Uterine contraction monitoring patch and device based on flexible stretching perception

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of medical monitoring devices, in particular to a uterine contraction monitoring patch and device based on flexible stretching perception, and the patch comprises a polyurethane elastic plastic package layer which comprises an upper polyurethane elastic plastic package layer and a lower polyurethane elastic plastic package layer, the upper polyurethane elastic plastic package layer and the lower polyurethane elastic plastic package layer are connected with each other to form a polyurethane elastic plastic package cavity; the flexible tensile strain sensor is arranged in the polyurethane elastic plastic package cavity, so that a flexible stretchable sensing front end is formed; the substrate adhesion layer comprises an upper substrate adhesion layer and a lower substrate adhesion layer, and the upper substrate adhesion layer and the lower substrate adhesion layer are connected with each other to form a substrate adhesion plastic package cavity which is used for carrying out plastic package on the flexible stretchable sensing front end to form the uterine contraction monitoring patch. The patch utilizes the flexible sensor technology to accurately capture uterine contraction signals, and can provide non-inductive signal acquisition for pregnant women.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of medical monitoring devices, and in particular to a uterine contraction monitoring patch and device based on flexible stretch sensing. Background Art

[0002] The intensity and frequency of uterine contractions can reveal the progress of labor and are of great significance for judging the delivery status of pregnant women.

[0003] Clinically, the tocometer is the most common method for monitoring uterine contractions. Its principle is to fix the pressure sensor on the abdomen of the pregnant woman, sense the pressure changes of the abdominal wall during contractions, and record the contraction curve. Although this method has the advantages of non-invasiveness and easy operation, it also has certain limitations. For example, the signal monitored by the tocometer is easily affected by the body shape (such as those with a higher BMI) and body position changes of the pregnant woman, which may cause signal distortion. In addition, since the device needs to be fixed tightly to the abdomen with a strap, it may cause discomfort to the pregnant woman, especially in the case of long-term monitoring, affecting the comfort and tolerance of the pregnant woman. At present, most uterine contraction monitoring devices are large in size and complex in structure. They require professional operation and interpretation, which limits their use at home.

[0004] Flexible sensor technology has developed rapidly in recent years, and its application in the medical field has become increasingly widespread. These flexible sensors can not only accurately sense subtle changes in muscle contractions and surface pressure, and monitor pulse and respiration. They also have high ductility and biocompatibility, allowing them to be directly attached to the surface of internal organs for monitoring dynamically moving organs. Its flexible design can effectively avoid the discomfort caused by traditional monitoring equipment to patients, and provide continuous and real-time physiological data collection. However, how to apply it to uterine contraction monitoring in pregnant women, especially how to fit it to the abdomen without affecting the comfort of pregnant women, is an urgent problem that needs to be solved. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the above-mentioned problems of the prior art and to provide a uterine contraction monitoring patch and device based on flexible stretch sensing, which is used to solve the problem that the existing labor force gauge needs to be fixed tightly to the abdomen with a belt, which will cause discomfort to pregnant women, especially in the case of long-term monitoring, affecting the comfort and tolerance of pregnant women; and professional uterine contraction monitoring equipment is bulky and complex in structure, and requires professional personnel to operate and interpret, which limits its technical problem of home use.

[0006] The above objectives are achieved through the following technical solutions: A uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing, comprising: A polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer, wherein the polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer comprises an upper polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer and a lower polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer, wherein the upper polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer and the lower polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer are connected to each other to form a polyurethane elastic plastic sealing cavity; A flexible tensile strain sensor, wherein the flexible tensile strain sensor is arranged in the polyurethane elastic plastic sealing cavity to form a flexible and stretchable sensing front end; The base adhesive layer comprises an upper base adhesive layer and a lower base adhesive layer, and the upper base adhesive layer and the lower base adhesive layer are connected to each other to form a base adhesive plastic sealing cavity, which is used to plastic seal the flexible and stretchable sensing front end to form the uterine contraction monitoring patch.

[0007] Furthermore, the polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer is a functional coating or sealing layer made of polyurethane elastomer as a basic material.

[0008] Furthermore, the base adhesive layer is made of organic silicone adhesive and sterile pure cotton fabric.

