HIFU treatment device with an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets

Abstract

The present invention discloses a HIFU (High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound) treatment device having an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets. The present invention arranges multiple magnets forming a drive assembly installed in a handpiece and a vibrator assembly formed in a cartridge, respectively, so that their polarities intersect, or installs the magnets of the drive assembly and the vibrator assembly to move linearly along a rail. Accordingly, the attractive and repulsive forces between the polarities of the magnets are alternated, or the distance between the magnets of the drive assembly and the vibrator assembly is maintained constant while minimizing friction between the magnets. This allows the vibrator assembly to move rapidly and in conjunction without error during the operation of the drive assembly, thereby aligning the movement position of the handpiece with the movement position of the cartridge and enabling precise ultrasonic output to the desired treatment surface.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (hereinafter referred to as 'HIFU') treatment device, and more specifically, to a HIFU treatment device having an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets that prevents errors caused by resistance, such as friction, in the linear movement of a transducer assembly within a cartridge that is linked to the drive assembly within a handpiece when the drive assembly within the handpiece is driven for forward or return. Background Technology

[0002] Generally, a HIFU treatment device is a device that emits high-intensity focused ultrasound to cause a rapid increase in temperature at the treatment site. The ultrasound emitted onto the skin does not act on the epidermal layer but acts on the myofascial layer, which is part of the muscle layer, to induce coagulation. Furthermore, it is transmitted as heat to the deep part of the dermis to promote collagen regeneration, thereby providing the effects of wrinkle removal and skin elasticity improvement.

[0003] As shown in the attached FIG. 1, the above HIFU treatment device comprises a handpiece (10) having a driving assembly that is held by a user, a cartridge (20) equipped with a vibrator assembly that is detachably mounted on the handpiece (10) and emits high-intensity focused ultrasound using a transducer, and a control module (not shown) that drives and controls the emission of ultrasound by the transducer according to an operation signal.

[0004] The above drive assembly comprises a drive motor (11), a drive shaft (12) that moves horizontally when the drive motor (11) is driven, a moving bracket (13) that moves horizontally by the drive shaft (12), and a first magnet (14) that is coupled to the moving bracket (13).

[0005] The above vibrator assembly comprises a chamber (21) having a cap (21a) filled with a coupling fluid (e.g., water) that is magnetically coupled to the drive assembly, a second magnet (22) that is coupled to the first magnet (13) in a non-contact manner in the chamber (21) and is traction-moved by the first magnet (13), a vibrator bracket (23) that is coupled to the second magnet (22) and is moved by the second magnet (22), an ultrasonic vibrator (24) coupled to the open bottom of the vibrator bracket (23), and a first moving shaft (25) on the upper side and a second moving shaft (26) on the lower side that guide the movement of the vibrator bracket (23).

[0006] Accordingly, the conventional HIFU treatment device described above is configured such that the cartridge (20) is positioned at the treatment location and an operating button installed on the handpiece (10) is pressed to generate ultrasonic output, and once the ultrasonic output is completed, the treatment location is moved and the process of pressing the operating button again is repeated to apply ultrasonic energy to the entire treatment surface.

[0007] However, as shown in the attached FIGS. 2 and 3, the conventional HIFU treatment device described above had a problem in that the first magnet (14) included in the driving assembly generated a frictional force greater than the pulling force due to resistance such as frictional force during linear forward movement or linear return movement, and thus the traction of the second magnet (22) included in the vibrator assembly was not properly achieved, and the ultrasonic vibrator (24) by the second magnet (22) could not move to the desired position or moved with a time delay.

[0008] That is, when the first magnet (14) moves in a straight line for a certain distance or more, the second magnet (22) is not pulled along and moves with it. The reason for this is that the stronger the magnetic force of the second magnet (22) is, the stronger the frictional force between the first magnet (14) and the second magnet (22) is generated. Therefore, the second magnet (22) does not move in conjunction with the first magnet (14) when it moves in a straight line, and this inevitably causes a problem where the movement position of the handpiece and the movement position of the cartridge differ, making it impossible to output ultrasound to the desired treatment surface. Prior art literature

[0009] Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1679539 (Published Nov. 24, 2016) Registered Patent Publication No. 10-2056014 (Published Dec. 16, 2019) Registered Patent Publication No. 10-2110465 (Published May 13, 2020) Registered Patent Publication No. 10-2123536 (Published June 26, 2020) Published Patent Publication No. 10-2023-0069751 (Published May 19, 2023) The problem to be solved

[0010] The problem that the present invention aims to solve is to provide a HIFU treatment device having an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets, wherein a plurality of magnets forming a drive assembly installed in a handpiece and a plurality of magnets forming a vibrator assembly installed in a cartridge are arranged so that their polarities intersect, thereby causing the attractive and repulsive forces between the polarities of the magnets to intersect, so that the vibrator assembly can move rapidly and in conjunction without error when the drive assembly is driven.

[0011] Another problem that the present invention aims to solve is to provide a HIFU treatment device having an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets, which allows the magnet of the driving assembly and the magnet of the vibrator assembly to move linearly along a rail, thereby maintaining a constant distance between the magnet of the driving assembly and the magnet of the vibrator assembly while minimizing friction between the magnets, and enabling the vibrator assembly to move rapidly and without error during the driving of the driving assembly. means of solving the problem

[0012] A HIFU treatment device having an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets, which is a means for solving the problem of the present invention, comprises: a handpiece having a drive assembly including a drive motor, a drive shaft, a moving bracket, and a first magnet, which is held by a user; and a cartridge having a transducer assembly including a second magnet, a transducer bracket, an ultrasonic transducer, and first and second moving shafts in a chamber, which is detachably mounted to the handpiece and magnetically coupled with the drive assembly and moved by traction in a non-contact manner to emit high-intensity focused ultrasound using a transducer; wherein the first magnet is arranged in multiple numbers and the second magnet is installed in a number corresponding to the number of the first magnets, and the first magnet and the second magnet arranged in multiple numbers are arranged so that their opposite polarities face each other so that suction force and repulsion force are combined.

