Soft cuff application aid

Abstract

To provide a soft cuff wearing aid achieving both required wearability and storability by being used as an aid when a soft cuff is worn.SOLUTION: A soft cuff wearing aid to be used when a soft cuff 10 which is an arm band without a core, is wrapped / worn around an arm A, comprises an auxiliary ring 80 formed of a flexible plate material into an arch shape with an opening and attachable / detachable with respect to a cuff outside surface of the soft cuff 10. The auxiliary ring 80 has a cuff contact inner surface 81 coming into contact with the cuff outer surface, with its attached to the soft cuff 10 and defining a shape of the soft cuff 10 as a wrapping shape along an outer peripheral surface of the arm A.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a soft cuff wearing aid that assists in putting on a soft cuff, which is an armband without a core, on an arm. [Background technology]

[0002] A cuff for a blood pressure monitor that can be easily wrapped around the arm without the help of another person is known. This cuff for a blood pressure monitor has a bag body that houses an air bladder for pressurizing an artery, and a flexible hook member that is housed in part of the bag body and shapes the bag body into a substantially arc shape (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] A wrist-type blood pressure monitor that can be accurately attached to the blood flow blocking area is known. The cuff of this wrist-type blood pressure monitor includes a band-shaped clip member, a blood flow blocking bag, an outer cloth, and an inner cloth. The band-shaped clip member is formed into a substantially C-shaped curve from a thin plate material with a predetermined elasticity. The pair of narrow band-shaped clip members are formed to have approximately the same length as the blood flow blocking bag, and are positioned at both ends of the blood flow blocking bag, which has approximately the same width as the cuff, along the longitudinal direction of the blood flow blocking bag (see, for example, Patent Document 2). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 50-141487 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-102182 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Meanwhile, a cuff for a blood pressure monitor must be easy to wear, meaning that it can be attached to the arm in the most appropriate position with as simple an operation as possible, and easy to store, meaning that it can be removed from the arm and stored in as compact a size as possible.

[0006] In contrast, the blood pressure monitor arm cuff described in Patent Document 1 incorporates a flexible hook member as a core in the bag body, while the blood pressure monitor arm cuff described in Patent Document 2 incorporates a band-shaped clip member as a core in the cuff band. In other words, both of the blood pressure monitor arm cuffs described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are "hard cuff" arm cuffs with cores. This hard cuff has a core shaped to hold the arm, which stabilizes the cuff shape and position when wrapped around the arm during blood pressure measurement. However, because the core is always built into the bag body and cuff band, the hard cuff must be rolled into a cylindrical shape or other shape to fit the core when stored, which presents a problem of being unable to store it in a compact form.

[0007] On the other hand, a blood pressure monitor arm band without a core is called a "soft cuff." This soft cuff has no core and is flexible enough to bend and deform, allowing it to be folded compactly for storage. However, soft cuffs have the drawback of being difficult to stabilize when worn on the arm with one hand during blood pressure measurement, making it difficult to place the cuff in the correct position.

[0008] The present invention has been made in light of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a soft cuff wearing aid that can be used as an aid when wearing a soft cuff, and that achieves both the wearability and storability required of a blood pressure monitor arm band. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention provides The core material that is shaped to hold the arm is called a core, and when an arm band that incorporates the core is called a hard cuff, A soft cuff wearing aid used when wrapping and wearing a soft cuff, which is an arm band without a core, includes an auxiliary ring formed of a flexible plate material in an arch shape with an opening, and which is detachable from the outer surface of the soft cuff. The auxiliary ring has a cuff-contacting inner surface that contacts the outer surface of the cuff when attached to the soft cuff and defines the shape of the soft cuff as a wrapping shape that follows the outer peripheral surface of the arm. The cuff contact inner surface has an arch-shaped inner surface that gives a rounded shape to the soft cuff when attached to the soft cuff before the arm is passed through, and a pair of clamping inner surfaces that clamp the arm from both sides via the soft cuff when the arm is passed through the rounded soft cuff.It is characterized by: [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the soft cuff wearing aid of the present invention, by using an auxiliary ring as an aid when wearing the soft cuff, it is possible to achieve both the ease of wearing and the storage ability required of a blood pressure monitor cuff. In addition, the soft cuff is stabilized at the position where it is wrapped around the arm, making it easier to set the soft cuff in the desired position, and the clamping mechanism also prevents the soft cuff from becoming loose. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of an upper arm electronic blood pressure monitor in a state where a soft cuff for which the soft cuff wearing aids of Examples 1 to 3 are used is stored in a cuff holder. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a folded and stored form of a soft cuff for use with the soft cuff wearing aids of Examples 1 to 3. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a cuff development view showing the outer surface of a soft cuff when the soft cuff using the soft cuff wearing aids of Examples 1 to 3 is developed. [Figure 4] 1 is a perspective view showing the overall shape of an auxiliary ring which is a soft cuff wearing aid of Example 1. FIG. [Figure 5] 1 is a front view showing the cuff contact inner surface and cuff fixing claws of an auxiliary ring which is a soft cuff wearing aid of Example 1. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a pair of auxiliary rings according to the first embodiment are attached to both sides of the soft cuff in the width direction. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing step 1 of wrapping and wearing a soft cuff of a comparative example that does not use an auxiliary ring around an arm. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing step 2 of wrapping and wearing a soft cuff of a comparative example that does not use an auxiliary ring around the arm. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing step 3 of wrapping and wearing a soft cuff of a comparative example that does not use an auxiliary ring around the arm. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing step 4 of wrapping and wearing a soft cuff of a comparative example that does not use an auxiliary ring around the arm. [Figure 11] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the action of stabilizing the cuff shape and cuff position when the soft cuff using the auxiliary ring of Example 1 is wrapped around the arm and attached. FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a claw-less auxiliary ring of Example 2. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing an auxiliary ring attachment state in which a pair of auxiliary rings without claws according to a second embodiment are attached to both sides of the soft cuff in the width direction. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a connection assist ring of Example 3. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing the auxiliary ring attachment state of the third embodiment, in which the auxiliary connection rings are attached to both sides of the soft cuff in the width direction. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is an explanatory view of auxiliary ring attachment showing a state in which one auxiliary ring without claws of Example 2 is prepared and attached to one side in the width direction of the soft cuff. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of auxiliary ring attachment showing three auxiliary rings without claws of Example 2 attached to both sides and the center of the width of the soft cuff. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The soft cuff wearing aid of the present invention will be described below with reference to Examples 1 to 3 shown in the drawings.