[0009] A uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing includes at least one uterine contraction monitoring patch, which is fixed to the abdomen of a pregnant woman and is used to sense and capture the skin stretching changes of the pregnant woman during uterine contractions and obtain uterine contraction signals; and also includes: A shell, the shell can be bonded to the upper base adhesive layer and has a mounting cavity inside; An acquisition module, which is installed in the installation cavity and includes a PCB board, a signal processing unit, a data transmission unit, a power management unit, and a display unit connected in sequence; the PCB board is also electrically connected to the flexible tensile strain sensor in the uterine contraction detection sheet; Wherein, the signal processing unit is used to receive the uterine contraction signal collected by the flexible tensile strain sensor and perform preprocessing; The data transmission unit is used to transmit the pre-processed uterine contraction signal to the mobile phone; The power management unit is used to provide power supply; The display unit is used to display content and status.

[0010] Furthermore, the signal processing unit includes a microprocessor, a sensor interface circuit, a signal amplification circuit, an analog-to-digital conversion circuit, and a filtering and noise reduction circuit that are interconnected.

[0011] Furthermore, the data transmission unit is any one of a Wi-Fi wireless communication module, a low-power Bluetooth communication module, a 4G communication module, a 5G communication module or a Zig-Bee wireless communication module.

[0012] Furthermore, the display unit includes an LED electronic screen embedded in the housing for displaying content and status.

[0013] Furthermore, the power management unit includes a lithium battery, a power management circuit and a charging interface embedded in the housing.

[0014] Furthermore, there are four uterine contraction monitoring patches, which are connected to each other to form an X shape, and the axis position is bonded to the axis of the bottom of the shell.

[0015] The present invention provides a uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing, which uses flexible sensor technology to accurately capture uterine contraction signals. It has a flexible material with biocompatibility to avoid adverse effects such as skin allergies, and provides a "non-sensing" signal collection for pregnant women, avoiding affecting the daily life of pregnant women. At the same time, it is easy to operate, the device is small in size, and uterine contraction measurement can be achieved at home. Compared with the high-precision and expensive medical-grade equipment in hospitals, this device not only meets the basic clinical needs, but also controls the production and maintenance costs within a reasonable range, so that more pregnant women can afford and benefit from it. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 This is a structural schematic diagram of a uterine contraction monitoring patch and device based on flexible stretch sensing according to the present invention; Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of a flexible stretchable sensing front end in a uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing according to the present invention; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the connection between the flexible stretchable sensing front end and the base adhesive layer in the uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing according to the present invention; Figure 4 A top view of a uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing according to the present invention; Figure 5 This is an exploded view of a uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing described in the present invention.

[0017] Graphic marking: 1- Uterine contraction monitoring patch; 2-polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer, 201-upper polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer, 202-lower polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer, 203-polyurethane elastic plastic sealing cavity; 3-base adhesive layer, 301-upper base adhesive layer, 302-lower base adhesive layer, 303-base adhesive plastic sealing cavity; 4-Flexible tensile strain sensor, 401-Liquid metal conductor printed circuit; 5-Flexible and stretchable sensing front end; 6-acquisition module, 601-PCB board, 602-signal processing unit, 603-data transmission unit, 604-power management unit, 605-display unit, 606-LED electronic screen, 607-charging interface; 7- Housing. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The present invention is further described in detail below based on the accompanying drawings and embodiments. The described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0019] like Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the present invention provides a uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing, including: A polyurethane elastic molding layer 2, wherein the polyurethane elastic molding layer 2 comprises an upper polyurethane elastic molding layer 201 and a lower polyurethane elastic molding layer 202, wherein the upper polyurethane elastic molding layer 201 and the lower polyurethane elastic molding layer 202 are connected to each other to form a polyurethane elastic molding cavity 203; A flexible tensile strain sensor 4, wherein the flexible tensile strain sensor 4 is disposed in the polyurethane elastic plastic sealing cavity 203 matching the shape thereof, forming a flexible stretchable sensing front end 5; The base adhesive layer 3 includes an upper base adhesive layer 301 and a lower base adhesive layer 302. The upper base adhesive layer 301 and the lower base adhesive layer 302 are connected to each other to form a base adhesive sealing cavity 303 that matches the outer shape of the flexible stretchable sensing front end 5, and is used to seal the flexible stretchable sensing front end 5 to form the uterine contraction monitoring patch 1.

