Light treatment device

Abstract

A phototherapy device (1) is provided with: a cylindrical housing (4); a laser light source (6) that is disposed inside the housing (4) and that is configured so as to irradiate a target site with laser light from the end of the housing; an exhaust port (12) provided on the side surface of the housing (4); and a shielding part (20) provided on the outside of the housing (4) so as to shield reflected light (R) that is reflected light (R) of the laser light that is non-intentionally reflected inside the housing (4) and that is emitted to the outside via the exhaust port (12).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to light therapy devices. Background Art

[0002] Phototherapy devices that irradiate a target site of a living body tissue with laser light for the purpose of treatment or treatment assistance such as promotion of blood circulation and metabolism are well known (Patent Document 1).

[0003] The phototherapy device described in Patent Document 1 comprises: a cylindrical frame; a laser light source, which is arranged inside the frame and is configured to irradiate the target area with laser light from the end of the frame; an exhaust port, which is provided on the side of the frame; an air intake port, which is provided on the side of the frame on the opposite side to the exhaust port; and an air supply device, which supplies air to the inside of the frame via the air intake port. Prior Art Literature Patent Literature

[0004] Patent document 1: International Publication No. 2021 / 132271. Summary of the invention Problems to be solved by the invention

[0005] The phototherapy device described in Patent Document 1, although not envisioned in the usual use scenario, has the possibility of inserting a rod-shaped insert having a light-reflecting portion such as a reflector into the interior of the frame through an exhaust port directly connected to the outside, for example, out of interest. In this case, the laser light may be reflected to the outside of the frame through the exhaust port. If the reflected light of the laser is irradiated to a living tissue that is not related to the original treatment, it may cause adverse effects such as burns, and if it is further irradiated to the eyes, it may also cause blindness. In particular, the first reflected light (hereinafter referred to as reflected light R) that is reflected and leaked from a component with a high reflectivity such as a metal or a reflector is different from the second reflected light that is reflected and leaked from a resin component with a low reflectivity such as a frame or a shielding component, and has a greater impact on the living body. On the other hand, if the exhaust port is made extremely small or does not have an exhaust port itself in order to prevent the insertion of the insert, the interior of the frame may become hot, and then the target area may become hot.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a phototherapy device configured so that even if laser light is unintentionally reflected inside a housing, the reflected light cannot be directly visually recognized from the outside. Solutions to Solve Problems

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a phototherapy device, characterized in that it comprises: a cylindrical frame; a laser light source, which is arranged inside the aforementioned frame and is constructed in a manner of irradiating laser light to a target part from the end of the aforementioned frame; a first opening portion, which is provided on the side of the aforementioned frame; and a shielding portion, which is provided on the outside of the aforementioned frame in a manner of shielding the reflected light of the laser light that is unintentionally reflected inside the aforementioned frame and emitted to the outside through the aforementioned first opening portion.

[0008] The shielding portion may also be provided in such a manner that the optical path of the laser beam emitted from the laser light source cannot be directly visually confirmed from the outside of the frame through the first opening. The shielding portion may also be formed in such a manner that when an imaginary straight line is drawn connecting an arbitrary point of the optical path range of the laser beam with an arbitrary point of the edge portion where the first opening is drawn, the straight line passes through the shielding portion. The shielding portion may also have a shielding wall extending along the axial direction of the frame, and at least one second opening portion open to the circumferential direction or rear of the frame is formed by the shielding wall and the frame. The shielding wall may also be opposite to the side surface of the frame and be convexly curved toward the frame. It may also be provided with a third opening portion provided on the side surface of the frame and an air supply device for supplying air to the interior of the frame via the third opening portion. Effects of the Invention

[0009] According to the aspects of the present invention, there is achieved a common effect of providing a phototherapy device configured such that even if laser light is unintentionally reflected inside a housing, the reflected light cannot be directly visually recognized from the outside. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of a phototherapy device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 It is a three-dimensional diagram of the shielding part. Figure 3 It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the distal end of the phototherapy device. Figure 4 yes Figure 3 The section on line AA is a cross-sectional view of the distal end of the light therapy device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In all the drawings, corresponding components are denoted by common reference numerals.

