Biogas detection device

Abstract

To provide a biogas detection device that can stably detect a specific component contained in biogas discharged from the skin of a driver and can prevent a wrong detection and accurately detect a state of the driver.SOLUTION: A biogas detection device S capable of detecting a specific component contained in biogas discharged from a driver is mounted in a handle 1 to be held during driving, and includes: a gas detection sensor 10 capable of detecting the specific component contained in the biogas discharged from the skin of the driver while being in non-contact state with the skin; and a light-emitting unit 15 capable of emitting red light to the skin during operation. The gas detection sensor and the light-emitting unit are disposed in a region, which can be simultaneously covered by the hands of the driver, of a grip part 4 of the handle to be held by the driver.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gas detection device that is mounted on a vehicle and is capable of detecting specific components (such as alcohol components) contained in biological gases emitted by a driver. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, devices capable of detecting alcohol components and the like excreted by a driver include a drinking level detection device configured to detect the drinking level by detecting the alcohol components contained in the sweat of the driver (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This conventional drinking level detection device is configured to detect the drinking level of a person by detecting the concentration of alcohol components contained in the sweat of the person holding the steering wheel (driver), and is equipped with a heating element to promote sweating in the driver. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2009-73422 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the amount of sweat discharged varies greatly from person to person, and for example, even if a configuration in which heating elements are arranged side by side is used, there are cases in which a sufficient amount of sweat cannot be ensured for people with dry skin or low body temperatures, etc. In view of this, the amount of biological gas discharged from human skin varies less from person to person than that of sweat, and the inventors have focused on biological gas discharged from the skin in light of this and have arrived at the present invention.

[0005] The present invention aims to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a biological gas detection device that can stably detect specific components contained in biological gases emitted from the driver's skin and accurately detect the driver's condition while suppressing false detections. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The biological gas detection device according to the present invention is a biological gas detection device that is mounted on a vehicle and is capable of detecting specific components contained in biological gas emitted by a driver, and includes: It is mounted on the handle that is held while driving, a gas detection sensor capable of detecting specific components in biological gases emitted from the driver's skin without contacting the skin; a light-emitting unit capable of irradiating the skin with red light when activated; The device is configured to include: The gas detection sensor and the light emitting unit are disposed in an area of ​​the handle that is held by the driver and can be simultaneously covered by the driver's hand.

[0007] The biogas detection device of the present invention is configured to detect specific components contained in biogas emitted from the driver's hands (skin) gripping the steering wheel grip using a gas detection sensor without contacting the skin. A light-emitting unit capable of irradiating the skin with red light when activated is disposed in an area that can be covered simultaneously with the gas detection sensor when the grip is gripped. Because the red light emitted by such a light-emitting unit promotes blood circulation in the irradiated area of ​​the skin, the biogas detection device of the present invention can increase blood flow in the blood vessels near the irradiated area, i.e., in the hand gripping the grip. This increased blood flow stabilizes the amount of biogas emitted from the hand. As a result, the specific components contained in biogas emitted from the driver's hands can be accurately detected.

[0008] Therefore, the biological gas detection device of the present invention can stably detect specific components contained in the biological gas emitted from the driver's skin, and can accurately detect the driver's condition while suppressing false detections.

[0009] Furthermore, in the biological gas detection device of the present invention, if the gas detection sensor is arranged in a recess formed by recessing the grip portion from the surface, the gas detection sensor can be stably kept out of contact with the driver's hand, and the biological gas emitted from the driver's skin can be stored in the recess, making it possible to more reliably detect specific components in the biological gas, which is preferable.

[0010] Furthermore, in the biological gas detection device having the above configuration, the grip portion is annular, The gas detection sensor is disposed on the upper surface of the grip portion, which is on the driver's side, at a position that is covered by the area around the ball of the hand, It is preferable that the light emitting unit is arranged on the grip portion on the side of the remote surface away from the driver, in a position that is covered by the fingers of the hand except for the thumb.

