Stethoscope and auscultation system

Abstract

To prevent a user from listening to loud sounds other than auscultatory sounds.SOLUTION: Auscultatory systems 1, 101 each include a sensor for picking up an auscultatory sound, a chest piece that contacts an auscultatory target, and a gyro sensor 5 for detecting movement of the chest piece. The auscultation systems 1, 101 further each include a headphone amplifier 6 that adjusts the volume of sound output from the gyro sensor 5 when movement is detected by the sensor. Furthermore, the auscultation systems 1, 101 each include a recorder 4 that records the movement of the chest piece detected by the gyro sensor 5.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a stethoscope and an auscultation system. [Background technology]

[0002] Among stethoscopes, there are so-called electronic stethoscopes that electronically collect sounds such as heart sounds using sensors such as microphones, amplify the collected sounds, and allow doctors and other professionals to listen to the amplified sounds (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 2 (Bio-Sound Collecting Device), a document related to electronic stethoscopes, describes volume adjustment when using a stethoscope. The invention described in Patent Document 2 is an invention in which an acceleration sensor is embedded in the earpiece of the stethoscope, and the movement of the head of a user wearing the earpiece is detected and the volume is adjusted accordingly. Note that the invention described in Patent Document 2 aims to enable volume adjustment without manual operation, and the purpose of the invention described in Patent Document 2 is different from the purpose of the present invention (reducing rustling noise (friction noise)) described below. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the invention described in Patent Document 2 detects the movement of the user's head, and the object whose movement is detected is also different from that of the present invention.

[0003] When using a stethoscope, a user needs to move the stethoscope (chestpiece) while listening to the auscultation sounds to make sure it is positioned properly. When doing so, the stethoscope rubs against clothing, creating a loud noise compared to the heart sounds. Therefore, if a user adjusts the volume level of the auscultation sounds to match the heart sounds, the stethoscope's rubbing against clothing when moving the stethoscope creates a loud noise that can damage the user's ears and cause discomfort.

[0004] Furthermore, if auscultation sounds are recorded in a situation where the stethoscope rubs against clothing, the heart sounds and the rubbing noise between the stethoscope and clothing are recorded consecutively. This requires the user to determine whether the auscultation sounds are heart sounds or non-heart sounds, which takes time. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-242849 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-117572 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] As described above, when a user uses a stethoscope, noise is generated between the stethoscope and clothing, which can cause the user to hear loud sounds other than the auscultatory sound.

[0007] An object of the present invention is to prevent the user from hearing loud sounds other than auscultatory sounds. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The stethoscope of the first invention is characterized by comprising a first sensor for collecting auscultatory sounds, a chest piece that comes into contact with the subject to be auscultated, and a second sensor for detecting movement of the chest piece.

[0009] In the present invention, the second sensor detects movement of the chestpiece, which makes it possible to adjust the sound output from the first sensor based on the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor, or to determine from the sound output from the first sensor where only auscultation sounds are present, thereby preventing the user from hearing loud sounds other than auscultation sounds.

[0010] The stethoscope of the second invention is characterized in that, in the stethoscope of the first invention, it further comprises an adjustment unit that adjusts the volume of the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor.

[0011] In the present invention, the adjustment unit adjusts the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor. Therefore, by reducing (including muting) the sound output from the first sensor, the user can be prevented from hearing loud sounds other than the auscultation sound.

[0012] The stethoscope of the third invention is the stethoscope of the second invention, characterized in that the adjustment unit reduces the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor.

[0013] A stethoscope of a fourth invention is the stethoscope of the second invention, characterized in that the adjustment unit mutes the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor.

[0014] A stethoscope according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the stethoscope according to any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, further comprising a recording unit that records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor.

[0015] In the present invention, the recording unit records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor, allowing the user to easily distinguish auscultatory sounds (such as heart sounds) that are not affected by noise caused by movement from among auscultatory sounds that contain noise, based on the recorded movement of the chestpiece.

[0016] A stethoscope according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the stethoscope according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, characterized in that the recording unit records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor as a movement flag.

[0017] The stethoscope of the seventh invention is the stethoscope of the fifth or sixth invention, characterized in that the recording unit records the auscultatory sounds collected by the first sensor and the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor.

[0018] The stethoscope of the eighth invention is the stethoscope of any one of the fifth to seventh inventions, characterized in that the recording unit records the auscultatory sounds collected by the first sensor and the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor in a single file.

[0019] A stethoscope according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is the stethoscope according to any one of the first to eighth aspects of the present invention, wherein the second sensor is provided in the chestpiece.

[0020] A stethoscope according to a tenth aspect of the present invention is the stethoscope according to any one of the first to ninth aspects of the present invention, wherein the second sensor is a gyro sensor.

[0021] The auscultation system of the eleventh invention is characterized by comprising a first sensor for collecting auscultatory sounds, a chestpiece that comes into contact with the subject to be auscultated, and a second sensor for detecting movement of the chestpiece.

[0022] The auscultation system of the 12th invention is characterized in that, in the auscultation system of the 11th invention, it further comprises an adjustment unit that adjusts the volume of the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor.