[0012] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a phototherapy device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a three-dimensional diagram of the shielding portion 20, Figure 3is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the distal end portion of the phototherapy device 1, Figure 4 yes Figure 3 The section on line AA is a cross-sectional view of the distal end portion of the phototherapy device 1 .

[0013] The phototherapy device 1 as a probe is electrically connected to the control device 2 via a cable 3. The control device 2 has one or more processors, a storage unit and its peripheral circuits, etc. The control device 2 uniformly controls the overall operation of the phototherapy device 1 based on a computer program pre-stored in the storage unit. During this process, the control device 2 appropriately sends control signals related to the irradiation and stop of the laser and the start and stop of the fan. The control device 2 may also have an input and output unit, such as a display unit such as a display, or an input interface such as an operation button or a touch panel. The phototherapy device 1, the control device 2, the cable 3, the input interface, etc. may also be collectively referred to as a phototherapy system.

[0014] The phototherapy device 1 has a cylindrical frame 4 and a laser light source 6 disposed inside the frame 4. The frame 4 has a cylindrical movable portion 5, which is disposed at the distal end of the frame 4 and is configured to be movable relative to the frame 4 along the axial direction. The frame 4 is cylindrical with a circular cross section as a whole, but may also be a cylindrical component with an elliptical cross section, or a cylindrical component with a cross section of another shape (for example, a polygon such as a square or an octagon). The laser irradiated from the laser light source 6 is irradiated to the target site through an opening 11 provided at the distal end surface of the frame 4.

[0015] The movable part 5 functions as a contact interlock mechanism of the phototherapy device 1. Specifically, the phototherapy device 1 is configured to irradiate laser light only when the movable part 5 pushes against the target part or the vicinity of the target part and retreats. That is, the device is configured in such a way that the retreat of the movable part 5 is detected by a sensor disposed inside the frame 4, and the control device 2 allows the irradiation of laser light based on the detection. In this way, unintentional irradiation of laser light can be prevented. In addition, the phototherapy device 1 may not have the movable part 5.

[0016] An exhaust port 12 is provided as a first opening on the side of the frame 4, specifically, on the side of the movable portion 5. An air intake port 13 is provided as a third opening on the side of the frame 4, specifically, on the side of the movable portion 5, on the opposite side of the exhaust port 12. The positions of the exhaust port 12 and the air intake port 13 on the frame 4 can also be arbitrarily set in the axial direction and the circumferential direction.

[0017] The phototherapy device 1 includes an air supply device 14 that supplies air ejected from an air inlet 13 into the housing 4. The air supply device 14 includes a fan 15 disposed adjacent to the side surface of the housing 4 and a duct 16 connecting the fan 15 and the air inlet 13. Therefore, the air F sucked in by the rotation of the fan 15 is guided to the air inlet 13 via the duct 16. The air F supplied into the housing 4 via the air inlet 13 absorbs the heat of the inside of the housing 4 and the target part heated by the irradiation of the laser, and is discharged to the outside of the housing 4 via the exhaust port 12. Furthermore, the air F discharged to the outside of the housing 4 is discharged to the outside of the phototherapy device 1 via the first vent 24 and the second vent 25 described later. In addition, the phototherapy device 1 may not include the air supply device 14 and the air inlet 13. In this case, the air F heated by the irradiation of the laser in the interior of the phototherapy device 1 is discharged from the exhaust port 12 to the outside of the housing 4 by convection. Furthermore, in order to improve exhaust efficiency by convection, the exhaust ports 12 may be provided at a plurality of locations of the housing 4 .

[0018] As described above, although it is not envisioned in the usual usage scenario, for example, for interest, there is a possibility that a rod-shaped insert having a portion that reflects light, such as a reflector, may be inserted into the interior of the frame 4 through the exhaust port 12. Therefore, the phototherapy device 1 further includes a shielding portion 20 integrally provided with respect to the side surface of the frame 4.