[0011] The gas detection device can be configured in such a way that the light-emitting unit is positioned in a way that makes it difficult for the driver to see, so that the red light emitted when activated is less likely to reach the driver's eyes. Furthermore, by irradiating the red light onto the fingertip, which has relatively thin skin and many capillaries, it is possible to further increase blood flow in the hand. Furthermore, when the grip is held, the gas detection sensor can be stably and widely covered by the area near the ball of the foot, so that the gas detection sensor can stably detect gases.

[0012] Specifically, if the light-emitting unit is configured to have three or four red LEDs arranged side by side in a manner that is roughly aligned with the direction of rotation of the gripping unit, the red LEDs will be arranged side by side in the area where the fingers holding the gripping unit come into contact, roughly aligned with the direction in which the four fingers excluding the thumb are lined up. This makes it possible to widely illuminate multiple fingers with the red LEDs, thereby achieving a sufficient illumination effect (blood flow increasing effect), which is preferable. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1]1 is a schematic plan view showing a handle on which a biological gas detection device according to one embodiment of the present invention is mounted. [Figure 2] 2 is a partially enlarged plan view showing the vicinity of the mounting position of the biological gas detection device in the handle of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 3] 2A and 2B are a partially enlarged plan view and a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the location of the gas detection sensor in the handle of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the location of a light emitting unit in a ring portion in the handle of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the handle of FIG. 1. [Figure 6] 1 is a block diagram of a biological gas detection device according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in Fig. 1, a biological gas detection device S of the embodiment is mounted on a steering wheel 1 that is steered by a driver MD in a vehicle. In this embodiment, a biological gas detection device S that can detect alcohol as a specific component contained in biological gas will be described. That is, the biological gas detection device S of the embodiment is intended to detect the drinking state of the driver MD.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1, the handle 1 includes a boss portion 3 connected to a rotating shaft (not shown), a roughly annular ring portion 4 arranged around the boss portion 3 as a gripping portion to be gripped when steering, and multiple (three in this embodiment) spoke portions 8 connecting the boss portion 3 and the ring portion 4.

[0016] 1 and 2, the biological gas detection device S includes a gas detection sensor 10, a recess 12 for accommodating the gas detection sensor 10, a light-emitting unit 15, and a control device 20 for controlling the operation of the gas detection sensor 10 and the light-emitting unit 15. The biological gas detection device S is configured to be disposed in an area that is normally gripped by the driver MD when steering, and in the case of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the gas detection sensor 10 is disposed in one location on the upper surface 5a on the driver MD side in an area (an area contacted by the right hand RH of the driver MD) that intersects with the spoke portion 8R disposed on the right side of the ring portion 4 serving as a grip. More specifically, this area is contacted by the ball of the thumb TB of the right hand RH when the driver MD grips the ring portion 4.

[0017] The gas detection sensor 10 is capable of detecting alcohol (ethanol) as a specific component contained in biogas emitted from the palm (skin) of the right hand RH of the driver MD holding the ring portion 4 without contacting the right hand RH (skin). In this embodiment, a commercially available semiconductor-type gas detection sensor is used. Specifically, the gas detection sensor 10 has a substantially circular disk shape with an outer diameter d of approximately 7 mm (see FIG. 3). In this embodiment, a semiconductor-type gas detection sensor is used as the gas detection sensor 10, but fuel cell-type or non-diffuse infrared absorption-type sensors can also be used. However, considering size, cost, response performance, and the like, a semiconductor-type sensor is preferable. As shown in FIG. 3, the gas detection sensor 10 is disposed in a recess 12 so as to be in a non-contact state with the right hand RH (skin).

