JP2002224092A - Biological monitoring system and optical measurement probe - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To measure the state of a monitored person without any sense of restraint to the monitored person even during work such as driving a moving body, to ensure safety for the monitored person, and to use other devices by a device being operated. Improve safety against SOLUTION: A light guide member for irradiating light to a part of the body of a passenger such as a driver of a moving body, a passenger, and receiving light from the body of the passenger, and from the light guide member to the passenger. A detector 204 that detects the light that has passed through a part of the occupant's body and a signal processing unit 208 that processes a signal from the detector and performs signal processing of a signal resulting from a living body; A stimulator 210 for notifying a passenger based on a signal from the signal processing unit is provided inside the moving body.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a living body monitoring system using an optical living body measurement method and an optical measurement probe used for the same, and more particularly, to the state of a living body measured using the optical living body measurement method. Based on the output signal shown, for example, the body condition of the driver or passenger while driving the vehicle is detected, and based on the detection result, an alarm for dozing is issued, and the environment is controlled so as to wake up, or to an external engine. The present invention relates to a living body monitoring system capable of performing processing such as reporting, and an optical measurement probe used for the system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a prior art relating to monitoring the state of a living body using an optical living body measurement method and controlling various devices around the living body based on the result, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-149894, etc. Are known.

[0003] In this prior art, at least one light irradiating means provided on the head and arranged on the living skin, and the light irradiating the living skin to collect the light passing through the living skin. To emit light, comprising at least one light condensing means disposed on the living skin, measuring the intensity of light passing through the living body condensed by the light condensing means, monitoring the state of the living body based on the measurement result, and Thus, a device near the living body is controlled.

[0004]

The prior art described above is
The optical fiber that constitutes the light irradiating means and the condensing means must be placed on the skin on the head, so that the subject to be monitored during work is wearing a helmet equipped with the optical fiber. And the body is restrained, which is troublesome for the person to be monitored.

Further, the above-mentioned prior art does not sufficiently disclose, for example, control such as detecting the physical condition of a driver or a passenger while driving a vehicle and controlling the environment. Safety for drivers while driving,
There is a need for further improvements in terms of ensuring safety against other vehicles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and to measure the state of a monitored person without occupying the monitored person even during work. It is an object of the present invention to provide a living body monitoring device capable of improving safety and safety of another device by an apparatus during operation, and an optical measurement probe used for the same.

[0007]

According to the present invention, there is provided a living body monitoring system for monitoring a physical condition of a occupant of a moving object, wherein a part of the occupant's body is irradiated with light, An optical waveguide member that receives light from the body, a detector that detects light that is emitted to the occupant from the optical waveguide member and passes through a part of the occupant's body, and a signal from the detector. This is achieved by providing, inside the moving body, a signal processing unit that processes and performs signal processing of a signal resulting from a living body, and a stimulating device that notifies a passenger based on a signal from the signal processing unit. .

According to the present invention, by providing the aforementioned means, the biological information such as the driver of the moving object, the pulse, breathing, and brain activity of the passenger is monitored to determine the physical information of the driver and the passenger. Can warn the driver and passengers, control the environment, control the moving body, notify the outside, and issue warnings if necessary.If only the safety of the driver and passengers is available, In addition, the safety of the moving body can be ensured.

Further, the object is to provide an optical measurement probe used for detecting a body condition by light, wherein the probe is formed in a semicircular shape and has a support hole having a long hole shape in a longitudinal direction. Member, a stretchable belt connected to an end of the spring member, and a fiber holding member that irradiates light to the subject attached to the support hole and receives light from the subject. And eyeglasses or a display device attached to the spring member.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of a living body monitoring system and an optical measurement probe according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. The embodiment of the present invention described below detects the state of the body by monitoring the living body of a driver or a passenger of a vehicle that is a moving body, and issues an alarm for dozing according to the detection result. This is an example in which the present invention is applied to a system capable of performing processing such as controlling an environment to wake up or notifying an external organization.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the operating principle of the optical living body measuring device used in the present invention. Before describing the embodiment of the present invention, first, the operating principle of the optical living body measuring device shown in FIG. explain. In FIG. 1, 1-1 and 1-2 are light sources, 2-1 and 2-2 are optical fibers, 3 is an optical directional coupler, 4-1 and 4-2 are light source driving devices, 5 is an irradiation optical fiber, 6 is a person to be monitored, 7 is an optical fiber for focusing, 8 is a photodetector, 9-1 and 9-2 are phase detectors, 10-1, 1
Reference numeral 0-2 denotes an A / D converter.

