Acupuncture robot

Abstract

The utility model discloses an acupuncture robot which comprises an end effector installed on a mechanical arm, and a needle inserting assist device matched with the end effector is arranged on the end effector. The needle inserting assistor comprises a sleeve, a needle inserting device and a needle inserting device, wherein the sleeve is matched with a needle in space; and the elastic mechanism is used for spatially connecting the sleeve with the power output end of the steering engine in a transmission manner. According to the acupuncture robot provided by the utility model, the needle inserting assistor is additionally arranged, so that the end part of the sleeve in the needle inserting assistor is in contact with the skin of a human body in advance when the acupuncture robot is used, the position of an acupuncture point is fixed by pressing the skin, and meanwhile, the deformation of a needle body is restrained during needle inserting, needle moving and needle withdrawing through the structural design of the sleeve; the stability of each needle inserting process is ensured, and the needle is prevented from being broken.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of medical equipment, and more specifically, to an acupuncture robot. Background Art

[0002] Acupuncture is a general term for acupuncture and moxibustion. Acupuncture refers to inserting needles (usually filiform needles) into the patient's body at a certain angle under the guidance of traditional Chinese medicine theory, using acupuncture techniques such as twisting and lifting to stimulate specific parts of the human body to achieve the purpose of treating diseases.

[0003] With the application of surgical robots, rehabilitation robots and hospital service robots, the research and development of intelligent acupuncture robots has received increasing attention. When the existing intelligent acupuncture robots are in use, although the acupuncture needles can be inserted into the patient's body through the clamping mechanism on the mechanical arm, in this process, because the needle is only clamped at the rear end of the needle by the clamping mechanism, and the needle body itself has flexibility and length, the needle body will deform too much during the acupuncture process. At the same time, because the acupuncture points of the human body are not fixed by any part, the toughness of the human muscles makes the position of the needle body and the acupuncture points not match well. The needle body is displaced during insertion, and a second acupuncture is required after the needle is withdrawn, or the needle body breaks. Utility Model Content

[0004] An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and / or disadvantages and to provide advantages which will be described below.

[0005] In order to achieve these purposes and other advantages of the utility model, an acupuncture robot is provided, comprising an end effector mounted on a mechanical arm, wherein the end effector is provided with a needle insertion assistant matched therewith;

[0006] Wherein, the needle insertion assistant comprises:

[0007] A sleeve spatially matched with the needle;

[0008] An elastic mechanism that spatially connects the sleeve to the power output end of the steering gear.

[0009] Preferably, it also includes:

[0010] A distance calibration plate disposed on the sleeve;

[0011] A laser rangefinder is arranged at the front end of the servo and spatially matched with the distance calibration plate.

[0012] Preferably, the elastic mechanism is configured to include:

[0013] Connector Ⅰ that is transmission-connected to the power output end of the steering gear;

[0014] L-shaped connecting piece II connected to the upper end of the sleeve;

[0015] A spring connecting the connecting member I and the connecting member II into an integrated structure;

[0016] Among them, a clamp or hook for fixing with the connecting member II is arranged on one side of the mounting plate of the steering gear, and a matching clamping groove or fixing ring is arranged on the connecting member II.

[0017] The utility model at least includes the following beneficial effects: compared with the prior art, the utility model adds a needle insertion assistant. In actual use, the end of the sleeve in the needle insertion assistant contacts the human skin first, which plays a role in pressing the skin to fix the position of the acupoint, simulating the operation of acupuncturists in the prior art who fix the skin where the acupoint is located by hand to expose the acupoint during acupuncture, effectively preventing the acupoint from being affected by the human skin or muscles during the needle insertion process and causing displacement. At the same time, through the structural design of the sleeve, the deformation of the needle body is constrained during the insertion and withdrawal of the needle, thereby ensuring the stability of each needle insertion process and preventing the needle from breaking.

[0018] Other advantages, objectives and features of the present invention will be embodied in part through the following description, and in part will be understood by those skilled in the art through research and practice of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 A schematic side view of an acupuncture robot in one embodiment of the utility model;

[0020] Figure 2 It is a schematic front view of an acupuncture robot in one embodiment of the utility model. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can implement the invention with reference to the description.