[0013] A soft cuff 10 using the soft cuff wearing aids of Examples 1 to 3 is applied to an upper arm electronic blood pressure monitor (an example of a blood pressure monitor) that is wrapped around the upper arm of a subject (hereinafter referred to as "arm A") and measures blood pressure (systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure) and heart rate. In the following description, the direction in which the soft cuff is wrapped around arm A is referred to as the "wrapping direction P," and the direction perpendicular to the wrapping direction P (the direction along arm A when wrapped) is referred to as the "width direction D." [Example]

[0014] First, the configuration of soft cuff 10 used in the soft cuff wearing aids of Examples 1 to 3 will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 3. Figure 1 shows an example of an upper arm electronic blood pressure monitor in which soft cuff 10 is stored in cuff holder 32, Figure 2 shows soft cuff 10 in a folded and stored state, and Figure 3 shows the outer surface of soft cuff 10 when unfolded.

[0015] As shown in Fig. 1, the upper arm electronic blood pressure monitor comprises a soft cuff 10, an air hose 20, and a blood pressure monitor main body 30. The soft cuff 10 is a coreless arm band for the blood pressure monitor, and is connected to the blood pressure monitor main body 30 by the air hose 20.

[0016] One end of air hose 20 is connected to air supply / discharge nozzle 51 provided on air bag 50 of soft cuff 10, and the other end is provided with air hose plug 21. Air hose plug 21 provided on the other end is connected to air hose socket 31f provided on the side of sphygmomanometer main body 30 at least during blood pressure measurement.

[0017] The blood pressure monitor main body 30 includes a main body case 31 having a display function, an operation function, a blood pressure measurement function, and a pulse measurement function, and a cuff holder 32 connected to the rear side of the main body case 31 and storing the soft cuff 10 when the soft cuff 10 is not in use.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 1, main body case 31 has display unit 31a, which is a liquid crystal panel that displays blood pressure measurements (systolic and diastolic blood pressure), pulse rate, etc., arranged diagonally on the front of the case. Measurement / stop switch 31b, memory switch 31c, clock adjustment switch 31d, and clock setting switch 31e are arranged below display unit 31a. Air hose socket 31f, to which one end of air hose 20 is connected, is arranged on the side of main body case 31. In addition, main body case 31 also houses various devices, not shown, such as an air pump that supplies air to air bladder 50, a pressure sensor that detects the pressure in air bladder 50, a control unit that controls the pump operation and calculates blood pressure values ​​and the like from detected pressure values, and a memory unit that stores necessary data.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, when the soft cuff 10 is not in use, the soft cuff 10 in a folded storage form is stored in the cuff holder 32 by inserting the soft cuff 10 together with the air hose 20 from above the holder. The folded storage form of the soft cuff 10 is a form in which the soft cuff 10 is folded flat into a rectangular shape and surface-engaged with a hook-and-loop fastener, as shown in FIG. 2. Therefore, the soft cuff 10 in the folded storage form is stored compactly in the cuff holder 32, which uses the back surface of the main body case 31 as part of the holder. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, if the main body case 31 has a vertically long display unit 31a, the soft cuff 10 can be stored in a state where it is hidden behind the back surface of the main body case 31 when the sphygmomanometer main body 30 is viewed from the front.

[0020] As shown in Fig. 3, the soft cuff 10 includes an arm band cover 40, an air bag 50, a cuff ring fitting 60, and a cuff ring fastener 70. In the following description, the left end of the soft cuff 10 shown in Fig. 3 is referred to as the rear end 10a of the soft cuff 10, and the right end in Fig. 3 is referred to as the front end 10b of the soft cuff 10.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 3 , the arm band cover 40 is strip-shaped, with its length in the wrapping direction P around the arm A being longer than its width direction D, and comprises an outer cloth 41 and a lining cloth 42. The outer cloth 41 is positioned on the outer periphery when wrapped around the arm A, and the lining cloth 42 is positioned on the inner periphery when wrapped around the arm A. The outer cloth 41 is made of a female hook-and-loop fastener fabric with densely packed loops made of soft, thin threads formed over its entire surface. The lining cloth 42 is made of a flexible material that adheres closely to the arm A without causing irritation when it comes into contact with the arm A. The outer cloth 41 and the lining cloth 42 are sewn together around the entire periphery with a peripheral cloth 43. As a result, a storage space for the air bladder 50 and the cuffing stopper 70 is formed between the outer cloth 41 and the lining cloth 42. The peripheral cloth 43 is provided with an artery alignment mark 44 that extends to both sides of the wrapping direction P, centered on the position of the air supply / exhaust nozzle 51 of the air bladder 50. The artery alignment mark 44 is attached, for example, by stitching a strip of blue fabric along the peripheral fabric 43 .

