Headset capable of monitoring heart rate signal in real time in movement process

Abstract

The invention relates to a headphone capable of monitoring a heart rate signal in real time in a movement process, which is characterized in that the headphone comprises a headphone body and an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit; the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is positioned on an ear pad in contact with a periaural temporal area in the earphone, and comprises a conductive material and an elastic body; and the conductive materials are arranged in parallel particle chains in the elastomer. The headset can monitor a heart rate signal of a user, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit has good overload resistance and fatigue resistance, and the original sensing characteristic of the device cannot be damaged even if excessive deformation of a peripheral temple area caused by chewing or speaking and the like is caused.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the field of sensors, and in particular relates to a headset capable of monitoring heart rate signals in real time during exercise. Background Art

[0002] Strain sensors are sensors that produce electrical responses as the measured object deforms under force. Resistive strain sensors are the most common, meaning their resistance increases as the deformation increases. Wearable flexible strain sensors are soft and flexible and can make good contact with the measured object, thus having obvious advantages in sensing weak signals. Currently, flexible strain sensors are widely used in sports health monitoring.

[0003] With the development of sensor technology, the sensitivity of ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing units has continued to reach new levels, and can produce a 10-fold resistance change under 1% micro-strain, which has reached the ultra-sensitive category. The common method to realize this type of sensor is to imitate the sensing characteristics of arthropods to produce micro-cracks on metallized polymers, amplify and accelerate the perception of tiny strains, such as pulse beating and sound transmission. However, this type of sensor has poor overload resistance. When subjected to large strains or repeated loading and unloading under the rated maximum micro-strain, the bionic microcracks will gradually expand, causing irreversible damage to the sensing performance, including reduced sensitivity and service life attenuation. Therefore, ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensors also face challenges such as overload resistance and fatigue resistance in sports health monitoring. Summary of the invention

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a headset including an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensor to achieve real-time monitoring of heart rate signals during exercise, reduce the damage to the sensing performance caused by the expansion of bionic microcracks, and improve the overload resistance and fatigue resistance.

[0005] The present invention provides a headset capable of monitoring heart rate signals in real time during exercise, comprising a headset body and an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit; the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is located on an ear pad in the headset that contacts the temporal region around the ear, and comprises a conductive material and an elastomer; the conductive material is arranged in the form of parallel particle chains in the elastomer.

[0006] Preferably, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit feeds back the pulse physiological signal generated behind the human ear to the circuit located in the earphone connection part, generates and outputs an electrical signal, and then converts the electrical signal in real time to obtain the physiological characteristics.

[0007] Preferably, the conductive material comprises a magnetic material or a composite material of a magnetic material and a conductor.

[0008] More preferably, the magnetic material includes but is not limited to one or more of iron, nickel, cobalt, aluminum nickel cobalt, and iron chromium cobalt.

[0009] Preferably, the composite material of magnetic material and conductor is composed of a magnetic core composed of magnetic material and its oxide and a conductor wrapped around the magnetic core; wherein the conductor includes one or more of metal, conductive two-dimensional material, and conductive high polymer.

[0010] More preferably, the composite material of the magnetic material and the conductor includes but is not limited to one or more of silver-coated nickel and copper-coated nickel.

[0011] Preferably, the elastomer is made of an elastic material, and the elastic material includes but is not limited to at least one of silicone, rubber, hydrogel, polyurethane, and block copolymer.

[0012] Preferably, the elastic body can undergo various deformations such as stretching, compression, bending, etc.

[0013] Preferably, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is prepared by the following method: a conductive material and an elastomer are evenly mixed in a mass ratio of 3:8 to 12, and the obtained sample is allowed to stand for 1 to 2 hours under dry conditions, and then strong magnets are placed on both sides of the container containing the sample and placed in an oven for drying to obtain an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit.

[0014] Preferably, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit generates 1% to 5% tensile strain with the pulse beating, and its sensitivity reaches 5000Ω / mm within this range.

[0015] Preferably, the pulse physiological signal includes but is not limited to one or more of the pulsations of the superficial temporal artery, the posterior auricular artery, the external carotid artery, and the vein.