[0018] In this embodiment, the recess 12 for accommodating the gas detection sensor 10 is formed on the upper surface 5a side of the ring portion 4 so as to partially recess the ring portion 4 (specifically, the coating layer 4a constituting the surface 5 side of the ring portion 4) from the surface 5 side, and the gas detection sensor 10 is arranged on the bottom surface 12a side (the tip side of the recess). Specifically, the inner diameter of the recess 12 is set to be substantially the same as the outer diameter of the gas detection sensor 10, and the separation distance h between the surface 10a of the gas detection sensor 10 arranged on the bottom surface 12a side and the surface 5 (upper surface 5a) of the ring portion 4 is set to about 2 mm (see FIG. 3). The interior of the recess 12 is filled with biogas emitted from the right hand RH of the driver MD within about 15 seconds from the start of contact with the right hand RH (palm), and the gas detection sensor 10 detects the presence or absence of alcohol (ethanol) in the biogas that has filled the recess 12.

[0019] The light-emitting unit 15 is capable of irradiating the skin (the right hand RH of the driver MD) with red light when activated, and in this embodiment, is configured to include four red LEDs 16 as shown in Figures 2 and 5. The light-emitting unit 15 is located in an area that can be covered simultaneously with the gas detection sensor 10 by the right hand RH of the driver MD when the driver MD is holding the ring unit 4, on the underside 5b of the ring unit 4, which is the side of the ring unit 4 that is separated from the driver MD. More specifically, the light-emitting unit 15 is located in a position on the ring unit 4 that can be covered by the fingers F, excluding the thumb T, of the right hand RH that is holding the ring unit 4 so that the ball of the foot TB covers the gas detection sensor 10 (see Figure 5). Specifically, the light-emitting unit 15 is disposed on the undersurface 5b of the ring portion 4 near the intersection with the right spoke portion 8R, in a region (region extending forward from the intersection) forward of approximately the center of the intersection (the position of the gas detection sensor 10 when the steering wheel 1 is viewed from above, see FIG. 2). More specifically, the four red LEDs 16 constituting the light-emitting unit 15 are arranged side by side substantially along the direction of rotation of the ring portion 4 (i.e., the circumferential direction of the ring portion 4) so ​​as to correspond to each of the four fingers F excluding the thumb T of the right hand RH of the driver MD (see FIGS. 2 and 5), and are disposed at positions covered by the region near the second joints of each finger F gripping the ring portion 4 (specifically, near the base of each finger F between the second joint and the palm) (see FIG. 4). More specifically, the red LEDs 16 are arranged side by side substantially along the ring surface 4b of the ring portion 4 (see FIG. 5). That is, the light-emitting unit 15 is not disposed at a position (the bottommost surface of the ring portion 4) that faces the gas detection sensor 10 in the vertical direction (the direction along the rotation axis (not shown) of the handle 1), but is disposed on the outer lower surface side of the ring portion 4 (see FIG. 4). Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, each red LED 16 constituting the light-emitting unit 15 is accommodated in a storage recess (reference numeral omitted) formed by recessing the coating layer 4a from the front surface 5 (lower surface 5b) side, and is disposed in a state of not contacting the skin. The red LEDs 16 constituting the light-emitting unit 15 are those that can emit red light with a peak wavelength in the wavelength range of 590 to 830 nm.The red LED 16 that constitutes this light-emitting unit 15 can also be used as a touch sensor that detects whether or not the driver MD is holding the ring portion 4, and in the embodiment, the red LED 16 also serves as a touch sensor that detects whether or not the driver MD is holding the ring portion 4.

[0020] 6, the control device 20 is electrically connected to the gas detection sensor 10 and the light-emitting unit 15. The control device 20 is also electrically connected to an announcement mechanism 22 for prompting the driver MD to grip the ring portion 4, and a seating detection sensor 23 for detecting the seating state of the driver MD in the driver's seat. In the embodiment, the detection of alcohol components in biogas by the gas detection sensor 10 is set to perform measurements three times within a predetermined time (approximately 15 seconds in the embodiment) while the driver MD is maintaining the grip of the ring portion 4, and the control device 20 is set to determine the drinking state of the driver MD based on the three measurements by the gas detection sensor 10.

