Healthcare ring and authentication ring

Abstract

To provide a healthcare ring and an authentication ring capable of continuously managing a health condition of a ring holder and further authenticating the ring holder by efficiently collecting vital data by a sensor provided in a ring.SOLUTION: A normal range S, an "attention state" deviated from the normal range within N, and a "dealing needing state" deviated from the normal range more than N are set in a vital sign detected by a sensor provided in a ring body, a sampling interval is made long when the vital sign is in a normal state, it is made short when it is in the attention state, and dealing is promoted by an alarm or the like when it is in the dealing needing state. Also, communication is established between an information processing terminal and a NFC communication part provided in the ring, identification information of the ring holder is given to the information terminal, and the identification information is added to processing information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a healthcare ring in which a sensor is attached to a ring worn on a finger to detect vital data of the wearer, and the vital data is received by a smartphone or the like via short-range wireless communication to constantly monitor the vital signs, thereby managing the health of the wearer, and to an authentication ring in which identification information of the owner of the ring is transmitted to an information processing terminal via short-range wireless communication to authenticate the terminal processor. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a smart ring that detects pulse rate by providing a volume pulse wave sensor on the inner surface of the ring that is fitted on a finger. Conventionally, volume pulse wave sensors have been used in smartphones, smart watches, wearable devices, etc., but Patent Document 1 discloses a ring-type wearable device with a sensor provided on the inner surface of the ring. This ring device is provided with a Bluetooth (registered trademark) wireless communication unit, a multi-wavelength volume pulse wave sensor, and a battery. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-187539 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the ring-type wearable device disclosed in Patent Document 1 merely discloses that it uses a pulse wave sensor to measure vital signs, but does not disclose how the vital signs data should be collected, resulting in wasted measurements.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of such problems, and aims to provide a healthcare ring and authentication ring that can efficiently collect vital data using a sensor attached to the ring, continuously manage the health condition of the ring wearer, and further authenticate the ring wearer. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The health care ring according to the present invention comprises: A ring body that can be worn on a person's finger, a sensor provided on the ring body for acquiring vital data of a person wearing the ring body via a finger; A communication unit provided in the ring body and configured to wirelessly transmit the vital data to an outside. A calculation unit that receives the vital data and calculates a vital sign by performing calculation processing on the vital data; A control unit that controls the calculation unit and the sensor; having The control unit presets a normal range for the vital signs, and when the vital signs calculated by the calculation unit fall outside the normal range, changes the sampling interval for the vital data by the sensor to be shorter than when the vital signs are within the normal range, and further, when the deviation of the vital signs from the normal range becomes large, transmits a warning signal to a preset terminal.

[0007] In this case, for example, The vital sign is one or more selected from the group consisting of heart rate, blood pressure level, and oxygen level (SPO2). In this specification, blood pressure level means not only a highly accurate measurement of blood pressure value at a medical level, but also a reference level measurement value that serves as a guide for blood pressure. Similarly, oxygen level means not only a blood oxygen concentration at a medical level, but also a reference level oxygen concentration in blood. Hereinafter, they are simply referred to as blood pressure level and oxygen level.

[0008] Also, for example, The communication unit connects to the outside through short-range wireless communication using Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0009] Furthermore, for example, an identification information storage unit provided in the ring body and storing identification information indicating an owner of the ring body; The communication unit transmits the identification information together with the vital data to the calculation unit, and the control unit determines a normal range of the vital signs from the identification information.

[0010] Furthermore, for example, a short-range wireless communication unit provided in the ring body and configured to transmit the identification information to an outside via short-range wireless communication; An information processing terminal on which a person wearing the ring body is performing input operations receives the identification information via short-range wireless communication, stores the identification information in association with the input data, and outputs the identification information together with the input data when the input data is output.

[0011] In this case, for example, The short-distance wireless communication is NFC (Near Field Communication).