[0022] A male hook-and-loop fastener 45, which is a fastener that can be attached and detached from the female hook-and-loop fastener fabric, is provided on the outer cloth 41 in an area close to the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10. The male hook-and-loop fastener 45 is rectangular with its long side in the width direction and its short side in the wrapping direction P, and has hook-shaped hooks made of a stiff resin thread densely packed across its entire surface. During blood pressure measurement, this male hook-and-loop fastener 45 is attached to the outer cloth 41 (= the female hook-and-loop fastener fabric) by surface engagement when the soft cuff 10 is wrapped around the arm A. This attachment fixes the perimeter of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction P, and prevents the soft cuff 10 from expanding outward when the air bag 50 is inflated.

[0023] Air bag 50 is a bag that is contained in the space between outer cloth 41 and inner cloth 42 in a region from the center of soft cuff 10 in wrapping direction P toward rear end 10a, and is inflated when air is supplied and contracted to conform to the shape of soft cuff 10 when air is discharged. Air bag 50 is made of, for example, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and has a laminated structure in which two bags, an outer bag and an inner bag, which communicate with each other, are stacked and integrated, and the bag shape is generally rectangular. Air bag 50 is provided with an air supply / exhaust nozzle 51 at a central position in wrapping direction P. Air supply / exhaust nozzle 51 is disposed so as to penetrate outer cloth 41, and one end of air hose 20 is connected to air supply / exhaust nozzle 51 exposed from the surface of the cuff.

[0024] The cuff ring fitting 60 is provided at the rear end 10a of the soft cuff 10 and is a fitting through which the front end 10b of the soft cuff 10 is inserted. The cuff ring fitting 60 is formed by shaping a circular wire into an oval shape, with two parallel round bars 61, 62 defining a narrow cuff insertion gap t in the width direction. The cuff ring fitting 60 is secured to the soft cuff 10 by sewing one of the two parallel round bars 61, 62, the round bar 62, to the outer fabric 41 with a fitting fixing cloth 63. The arm diameter of the upper arm around which the soft cuff 10 is wrapped and attached is generally larger on the side farther from the elbow joint than on the side closer to the elbow joint. Taking this into consideration, the cuff ring fitting 60 is designed to be obliquely positioned such that the length in the wrapping direction P on the side closer to the elbow joint is shorter than the length on the side farther from the elbow joint. Here, the "side closer to the elbow joint" refers to the side of the peripheral fabric 43 on which the artery alignment mark 44 is provided.

[0025] The cuffing clip 70 is a component that prevents the soft cuff 10 from coming off the cuffing clip 60 after the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 has elastically deformed to pass through the elongated cuff insertion gap t of the cuffing clip 60 and then recovers its original shape. The cuffing clip 70 is disposed in the width direction D at a position between the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 and the male hook-and-loop fastener 45, and is formed in the shape of an elongated column or cylinder from a highly elastic resin material or the like. The cuffing clip 70 can be fixed to the soft cuff 10, for example, by interposing the cuffing clip 70 at a predetermined position between the outer fabric 41 and the lining fabric 42 and sewing the outer periphery of the cuffing clip 70.

[0026] Next, the configuration of auxiliary ring 80, which is the soft cuff wearing aid of Example 1, will be described as follows with reference to Figures 4 to 6. Figure 4 shows the overall shape of auxiliary ring 80, Figure 5 shows the cuff contact inner surface 81 and cuff fixing claws 83 of auxiliary ring 80, and Figure 6 shows the pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 attached to both sides of soft cuff 10 in the width direction.

[0027] Auxiliary ring 80 is a soft cuff wearing aid used when wrapping and attaching soft cuff 10, which is an arm band without a core, around arm A during blood pressure measurement. As shown in Fig. 4, auxiliary ring 80 is made of a flexible plate material and formed into an arch shape with an opening, and is detachable from the outer surface of soft cuff 10. The inner diameter of auxiliary ring 80 is set to be smaller than the outer diameter of the arm based on the minimum arm circumference of the subject whose blood pressure is to be measured.

[0028] Here, "flexible plate" refers to a resin plate made of flexible polypropylene (PP), for example. "Arch shape" refers to the shape of the circular plate portion when a long, narrow resin plate with a width of approximately 10 mm is molded into a circle with both ends of the plate separated. "Opening" refers to the space between the separated ends of the plate, and the opening width can be expanded or contracted to allow attachment and detachment of the soft cuff 10. "Cuff outer surface" refers to the surface of the outer fabric 41 that becomes the outer peripheral surface when the soft cuff 10 is worn.

[0029] 4 and 5, the auxiliary ring 80 comes into contact with the outer surface of the soft cuff 10 when attached to the soft cuff 10, and has a cuff contacting inner surface 81 that defines the shape of the soft cuff 10 as a wrap shape that fits closely around the outer peripheral surface of the arm A. Here, "defining" means that the shape of the cuff contacting inner surface 81 of the attached auxiliary ring 80 defines the shape of the soft cuff 10 as a wrap shape that fits closely around the outer peripheral surface of the arm A without loosening or wrinkling.

[0030] 5, the cuff contact inner surface 81 has an arch-shaped inner surface portion 81a and a pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b. The arch-shaped inner surface 81a refers to an arch-shaped region of the cuff contact inner surface 81 that functions mainly to give the shape of the soft cuff 10 a rounded shape when the soft cuff 10 is attached to the cuff contact inner surface 81 before the arm A is passed through it. The pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b refer to ring end regions of the cuff contact inner surface 81 that mainly function to clamp the arm A from both sides via the soft cuff 10 when the soft cuff 10 with the auxiliary ring 80 attached is passed through the arm A.

[0031] Here, when arm A is passed through soft cuff 10 with auxiliary ring 80 attached, the auxiliary ring 80 expands on both sides due to elastic deformation, as shown by the imaginary line in Fig. 5, and the elastic restoring force of the auxiliary ring 80 as it returns to its original shape acts as a clamping force. Note that a clear boundary cannot be drawn between arch-shaped inner surface portion 81a and the pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b, and there is an area where the rounding function before arm A is passed through and the clamping function after arm A is passed through overlap. For example, before arm A is passed through, the entire surface of cuff contact inner surface 81 can be said to be arch-shaped inner surface portion 81a.