The optical living body measuring device shown in FIG. 1 can use light to measure changes in the oxidized and reduced hemoglobin concentrations in the living body accompanying the activity of the brain function, the state of the pulse due to blood flow, and the state of respiration. It was made. The example shown in FIG. 1 uses two wavelengths of light for irradiation,
The change in oxyhemoglobin concentration and the change in reduced hemoglobin concentration can be measured independently, and by examining these changes along the time axis, the pulse rate per unit time, its magnitude, The respiration rate and its size can be measured. FIG. 1 shows that two types of wavelengths are used and the light irradiation position and the light detection position are set at one place.
In addition, by providing a plurality of light irradiation positions and light detection positions, the measurement accuracy can be improved, and the concentration of a substance other than oxidized and reduced hemoglobin can be measured.

In FIG. 1, light having a specific wavelength is emitted from light sources 1-1 and 1-2, and is incident on optical fibers 2-1 and 2-2, respectively. The wavelength from the light source 1-1 is, for example, λ1, and the wavelength from the light source 1-2 is λ2. These wavelengths are selected from the range from 400 nm to 2400 nm. In particular, when measuring hemodynamics in a living body, it is desirable to select from the range of 700 nm to 1100 nm in order to increase accuracy. This is because light in this wavelength band has high light transmission inside a living body with blood flow. Light having a wavelength longer than this increases absorption by moisture, and light in a wavelength band lower than this becomes inconvenient because hemoglobin blood itself increases absorption.

The light sources 1-1 and 1-2 have different frequencies f1 and f by the light source driving circuits 4-1 and 4-2, respectively.
2, the intensity is modulated. Each drive circuit 4-1 and 4-2
The frequency signals from
The signals are input to the phase detectors 9-1 and 9-2. This is because the oxidized and reduced hemoglobin concentration values are separately extracted from the wavelength at which the oxidized and reduced hemoglobin concentration change values are mixed.

The optical fibers 2-1 and 2-2 are connected to the optical directional coupler 3, and light from the light sources 1-1 and 1-2 is mixed and made incident on the irradiation optical fiber 5.
Light is emitted from the irradiation optical fiber 5 from the face of the person 6 to be monitored, and light passing through the living body is collected by the light collecting optical fiber 7.
Thereby, a difference in color due to a difference in the concentration of oxidized and reduced hemoglobin flowing in blood is measured. The artery has a high oxygen saturation (the ratio of oxygenated hemoglobin in the total hemoglobin), but the vein has a lower oxygen saturation than the artery.

The distance between the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the light collecting optical fiber 7 is 10 mm to 50 m depending on the measurement position.
m. The light passing through the living body condensed by the light collecting optical fiber 7 is incident on the photodetector 8, and the light passing through the living body at each light condensing position is photoelectrically converted and amplified. The photodetector 8 can be configured using a photomultiplier tube or an avalanche photodiode. The output signal from the photodetector 8 is divided into two and input to the phase detectors 9-1 and 9-2. Each phase detector 9-1,
In the signal input to 9-2, the irradiated two-wavelength living body passing light is mixed, but each of the phase detectors 9-1 and 9-2
Are input with reference frequencies from the drive circuits 4-1 and 4-2, respectively.
The phase detector 9-2 can separate and detect the intensity of light from the light source 1 through the living body and the phase detector 9-2.

The living body passing light intensity signals detected by the phase detectors 9-1 and 9-2 are input to A / D converters 10-1 and 10-2, respectively, and are converted into digital signals.
It is taken into the arithmetic unit 11. The computing device 11 computes the sum of the oxyhemoglobin concentration and the reduced hemoglobin concentration representing the oxyhemoglobin concentration, the reduced hemoglobin concentration, and the blood volume as biological information from the captured time-series signals of the transmitted light intensity of the two wavelengths. Further, the arithmetic unit 11 checks the above-mentioned change along the time axis, and calculates the pulse rate per unit time,
The size, the respiratory rate per unit time, and the size are calculated as biological information.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a frequency characteristic of a signal obtained by Fourier-transforming an example of a signal measured by the optical living body measuring apparatus shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 shows an example of the head of an infant during sleep (rest). It is an example of the measurement signal of a part. Hereinafter, this will be described.