[0012] The authentication ring according to the present invention comprises: A ring body that can be worn on a person's finger, an identification information storage section provided in the ring body and storing identification information indicating an owner of the ring body; a short-distance communication unit provided in the ring body and configured to transmit the identification information to an outside via short-distance wireless communication; an information terminal holding unit provided in the information processing terminal on which the person is performing an input operation, receiving the identification information from the short-range wireless communication unit, and holding the identification information in association with the input data; having The information terminal is characterized in that when outputting the input data, it also outputs the identification information.

[0013] In this authentication ring, for example, The short-distance wireless communication is NFC (Near Field Communication). Effect of the Invention

[0014] In the healthcare ring of the present invention, a normal range for vital signs is set, and whether or not the vital signs are within the normal range is monitored. If the vital signs are within the normal range, the vital data is sampled intermittently at long intervals, and if the vital signs are out of the normal range, the sampling interval for the vital data is shortened, and since it is understood that the health condition of the ring wearer is deteriorating, more precise monitoring of the vital signs is performed. Furthermore, if the deviation of the vital signs from the normal range becomes large, a warning signal is sent to a specified terminal.

[0015] As a result, under normal circumstances, the number of data samples and calculations are minimized to reduce data volume, and when a health problem occurs, frequent sampling and calculations are performed to precisely manage the health condition, so that the health of the ring holder can be monitored with high accuracy while reducing data volume. Also, when the deviation from the normal range becomes large and a serious health condition is feared, a warning signal is sent to a specified external terminal to notify family members, doctors, etc. of the danger of the ring holder's health condition. Therefore, even if the ring holder is unable to deal with the situation by himself, such as fainting, the person who receives the warning signal can arrange for the necessary treatment.

[0016] In addition, in the authentication ring of the present invention, for example, when a ring holder is inputting a document into a computer keyboard, the identification information provided on the ring body is transmitted to the computer by short-distance wireless communication, and the computer can embed the inputter's identification information in the document, or output the document data and the identification information in an integrated manner. In this case, the communication of the identification information is performed by short-distance wireless communication between the ring and the computer, so that the person who created the document cannot be anyone other than the ring holder who is typing on the keyboard, and there is a one-to-one correspondence between the document creator and the identification information of the ring holder, and it is authenticated that the document creator is the person specified by the identification information of the ring holder. Therefore, it becomes impossible for the document creator to deny that he or she is not the one who created the document. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. A sensor communication unit 2 is provided on the inner surface of a ring 1 as a finger ring. This sensor communication unit 2 is composed of a sensor section 2a, a communication section 2b, and an ID (identification information) storage section 2c. A keyboard 4 is connected to a personal computer main body 5, and the keyboard 4 is used to input text into the personal computer 5. In addition, a portable communication and calling device such as a so-called smartphone 3 is disposed near the personal computer 5. Usually, the smartphone 3 of a person wearing the ring 1 is held in the pocket of the person.

[0019] The communication section 2b of the sensor communication unit 2 of the ring 1 is capable of communicating with external devices by short-range wireless communication technology such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) and short-range wireless communication technology such as NFC (Near Field Communication). The smartphone 3 is provided with a Bluetooth (registered trademark, short-range wireless communication) receiving section 11, and a signal received by this receiving section 11 is input to a calculation section 12, which performs a predetermined calculation based on the received data. The calculation result is input to a control section 13, which performs a predetermined calculation based on the data set in a setting section 16 and outputs a control signal to an external transmission section 15 and an alarm section 14. The setting section 16 also holds identification information of the ring holder.

[0020] Meanwhile, an NFC receiver 6 is provided on the keyboard 4, and a signal received by this NFC receiver 6 is input to a calculation unit 9 together with an information input signal from the keyboard 4 via a connection terminal 7 of the personal computer 5. The calculation unit 9 outputs, from an output terminal 8, the identification information input from the NFC receiver 6 together with the predetermined data input from the keyboard 4.

[0021] The ID storage unit 2c of the ring 1 stores identification information of the ring owner, and this identification information is transmitted to the Bluetooth (registered trademark) receiving unit 11 of the smartphone 3 by short-range wireless communication via the communication unit 2b. Then, the control unit 13 compares the ring identification information with the identification information set in the setting unit 16, and if they match, a connection between the ring 1 and the smartphone 3 is established.