[0022] It should be understood that terms such as “having”, “including” and “comprising” used herein do not specify the existence or addition of one or more other elements or combinations thereof.

[0023] It should be noted that in the description of the present invention, the orientation or position relationship indicated by the term is based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings, which is only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and does not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation of the present invention. In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0024] In the description of the present utility model, unless otherwise clearly stipulated and limited, the terms "installed", "provided with", "sleeved / connected", "connected", etc. should be understood in a broad sense. For example, "connected" can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection. It can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection. It can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. It can be the internal connection of two components. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the utility model can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0025] In addition, in the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may mean that the first and second features are in direct contact, or the first and second features are in indirect contact through an intermediate medium. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" or "above" a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" or "below" a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0026] Example 1

[0027] An acupuncture robot, the structure of which is as follows Figure 1-2 As shown, it includes an end effector 2 mounted on a mechanical arm 1, and the end effector is provided with a needle insertion auxiliary device 3 matched therewith;

[0028] Wherein, the needle insertion assistant comprises:

[0029] The sleeve 30 spatially matches the needle 4, and its role is to press the skin to fix the position of the acupoint, simulating the operation of a Chinese medicine practitioner in the prior art in which the physician fixes the skin where the acupoint is located by hand to expose the acupoint during acupuncture, effectively preventing the acupoint from being displaced by the human skin or muscle during the needle insertion process. At the same time, the structural design of the sleeve also constrains the deformation of the needle body during the needle insertion and needle withdrawal, thereby ensuring the stability of each needle insertion process and preventing the needle from breaking. That is, in actual application, the sleeve of the needle insertion auxiliary device is only used for needle insertion and needle withdrawal, and can be moved away by the steering gear drive during needle insertion to avoid affecting the needle insertion process;

[0030] The elastic mechanism 32 that spatially connects the sleeve to the power output end of the servo 31 can partially offset the force exerted by the sleeve on the human body through the elastic mechanism after the sleeve contacts the human skin as the servo continues to output power. The pressure exerted on the human body can be partially decomposed to prevent excessive squeezing damage to the human body surface.

[0031] Working principle: In actual application, the end of the sleeve in the needle insertion assistant will first contact the human skin. At the same time, with the continuous power output of the servo, the human skin at the location of the acupoint can be squeezed, making the acupoint more obvious. At the same time, the position is fixed. When the pressure meets the requirements, the corresponding needle insertion and withdrawal operations can be performed through the actuator of the end effector.

[0032] In actual work, this solution mainly installs the end effector of the acupuncture robot at the end of the mechanical arm as the acupuncture execution unit to complete the intelligent acupuncture operation. The execution unit has electric grippers 5, six-dimensional force sensors 6, laser range finders 34, motor groups 7 (including high-position motors 70, low-position motors 71) and steering gears 31 and other main components, which are matched through slides 8, support bases 9 and omnidirectional bearings 90 to form an intelligent acupuncture mechanism that can realize needle insertion and twisting. The main functions of the acupuncture mechanism are needle insertion and twisting. During lifting and inserting, the low-position motor drives the slide to drive the support base to move together to achieve the lifting and inserting effect; during twisting, the high-position motor drives the connecting rod to drive the six-dimensional force sensor, the electric clamp and the needle body to rotate together, replicating the twisting acupuncture technique in acupuncture. From a structural point of view, the slide is connected to the robot arm 1 through the connecting base 10, and the electric clamp 5 is connected to the power output end of the high-position motor through the connecting shaft 91, and the six-dimensional force sensor 6 and the omnidirectional bearing 90 are both arranged on the connecting shaft, and the support base 9 is arranged on the slide and is connected to the lower motor transmission.

[0033] Example 2

[0034] This embodiment 2 is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and its specific structure is as follows Figure 1-2 As shown, the following improvements are disclosed based on Implementation 1:

[0035] Also includes:

[0036] A distance calibration plate 33 disposed on the sleeve;

[0037] The laser rangefinder 34 is arranged at the front end of the servo and spatially matched with the distance calibration plate. Because the distance calibration plate is arranged on the sleeve, continuous squeezing will shorten the distance between the distance calibration plate on the sleeve and the laser rangefinder, so as to complete the determination of the zero position through the change of the distance between the laser rangefinder and the skin, so as to judge whether the needle insertion requirements need to be met.