[0019] The shielding portion 20 has a first shielding wall 21 and two second shielding walls 22 extending along the axial direction of the frame 4, and a bottom wall 23 arranged flush with the end face of the frame 4. In addition, the bottom wall 23 may not be flush with the end face of the frame 4 as long as it does not protrude more than the end face of the frame 4. The bottom wall 23 may also have a bottom surface arranged more rearward than the end face of the frame 4 and parallel to the end face of the frame 4, or may be an inclined surface inclined toward the rear from the edge of the end face of the frame 4. The first shielding wall 21 is arranged in a manner opposite to the side face of the frame 4 (especially, the exhaust port 12). The central portion of the first shielding wall 21 in the width direction (i.e., the circumferential direction) is formed in a convexly curved manner toward the frame 4. In other words, the first shielding wall 21 is curved in the direction opposite to the side face of the frame 4. Each of the two second shielding walls 22 extends radially outward from the side face of the frame 4 relative to the axial direction. The distal ends of the two second shielding walls 22 in the radial direction are continuously connected to the circumferential end of the first shielding wall 21. The connecting portion between the first shielding wall 21 and the second shielding wall 22 is formed to be convexly curved toward the outside.

[0020] The two connecting portions on the end sides of the first shielding wall 21 and the second shielding wall 22 and the corresponding bottom wall 23 are cut, thereby defining two first vents 24. Specifically, the first shielding wall 21 and the second shielding wall 22 are cut in a manner to form an end face extending backward along the axial direction from the end side of the frame body 4 and an end face extending along the radial direction at a position separated from the end of the frame body 4. Thus, in the shielding portion 20, two roughly rectangular first vents 24 are defined, which are arranged on the end side of the frame body 4 and open in the circumferential direction. In addition, the bottom wall 23 may not be cut, and only the two connecting portions on the end sides of the first shielding wall 21 and the second shielding wall 22 may be cut to define the first vents 24.

[0021] The second vent 25, which is arranged on the side of the frame 4 and opens to the rear, is defined by the rear end surfaces of the first shielding wall 21 and the second shielding wall 22 and the side of the frame 4. The second vent 25 has an elongated shape extending in the circumferential direction and narrowed in the center due to the bending of the first shielding wall 21. The two first vents 24 and the second vent 25 are formed by the first shielding wall 21, the second shielding wall 22 and the frame 4 to form a second opening portion open to the circumferential direction or the rear of the frame 4.

[0022] When the phototherapy device 1 is used for treatment, the surface of the distal end of the phototherapy device 1 where the opening 11 as the irradiation port of the laser is present abuts against the vicinity of the target site. Therefore, the laser cannot be directly visually confirmed through the opening 11 on the distal side of the phototherapy device 1. On the other hand, when the phototherapy device 1 is in use, the exhaust port 12 is open to the outside of the phototherapy device 1. However, the position, shape and size of the shielding portion 20 (specifically, the first vent 24 and the second vent 25) are set in relationship with the position, shape and size of the exhaust port 12, so that the optical path of the laser irradiated from the laser light source 6 inside the frame 4 or the reflected light of the laser reflected inside the frame 4 cannot be directly visually confirmed from the outside of the phototherapy device 1.

[0023] In this regard, Figure 3 and Figure 4 In FIG. 1 , the optical path range of the laser is indicated by the symbol L. The optical path range L of the laser refers to the range of the inner space defined by the outermost contour of the irradiated laser. Figure 4 In the figure, the range surrounded by the single-point dashed line is the laser light path range L. Figure 3 As shown, the line of sight V from the outside of the phototherapy device 1 through the second vent 25 is blocked by the side of the frame 4 around the exhaust port 12 and does not reach the optical path range L of the laser. Figure 4 As shown, the line of sight V from outside the phototherapy device 1 through the first vent 24 is blocked by the side surface of the housing 4 around the exhaust port 12 and does not reach the optical path range L of the laser light.

[0024] In short, the shielding portion 20 is provided in such a manner that the optical path of the laser light emitted from the laser light source 6 cannot be directly visually confirmed from the outside of the frame 4 through the exhaust port 12. In other words, the shielding portion 20 is formed in such a manner that at least when an imaginary straight line connecting an arbitrary point of the optical path range L of the laser light and an arbitrary point of the edge portion where the exhaust port 12 is drawn is drawn, the straight line passes through the shielding portion 20. As a result, even if a rod-shaped insert having a portion that reflects light is inserted from the exhaust port 12 into the inside of the frame 4 through the first vent 24 or the second vent 25, the laser light is not reflected to the outside of the phototherapy device 1.