[0022] The sensor unit 2a of the ring 1 comes into contact with the finger of the person wearing the ring, detects at least one of the vital signs of the person wearing the ring, such as the heart rate, blood pressure level, or oxygen level, and outputs this data. This vital sign data is transmitted to the receiving unit 11 by short-range wireless communication, and the vital sign is calculated based on this data by the calculation unit 12, and this vital sign is input to the control unit 13.

[0023] When the ring wearer is in a normal state, the control unit 13 samples vital data at a predetermined comparatively long sampling interval, stores the data in the storage unit 13a, and monitors the data. The setting unit 16 also sets the normal value range of each vital sign to be monitored. Furthermore, the setting unit 16 sets the degree to which the value of the vital sign deviates from the normal value range in two stages. That is, assuming that the normal range is S, a value N is set for setting the range of abnormal data (S+N or less) that deviates from the normal range within N, and the range of abnormal data (S+N or more) whose deviation exceeds N. For example, the normal value range of the heart rate is usually considered to be a range that differs depending on age and sex. That is, although there are individual differences, the heart rate of an adult male is said to be 65 to 70 beats per minute, and the heart rate of an adult female is said to be 70 to 80 beats per minute. Therefore, for example, in the case of an adult male, if the heart rate is detected to be out of the normal range of 65 to 70, within the range of (65-N) or more but less than 65, or over 70 but less than (70+N), the control unit 13 judges this to be a "caution state." Also, if the heart rate is detected to be out of the normal range, within the range of less than (65-N) or over (70+N), the control unit 13 judges this to be a more serious "state requiring action." If the vital signs calculated by the calculation unit 12 are fluctuating within the normal range S set in the setting unit 16, the control unit 13 collects vital sign data at the longest sampling time TS and stores it in the memory unit 13a. Then, the control unit 13 monitors the vital signs, and if they deviate from the normal value range by a deviation value of N or less from the normal value range S as described above, it judges this to be a "caution state", and thereafter shortens the sampling interval by TN, and collects and monitors the vital signs at a sampling interval of (TS-TN). Furthermore, if the detected vital signs deviate from the normal range S by a deviation value exceeding N, it judges this to be a "state requiring action", and the control unit 13 causes the alarm unit 14 to output an alarm signal, and transmits this alarm signal to the outside via the external transmission unit 15. The destination of this external transmission is set in advance in the setting unit 16, and is, for example, a family member's terminal or a hospital.As described above, the normal range of heart rate varies depending on age, sex, and individual differences, and the deviation value N indicating the seriousness of the treatment also varies depending on the above conditions. For this reason, it is necessary to set S and N appropriately for each healthcare recipient.

[0024] Next, the operation of the health care ring configured as described above will be described. In this embodiment, the ring 1 worn on the finger monitors the health condition of the wearer and provides authentication information for data input work. In monitoring the health condition, the sensor section 2a of the sensor communication unit 2 installed on the inner surface of the ring 1 detects one or more vital signs such as heart rate, blood pressure level, or oxygen level, and the communication section 2b outputs the vital data by short-range wireless communication. The vital data is received by the smartphone 3 located near the health monitoring subject by this short-range wireless communication, and the identification information stored in the ID storage section 2c of the ring 1 is compared with the identification information held in the setting section 16 of the smartphone 3. If they match, the ring 1 and the smartphone 3 are connected, and the vital data is input to the calculation section 12. If the vital sign is within a normal range previously set in the setting section 13, the control section 13 collects the vital sign at a relatively long sampling time, stores it in the memory section 13a, and records it. This makes it possible to save the storage capacity of the memory section 13a. If the physical condition of the health monitoring subject deteriorates, the vital signs, such as the heart rate, fall outside the normal range. If the vital signs detected by the sensor unit 2a fall outside the normal range S, the control unit 13 shortens the sampling time of the vital signs and enters an "attention state" in which the vital signs are monitored more closely than when they are within the normal range. If this "attention state" continues for a while and the vital signs return to the original normal range S, the control unit 13 returns the sampling time of the vital signs to the original long period. Note that the sampling time of the vital signs is shortened when the state is switched to the "attention state", but this short sampling interval includes constant measurement of the vital signs, i.e., measurement of the vital signs in real time.