[0032] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the auxiliary ring 80 has cuff fixing tabs 83 at circumferential positions along the arch shape. The cuff fixing tabs 83 are attached by inserting them in the width direction D onto the periphery of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction P. The cuff fixing tabs 83 are provided at three locations on the circumference of the auxiliary ring 80 along the arch shape: at both end positions and at the center position. Here, FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate an example in which the cuff fixing tabs 83 are integrally molded from the ring outer peripheral surface 82 of the auxiliary ring 80 and at positions spanning both ring sides. However, the cuff fixing tabs 83 may be integrally molded from the ring outer peripheral surface 82 or from one side of the ring as long as they are provided at circumferential positions along the arch shape of the auxiliary ring 80. Furthermore, the cuff fixing tabs 83 may be formed separately and attached to the auxiliary ring 80 by adhesive or the like.

[0033] The cuff fixing claw 83 has a base portion 83a, a curved portion 83b, a claw portion 83c, and a cuff fixing groove 83d. The base portion 83a protrudes outward from a position spanning the ring outer peripheral surface 82 and both side surfaces of the ring, and its inner surface contacts the outer cloth 41 of the soft cuff 10. The inner surface of the base portion 83a is an extended surface formed by extending from the cuff contact inner surface 81, and by protruding on both sides in the width direction D from the ring width of the auxiliary ring 80, it becomes an enlarged extended surface that enlarges the cuff contact inner surface 81. The curved portion 83b is formed integrally with the base portion 83a and wraps around and contacts the peripheral fabric 43 of the soft cuff 10. The claw portion 83c is formed integrally with the curved portion 83b and contacts the lining cloth 42 of the soft cuff 10. The inner surface of claw portion 83c faces a part of the inner surface of base portion 83a, and the tip of claw portion 83c is formed in a substantially semicircular shape, which facilitates the operation of inserting cuff fixing claw 83 into soft cuff 10. Cuff fixing groove 83d is formed by the inner surface of base portion 83a, the inner surface of curved portion 83b, and the inner surface of claw portion 83c, and is an open groove when inserted into peripheral fabric 43 of soft cuff 10 to fix it.

[0034] As shown in Figure 6, the auxiliary device prepared for one soft cuff 10 is an auxiliary ring set 8S consisting of a pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 attached separately to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction. The auxiliary ring set 8S is made up of two auxiliary rings 80 with the same shape and with claws. When the two auxiliary rings 80 are attached and fixed to one soft cuff 10 from both sides, one of the auxiliary rings 80 is turned 180 degrees so that the cuff fixing claws 83 of the two auxiliary rings 80 face each other.

[0035] Next, the occurrence of misalignment and loosening when wrapping and attaching soft cuff 10 of the comparative example, which does not use auxiliary ring 80, around arm A will be explained as follows with reference to Figures 7 to 10. Figures 7, 8, 9, and 10 respectively show steps 1, 2, 3, and 4 for wrapping and attaching soft cuff 10 of the comparative example, which does not use auxiliary ring 80, around arm A.

[0036] First, remove the folded and stored soft cuff 10 and air hose 20 from the cuff holder 32, and connect the air hose plug 21 provided at the other end of the air hose 20 to the air hose socket 31f of the sphygmomanometer main body 30. Next, wrap and attach the soft cuff 10 around the left arm A by following the steps 1, 2, 3, and 4 below.

[0037] In step 1, the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is passed through the cuff ring fitting 60, and the size of the loop of the soft cuff 10 is expanded to be larger than the thickness of the arm A. Then, while holding the soft cuff 10 with the right hand, the soft cuff 10 is passed from the fingertips of the left hand onto the arm A, as shown in Figure 7.

[0038] In step 2, after putting the soft cuff 10 on the arm A, the artery alignment mark 44 is aligned with the palm side, and the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is pulled downward with the right hand as shown in FIG.

[0039] In step 3, the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is pulled downward to make the loop of the soft cuff 10 smaller, and then, while maintaining the tension, the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is folded back with the right hand using the cuff ring fitting 60 as a fulcrum, as shown in Figure 9.

[0040] In step 4, after the soft cuff 10 has been wrapped and tightened by a folding motion while still being pulled, the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is wrapped around the arm A with the right hand, and the male hook-and-loop fastener 45 is attached to the female hook-and-loop fastener, which is the outer fabric 41, as shown in Figure 10. This hook-and-loop fastener attachment action wraps and secures the soft cuff 10 around the arm A.

[0041] Here, after passing the soft cuff 10 around arm A, it is desirable to align the soft cuff 10 with the predetermined position on the palm side in accordance with the artery alignment mark 44 and then wrap and tighten the soft cuff 10 tightly. However, when wrapping and attaching the soft cuff 10 around arm A, the left hand, around which the soft cuff 10 is wrapped, cannot be used, and the soft cuff 10 must be wrapped and attached using only the right hand. For this reason, in step 2, in which the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is pulled downward, and in step 3, in which the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is folded back while being pulled, no force acts on the cuff portion wrapped around arm A to make it adhere tightly to the outer peripheral surface of arm A.