[0023] The auscultation system of a thirteenth aspect of the present invention is the auscultation system of the eleventh or twelfth aspect of the present invention, further comprising a recording unit that records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor.

[0024] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the user from hearing loud sounds other than auscultatory sounds. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0025] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an auscultation system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 10 is a graph showing the state of the chestpiece when it is moving and when it is not moving. [Figure 3]10 is a graph showing the output of a gyro sensor mounted on the chestpiece. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an auscultation system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0026] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An auscultation system according to an embodiment of the present invention collects auscultatory sounds such as heart sounds of a patient.

[0027] (First embodiment) Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an auscultation system 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 1, the auscultation system 1 includes a stethoscope 2, a sensor amplifier 3, a recorder 4, a gyro sensor 5, a headphone amplifier 6, headphones 7, etc.

[0028] The stethoscope 2 has a chest piece that comes into contact with the object to be auscultated. The chest piece is provided with a sensor (first sensor) for collecting auscultatory sounds. The sensor is, for example, a piezoelectric sensor composed of a piezoelectric element. The sensor amplifier 3 amplifies the auscultatory sounds collected by the sensor. The recorder 4 records (records) the auscultatory sounds amplified by the sensor amplifier 3. The auscultatory sounds recorded by the recorder 4 are output as an audio file.

[0029] The gyro sensor 5 (second sensor) detects movement of the chest piece. The gyro sensor 5 is provided on the chest piece. In this embodiment, a gyro sensor is used as an example of a sensor for detecting movement of the chest piece. However, the sensor is not limited to this, and may be, for example, an inertial sensor such as an acceleration sensor. The headphone amplifier 6 amplifies the auscultatory sound amplified by the sensor amplifier 3. The headphones 7 output the auscultatory sound amplified by the headphone amplifier 6. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the user listens to the auscultatory sound through headphones, and therefore the auscultatory sound amplified by the headphone amplifier 6 is output to the headphones 7. Alternatively, the auscultatory sound may be output from a speaker. In this case, the amplifier that amplifies the auscultatory sound is not limited to a headphone amplifier.

[0030] As described above, the gyro sensor 5 is used to detect the movement of the chest piece. Information from the gyro sensor 5 indicating whether the chest piece is moving (moving) or not (not moving) is output to the recorder 4 and headphone amplifier 6. In the information on whether the chest piece is moving or not, a movement flag is set when the chest piece is moving. The recorder 4 records the movement flag and generates a movement flag record file.

[0031] When the movement flag is set, i.e., when movement of the chestpiece is detected, the headphone amplifier 6 adjusts the volume of the auscultation sounds collected by the sensor and amplified by the sensor amplifier 3. Specifically, the headphone amplifier 6 reduces or mutes the volume of the auscultation sounds. The auscultation sounds whose volume has been adjusted by the headphone amplifier 6 are output to the headphones 7.

[0032] In this embodiment, the headphone amplifier 6 functions as an adjustment unit that adjusts the volume of the auscultation sounds. However, the adjustment unit for the volume of the auscultation sounds may be, for example, a volume IC. Furthermore, the volume of the auscultation sounds may be adjusted on the recording data when the auscultation sounds are recorded.

[0033] Figure 2 is a graph showing the state of the chestpiece when it is moving and when it is not moving. As shown in the figure, when the chestpiece is moving, the amplitude is large and sounds such as the rubbing of the chestpiece against clothing are picked up. When the chestpiece is not moving, heart sounds are picked up.

[0034] FIG. 3 is a graph showing the output of the gyro sensor 5 mounted on the chest piece. The movement of the chest piece is represented by movement of the chest piece from side to side, and other times by non-movement. The chest piece is moved parallel to the body mainly when the user checks whether the chest piece is positioned properly. For this reason, FIG. 3 shows the recorded output when the chest piece is moved from side to side. As shown in FIG. 3, among the outputs of the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis of the gyro sensor 5, the amplitude of the X-axis changes significantly when the chest piece is moved from side to side. Therefore, it can be seen from FIG. 3 that it is possible to determine from the output of the gyro sensor 5 whether the chest piece is moving parallel to the body (from side to side) or not, i.e., whether the chest piece is moving or not moving.

[0035] (Second embodiment) Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an auscultation system 101 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 4, the auscultation system 101 includes a stethoscope 2, a sensor amplifier 3, a recorder 4, a gyro sensor 5, a headphone amplifier 6, headphones 7, a mixer amplifier 8, an oscillator 9, etc. The auscultation system 101 according to the second embodiment differs from the auscultation system 1 according to the first embodiment mainly in that the mixer amplifier 8 and the oscillator 9 are added. The auscultation system 101 according to the second embodiment will be described mainly focusing on the differences from the auscultation system 1 according to the first embodiment.