[0025] On the other hand, if the "attention state" continues for a while, but the value of the vital sign further deteriorates and deviates from the normal state S by a deviation value exceeding N, that is, if the vital sign changes to (S+N) or more or to less than (SN), the state is deemed to be "a state requiring measures", and the control unit 13 transmits an alarm signal to a predetermined destination via the alarm unit 14 and the external transmission unit 15. The destination is, for example, a family member or a regular hospital, but is not limited to this and can be appropriately selected from medical staff or management staff at the workplace. If the vital sign deviates significantly from the normal range by exceeding (S+N) or more or less than (SN), it is assumed that the person himself / herself is unable to perform life-saving activities, such as collapsing. For this reason, if the vital sign is significantly out of the normal range, it is necessary to transmit an alarm to a third party such as a family member. However, it is preferable to set the degree of deviation N, which is the standard for this external notification, to a large value in order to avoid external notifications as much as possible in an environment where external notifications are not desirable.

[0026] In addition, even in the case of the "attention state", the control unit 13 can cause the alarm unit 14 to issue an alarm. However, this alarm is not transmitted from the external transmission unit 15 to the outside. That is, the alarm of this "attention state" is issued within the smartphone 3 as a notification sound or a vibration of the smartphone. In this way, when the vital signs exceed the normal range S but the degree of deviation is small, the person himself / herself does not notice the deterioration of his / her physical condition, but is often able to deal with it himself / herself. For this reason, the notification sound or vibration of the smartphone is used to alert the person, thereby informing the person of the deterioration of his / her physical condition and urging him / her to take immediate action.

[0027] The normal range S of the vital signs is set in the setting unit 16. In this case, a range that is generally or typically recognized as normal can be set as the normal range, but the normal range may be obtained by continuously measuring the vital data of the person wearing the ring 1 and obtaining the normal range from data sampled during a certain period of time during which the wearer (the person to be monitored) is in a normal state. Vital signs vary greatly from person to person, and general or standard vital signs may not be the optimal normal range for a particular individual. For this reason, data on the person's daily vital signs may be collected for a certain period of time and compiled to obtain the normal range. By doing so, the range of normal vital sign values ​​that vary greatly from person to person can be adopted as the normal range S for the particular individual, and more appropriate health management can be performed. In this embodiment, the state in which the vital signs are out of the normal range is specified in two stages, but it is also possible to set three or more stages and set appropriate responses for each stage.

[0028] On the other hand, when a person wearing the ring 1 is inputting data such as text using the keyboard 4 connected to the personal computer 5, the data of the ring holder's identification information stored in the ID storage unit 2c of the ring 1 is output from the communication unit 2b, and the signal of this identification information is received by the NFC receiving unit 6 provided on the keyboard 6 near the ring 1. This identification information is input to the calculation unit 9 via the connection terminal 7 of the personal computer 7 together with data such as text input by tapping the keys on the keyboard 4. In the calculation unit 9, the data created using the keyboard 4 and the identification information input from the ring 1 are combined so as to be integrated, and the obtained data is output from the output terminal 8 of the personal computer 5. This data such as text has the identification information of the person who operated the keyboard 4 (the person who inputted the data) embedded in it, and the person who receives this data can recognize the person indicated by the identification information by making the identification information embedded in the data visible. This authenticates that the creator of this data is the person recognized by the identification information. This makes it possible to prevent the creator from impersonating someone in a contract or the like, and the data recipient can confirm the authenticity of the data. In addition, the creator cannot repudiate the data. This type of authentication is possible only if the distance between the keyboard 4 and the ring 1 is extremely short, otherwise a connection by AFC short-range communication cannot be established between the wireless communication unit 2b of the ring 1 and the wireless communication unit 6 of the keyboard 4. For this reason, the identity of a person who is inputting data using the keyboard 4 and creating a given document or the like can be authenticated simply by wearing the ring 1, eliminating the need for complicated authentication procedures and making it possible to reliably conclude that the creator of the data, such as the document, is the holder of the authentication data of the ring 1.