[0020] The types of the flexible tensile strain sensor 4 in this solution include piezoresistive sensors, capacitive sensors, piezoelectric sensors, triboelectric sensors, etc., wherein: Piezoresistive sensors are based on the property that material resistance changes with strain, such as the conductive network of carbon black / elastomer composites breaks when stretched, resulting in resistance changes, and have the characteristics of high sensitivity; Capacitive sensors cause capacitance changes by changing the electrode spacing or contact area, such as the three-dimensional origami structure electrodes that expand when stretched, and have the characteristics of good linearity and low hysteresis; Piezoelectric sensors use the property of piezoelectric materials such as PVDF to generate charge under stress and have the characteristics of high-frequency response; Triboelectric sensors convert mechanical energy into electrical energy through the frictional electrification effect, achieving self-power supply and requiring no external power supply.

[0021] The present embodiment preferably uses a piezoresistive sensor, which is formed by a liquid metal conductor printed circuit 401; the resistance change rate of the sensor is approximately linearly related to the strain, so that the deformation of the skin during contraction can cause a change in resistance, thereby mapping the contraction pressure.

[0022] The polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer 2 described in this embodiment is a functional coating or sealing layer made of polyurethane elastomer PU as the basic material. This type of material forms a block structure through the carbamate group -NHCOO- in the molecular chain, and combines the microscopic phase separation characteristics of the soft segment flexible chain and the hard segment rigid chain, giving it unique physical and chemical properties. It is a product that can be directly purchased on the market. This embodiment uses a double-layer polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer 2 to encapsulate the flexible tensile strain sensor 4, forming a structure similar to a sandwich form, plastic-sealing the flexible tensile strain sensor 4, while reducing external interference and maintaining the stretchable characteristics of the sensor itself.

[0023] The base adhesive layer 3 described in this embodiment is a base adhesive layer made of organic silicone adhesive and sterile pure cotton fabric, which is a composite structure combining high-performance organic silicone material and natural textile. The adhesive layer achieves a balance between functionality and safety through the synergistic effect of organic silicone and pure cotton cloth, and is irreplaceable in medical, sports protection and other scenarios. Among them, the organic silicone adhesive is non-toxic and harmless after curing, meets the standards of medical grade materials, and is suitable for direct contact with human skin, such as Band-Aids, medical tapes, etc. The breathability of the sterile pure cotton fabric combined with the flexible elastic elongation at break of silicone can reach more than 300%, which can reduce skin irritation and allergy risks. Through the base adhesive layer, the entire device can be better attached to the abdomen of the pregnant woman, ensuring that the patch is comfortable and stable, avoiding skin irritation, and enabling pregnant women to wear it for a long time without feeling.

[0024] like Figure 1 , 4 As shown in FIG. 5 , the present solution also provides a uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing, comprising at least one uterine contraction monitoring patch 1 as described above, wherein the uterine contraction monitoring patch 1 is fixed to the abdomen of a pregnant woman, and is used to sense and capture the skin stretching changes of the pregnant woman during uterine contractions, and obtain uterine contraction signals; and further comprising: A housing 7, which can be bonded to the upper base adhesive layer 301 and has an installation cavity inside; the housing 7 is a resin housing, which can provide dust and water protection for the inside of the installation cavity; The acquisition module 6 is installed in the installation cavity, and includes a PCB board 601, a signal processing unit 602, a data transmission unit 603, a power management unit 604 and a display unit 605 connected in sequence; the PCB board 601 is also electrically connected to the flexible tensile strain sensor 4 in the uterine contraction detection piece 1; Specifically, the signal processing unit 602 is used to receive the uterine contraction signal collected by the flexible tensile strain sensor 4 and perform preprocessing; The data transmission unit 603 is used to transmit the pre-processed uterine contraction signal to the mobile phone; The power management unit 604 is used to provide power supply; The display unit 605 is used to display content and status.

[0025] The signal processing unit 602 described in this embodiment includes an interconnected microprocessor, a sensor interface circuit, a signal amplification circuit, an analog-to-digital conversion circuit, a filtering and noise reduction circuit, etc., which are used to receive and process the collected original uterine contraction signal, amplify the uterine contraction signal captured by the front end, and perform preliminary signal processing on the original signal to remove unnecessary noise interference, and ensure the accuracy and stability of the signal, and finally output a clear signal for further analysis.