As shown in FIG. 2, the measurement signal includes
Heart rate (or pulse wave) and brain activity and respiratory frequency domain signals are included. As can be understood from FIG. 2, the heartbeat (or pulse wave) has a frequency band different from that of the brain activity and the respiration frequency, and can be separated by a simple filter without taking any special measures. is there. However, regarding the brain activity and respiration, the frequency bands are close to each other, and it is difficult to separate them depending on the subject. In this case, by activating the brain activity by a special stimulus, for example, giving light to the eyes, hearing a specific sound, or the like, by evaluating the difference from the signal at rest as shown in FIG. Thus, it is possible to separate the component of brain activity from the component of respiration.

By further performing signal processing on the above-described biological information calculated by the arithmetic unit 11, the physical condition of the monitored person, for example, signs of nervous attack, loss of consciousness, arousal, drowsiness, sleep, Unpleasantness, panic,
It is possible to identify a state such as drunkness and drunkness.

The embodiment of the present invention controls various devices in a vehicle based on various information obtained by the above-described living body monitoring method when an abnormality occurs in the physical condition of a driver or the like. This makes it possible to ensure the safety of the driver and the passenger, and also to ensure the safety of other surrounding vehicles.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a living body monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention which is installed and used in a vehicle. This will be described below. In FIG. 3, 201 is a vehicle, 202 is a driver, 203 is a fellow passenger, 204 is a detector, 205 is a light source, 206 is a control device, 207 is various sensors, 208 is a signal processing unit, 20
9 is a vehicle body control device, 210 is a stimulation control device, 211 is a communication device, 212 is a monitor, 213 speaker, and 214 is an air conditioner.

In FIG. 3, the detector 204 and the light source 20
5, the control device 206, and the optical fiber indicated by the solid line and the dotted line constitute the optical biometric device shown in FIG.
In the example shown in the figure, the irradiation optical fiber and the condensing optical fiber indicated by solid lines and dotted lines from the optical biological measurement device extend to the forehead, back, and hands holding the steering of the driver 202 of the vehicle 201. Passenger's forehead, back, neck,
It extends to the occiput and temporal region, and is attached to each position. The irradiation optical fiber and the condensing optical fiber extending to the forehead, back, neck, and head do not need to be simultaneously attached to a plurality of positions, and may be one of them.
In this case, the optical fiber is incorporated in the backrest or the headrest, so that the person wearing the optical fiber from the back, the neck or the back of the head to the temporal region does not make the monitored person feel that the person wears the optical fiber. In this case as well, the state of the body can be detected in the same manner as when the body is worn on the forehead. The fiber worn by the hand holding the steering wheel is used in combination with a pressure sensor, a body electric conductivity measuring device (generally called a lie detector), or the like, so that the degree of tension of the driver 202 or the like can be improved. It is effective to detect as high-precision information of a physical condition. In addition, the optical fiber that goes to the head can increase the accuracy of determining the state of the living body by using the detection of brain waves in combination. The mounting state of the irradiation optical fiber and the condensing optical fiber on the forehead will be described later.

The system according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG.
1 from the various sensors 207 for detecting the state of the indoor environment, for example, temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, and the like, and the control device 206 constituting a part of the optical biometric device, the arithmetic device 11 described with reference to FIG. Calculated and output oxyhemoglobin concentration, sum of oxyhemoglobin concentration and reduced hemoglobin concentration representing reduced hemoglobin concentration and blood volume, pulse rate per unit time, its size, respiratory rate per unit time,
Receiving the information of their size and time change and the information from the sensor 207, the physical condition of the driver 202 and the passenger 203 as the monitored person, for example, a precursor of a nervous attack, loss of consciousness, arousal, drowsiness, sleep A signal processing unit 208 for identifying a state such as unpleasantness, discomfort, panic, drunkness, sickness, etc., and an alarm to the driver 202 of the vehicle 201 based on a signal indicating a physical condition issued by the signal processing unit 208, or The monitor 212, the speaker 213, and the air conditioner 2 are used to change the indoor environment to encourage the driver 202 to wake up.
The vehicle 201 is moved to the road side when the stimulator 210 controlling the 14 and the like and the physical condition of the driver 202 and the like are determined to be in a state that is too bad to continue driving or a dangerous state. It is provided with a vehicle control device 209 for stopping the vehicle and a communication device 211 for notifying other vehicles running in the vicinity of the occurrence of such a situation or for notifying a hospital, police or the like. .

