a blood pressure measuring apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

2 to 5 , the blood pressure measurement system according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a portable blood pressure measurement apparatus 210 and a smart device 220 .

The portable blood pressure measuring device 210 includes a photoplethesmogram (PPG) sensor 211, an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor 212, an amplifier 213, a filter 214, an analog digital converter 215, a control module ( 216 ), a power module 217 , a communication module 218 , and a Light Emitting Diode (LED) 219 .

The PPG sensor 211 and the ECG sensor 212 may be plural. For example, as shown in FIG. 5 , there may be two PPG sensors 211 and four ECG sensors 212 . The PPG sensor 211 may sense a change in the volume of blood vessels due to cardiac activity. The ECG sensor 212 may sense the activity of the heart. The PPG sensor 211 and the ECG sensor 212 may generate electrical signals based on the sensing result. The electrical signals may be analog electrical signals. The PPG sensor 211 and the ECG sensor 212 may transmit electrical signals to the amplifier 213 .

The amplifier 213 may receive electrical signals from the PPG sensor 211 and the ECG sensor 212 . The amplifier may amplify electrical signals. The amplifier 213 may transmit the amplified electrical signals to the filter 214 . The filter 214 may receive the amplified electrical signals from the amplifier 213 . Filter 214 may receive the amplified electrical signals. The filter 214 may filter the amplified electrical signals. The filter 214 may transmit the filtered electrical signals to the analog-to-digital converter 215 .

The analog-to-digital converter 215 may receive the filtered electrical signals from the filter 214 . The analog-to-digital converter 215 may convert the filtered electrical signals into digital signals. The analog-to-digital converter 215 may transmit digital signals to the control module 216 .

The control module 216 may receive digital signals from the analog-to-digital converter 215 . The control module 216 may receive information about power from the power module 217 . The control module 216 may transmit power-related information and digital signals to the smart device 220 through the communication module 218 . Also, the control module 216 may control the operation of the LED 219 . The communication module 218 may communicate with the smart device 220 using a Bluetooth method.

The smart device 220 may receive information about digital signals and power from the communication module 218 . The smart device 220 may acquire a pulse arrival time (PAT) based on digital signals. The smart device 220 may acquire the PAT in the following way. PAT may refer to the time it takes for blood from the left ventricle valve to reach other peripheral parts of the body.

6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a method for a smart device to acquire a PAT according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6 , the R-peak of the ECG signal indicates a time point at which the left ventricle is depolarized. Therefore, the PAT can be obtained by calculating the time interval to any feature point of the PPG signal.

Referring back to FIGS. 2 to 5 , the smart device 220 may measure blood pressure based on the acquired PAT, digital signals, and information about power.

7 is a conceptual diagram of a blood pressure measurement system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7 , a blood pressure measuring system according to another embodiment of the present invention may include a first blood pressure measuring device 710 , a second blood pressure measuring device 720 , and a smart device 730 . The second blood pressure measuring device 720 and the smart device 730 may be configured the same as or similar to the blood pressure measuring device 210 and the smart device 220 of FIG. 1 . The first blood pressure measuring device 710 may be a pressurized blood pressure monitor, and the second blood pressure measuring device 720 may be a non-pressurized blood pressure monitor. The blood pressure measurement system may measure blood pressure in the following way.

8 is a flowchart illustrating a blood pressure measurement method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The pressurized blood pressure monitor, non-pressurized blood pressure monitor, and external device of FIG. 8 may be configured the same as or similar to those of the first blood pressure measurement apparatus 710 , the second blood pressure measurement apparatus 720 , and the smart device 730 of FIG. 7 .