[0026] Specifically, the amplification circuit is connected to the flexible stretchable strain sensor to amplify the weak contraction signal captured from the sensor to ensure that the signal can be transmitted to the subsequent processing unit; the microprocessor is responsible for signal sampling, device configuration, data processing and other functions, and samples the contraction signal at a frequency of 20Hz through the built-in 12-bit ADC.

[0027] Since the microprocessor, sensor interface circuit, signal amplification circuit, analog-to-digital conversion circuit, and filtering noise reduction circuit in the above-mentioned acquisition module 6 can be directly implemented using the circuit structure in the prior art, this solution does not elaborate on the specific structure of the circuit.

[0028] The data transmission unit 603 described in this embodiment is any one of a Wi-Fi wireless communication module, a low-power Bluetooth Low Energy, a BLE communication module, a 4G communication module, a 5G communication module and a Zig-Bee wireless communication module.

[0029] In addition, the display unit 605 includes an LED electronic screen 606 embedded in the shell, which is used to display content and status. The displayed content includes the current uterine contraction intensity, the current device power level, the connection status between the display device and the mobile phone, etc.

[0030] The power management unit 604 in this embodiment includes a lithium battery, a power management circuit, and a charging interface 607 embedded in the housing 7. The power management unit 604 in this embodiment is mainly responsible for charging management and voltage stabilization output, providing corresponding working voltage for the digital circuit and sensor interface of the device, and ensuring the reliability and durability of the device in daily use. In daily use, charging can be performed through the charging interface 607 to ensure normal daily use.

[0031] like Figure 5 As shown, as a specific embodiment of the present scheme, there are four uterine contraction monitoring patches 1, which are connected to each other to form an X shape, and the axis position is bonded to the axis of the bottom of the shell 7. When in use, they can be stretched horizontally and vertically and attached to the abdomen of the pregnant woman, which can cover a larger monitoring range. This arrangement can enhance the stability and reliability of signal acquisition and ensure that the stretching changes of the abdominal skin can be accurately captured at different stages of uterine contractions. In addition, the multi-sensor layout can effectively reduce the errors that may be caused by single-point measurement and improve the accuracy of monitoring data.

[0032] The shell 7 is circular, and the center of the bottom circle is bonded to the center of the four interconnected uterine contraction monitoring patches 1, and a threading hole or a magnetic electrical contact or an electrical connection buckle is provided at the bottom of the shell for connecting the flexible tensile strain sensor with the internal signal processing unit 602 by wire.

[0033] When it is an electrical connection sub-button structure, an electrical connection sub-button is embedded on the surface of the center position of several interconnected uterine contraction monitoring patches 1, and a matching electrical connection female buckle is provided at the bottom of the shell 7, thereby realizing quick electrical connection, facilitating disassembly, and facilitating use.

[0034] In order to facilitate touch operation, the LED electronic screen 606 directly serves as the top cover of the housing 7, which is convenient for pregnant women to operate manually. The charging interface 607 is arranged on the side of the housing 7, which is convenient for charging without interfering with the LED electronic screen 606.

[0035] The pregnant woman feels the strongest point of the contraction by herself, and the base adhesive layer 3 provides a certain degree of adhesion to place the contraction monitoring patch 1 at the strongest position of the abdominal contraction. The pregnant woman starts the contraction monitoring by clicking on the mobile phone application or the LED electronic screen 606. According to the clinical contraction monitoring standards, the contraction monitoring patch 1 in this embodiment needs to continuously monitor the contraction for at least 20 minutes. The flexible sensing front end 5 senses and captures the skin stretching changes of the pregnant woman during the contraction through the flexible stretchable strain sensor 4.

[0036] Specifically, the flexible stretchable strain sensor 4 is connected to the signal processing unit 602 through the liquid metal conductor printed circuit 401. The signal processing unit 602 will capture the resistance change of the sensor to generate a contraction simulation electrical signal for analysis, and the contraction signal after noise reduction will be encapsulated into a data frame of a specified format through the data transmission unit 603 and then sent to the mobile phone through the low-power Bluetooth or BLE module. Pregnant women can check the current contraction intensity on the mobile phone application or the LED electronic screen 606.