[0042] Therefore, when a pulling force is applied to the portion of the cuff wrapped around arm A in a free state during step 2, in which the cuff is pulled downward, and step 3, in which the cuff is folded back while being pulled, the portion of the cuff that is wrapped around arm A in a free state will deform or move circumferentially due to the pulling force, resulting in an unstable cuff shape and position. When soft cuff 10 moves in this way, the wrapping position of soft cuff 10 may shift from the predetermined position, resulting in cuff misalignment, or the soft cuff may be wrapped loosely. Therefore, in the comparative example, there is a high possibility that soft cuff 10 may not be wrapped in the predetermined position or may be wrapped loosely. As a result, blood pressure cannot be measured correctly, and an error may be detected during blood pressure measurement, or blood pressure measurements may vary, resulting in poor measurement accuracy.

[0043] The means for solving the problems of the above-mentioned comparative example and the effects thereof will be described below with reference to Figures 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 11. Note that Figure 11 shows the effect of stabilizing the cuff shape and cuff position when soft cuff 10 of Example 1 using auxiliary ring 80 is wrapped around arm A and attached.

[0044] The inventors of the present invention have noticed that, compared to the comparative example, soft cuff 10 can be made both storable and easy to wear by using an external "restraint member" that serves to restrict movement of the cuff portion wrapped around arm A only when the cuff is worn, while retaining its compact storage advantage. The inventors have adopted the following solution to the problem, which uses an external auxiliary ring 80 as the external "restraint member."

[0045] The means for solving the problems is a soft cuff wearing aid used when wrapping and attaching soft cuff 10, which is an arm band without a core, around arm A during blood pressure measurement, and includes auxiliary ring 80 formed in an arch shape with an opening from a flexible plate material, and which is detachable from the outer surface of the cuff of soft cuff 10. Auxiliary ring 80 comes into contact with the outer surface of the cuff when attached to soft cuff 10, and has a cuff contact inner surface 81 that defines the shape of soft cuff 10 as a wrapping shape that follows the outer peripheral surface of arm A (see Figures 4 and 5).

[0046] Auxiliary ring 80, which is used when measuring blood pressure, is detached from soft cuff 10 when not measuring blood pressure. Therefore, soft cuff 10 in the folded storage form (see FIG. 2) can be stored compactly in cuff holder 32, for example, in which the back surface of main body case 31 serves as a part of the holder (see FIG. 1).

[0047] When wrapping and attaching soft cuff 10 around arm A during blood pressure measurement, auxiliary ring 80 is attached to the outer surface of the cuff before proceeding to step 1 above. When attached to soft cuff 10, cuff contact inner surface 81 of auxiliary ring 80 comes into contact with the outer surface of the cuff, and the shape of soft cuff 10 is defined by cuff contact inner surface 81 to form a wrapped shape that conforms to the outer surface of arm A. Then, in step 1 (see FIG. 7), when soft cuff 10 is passed from the fingertips of the left hand onto arm A while still holding soft cuff 10 with the right hand, arm A is clamped from both sides via soft cuff 10 by the pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b. Therefore, in steps 2 (see FIG. 8) and 3 (see FIG. 9), auxiliary ring 80, which constrains the shape and position of the cuff portion wrapped around arm A, stabilizes the soft cuff 10 and prevents it from shifting position.

[0048] 11 , in step 2, in which the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is pulled downward in the direction of arrow E, the portion of the soft cuff 10 wrapped around the arm A attempts to move in the direction of arrow F, conforming to the shape of the arm A. Similarly, in step 3, in which the tip 10b of the soft cuff 10 is pulled in the direction of arrow G and turned around the cuff ring fitting 60 in an arc while being folded back, the portion of the soft cuff 10 wrapped around the arm A attempts to move in the direction of arrow F, conforming to the shape of the arm A. However, an auxiliary ring 80 is attached to the cuff portion of the soft cuff 10 wrapped around the arm A so as to restrain the cuff portion from the outside. Therefore, the cuff portion wrapped around the arm A is shaped to fit along the outer peripheral surface of the arm A by the cuff contact inner surface 81 of the auxiliary ring 80, so that the inner peripheral surface of the cuff portion is in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the arm A. Therefore, even if a force acts on the portion of soft cuff 10 that is wrapped around arm A, tending to move in the direction of arrow F, a frictional resistance force in the direction of arrow H, opposite to arrow F, is generated between the inner peripheral surface of soft cuff 10 and the outer peripheral surface of arm A, preventing movement of soft cuff 10. In other words, when soft cuff 10 is wrapped around arm A and attached, cuff contact inner surface 81 of auxiliary ring 80 restrains the movement of soft cuff 10 and plays a role in stabilizing the cuff shape and position of the cuff portion wrapped around arm A.

[0049] Therefore, by using the auxiliary ring 80 as an auxiliary device when putting on the soft cuff 10, it is possible to achieve both the wearability and storability required for a blood pressure monitor arm cuff. As a result of achieving the wearability required for a blood pressure monitor arm cuff, blood pressure can be measured correctly and blood pressure measurement errors and poor measurement accuracy due to variations in blood pressure measurements can be prevented. Furthermore, because the auxiliary ring 80 is external, the auxiliary ring 80, which improves wearability, can be attached not only to the soft cuff 10 but also to various current soft cuffs. Furthermore, if it is determined that the auxiliary ring 80 is unnecessary, it is also possible to choose to use the normal soft cuff 10 without attaching the auxiliary ring 80.

[0050] Next, the function of the auxiliary ring 80 to round the soft cuff 10 and to sandwich the soft cuff 10 will be described below with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG.

[0051] The cuff contact inner surface 81 of the auxiliary ring 80 has an arch-shaped inner surface portion 81a and a pair of sandwiching inner surface portions 81b, 81b (see FIG. 5).

[0052] 6, a pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 are attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction before proceeding to step 1 above. At this time, the auxiliary ring 80 has an arched inner surface portion 81a on the cuff contact inner surface 81, so that the shape of the attached portion of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction is rounded by the shape of the arched inner surface portion 81a of the auxiliary ring 80.