The signal processing unit 208 identifies a physical condition such as a precursor of a nervous attack, loss of consciousness, arousal, drowsiness, sleep, unpleasantness, panic, drunkness, or drunkness based on the biological information. The details of the method are disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-149894 described in the section of the prior art, and the description thereof is omitted here.

In the above description, the inner speaker 213 of the device controlled by the stimulator 210 may be a speaker such as a radio. The stimulator 210 emits an alarm sound from the speaker 213 when the driver 202 is in a state of drowsiness or in a state of discomfort, or increases the volume when the driver 202 is a radio speaker. To wake up, or control the air conditioner 214 to create a comfortable indoor environment. Although not shown, the driver 202
Providing a sprayer capable of spraying a small amount of water on a part of the face of the driver 202, and a device for spraying water under the control of the stimulator 210, which provides an electrical stimulation to a part of the body of the driver 202, Giving a stimulus under the control of the stimulator 210,
A method of providing a device for applying vibration to the seat, and causing the seat to vibrate under the control of the stimulator 210 may be used. In addition, flashing light, or
By blowing a strong wind from the air conditioner 214, the driver 202
May be awakened.

If the information on the physical condition of the driver 202 or the like from the signal processing unit 208 indicates a sign of a nervous attack, loss of consciousness, sleep, panic, etc. The communication device 211 performs control of the vehicle such as safely stopping on the roadside, and the communication device 211 controls the driver 202 and the like from the signal processing unit 208 when the vehicle body control device 209 controls the vehicle 201 as described above. When the information on the physical condition indicates an emergency condition such as a sign of a nervous attack, loss of consciousness, etc., the situation is transmitted to other vehicles traveling in the vicinity, and a notification is made to a hospital, police, or the like.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the processing operation in the embodiment of the present invention as described above.
This will be described. Note that here, the driver 202
The description will be made assuming that the body condition of the subject is monitored.

(1) First, the optical living body measuring device described with reference to FIG. 1 measures the state of the living body of the driver 202, and outputs various biological information from the control device 206 (step 30).
1).

(2) The signal processing unit 208
Based on the various types of biological information received from 6, the physical condition of the driver is grasped, and as a result, it is determined whether the physical condition is good. If this determination is in a good state, the process returns to step 301 and repeats the process. Note that the measurement process in step 301 is executed at regular intervals (steps 302 and 303).

(3) In the determination of step 303, the driver 2
02 is not in a good state, that is, when it is determined that the driver is in various physical states that are not awake, as described above, the signal processing unit 208 As described in (1), a stimulus for arousing the driver is given to give an alarm (step 304).

(4) Adding "1" to a counter which is initially set to "0" for counting the number of alarms issued, until the counter value reaches a predetermined value "n". Returning to the process of 301, the process is continued. The value obtained by adding “1” to the counter is the number of repetitions at which the driver 202 does not enter the awake state even when the driver 202 is stimulated, and is determined in advance by the type of the physical condition of the driver 202. For example, when the driver is in a physical condition indicating a precursor of a nervous attack, n = 1 is set, and when the driver is in a physical condition indicating that the driver is drowsy, n = 5 and the like. Determined. Note that the value of n is
02 can be changed according to the magnitude of the stimulus to be given, or the magnitude of the stimulus can be increased as the number of times of stimulation is repeated. When n is actually set, it may be set not only as the number of times but also as a time (step 305).