[0021] The biogas detection device S of the embodiment is configured to detect alcohol, a specific component contained in biogas emitted from the right hand RH (skin) of the driver MD, who is holding the ring portion 4 as a gripping portion of the steering wheel 1, using gas detection sensor 10 in a non-contact state with the skin. Furthermore, light-emitting unit 15, which can irradiate the skin with red light when activated, is disposed in an area that can be covered simultaneously with gas detection sensor 10 when the ring portion 4 is held. Since the red light emitted by light-emitting unit 15 has the effect of promoting blood circulation in the irradiated area of ​​the skin, the red light emitted by light-emitting unit 15 in the biogas detection device S of the embodiment can increase the blood flow in the blood vessels near the irradiated area, i.e., in the right hand RH holding the ring portion 4. This increased blood flow can also stabilize the amount of biogas emitted from the right hand RH. As a result, the alcohol component contained in biogas emitted from the right hand RH of the driver MD can be accurately detected.

[0022] Therefore, the embodiment of the biological gas detection device S can stably detect specific components (alcohol components) contained in the biological gas emitted from the skin of the driver MD, and can accurately detect the state (drinking state) of the driver MD while suppressing false detections.

[0023] Furthermore, in the biogas detection device S of the embodiment, the gas detection sensor 10 is disposed in the recess 12 formed by recessing the ring portion 4 from the surface 5, so that the gas detection sensor 10 can be stably kept out of contact with the right hand RH of the driver MD, and the biogas exhaled from the skin of the driver MD can be stored in the recess 12, so that the specific component (alcohol component) in the biogas can be detected more reliably. If these points are not taken into consideration, the gas detection sensor may be simply disposed in a position where it does not come into contact with the skin, rather than in a recess that stores the biogas exhaled from the skin.

[0024] Furthermore, in the biological gas detection device S of the embodiment, gas detection sensor 10 is arranged on the upper surface 5a of the annular ring portion 4, which faces the driver MD, in a position where it is covered by the area around the thenar eminence TB of the right hand RH, and light emitting unit 15 is arranged on the side of the ring portion 4 that is separated from the driver MD (lower surface 5b) in a position where it is covered by the fingers F of the right hand RH excluding the thumb T. Therefore, in the biological gas detection device S of the embodiment, light emitting unit 15 can be arranged in a position where it is difficult for the driver MD to see, so that red light during operation is unlikely to enter the eyes of the driver MD. Furthermore, by irradiating the red light on the area of ​​the fingers F, which has relatively thin skin and many capillaries, it is possible to obtain the effect of further increasing the blood flow in the right hand RH. Furthermore, when the ring portion 4 is held with the right hand RH, the area where the gas detection sensor 10 is located can be stably and widely covered by the area near the ball of the thumb TB, allowing stable detection of biological gases by the gas detection sensor 10. The area near the ball of the thumb TB on the hand (right hand RH) is gently curved (with few irregularities) and has a large area, making it easy to stably contact the entire periphery of the opening of the recess 12 when holding the ring portion 4. In other words, when holding the ring portion 4, the ball of the thumb TB can stably close the recess 12, thereby suppressing leakage of biological gases excreted from the skin and enabling rapid detection of alcohol components. If these points are not taken into consideration, the positions of the gas detection sensor and the light-emitting unit are not limited to those described in the embodiments, as long as they are located in positions where they can be simultaneously covered by the hand when holding the device. For example, the light-emitting unit may be located on the upper surface of the ring portion and the gas detection sensor on the lower surface of the ring portion.