[0053] Suppose that soft cuff 10, which has a rounded shape due to the attachment of auxiliary ring 80, is held with the right hand and then passed around arm A from the fingertips of the left hand according to step 1 above. Passing arm A through soft cuff 10, which has a rounded shape, causes auxiliary ring 80 to expand on both sides due to elastic deformation, as shown by the imaginary lines in Fig. 5. However, since auxiliary ring 80 has a pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b on its cuff contact inner surface 81, the elastic restoring force that attempts to return to its original shape becomes a clamping force, and the pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b clamp arm A from both sides via soft cuff 10.

[0054] In this way, by making the soft cuff 10 round, the soft cuff 10 sandwiches the arm A when the arm A is passed through, so that the soft cuff 10 is stabilized at the wrapping position around the arm A, and it becomes easy to set the soft cuff 10 in the predetermined position (the position of the artery alignment mark 44). In addition, since the soft cuff 10 is sandwiched, the soft cuff 10 does not become loose.

[0055] Next, the operation of attaching and fixing auxiliary ring 80 to soft cuff 10 by cuff fixing claw 83 will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0056] The auxiliary ring 80 has cuff fixing claws 83 at circumferential positions along the arch shape that are attached by inserting in the width direction D onto the periphery of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction P (see FIGS. 4 and 5).

[0057] When attaching the auxiliary ring 80 to the peripheral edge of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction P, the attachment is performed by inserting the cuff fixing tab 83 in the width direction D. For example, a description will be given based on FIG. 6 , in which a pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 are attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction. The left auxiliary ring 80 shown in FIG. 6 is attached and fixed in a sandwiched state to the left peripheral edge of the soft cuff 10 by inserting the cuff fixing tab 83 to the right in the width direction D until it reaches the insertion limit. On the other hand, the right auxiliary ring 80 shown in FIG. 6 is attached in a sandwiched state to the right peripheral edge of the soft cuff 10 by inserting the cuff fixing tab 83 to the left in the width direction D until it reaches the insertion limit. Therefore, the auxiliary ring 80 can be easily attached to an appropriate position on the soft cuff 10 determined by the insertion limit position. Furthermore, the auxiliary ring 80 is prevented from shifting from its attached position or from coming off the soft cuff 10 during the process of wrapping the soft cuff 10 around the arm A and putting it on.

[0058] The cuff fixing claws 83 are provided at three locations on the circumference of the arch shape of the auxiliary ring 80, namely at both end positions and at the center position (see FIGS. 4 and 5).

[0059] As shown in FIG. 6 , the pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 are attached and fixed to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction before proceeding to step 1 above. At this time, the auxiliary rings 80 are attached by inserting the cuff fixing claws 83 of the auxiliary rings 80 in the width direction D at three locations: both end positions and the center position. Because the auxiliary rings 80 are attached by three-point fixation, the wrapping direction shape of the cuff portion to which the auxiliary rings 80 are attached has a neatly rounded shape that closely matches the arch shape of the cuff contact inner surface 81 of the auxiliary rings 80. Therefore, when the soft cuff 10 with a neatly rounded shape is passed over the arm A (step 1), the arm A can be passed through smoothly. Furthermore, the three-point fixed auxiliary rings 80 clamp the arm A from both sides via the soft cuff 10 with an appropriate clamping force.

[0060] As described above, the soft cuff wearing aid of Example 1 provides the following effects.

[0061] (1) A soft cuff wearing aid used when wrapping and attaching a soft cuff 10, which is an arm band without a core, around an arm A includes an auxiliary ring 80 formed of a flexible plate material in an arch shape with an opening and detachable from the outer surface of the cuff. The auxiliary ring 80 contacts the outer surface of the cuff when attached to the soft cuff 10 and has a cuff-contacting inner surface 81 that defines the shape of the soft cuff 10 so that it wraps around the outer surface of the arm A. Therefore, by using the auxiliary ring 80 as an aid when donning the soft cuff 10, it is possible to achieve both the wearability and storability required of a blood pressure monitor arm band. Furthermore, since the soft cuff 10 can be easily wrapped and attached in a predetermined position around the arm A, blood pressure can be measured accurately and blood pressure measurement errors and poor measurement accuracy due to variations in blood pressure measurements can be prevented.

[0062] (2) When attached to the soft cuff 10 before the arm A is passed through the cuff contact inner surface 81, the cuff contact inner surface 81 has an arched inner surface 81a that gives the soft cuff 10 a rounded shape, and a pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b that clamp the arm A from both sides via the soft cuff 10 when the arm A is passed through the rounded soft cuff 10. Therefore, the shape of the wrapping direction of the soft cuff 10 can be made rounded by the shape of the arched inner surface 81a of the auxiliary ring 80, and the pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b can clamp the arm A from both sides via the soft cuff 10. As a result, the soft cuff 10 is stabilized at the wrapping position around the arm A, making it easy to set the soft cuff 10 in a predetermined position, and the clamping effect also prevents the soft cuff 10 from becoming loose.

[0063] (3) The auxiliary ring 80 has cuff fixing tabs 83 at circumferential positions along the arch shape that are attached by inserting them in the width direction D relative to the peripheral edge of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction P. Therefore, when attaching the auxiliary ring 80 to the soft cuff 10, the auxiliary ring 80 can be easily attached to an appropriate position by inserting and fixing them in the width direction D using the cuff fixing tabs 83. In addition, the auxiliary ring 80 can be prevented from shifting or coming off when wrapping and attaching the soft cuff 10 around the arm A.