(5) If it is determined in step 305 that the driver 202 has not been awake even after the driver 202 has been stimulated n times, the signal processing unit 2
08 notifies the outside via the communication device 211 and instructs the vehicle body control device 209 to safely stop the vehicle. The notification to the outside is made to the hospital, the manager of the guidance system, other vehicles running in the vicinity, pedestrians, and the like. The notification given to other vehicles, pedestrians, and the like traveling in the vicinity may be, for example, a hazard lamp, a warning sound, or the like (steps 306 and 30).
7).

In the above description, the physical condition of the driver 202 is monitored. However, the physical condition of the fellow passenger 203 can be similarly monitored and processed. However, in this case,
It is important to notify the driver 202 of the abnormal condition of the passenger 203 when the passenger 203 is an infant or the like,
It is also possible to only issue an alarm by voice or the like. However, in the case of a moving body without a driver, for example, in a case where only a passenger such as an infant is left alone, it is indispensable to notify the outside.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining another processing operation according to an embodiment of the present invention, which will be described below. Here, the description will be made assuming that the physical condition of the driver 202 is monitored.

The processing in this example includes steps 401 to 40
According to the process 3, first, a certain stimulus is given to the driver 202, and after reacting to the stimulus, the optical biological measurement device described with reference to FIG. 1 measures the state of the living body of the driver 202. . The process of giving a stimulus to the driver 202 is performed by the stimulating device 21 in accordance with an instruction from the signal processing unit 208.
0 is performed. The stimulus in this case may be, for example, blinking light, light vibration, or the like. The processing of steps 404 to 409 after the biological information is obtained in the processing of step 403 corresponds to steps 302 to 3 described with reference to the flow of FIG.
07 is performed in the same manner.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining still another processing operation in one embodiment of the present invention, which will be described below. The processing in this example is performed by the driver 2
02, any physical condition of the passenger 203 may be monitored.

As in the case described with reference to the flow chart shown in FIG. 4, in the processing of steps 501 to 503, the optical biometric device described with reference to FIG.
The state of the living body is measured, and the signal processing unit 208
2 or the physical condition of the passenger 203 is determined. The signal processing unit 208 changes the setting of the air conditioner 214, changes the installation state of the chairs, mirrors, etc., starts music and the like flowing into the room, and sets the radio reception frequency based on the determined physical condition in the process of step 504. Changes in the indoor environment such as changes in the room. The process in this example is effective as a process when the driver 202 or the passenger 203 is in a physical condition that is uncomfortable, or when the driver 202 or the passenger 203 is feeling lightly drowsy.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining still another processing operation according to an embodiment of the present invention, which will be described below. Although the example of the processing up to the above has been described as an example in the case where the vehicle is in the operating state, the example described here is to change the physical condition of the driver before the driver 202 starts driving the vehicle. This is an example in which it is possible to monitor and determine whether or not the vehicle can be operated.

In the processing of FIG. 7, when the driver 202 sits on the seat, the processing of steps 601 to 603 causes the processing of FIG.
As in the case described in the flow shown in FIG.
In the processes 1 to 503, the optical living body measuring device described with reference to FIG.
08 determines the physical condition of the driver 202. Step 6
In the determination of whether the driver's physical condition is in the awake state in 03, if the driver is in the awake state, the signal processing unit 208
Permits the vehicle to be started in step 604. Also, in the determination in step 603, when the driver's physical condition is not awake, for example, when the driver is drunk or drunk, the signal processing unit 208 performs steps 605 and 60.
At step 6, a warning to that effect is issued, and the vehicle cannot be started.

FIGS. 8 and 9 are views for explaining the structure of a head mount formed in eyeglasses used for mounting the irradiation optical fiber and the condensing optical fiber described in FIG. 1 on the forehead. 8 and 9, 71 is a fiber holder, 72 is a head mount main body, 73 is a support hole, 74 is a belt, 75 is a coupling tool, and 81 is a glasstron.