[0025] Furthermore, in the biogas detection device S of the embodiment, light-emitting unit 15 is configured to include four red LEDs 16 arranged side by side substantially along the direction of rotation of ring portion 4. That is, in the biogas detection device S of the embodiment, four red LEDs 16 are arranged side by side in the area where the fingers F holding ring portion 4 contact, substantially along the direction in which the four fingers F excluding thumb T are lined up. This allows the red LEDs 16 to widely illuminate the multiple fingers F, thereby achieving a sufficient illumination effect (blood flow increase effect). In particular, in the biogas detection device S of the embodiment, the four red LEDs 16 are arranged to correspond to the multiple fingers F (the remaining four fingers F excluding thumb T) of the right hand RH holding ring portion 4, so that each finger F can be accurately illuminated. The number of red LEDs 16 may be three, and even in a configuration where three red LEDs are arranged, it is possible to widely illuminate the multiple fingers and achieve a sufficient illumination effect. If such a point is not taken into consideration, the light emitting section may be configured to include one or two red LEDs so as to be able to irradiate at least one of the four fingers.

[0026] An example of the detection of the drinking level of the driver MD by the biological gas detection device S of the embodiment is as follows: when the driver MD is detected to be seated in the driver's seat (not shown) before starting driving, an announcement is made instructing the driver MD to grip the ring portion 4, and while the driver MD's grip of the ring portion 4 is confirmed (by detection of the red LED 16 constituting the light-emitting unit 15), the gas detection sensor 10 detects alcohol components three times within a predetermined time period to determine the drinking level of the driver MD. This timing of alcohol component detection is one example, and the device may also be set to be activated to detect alcohol components when switching from automatic driving to manual driving. Furthermore, if the vehicle is equipped with a separate camera capable of capturing an image of the driver or a thermal camera capable of detecting the driver's body temperature, and is configured to detect changes in the driver's condition while the vehicle is moving, the device may be set to be activated while the vehicle is moving to detect the drinking level of the driver.

[0027] After determining the driver's drinking level, if the vehicle has not yet started moving, measures such as stopping the engine may be taken, and if the vehicle is moving, measures such as switching to automatic driving mode and stopping the vehicle after moving may be taken.

[0028] In the embodiment, the biological gas detection device S is described as being capable of detecting alcohol as a specific component contained in biological gas, but the specific component is not limited to alcohol. For example, the present invention may be configured to detect acetone (ketone bodies) as a specific component, and may be used to detect the driver's sugar metabolism, thereby helping to manage the driver's health.

[0029] In addition, in the embodiment, the biological gas detection device S is mounted on a handle 1 having a circular ring portion 4, but this type of handle is merely one example, and the biological gas detection device of the present invention can also be mounted on a handle that has, for example, a square circular ring portion (grip portion) or a handle that is not circular but has a rod-shaped grip portion (grip portion) that partially protrudes from the boss portion. [Explanation of symbols]

[0030] 1...handle, 4...ring portion (grip portion), 5...surface, 5a...upper surface, 5b...lower surface, 10...gas detection sensor, 12...recess, 15...light-emitting portion, 16...red LED, MD...driver, RH...right hand (hand), TB...ball of the foot, F...finger, S...biological gas detection device.

Claims

1. A biological gas detection device that is mounted on a vehicle and can detect specific components contained in biological gas emitted by a driver, It is mounted on the handle that is held while driving, a gas detection sensor capable of detecting the specific component in the biological gas discharged from the skin of the driver without contacting the skin; a light-emitting unit capable of irradiating the skin with red light when activated; The device is configured to include: the gas detection sensor and the light emitting unit are disposed in a region of a grip portion of the steering wheel that is gripped by the driver and that can be simultaneously covered by the driver's hand, The grip portion is annular, The gas detection sensor is disposed on an upper surface of the grip portion facing the driver, at a position covered by an area near the ball of the hand, A biological gas detection device characterized in that the light-emitting unit is arranged on the side of the grip that is away from the driver and in a position that is covered by the fingers of the hand except for the thumb.

2. 2. The biological gas detection device according to claim 1, wherein the gas detection sensor is disposed in a recess formed by recessing the grip portion from the surface.

3. The biological gas detection device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the light-emitting unit is configured to include three or four red LEDs arranged in a row approximately along the rotational operation direction of the gripping unit.

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