[0036] The oscillator 9 emits a recognition signal indicating whether the chestpiece is moving or not. One of the recognition signals indicating whether the chestpiece is moving or not may be silent. The mixer amplifier 8 mixes the auscultatory sound from the sensor amplifier 3 with the signal from the oscillator 9 as a movement flag signal. The recorder 4 records the auscultatory sound and movement flag mixed by the mixer amplifier 8 and outputs them as an audio file. In the first embodiment, the movement flag was recorded separately from the audio file, but in the second embodiment, the auscultatory sound and movement flag signal are mixed and recorded as a single audio file. The movement flag is assigned when movement begins, for example, as shown in FIG. 2.

[0037] In the second embodiment, the recorder 4 functions as a recording unit that records the movement of the chest piece detected by the gyro sensor 5. The recorder 4 records the movement of the chest piece detected by the gyro sensor 5 as a movement flag. The recorder 4 records the auscultatory sounds collected by the sensor and the movement of the chest piece detected by the gyro sensor 5. The recorder 4 records the auscultatory sounds collected by the sensor and the movement of the chest piece detected by the gyro sensor 5 in one file.

[0038] In the second embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the headphone amplifier 6 may be configured to adjust the sound output from the gyro sensor 5 when movement is detected by the sensor.

[0039] As described above, in the first and second embodiments, the gyro sensor 5 detects the movement of the chest piece. This makes it possible to adjust the sound output from the sensor based on the movement of the chest piece detected by the gyro sensor 5, or to determine from the sound output from the sensor where only auscultation sounds are present, thereby preventing the user from hearing loud sounds other than auscultation sounds.

[0040] In the first embodiment, the headphone amplifier 6 adjusts the sound output from the sensor when movement is detected by the gyro sensor 5. Therefore, by reducing the sound output from the sensor (including muting), the user can prevent hearing loud sounds other than the auscultation sounds. This allows the user listening to the auscultation sounds to listen comfortably and to the appropriate part of the recorded auscultation sounds where the heart sounds are recorded.

[0041] In the second embodiment, the recorder 4 records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the gyro sensor 5. Therefore, based on the recorded movement of the chestpiece, the user can easily distinguish auscultation sounds (such as heart sounds) that do not include noise caused by movement from among auscultation sounds that contain noise. In addition, the recorder 4 simultaneously records a movement flag indicating the movement of the chestpiece with the auscultation sounds, making it possible to visualize when the chestpiece is moving and when it is not. This makes it easy for the user to check the auscultation sounds after auscultation.

[0042] In the first and second embodiments, the gyro sensor 5 is used to detect the movement of the chest piece, making it possible to adjust the volume of the auscultation sound and add a movement flag for the auscultation sound, and making it possible to distinguish between the auscultation sound and sounds such as the rustling of clothes that accompany movement.

[0043] The above describes an embodiment of the present invention, but the forms to which the present invention can be applied are not limited to the above-described embodiment, and as exemplified below, appropriate modifications can be made within the scope of the spirit of the present invention.

[0044] In the above-described embodiment, the sensor amplifier 3 to the oscillator 9 are provided separately from the stethoscope 2, and constitute the auscultation system 1, 101, but this is not limited thereto, and the sensor amplifier 3 to the oscillator 9 may be configured integrally with the stethoscope 2, thereby constituting the stethoscope as a standalone unit. [Industrial Applicability]

[0045] The present invention can be suitably employed in an auscultation system and a stethoscope. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 1, 101 Auscultation System 2 stethoscopes 3 Sensor amplifier 4 Recorder (recording unit) 5 Gyro sensor (second sensor) 6 Headphone amplifier (adjustment section) 7. Headphones 8 Mixer Amplifier 9. Oscillators

Claims

1. A first sensor for collecting auscultatory sounds; a chest piece that comes into contact with the subject of auscultation; a second sensor for detecting movement of the chestpiece; an adjustment unit that adjusts the volume of the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor; A stethoscope comprising:

2. 2. The stethoscope according to claim 1, wherein the adjustment unit reduces the volume of the sound output from the first sensor when the second sensor detects movement.

3. 2. The stethoscope according to claim 1, wherein the adjustment unit mutes the sound output from the first sensor when the second sensor detects movement.

4. 4. The stethoscope according to claim 1, further comprising a recording unit that records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor.

5. 5. The stethoscope according to claim 4, wherein the recording unit records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor as a movement flag.

6. 6. The stethoscope according to claim 4, wherein the recording unit records the auscultatory sounds collected by the first sensor and the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor.

7. The stethoscope according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the recording unit records the auscultatory sounds collected by the first sensor and the movement of the chest piece detected by the second sensor in a single file.

8. 8. The stethoscope according to claim 1, wherein the second sensor is provided on the chestpiece.

9. 9. The stethoscope according to claim 1, wherein the second sensor is a gyro sensor.

10. A first sensor for collecting auscultatory sounds; a chest piece that comes into contact with the subject of auscultation; a second sensor for detecting movement of the chestpiece; an adjustment unit that adjusts the volume of the sound output from the first sensor when movement is detected by the second sensor; An auscultation system comprising:

11. 11. The auscultation system according to claim 10, further comprising a recording unit that records the movement of the chestpiece detected by the second sensor.

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