The head mount of the example shown in FIG.
The head mount body 72 is formed by wrapping a springy resin or a springy thin steel strip with the resin, and is formed in a thin headband shape curled in a semicircular shape along the forehead, and is located on the front side of the forehead. A long support hole 73 is provided at a portion of the head mount body 72, and a stretchable and contractible belt 74 made of rubber or the like and a connector 75 are connected to both ends of the head mount body 72. The head mount of this example is a fiber holder 7 for holding an irradiation optical fiber and a condensing optical fiber.
As shown in FIG. 8 (b), two cylindrical support members are connected to each other at a predetermined distance so as to hold both the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7, as shown in FIG. It is configured. A hole is made in the portion of the cylindrical support member where the fiber end face is located, so that light from the fiber end face is emitted toward the forehead, and light from the forehead can enter the fiber end face. Have been. The fiber holder 71 is held in the support hole 73 of the head mount body 72 so that the end face of the fiber faces the forehead when the head mount is mounted.

A driver or a passenger using the head mount wears the head mount configured as described above so that the fiber holder is positioned on the forehead, like a headband. Since the fiber holder 71 is supported by the head mount main body so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the support hole 71, the measurement site can be moved by moving the fiber holder 71 in the longitudinal direction of the support hole. Since the embodiment of the present invention is for monitoring the physical condition of the driver of the vehicle and the fellow passenger, the fiber holder can be measured particularly in the case of the driver and located at a position where it does not interfere with driving. Should be set.

Although the example shown in the figure does not show how to irradiate the irradiating optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7, these fibers are attached to the head mount main body 72 or passed through the inside of the user. It is good to pull out to the back of.

In the example shown in FIG. 8C, the fiber holder 71 is independently configured to hold the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7, respectively.
Also in this case, each fiber holder 71 is used by being attached to the support hole 73 of the head mount main body 72.
In the case of this example, the distance between the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7 can be adjusted to a distance at which measurement can be performed most effectively. Also in this case, the manner of ending the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7 may be the same as in the case described above.

In the example described above, the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7 are attached to the fiber holder 71 so as to be led straight from the fiber holder 71, as shown in FIG. As described above, the fiber holder 71 may be formed in an arc shape, and the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7 may be bent 90 degrees inside the fiber 71 and then drawn out. In this case, the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7
Is easier to clean up.

The head mount of the example shown in FIG. 9 includes a glasstron 81 which is a spectacle type display device, and FIG.
9 is an example of a head mount configured by combining the head mount shown in FIG. The head mount shown in FIG.
Since it is combined with Glasstron or glasses 81 used as a display device of a game machine or the like, even when a passenger such as a child is enjoying a game in a vehicle, the physical condition can be maintained without giving a sense of incongruity. Can be used to monitor. The head mount of the example shown in FIG.
If you use regular display devices or do not use glasses,
The glasstron or the glasses 81 can be removed and used similarly to the head mount shown in FIG.

Although an example of the head mount has been described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, the head mount can have a configuration different from the various examples described. For example, a resin having a spring property or a steel strip having a spring property can be molded with a resin so that the head can be held only by the force of the spring. Further, it may be configured to be attached to a headrest so that the driver can naturally wear it when the driver sits down.

FIG. 10 is a view for explaining the principle of another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a living body monitoring system according to another embodiment of the present invention which is installed and used in a vehicle. This will be described below.
10 and 11, reference numeral 901 denotes a light irradiator; 902, a lens; 903, 905, polarizing plates; 904, a camera;
06 is a memory, 907 is an image processing device, 1001, 10
02 is a scanning circuit.

In the embodiment of the present invention described above, the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7 are mounted on the head mount, and the irradiation optical fiber 5 and the condensing optical fiber 7 are mounted.
The end face of is close to or in contact with the user's forehead,
Even if the head mount is light and can be mounted without discomfort, it will give a certain degree of discomfort in actual use. In addition, the fiber must be laid on the ceiling or the like in the vehicle interior, and the installation requires many man-hours. Another embodiment of the present invention makes it possible to measure the state of a living body without contact.

First, the principle of another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a light irradiator provided on the ceiling of a passenger compartment or the like irradiates the irradiation light as a light beam so as to scan a driver's forehead, and emits light from the forehead. The living body is monitored by detecting the light using a light collector that collects light or using a camera or the like as a light detector.

As shown in FIG. 10, light from a light irradiator 901 irradiates a driver's forehead as a light beam through a lens 902 and a polarizing plate 903. At that time, the light beam
Instead of irradiating only one point, as shown in the figure, irradiation is performed by scanning the forehead in the left-right direction. On the other hand, the camera 904 as a photodetector, from the driver's forehead to the face,
An image is taken through the polarizing plate 905. The polarizing plate 903 provided in the light irradiator 901 and the polarizing plate 905 provided in the camera 904 are necessary for the camera 904 to obtain an image without surface reflection due to polarization different from that of the light source.