[0029] For healthcare, a terminal is required to process the vital data detected by the sensor unit 2a of the ring 1. This terminal is not limited to a smartphone, and various portable communication and processing terminals can be used, and it may be a dedicated portable terminal such as a pedometer.

[0030] In addition, in the above embodiment, authentication is performed by a person who inputs data into a personal computer, but the information processing terminal is not limited to a personal computer keyboard, and the present embodiment can be applied to various terminals. For example, an NFC wireless communication unit may be provided in a mouse, and data created by information operated with the mouse may be linked to the ID (identification information) of the creator.

[0031] It should be noted that the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 above is capable of implementing both health care and authentication, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be possible to implement only health care using the ring 1 and the smartphone 3, or only authentication of the data information creator using the ring 1 and the personal computer 5 (keyboard 4). [Industrial Applicability]

[0032] It can be said that a ring is the smallest and lightest item that a person carries. In addition, a ring does not feel strange even if the ring is always attached to the body. Therefore, in the present invention, a short-range wireless communication unit or a near-field wireless communication unit is provided in the ring, and a configuration is made such that vital signs can be detected by short-range wireless communication with a terminal such as a smartphone, and appropriate measures can be taken depending on the degree of abnormality, and identification information is added to input information by near-field wireless communication with an information input terminal to authenticate the identity of the data creator. This provides a great effect of enabling efficient healthcare and / or authentication. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] 1:Ring 2: Sensor communication unit 2a: Sensor section 2b:Communication Department 2c: ID storage section 3. Smartphone 4: Keyboard 5: Computer

Claims

1. A ring body that can be worn on a person's finger, a sensor provided on the ring body for acquiring vital data of a person wearing the ring body via a finger; A communication unit provided in the ring body and configured to wirelessly transmit the vital data to an outside. A calculation unit that receives the vital data and calculates a vital sign by performing calculation processing on the vital data; A control unit that controls the calculation unit and the sensor; having The control unit presets a normal range for the vital signs, and when the vital signs calculated by the calculation unit fall outside the normal range, changes the sampling interval for the vital data by the sensor to be shorter than when the vital signs are within the normal range, and further, when the deviation of the vital signs from the normal range becomes large, transmits a warning signal to a preset terminal.

2. The healthcare ring according to claim 1, characterized in that the vital signs are one or more selected from the group consisting of heart rate, blood pressure level, and oxygen level (SPO2).

3. The healthcare ring according to claim 1 , wherein the communication unit connects to an external device via short-range wireless communication using Bluetooth (registered trademark).

4. an identification information storage unit provided in the ring body and storing identification information indicating an owner of the ring body; The healthcare ring according to claim 1 , wherein the communication unit transmits the identification information to the calculation unit together with the vital sign data, and the control unit determines a normal range of the vital sign from the identification information.

5. a short-range wireless communication unit provided in the ring body and configured to transmit the identification information to an outside via short-range wireless communication; The healthcare ring according to claim 4, characterized in that an information processing terminal on which a person wearing the ring body is performing input operations receives the identification information via short-range wireless communication, stores the identification information in association with the input data, and outputs the identification information together with the input data when outputting the input data.

6. The healthcare ring according to claim 5, wherein the short-range wireless communication is NFC (Near Field Communication).

7. A ring body that can be worn on a person's finger, an identification information storage section provided in the ring body and storing identification information indicating an owner of the ring body; a short-distance communication unit provided in the ring body and configured to transmit the identification information to an outside via short-distance wireless communication; an information terminal holding unit provided in the information processing terminal on which the person is performing an input operation, receiving the identification information from the short-range wireless communication unit and holding the identification information in association with the input data; having The authentication ring is characterized in that the information terminal outputs the identification information together with the input data.

8. 8. The authentication ring according to claim 7, wherein the short-distance wireless communication is Near Field Communication (NFC).

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