[0016] Beneficial Effects

[0017] The ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit in the earphone of the present invention will generate a regular electrical signal as the pulse behind the middle ear in the temporal area around the ear beats when the user wears it, thereby monitoring the user's heart rate signal. At the same time, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit has good overload and fatigue resistance. Even if the temporal area around the ear is excessively deformed due to chewing or talking, the original sensing characteristics of the device cannot be destroyed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1 The figure is a schematic diagram of the appearance of the headset of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 2 It is an ultra-sensitive strain sensing unit with parallel particle chain arrangement.

[0020] Figure numerals: 1 - ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit, 2 - conductive material, 3 - elastomer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with specific embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are only used to illustrate the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. In addition, it should be understood that after reading the content taught by the present invention, those skilled in the art can make various changes or modifications to the present invention, and these equivalent forms fall within the scope limited by the appended claims of the application equally.

[0022] Example 1

[0023] This embodiment provides a headset that can monitor heart rate signals in real time during exercise. Figure 1 As shown, it includes an earphone body and an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit 1; the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit 1 is located on the ear pad in the earphone that contacts the temporal area around the ear, and includes a conductive material 2 and an elastomer 3; the conductive material 2 is arranged in parallel particle chains in the elastomer 3.

[0024] In this embodiment, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit 1 has a one-dimensional chain arrangement. Figure 2 As shown, the conductive material 2 is arranged in parallel particle chains in the elastomer 3 to form a conductive path. The working principle of the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit 1 is as follows: the elastomer 3 will deform with the tiny force generated by the pulse physiological signal behind the human ear, and the spacing between the conductive materials 2 arranged in parallel particle chains in the elastomer 3 will increase, resulting in the breakage of the conductive path and the change of conductivity, so that the force signal is converted into an observable electrical signal. When the tiny force is removed, the elastomer 3 will return to its original state, the spacing between the conductive materials 2 arranged in parallel particle chains in the elastomer 3 will return to its original state, and the conductive path will be restored.

[0025] The elastomer in the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit in this embodiment is TPU, which deforms under the action of external force, and the conductive material is a core-shell structure of magnetic conductive particles silver-coated nickel. The preparation method of the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is as follows:

[0026] First, the magnetic conductive silver-coated nickel powder and the TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer) solution formed by fully dissolving in DMF were mixed evenly at a mass ratio of 1:5, wherein the mass ratio of the magnetic conductive silver-coated nickel powder to TPU was 3:10; then the obtained sample was poured into a square shallow-bottom container and left to stand for 1 hour under dry conditions, and finally strong magnets were placed on both sides of the container and placed in an oven at 130°C for drying. Under the action of a strong magnetic field, the magnetic conductive silver-coated nickel powder spontaneously formed parallel particle chains, thereby forming a conductive path in the elastomer TPU, forming an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit.

[0027] The ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit in this embodiment has super sensitivity and can convert weak force signals into electrical signals. The pulse beats will cause the attached strain sensing unit to produce 1% to 5% tensile strain, and its sensitivity in this range reaches 5000Ω / mm. Experiments have shown that under different roughness levels, even if a feather passes by, the resistivity of the strain sensing unit will change, showing its ultra-sensitive performance.

[0028] The ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit in this embodiment has good overload resistance and fatigue resistance. Under the action of tensile force, the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is stretched to 20%-50% of its original length. Although its electrical properties are in an insulating state, the electrical properties of the device recover quickly after the strain is released, and the sensitivity attenuation rate is less than 8%. After 10,000 cycles of stretching with a maximum strain of 5%, the final test shows that the sensitivity attenuation rate of the sensor is less than 1.6%.

[0029] Example 2

[0030] This example verifies the practicality of using headphones to monitor the heart rate of users during exercise. The headphones in Example 1 are compared with traditional heart rate detection equipment (such as a chest strap heart rate detector) to see whether the error is within the allowable range. To this end, 30 healthy adults (half male and half female) aged 30 (without cardiovascular disease or other health problems that affect heart rate) were selected for the experiment. The specific experimental steps are as follows:

[0031] (1) Static heart rate measurement: Volunteers wore headphones and a chest strap heart rate monitor in a static state (such as sitting and resting), and their heart rate was measured for 5 minutes.