The image from the camera 904 is temporarily stored in a memory, and information on a specific area is input to the control device 206 described with reference to FIG. Input to the device 907. The image processing device 907 detects the movement of the driver or the like as a subject, controls the direction of the beam of the light irradiator 901 serving as a light source, so that the light beam comes to a correct position, or , And corrects the body motion such as controlling the direction of the camera 904 so that the measurement area of the biological condition input to the control device 206 is correct. In the above description, the position of the eye of the occupant is extracted, and when the light beam and the position of the eye reach within a predetermined distance, control is performed so as to stop irradiation of the light beam from the light irradiator. It may be.

Next, a specific structure of another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. As can be seen from FIG. 11, the light irradiator 901 and the camera 904 as a light detector are mounted on the ceiling in the vehicle compartment. The scanning circuits 1001 and 1002 connected to these control the scanning of the light beam from the light irradiator 901 and
It controls the direction of 04, and does not need to be provided as an independent unit, and may be provided inside the light irradiation circuit 902 and the camera 904, respectively. Although the memory 906 and the image processing device 907 are illustrated as being installed on the ceiling for the sake of illustration, they may be described elsewhere. It may be provided inside the device 907.

Although not shown in FIG. 11, the control unit 206 and the various sensors 20 are provided in the same manner as described with reference to FIG.
7, signal processing unit 208, body control device 209, stimulating device 210, communication device 211, monitor 212, speaker 2
13. An air conditioner 214 is provided, the state of the living body is measured by the control device 206, and the same processing as that described with reference to FIGS.

Although the above-described embodiment of the present invention has been described as monitoring the physical condition of the driver of a vehicle such as an automobile and the fellow passenger, the present invention relates to the driver of all means of transportation such as an airplane and a train. It can also be applied to monitor the physical condition of the fellow passenger, and while driving these transportation means, determine the sensation that hinders driving, such as sleepiness, fatigue, frustration, redout, blackout, etc. Alerts can be given.

According to the above-described embodiment of the present invention, the physical information of the driver and the fellow passenger is determined by monitoring the biological information such as the pulse, breathing, and brain activity of the driver of the moving body and the fellow passenger. Can warn the driver and passengers, control the environment, control the moving body, notify the outside, and issue warnings as necessary. Therefore, the safety of the moving body can be ensured.

[0059]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to measure the state of a monitored person without occupying the monitored person even during work such as driving a moving body.
It is possible to improve the safety of the monitored person and the safety of the device being operated against other devices.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the operation principle of an optical living body measuring device used in the present invention.

2 is a diagram illustrating a frequency characteristic of a signal after Fourier transforming an example of a signal measured by the optical biological measurement device illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a living body monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention, which is installed and used in a vehicle.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a processing operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating another processing operation according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating still another processing operation according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating still another processing operation according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram (part 1) for explaining the configuration of a head mount used for mounting an irradiation optical fiber and a condensing optical fiber on a forehead;

FIG. 9 is a diagram (part 2) for explaining the configuration of a head mount used for mounting the irradiation optical fiber and the condensing optical fiber on the forehead;