Referring to FIG. 8 , the pressure-type blood pressure monitor may sense blood pressure using a pressure sensor ( S801 ). The pressurized blood pressure monitor may generate an electrical signal based on a sensing result of blood pressure. The electrical signal may be an analog signal. The pressurized blood pressure monitor may process an electrical signal ( S802 ). The pressurized blood pressure monitor may process the electrical signal by amplifying and filtering the electrical signal. The pressure-type blood pressure monitor may perform analog-to-digital conversion of the processed electrical signal (S803). The pressure-type blood pressure monitor may process a digital signal (S804). The pressurized blood pressure monitor may calculate the blood pressure based on the digital signal (S805). The pressurized blood pressure monitor may transmit information on the calculated blood pressure to an external device (S806).

The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may sense a change in blood vessel volume and cardiac activity through an ECG sensor and a PPG sensor (S807). The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may generate electrical signals based on the sensing result. The electrical signals may be analog signals.

The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may process an electrical signal (S808). The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may process electrical signals by amplifying and filtering the electrical signals. The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may perform analog-to-digital conversion of the processed electrical signal (S809). The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may process digital signals ( S810 ). The non-pressurized blood pressure monitor may transmit the processed digital signals to an external device (S811).

The external device may receive information on the calculated blood pressure from the pressurized blood pressure monitor, and may receive digital signals from the non-pressurized blood pressure monitor (S812). The external device may detect the ECG feature point and the PPG feature point based on the digital signals received from the non-pressurized blood pressure monitor (S813). The external device may calculate the blood pressure based on the detected feature points (S814). The external device may correct the calculated blood pressure (S815). The external device may display the corrected blood pressure through the display (S816).

Meanwhile, the external device may measure the body composition based on the digital signals received in step S812 . In this case, steps S813 to S814 may be omitted, and in step S816, the external device may display the blood pressure and body composition through the display.

9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a health management platform system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram of an application according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9 , the health management platform system according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a portable blood pressure measurement apparatus 910 , a smart device 920 , and a server 930 . The portable blood pressure measuring apparatus 910 and the smart device 920 of FIG. 9 may be configured the same as or similar to the portable blood pressure measuring apparatus 210 and the smart device 220 of FIG. 2 .

The portable blood pressure measuring apparatus 910 may obtain information on body composition and information on blood pressure. The portable blood pressure measuring apparatus may transmit body composition information and blood pressure information to the smart device 920 .

The smart device 920 may receive body composition information and blood pressure information from the portable blood pressure measurement apparatus 910 . The smart device 920 may measure the body composition and blood pressure based on the information on the body composition and the information on the blood pressure.

The smart device 920 may measure the body composition and blood pressure using the application shown in FIG. 10 . The smart device 920 may apply an application internal function module so that the body composition measurement signal and the blood pressure measurement signal do not collide with each other. That is, the body composition measurement function and the blood pressure measurement function may operate smoothly in the application. The application may include a pressure-type calibration function for measuring blood pressure. In addition, the user can directly input the measured blood pressure into the application. The smart device 920 may transmit user data diet/user data/device collection data to the server. The smart device 920 may communicate with the server 930 using a general messenger app and application. In addition, the smart device 920 may interwork with external data using an application.

The server 930 may receive user data, diet/user data, and device collection data from the smart device 920 . The server 930 may check whether data is transmitted or not, and may store data received from the smart device 920 . The server 930 may analyze data received from the smart device 920 through an analysis function. In addition, the server 930 may merge the data received from the smart device 920 , and may derive a result for the health state based on the data received from the smart device 920 . The server 930 may feed back a result of the health state to the smart device 920 .

The methods according to the present invention may be implemented in the form of program instructions that can be executed by various computer means and recorded in a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may include program instructions, data files, data structures, and the like, alone or in combination. The program instructions recorded on the computer-readable medium may be specially designed and configured for the present invention, or may be known and available to those skilled in the art of computer software.

Examples of computer-readable media include hardware devices specially configured to store and carry out program instructions, such as ROM, RAM, flash memory, and the like. Examples of program instructions include not only machine language codes such as those generated by a compiler, but also high-level language codes that can be executed by a computer using an interpreter or the like. The hardware device described above may be configured to operate as at least one software module to perform the operations of the present invention, and vice versa.

Claims (1)

A blood pressure measuring device comprising a sensor.

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