[0038] The working principle of the device in this scheme includes: after the robot arm completes the acupuncture point planning, the end effector is used to complete the acupuncture operation. The whole process is: the needle insertion assistant moves to a position parallel to the needle body through the servo movement, first contacts the skin and produces a certain support effect, and the laser rangefinder measures the change in the distance between the skin to complete the determination of the zero position, and then feeds back the distance information to the controller, and then drives the low-level motor to rotate, driving the slide to move, that is, driving the entire support base to move forward; the high-level motor drives the six-dimensional force sensor, the electric clamp and the needle body to twist together through the connecting shaft. Realize the twisting needle technique. At the same time, the six-dimensional force sensor measures the force information and torque in real time and transmits it back to the controller. When the horizontal force exceeds the maximum threshold, the low-level motor is controlled to stop or even flip to ensure safety; similarly, when the torque is too large and exceeds the set threshold, the high-level motor stops rotating, and the low-level motor reverses to complete the needle withdrawal. In addition, when the needle distance exceeds the safe distance, the actuator controls the high-level motor to stop through the controller, and the low-level motor reverses to withdraw the needle. When the acupuncture treatment is completed, in addition to the controller controlling the high-position motor to stop and the low-position motor to reverse and withdraw the needle, it is also necessary to control the servo to lift the needle insertion assistant to avoid interference and safety issues.

[0039] Example 3

[0040] This embodiment 3 is a preferred embodiment of the present utility model, and the specific structure is as follows Figure 1 As shown, the following improvements are disclosed based on Implementation 1:

[0041] The elastic mechanism is configured to include:

[0042] Connecting piece Ⅰ320 connected to the power output end of the steering gear;

[0043] An L-shaped connector II321 connected to the upper end of the sleeve;

[0044] A spring 322 that connects the connector I and the connector II into an integrated structure;

[0045] Among them, a clamp or hook is provided on one side of the mounting plate of the servo motor to fix with the connector II, and a matching clamping groove or fixing ring is provided on the connector II. This scheme mainly sets the elastic mechanism into a multi-stage structure, and the L-shaped connector II of the front section makes the sleeve staggered with the installation position of the servo motor in space, that is, the installation position of the servo motor can be set above the high-position motor, which is convenient for the integration of the equipment. At the same time, the spring can buffer the extrusion force, and at the same time, the spatial position of the sleeve can be bent quantitatively when not in use, so that the connector II can be fixed on the connector I under the cooperation of the clamp and the clamping groove, or the hook and the fixing ring, so as to reveal the clamping position of the needle body, which is convenient for needle replacement and equipment storage.

[0046] The above solutions are only an illustration of a preferred example, but are not limited thereto. When implementing the present utility model, appropriate replacement and / or modification can be performed according to user needs.

[0047] The number of devices and processing scales described here are used to simplify the description of the utility model. Applications, modifications and variations of the utility model are obvious to those skilled in the art.

[0048] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed above, they are not limited to the applications listed in the specification and the embodiments. It can be fully applied to various fields suitable for the present invention. For those familiar with the art, additional modifications can be easily realized. Therefore, without departing from the general concept defined by the claims and the scope of equivalents, the present invention is not limited to the specific details and the illustrations shown and described here.

Claims

1. An acupuncture robot, comprising an end effector mounted on a robotic arm, characterized in that: The end effector is provided with a needle insertion auxiliary device matched therewith; Wherein, the needle insertion assistant comprises: A sleeve spatially matched with the needle; An elastic mechanism that spatially connects the sleeve to the power output end of the steering gear.

2. The acupuncture robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A distance calibration plate disposed on the sleeve; A laser rangefinder is arranged at the front end of the servo and spatially matched with the distance calibration plate.

3. The acupuncture robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The elastic mechanism is configured to include: Connector Ⅰ that is transmission-connected to the power output end of the steering gear; L-shaped connecting piece II connected to the upper end of the sleeve; A spring connecting the connecting member I and the connecting member II into an integrated structure; Among them, a clamp or hook for fixing with the connecting member II is arranged on one side of the mounting plate of the steering gear, and a matching clamping groove or fixing ring is arranged on the connecting member II.

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