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the principle of another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a living body monitoring system according to another embodiment of the present invention installed and used in a vehicle.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1-1, 1-2 Light source 2-1, 2-2 Optical fiber 3 Optical directional coupler 4-1 and 4-2 Light source driving device 5 Irradiation optical fiber 6 Monitored person 7 Light collecting optical fiber 8 Photodetector 9 -1, 9-2 Phase detector 10-1, 10-2 A / D converter 201 Vehicle 202 Driver 203 Passenger 204 Detector 205 Light source 206 Control device 207 Various sensors 208 Signal processing unit 209 Body control device 210 Stimulation Control device 211 Communication device 212 Monitor 213 Speaker 214 Air conditioner 71 Fiber holder 72 Head mount body 73 Support hole 74 Belt 75 Connecting device 81 Glasstron or glasses 901 Light irradiator 902 Lens 903, 905 Polarizer 904 Camera 906 Memory 907 Image processing Apparatus 1001, 1002 Scanning circuit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) // G08G 1/16 A61B 5/14 310 (72) Inventor Mitsuru Onuma 1-280 Higashi Koikebo, Kokubunji-shi, Tokyo Within the Hitachi, Ltd.Design Research Institute Co., Ltd. Inside Hitachi Basic Research Laboratories (72) Inventor Hideaki Koizumi 2520 Akanuma, Hatoyama-cho, Hiki-gun, Saitama Prefecture F-term inside Hitachi Ltd. Basic Research Laboratories (Reference) KK02 KK04 MM01 MM09 MM10 NN01 4C017 AB06 AC27 AC28 4C038 KK01 KL05 KL07 KM00 KX01 PP05 PQ03 PS00 5H180 AA 01 CC01 CC04 CC07 EE08 FF13 LL01 LL02 LL07 LL08 LL20

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A living body monitoring system for monitoring a physical condition of a occupant of a moving body, wherein the optical waveguide member irradiates a part of the occupant's body with light and receives light from the occupant's body.
A detector that detects light that is emitted to the occupant from the optical waveguide member and passes through a part of the occupant's body, and processes a signal from the detector to perform signal processing of a signal resulting from a living body. A living body monitoring device, comprising: a signal processing unit for performing the processing; and a stimulating device that notifies a passenger based on a signal from the signal processing unit, inside the moving body. 2. The living body monitoring system according to claim 1, further comprising a wireless communication unit that reports a signal from the signal processing unit to the outside. 3. The living body monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein a signal from the signal processing unit is given as a speed control command to a control unit that controls the speed of the moving body. 4. The living body monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein a temperature and humidity environment in the moving body is controlled by a signal from the signal processing unit. 5. A living body monitoring system for monitoring a physical condition of a occupant of a moving body, wherein the light irradiator moves in accordance with the movement of the occupant and irradiates a light beam to a part of the occupant's body, A light collector that collects a light beam that has passed through a part of the body of a person, a detector that converts the light beam from the light collector into an electrical system and detects the signal, and a signal from the detector. A signal processing unit that processes and performs signal processing of a signal caused by the living body, and a stimulating device that notifies a passenger based on a signal from the signal processing unit, is provided inside the moving body. Biological monitoring device. 6. The light irradiator extracts a position of an occupant's eye, and controls the irradiation of the light beam to stop when the light beam and the position of the eye reach within a predetermined distance. The living body monitoring system according to claim 5, wherein the monitoring is performed. 7. A living body monitoring system for monitoring a physical condition of a occupant of a moving object, wherein the moving body scans a part of the occupant's body and moves in accordance with the movement of the occupant. A light irradiator having a lens that irradiates a part of the light beam, a lens that squeezes the light into a beam, and a first polarizing plate that aligns the polarization direction of the light, and a light beam that has passed through a part of the occupant's body A camera serving as a detector for detecting light passing through a second polarizer that allows light having a specific polarization direction to pass therethrough, and processing a signal from the camera serving as the detector to process a signal resulting from a living body And a stimulator that notifies a passenger based on a signal from the signal processing unit within the moving body. 8. The signal according to claim 1, wherein the signal indicating physical information obtained from the signal detected by the detector is a concentration of oxyhemoglobin and a concentration of reduced hemoglobin in blood. The living body monitoring system according to claim 1. 9. A light-measuring probe used for detecting a body condition by light, a spring member formed in a semicircular shape and having a support hole having a long hole shape in a longitudinal direction, and the spring member. An expandable / contractible belt connected to the end of the optical fiber, a fiber holding member that irradiates light to the subject attached to the support hole and receives light from the subject, and is attached to the spring member. An optical measurement probe, comprising: a pair of glasses. 10. A light-measuring probe used for detecting a state of a body by light, a spring member having a semicircular arc-shaped support hole having a long hole shape in a longitudinal direction, and the spring member. An expandable / contractible belt connected to the end of the optical fiber, a fiber holding member that irradiates light to the subject attached to the support hole and receives light from the subject, and is attached to the spring member. And a display device for displaying the obtained image.