[0037] It should be noted that since the functional modules involved in this device, namely the signal processing unit 602, the acquisition module 6, the data transmission unit 603, the power management unit 604, the display unit 605, and the flexible tensile strain sensor 4 as the acquisition end, are electrically connected to each other using common knowledge in the art, the realization of their functions, such as data collection, data processing, data transmission, and data display, can all be realized using existing conventional technologies, and therefore are not used as protection points in this solution. This solution only protects the connection relationship between each hardware structure, namely the functional module, and thus provides a uterine contraction monitoring patch and uterine contraction monitoring device that is simple in structure, convenient for long-term flexible attachment to the abdomen of a pregnant woman, and does not affect the comfort and tolerance of the pregnant woman.

[0038] The above description is only for illustrating the implementation mode of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art, any modification, equivalent substitution, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing, characterized in that: include: A polyurethane elastic molding layer (2), the polyurethane elastic molding layer (2) comprising an upper polyurethane elastic molding layer (201) and a lower polyurethane elastic molding layer (202), the upper polyurethane elastic molding layer (201) and the lower polyurethane elastic molding layer (202) being connected to each other to form a polyurethane elastic molding cavity (203); A flexible tensile strain sensor (4), the flexible tensile strain sensor (4) being arranged in the polyurethane elastic plastic sealing cavity (203) to form a flexible stretchable sensing front end (5); A base adhesive layer (3), the base adhesive layer (3) comprising an upper base adhesive layer (301) and a lower base adhesive layer (302), the upper base adhesive layer (301) and the lower base adhesive layer (302) being connected to each other to form a base adhesive plastic sealing cavity (303) for plastic sealing the flexible and stretchable sensing front end (5) to form the uterine contraction monitoring patch (1).

2. A uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The polyurethane elastic plastic sealing layer (2) is a functional coating or sealing layer made of polyurethane elastomer as a basic material.

3. The uterine contraction monitoring patch based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The base adhesive layer (3) is a base adhesive layer made of organic silicone adhesive and sterile pure cotton fabric.

4. A uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing, characterized in that: The invention comprises at least one uterine contraction monitoring patch (1) as claimed in claims 1 to 3, wherein the uterine contraction monitoring patch (1) is fixed to the abdomen of a pregnant woman and is used to sense and capture the skin stretching changes of the pregnant woman during uterine contractions and obtain uterine contraction signals; and further comprises: A shell (7), the shell being capable of being bonded to the upper base adhesive layer (301) and having a mounting cavity therein; A collection module (6), the collection module (6) being installed in the installation cavity, comprising a PCB board (601), a signal processing unit (602), a data transmission unit (603), a power management unit (604) and a display unit (605) connected in sequence; the PCB board (601) is also electrically connected to the flexible tensile strain sensor (4) in the uterine contraction detection sheet (1); Specifically, the signal processing unit (602) is used to receive the uterine contraction signal collected by the flexible tensile strain sensor (4) and perform pre-processing; The data transmission unit (603) is used to transmit the pre-processed uterine contraction signal to a mobile phone; The power management unit (604) is used to provide power supply; The display unit (605) is used to display content and status.

5. A uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 4, characterized in that: The signal processing unit (602) comprises a microprocessor, a sensor interface circuit, a signal amplification circuit, an analog-to-digital conversion circuit, and a filtering and noise reduction circuit which are interconnected.

6. The uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 4, characterized in that: The data transmission unit (603) is any one of a Wi-Fi wireless communication module, a low-power Bluetooth communication module, a 4G communication module, a 5G communication module and a Zig-Bee wireless communication module.

7. The uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 4, characterized in that: The display unit (605) comprises an LED electronic screen (606) embedded in the housing and used for displaying content and status.

8. The uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 4, characterized in that: The power management unit (604) comprises a lithium battery, a power management circuit and a charging interface (607) embedded in the housing (7).

9. The uterine contraction monitoring device based on flexible stretch sensing according to claim 4, characterized in that: There are four uterine contraction monitoring patches (1), which are connected to each other to form an X shape, and the axis position is bonded to the axis of the bottom of the shell (7).

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