[0032] (2) Exercise heart rate measurement:

[0033] 1) Volunteers perform exercise of gradually increasing intensity (e.g. running in stages, each stage lasting 5 minutes, with gradually increasing speed);

[0034] 2) At the end of each session, record heart rate data from headphones and chest strap heart rate monitor.

[0035] (3) Heart rate measurement during the recovery period: After the exercise, the volunteers performed a 5-minute rest recovery period and recorded their heart rate data.

[0036] (4) Repeat testing: Repeat the experiment under different types of exercise (such as running, cycling) to ensure the stability and reliability of the results.

[0037] The final experimental analysis shows that in a static state, the heart rate data of the headset and the chest strap heart rate monitor are basically consistent, with a difference of ±2bpm. In the exercise state, as the intensity of exercise increases, the heart rate monitoring data of the headset and the chest strap heart rate monitor maintain a high consistency, with a difference of ±5bpm. During the recovery period when the heart rate drops, the monitoring data of the two devices remain consistent. It can be concluded that the headset can accurately monitor the heart rate at different exercise intensities and is practical.

[0038] Example 3

[0039] This example verifies the practicality of headphones in monitoring heart rate in patients with cardiovascular disease, aiming to evaluate its accuracy and clinical application value. The experiment recruited 30 patients diagnosed with cardiovascular disease (half male and half female), tested their heart rates at rest, during daily activities and exercise, and compared the headphones in Example 1 with the Holter monitor. The experimental process is similar to that of Example 2, including static heart rate measurement, daily activity monitoring, low to moderate intensity exercise testing and 24-hour continuous monitoring. The consistency of heart rate monitoring of the two devices is evaluated through data analysis, and the accuracy and stability of the headphones in different scenarios are judged. The experimental results show that the headphones can maintain a high consistency with the Holter monitor in various scenarios, and the error is within an acceptable range, proving that they have good practicality and clinical application potential in patients with cardiovascular disease.

Claims

1. A headset capable of monitoring heart rate signals in real time during exercise, characterized in that: The headphone comprises a headphone body and an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit; the ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is located on an ear pad in the headphone that contacts the temporal region around the ear, and comprises a conductive material and an elastomer; the conductive material is arranged in the form of parallel particle chains in the elastomer.

2. The headset according to claim 1, characterized in that: The ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit feeds back the pulse physiological signal generated behind the human ear to the circuit located in the earphone connection part, generates and outputs an electrical signal, and then converts the electrical signal in real time to obtain physiological characteristics.

3. The headset according to claim 1, characterized in that: The conductive material includes a magnetic material or a composite material of a magnetic material and a conductor.

4. The headset according to claim 3, characterized in that: The magnetic material includes one or more of iron, nickel, cobalt, aluminum nickel cobalt, and iron chromium cobalt.

5. The headset according to claim 3, characterized in that: The composite material of magnetic material and conductor is composed of a magnetic core composed of magnetic material and its oxide and a conductor wrapped outside the magnetic core; wherein the conductor includes one or more of metal, conductive two-dimensional material, and conductive high molecular polymer.

6. The headset according to claim 3, characterized in that: The composite material of the magnetic material and the conductor includes one or more of silver-coated nickel and copper-coated nickel.

7. The headset according to claim 3, characterized in that: The elastomer is made of elastic material, and the elastic material includes at least one of silicone, rubber, hydrogel, polyurethane, and block copolymer.

8. The headset according to claim 1, characterized in that: The ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit is prepared by the following method: a conductive material and an elastomer are uniformly mixed in a mass ratio of 3:8-12, and the obtained sample is allowed to stand for 1-2 hours under dry conditions, and then strong magnets are placed on both sides of the container containing the sample and placed together in an oven for drying to obtain an ultra-sensitive flexible strain sensing unit.

9. The headset according to claim 2, characterized in that: The pulse physiological signal includes one or more of the pulsations of the superficial temporal artery, the posterior auricular artery, the external carotid artery, and the vein.

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