[0025] Reference Figure 3 and Figure 4 , and at the same time, a case where a curved insert having a portion that reflects light can be inserted from the exhaust port 12 through the first vent 24 or the second vent 25 to reflect the laser light will be described. Figure 3 and Figure 4 In the embodiment, the reflected light R emitted to the outside through the exhaust port 12 is blocked by the shielding portion 20 (particularly, the first shielding wall 21). Therefore, the reflected light R cannot be visually confirmed from the outside of the phototherapy device 1 through the first vent 24 or the second vent 25. That is, even if a curved insert having a portion that reflects light is inserted from the exhaust port 12 into the frame 4 through the first vent 24 or the second vent 25, the laser light is not reflected to the outside of the phototherapy device 1.

[0026] In short, shielding portion 20 is configured to prevent insertion of an insert from exhaust port 12 and to shield reflected light so that even if an insert is inserted, the reflected light of the laser does not irradiate the outside. Therefore, phototherapy device 1 is configured so that even if the laser light is unintentionally reflected inside frame 4, the reflected light cannot be visually confirmed from the outside.

[0027] In addition, the air F discharged from the exhaust port 12 to the outside in the radial direction is guided by the first shielding wall 21 that is bent in the direction opposite to the side of the frame 4 (that is, bent in a convex shape toward the frame 4), so that it is discharged from the first vent 24 to the outside. Furthermore, the remaining air F is discharged to the outside from the second vent 25. The first shielding wall 21 is bent in the direction opposite to the side of the frame 4, so that the air F can be guided more smoothly. As long as the air F can be guided smoothly, the curvature of the first shielding wall 21 may be a curvature of a portion of a cylindrical surface at an axis parallel to the axis of the frame 4, or may be a curvature of a portion of a convex surface such as a spherical surface.

[0028] In the above-mentioned embodiment, the shielding portion 20 is provided integrally with the frame 4, but may be separately constituted from the frame 4. In this case, the shielding portion 20 may be constituted in a manner that is removable relative to the frame 4. In the above-mentioned embodiment, the phototherapy device 1 has a total of three vents, namely, two first vents 24 and one second vent 25, but may also have one or two of them, or may further have four or more vents. The position, shape, and size of the vent may also be determined in accordance with the amount of air supplied from the air intake port 13, etc., taking into account the reflection of the above-mentioned laser, etc. The shielding portion may also be provided for the first opening portion formed for other purposes in addition to the exhaust port 12. Explanation of symbols

[0029] 1Light therapy device 2 Control device 3 Cables 4 Frame 5 movable parts 6Laser light source 11 Opening 12 Exhaust port 13 Inhalation port 14 Air supply device 15 Fan 16 Pipes 20 shielding part 21The 1st shielding wall 22Second Shelter Wall 23 bottom wall 24 No. 1 vent 25 2nd vent.

Claims

1. A light therapy device, characterized in that have: cylindrical frame; a laser light source disposed inside the frame and configured to irradiate a target portion with laser light from a distal end of the frame; a first opening provided on a side surface of the frame; and The shielding portion is provided outside the housing so as to shield the reflected light which is the reflected light of the laser light which is unintentionally reflected inside the housing and is emitted to the outside through the first opening.

2. The light therapy device according to claim 1, wherein: The shielding portion is provided so that an optical path of the laser light emitted from the laser light source cannot be directly visually confirmed from the outside of the housing through the first opening.

3. The light therapy device according to claim 2, wherein: The shielding portion is formed so that when a virtual straight line is drawn connecting an arbitrary point in the optical path range of the laser light and an arbitrary point on the edge portion where the first opening is defined, the straight line passes through the shielding portion.

4. The light therapy device according to claim 3, wherein: The shielding portion includes a shielding wall extending along the axial direction of the frame body, and at least one second opening portion opened in the circumferential direction or rearward of the frame body is formed by the shielding wall and the frame body.

5. The light therapy device according to claim 4, wherein: The shielding wall faces the side surface of the frame body and is curved in a convex shape toward the frame body.

6. A light therapy device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: The invention further comprises a third opening provided on a side surface of the frame body, and an air supply device for supplying air into the interior of the frame body through the third opening.

Images