[0064] (4) The cuff fixing claws 83 are provided at three locations on the circumference of the arch shape of the auxiliary ring 80: at both ends and at the center. Therefore, the wrapping direction shape of the soft cuff 10 at the portion where the auxiliary ring 80 is attached can be made into a neat, rounded shape that closely matches the arch shape of the cuff contact inner surface 81 of the auxiliary ring 80. As a result, when the soft cuff 10 is passed over the arm A, the arm A can be passed through smoothly, and the three-point restraint auxiliary ring 80 can clamp the arm A from both sides via the soft cuff 10 with an appropriate clamping force.

[0065] (5) The auxiliary device prepared for each soft cuff 10 is an auxiliary ring set 8S consisting of a pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 attached separately to both widthwise sides of the soft cuff 10. In this way, the auxiliary ring set 8S is used as an auxiliary device when attaching the soft cuff 10 to the arm A, and therefore the stability of the rounded shape of the soft cuff 10 when rounding it is improved compared to when one auxiliary ring 80 is attached to one soft cuff 10. Note that when attaching a claw-type auxiliary ring 80 having cuff fixing claws 83 as in Example 1, the soft cuff 10 is positioned by being clamped to both ends of the soft cuff 10, thereby improving the stability of the cuff position. [Example]

[0066] While the first embodiment is an example of an auxiliary ring 80 with a claw having a cuff fixing claw 83, the second embodiment is an example of an auxiliary ring 80' without a claw, in which the cuff fixing claw 83 is eliminated.

[0067] The configuration of the claw-less auxiliary ring 80' will be described below with reference to Fig. 12. Fig. 12 shows the claw-less auxiliary ring 80' of the second embodiment.

[0068] As shown in Fig. 12, the claw-less auxiliary ring 80' is made of a flexible plate material and is formed in an arch shape with an opening, and is detachable from the outer cuff surface of the soft cuff 10. The auxiliary ring 80' has a cuff contacting inner surface 81 that comes into contact with the outer cuff surface when attached to the soft cuff 10 and defines the wrapping direction shape of the soft cuff 10 according to the shape of the inner surface of the ring. The auxiliary ring 80' has a cuff attachment mark 84 at the center of its outer peripheral surface 82, which serves as a guide when attaching the auxiliary ring 80 to the soft cuff 10. The auxiliary ring 80' of the second embodiment has a configuration in which the cuff fixing claws 83 are eliminated from the auxiliary ring 80 of the first embodiment, and a detailed description of the auxiliary ring 80' will be omitted.

[0069] Next, the attachment of the claw-less auxiliary ring 80′ to the soft cuff 10 will be described as follows with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 shows a state in which the pair of claw-less auxiliary rings 80′, 80′ of Example 2 are attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction.

[0070] When attaching to the soft cuff 10, an auxiliary ring set 8S' consisting of a pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws is prepared. Then, the pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws is attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction, as shown in FIG. 13. This allows the shape of the portion of the soft cuff 10 to which the pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws is attached to be rounded. Note that the operation of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment except for the operation related to the cuff fixing claws 83, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0071] The soft cuff wearing aid of Example 2 can achieve the effects (1), (2), and (5) of Example 1. In Example 2, the auxiliary ring 80' without claws has a simpler ring structure than the auxiliary ring 80 with claws of Example 1. This allows for inexpensive manufacturing, compact storage when not in use, and easier attachment to the soft cuff 10 in a shorter time than Example 1. [Example]

[0072] While Example 2 is an example using two independent auxiliary rings 80' without claws, Example 3 is an example in which a pair of auxiliary rings are connected to form one connected auxiliary ring 80''.

[0073] The configuration of the connection assist ring 80" will be described below with reference to FIG. 14. Note that FIG. 14 shows the connection assist ring 80" of Example 3.

[0074] The auxiliary device prepared for one soft cuff 10 is a single connected auxiliary ring 80" formed by connecting a pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction and connected by a connecting bar 86. Each of the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 is formed in an arch shape with an opening and made of flexible plate material, and is detachable from the outer surface of the cuff of the soft cuff 10. Each of the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 has a cuff contacting inner surface 81 that contacts the outer surface of the cuff when attached to the soft cuff 10 and determines the wrapping direction shape of the soft cuff 10 by the shape of the inner surface of the ring. Furthermore, the connecting bar 47 connects the centers of the outer peripheral surfaces 82 of each of the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 in the width direction. The pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 in Example 3 has a configuration corresponding to the pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws in Example 2, and a detailed description of the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 will be omitted.

[0075] Next, the attachment of the connection assist ring 80″ to the soft cuff 10 will be described as follows with reference to FIG. 15. Note that FIG. 15 shows the state in which the connection assist rings 80″ of Example 3 are attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction.

[0076] When attaching to the soft cuff 10, a connected auxiliary ring 80" is prepared by connecting a pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 together. Then, of the connected auxiliary ring 80", the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 are attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction, as shown in Figure 15. This allows the shape of the portion of the soft cuff 10 where the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 are attached to be rounded.

[0077] In addition to the effects (1) and (2) of the first embodiment, the soft cuff wearing aid of the third embodiment can also achieve the following effects.

[0078] (6) The auxiliary device prepared for each soft cuff 10 is a single connected auxiliary ring 80" formed by connecting a pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 attached to both widthwise sides of the soft cuff 10 with a connecting bar 86. In this way, a single connected auxiliary ring 80" is used as an auxiliary device for attaching the soft cuff 10 to the arm A. This reduces the effort required to attach the auxiliary device to the soft cuff 10 compared to Example 2, in which a pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws is attached to each soft cuff 10. In addition, the relative positions of the pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 in the wrapping direction P are aligned by the connecting bar 86, which improves the stability of the rounded shape when the soft cuff 10 is rounded. Furthermore, because the two auxiliary rings 85, 85 are integrated, the two auxiliary rings 85, 85 can be managed collectively. In addition, the connecting bar 86 may be joined to the auxiliary ring 85 at a position other than the center position on the outer circumferential surface of each auxiliary ring 85, and the number of connecting bars 86 is not limited to one, but may be two or more.

[0079] As described above, the soft cuff wearing aid of the present invention has been described based on Examples 1, 2, and 3. However, the specific configuration of the soft cuff wearing aid of the present invention is not limited to these Examples, and design changes and additions are permitted as long as they do not deviate from the gist of the invention according to each claim in the scope of the claims.

[0080] In Example 1, an example of an auxiliary ring 80 is shown as a soft cuff wearing aid, which has three cuff fixing claws 83 attached to the outer peripheral surface 82 of the ring by inserting them in the width direction D relative to the periphery of the soft cuff 10 in the wrapping direction P. However, when an auxiliary ring with claws is used as a soft cuff wearing aid, the number of cuff fixing claws is not limited to three. For example, an example having one or two cuff fixing claws may be used. Also, an example having four or more cuff fixing claws may be used.

[0081] In Example 2, an example of a claw-less auxiliary ring 80' is shown as a soft cuff wearing aid in which the shapes of the arch-shaped inner surface 81a and the pair of clamping inner surfaces 81b, 81b are the same in width. However, when using a claw-less auxiliary ring as a soft cuff wearing aid, it is not limited to a shape with the same width. For example, the shape of the pair of clamping inner surfaces may be expanded in the width direction to increase the clamping force for clamping the soft cuff.

[0082] In the second embodiment, an auxiliary ring set 8S' including a pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws attached separately to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction as shown in FIG. 13 is provided as an auxiliary device for each soft cuff 10. However, the auxiliary device for each soft cuff 10 is not limited to the auxiliary ring set 8S' including a pair of auxiliary rings 80', 80' without claws. For example, one auxiliary device may be provided for each soft cuff 10, and the one auxiliary ring 80' without claws may be attached to one side of the soft cuff 10 as shown in FIG. 16. Alternatively, three auxiliary devices may be provided for each soft cuff 10, and three auxiliary rings 80', 80', 80' without claws may be attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction and the center of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction as shown in FIG. 17. Note that, similarly to the auxiliary ring 80 with claws in the first embodiment, one auxiliary device may be provided for each soft cuff. Furthermore, three auxiliary devices may be prepared for one soft cuff, and the pair of auxiliary rings 80, 80 with claws of the first embodiment may be combined with the auxiliary ring 80' without claws of the second embodiment.

[0083] In the third embodiment, a pair of auxiliary rings 85, 85 (without claws) attached to both sides of the soft cuff 10 in the width direction are connected by a connecting bar 86 to form a single connecting auxiliary ring 80" as the soft cuff wearing aid. However, the use of a connecting auxiliary ring as the soft cuff wearing aid is not limited to the illustrated example. For example, a pair of auxiliary rings with claws (embodiment 1) may be connected by a connecting bar. Also, the pair of auxiliary rings at both ends of the connecting bar may be made foldable toward the connecting bar to improve storability of the aid. Furthermore, the length of the connecting bar may be made adjustable to accommodate soft cuffs of different widths.

[0084] 1 to 3 show an example of a soft cuff 10 as an example of a soft cuff for which the soft cuff putting aids of Examples 1 to 3 can be used. However, the soft cuff for which the soft cuff putting aid of the present invention can be used is not limited to the example shown in the drawings, and the soft cuff can be used for soft cuffs of various shapes and structures as long as it does not have a core. [Explanation of symbols]

[0085] 10 Soft Cuff 80 Auxiliary Ring 81 Ring contact inner surface 81a Arched inner surface 81b, 81b Pair of clamping inner surfaces 82 Ring outer surface 83 Cuff fixing claw 80' Clawless auxiliary ring 84 Cuff attachment mark 80" Connection Auxiliary Ring 85,85 A pair of auxiliary rings 86 Connecting bar A Arm P Winding direction D Width direction

Claims

1. A core is a core material that is shaped to hold the arm, and an arm band that incorporates said core is called a hard cuff. A soft cuff wearing aid used when wrapping and wearing a soft cuff, which is an arm band that does not have said core, around the arm, an auxiliary ring formed of a flexible plate material in an arch shape having an opening, the auxiliary ring being detachable from the outer surface of the soft cuff; the auxiliary ring has a cuff contact inner surface that contacts the outer surface of the cuff when attached to the soft cuff and defines the shape of the soft cuff to be wrapped around the outer circumferential surface of the arm; The cuff contact inner surface has an arch-shaped inner surface that, when attached to the soft cuff before the arm is passed through, gives the soft cuff a rounded shape, and a pair of clamping inner surfaces that clamp the arm from both sides via the soft cuff when the arm is passed through the rounded soft cuff. A soft cuff wearing aid characterized by:

2. The auxiliary ring is provided at a circumferential position along the arch shape in the wrapping direction of the soft cuff. The cuff has fixing claws that are attached by inserting them widthwise to the periphery.

2. The soft cuff donning aid according to claim 1.

3. The cuff fixing claws are positioned at both end positions and on the circumference of the auxiliary ring along the arch shape. There are three positions, including the central position.

3. The soft cuff donning aid according to claim 2.

4. The auxiliary tools prepared for each soft cuff are positioned on both sides of the soft cuff in the width direction. A pair of auxiliary rings are attached separately to form an auxiliary ring set.

4. The soft cuff donning aid according to claim 1, wherein the soft cuff donning aid is a soft cuff donning aid.

5. The auxiliary tools prepared for each soft cuff are positioned on both sides of the soft cuff in the width direction. The pair of auxiliary rings to be attached are connected by a connecting bar to form a single connected auxiliary ring.

4. The soft cuff donning aid according to claim 1, wherein the soft cuff donning aid is a soft cuff donning aid.

Images