[0013] In addition, the open upper side of the chamber is installed to be sealed by a cover, and a single or multiple first magnets are arranged on the outer surface of the cover, and a single or multiple second magnets are arranged on the inner surface of the cover to be traction-moved in a non-contact manner with the single or multiple first magnets, and a moving guide part is installed to reduce frictional force during linear movement by having the contact surfaces of the first magnets and the second magnets that come into contact with the outer and inner surfaces of the cover protrude as a pair of parallel strip-shaped structures.

[0014] In addition, the above-mentioned moving guide is a rail structure that guides linear movement of forward or return while maintaining a constant non-contact distance between the first magnet and the second magnet. Effects of the invention

[0015] Accordingly, the present invention arranges multiple magnets forming a drive assembly provided to the handpiece and a vibrator assembly provided to the cartridge, respectively, so that their polarities intersect, or arranges the magnets of the drive assembly and the vibrator assembly to move linearly along a rail. Through this, the attractive and repulsive forces between the polarities of the magnets are alternated, or the distance between the magnets of the drive assembly and the vibrator assembly is maintained constant while minimizing friction between the magnets. This allows the vibrator assembly to move rapidly and in conjunction without error during the operation of the drive assembly, thereby aligning the movement position of the handpiece with the movement position of the cartridge and enabling precise ultrasonic output to the desired treatment surface.

[0016] The effects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other unmentioned effects will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description in the claims. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0017] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a conventional HIFU treatment device. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the state in which the first magnet of a conventional drive assembly and the second magnet of a vibrator assembly are coupled in a non-contact manner. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which an error occurs when the second magnet of a vibrator assembly is traction by the first magnet of a conventional drive assembly. FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of a HIFU treatment device in which a plurality of magnets are applied as an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which the second magnets of a vibrator assembly are tractioned without error by the first magnets of a driving assembly as an embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 6 and 7 are perspective views showing the structure of a HIFU treatment device having a movement guide section that guides the linear movement of a first magnet and a second magnet as another embodiment of the present invention. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0018] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings.

[0019] FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of a HIFU treatment device in which a plurality of magnets are applied as an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which the second magnets of a vibrator assembly are pulled without error by the first magnets of a driving assembly as an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] A HIFU treatment device according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises, as shown in the attached FIGS. 1, 4, and 5, a handpiece (10) having a drive assembly that is held by a user and includes a drive motor (11), a drive shaft (12), a moving bracket (13), and a first magnet (14) made of a permanent magnet, an electromagnet, or a paramagnetic material; and a cartridge (20) having a transducer assembly that is detachably mounted to the handpiece (10) and has a structure in which a plurality of magnets are coupled to a chamber (21) so as to emit high-intensity focused ultrasound using a transducer, a single magnet (22), a transducer bracket (23), an ultrasonic transducer (24), and first and second moving shafts (25, 26), a second magnet (22) which is magnetically coupled to the drive assembly and moves in a non-contact manner, and is structured so as to emit high-intensity focused ultrasound using a transducer, a transducer bracket (23), an ultrasonic transducer (24), and first and second moving shafts (25, 26). Each of the magnets (22, 22') is arranged in multiple numbers, and the first magnet (14, 14') and the second magnet (22, 22') arranged in multiple numbers are installed so that their polarities face each other so that the attractive force and the repulsive force are combined.

[0021] That is, when multiple first magnets (14, 14') are arranged, if one first magnet (14) is arranged as the 'N pole' and another first magnet (14') is arranged as the 'S pole', then when multiple second magnets (22, 22') that are not in contact with the first magnets (14, 14') are arranged, one second magnet (22) facing the first magnet (14) is arranged as the 'S pole' and another second magnet (22') facing the other first magnet (14') is arranged as the 'N pole', and thus the first magnet (14, 14') and the second magnet (22, 22') can have a combination of attractive force (N,S or S,N) and repulsive force (N,N or S,S).

[0022] In this way, as shown in the attached FIGS. 1, 4, and 5, the HIFU treatment device according to the embodiment of the present invention is such that when the driving motor (11) of the handpiece (10) is driven in a forward or reverse direction to move the driving shaft (12) forward or backward according to the set treatment distance and interval, a plurality of first magnets (14, 14') coupled to the moving bracket (13) move forward or backward according to the forward or backward movement of the driving shaft (12).

[0023] At this time, when the multiple second magnets (22, 22') installed in the cartridge (20) which is detachably coupled to the handpiece (10) are pulled by the forward or return movement of the first magnet (14, 14') and move in tandem, their different polarities face each other, so that the pulling force and the pushing force between the polarities alternate.

[0024] Then, the transducer bracket (23) to which the ultrasonic vibrator (24) is coupled according to the linear movement of the second magnet (22, 22') can move accurately and quickly in a straight line with minimal error along the upper first moving shaft (25) and the lower second moving shaft (26), and accordingly, the ultrasonic vibrator (24) can regularly move in a straight line forward and in a straight line back, thereby accurately applying ultrasound, which is the treatment energy, to the treatment surface.

[0025] That is, the pressing time of the operating button provided on the handpiece (10) is about 2 seconds, and therefore, when the procedure is performed by repeating the linear forward movement and return movement of the ultrasonic vibrator (24) while pressing the operating button every 2 seconds, the repeated procedure can be performed accurately without error, thereby creating a more even energy distribution on the treatment area and preventing concerns about side effects of excessive output caused by treating the same spot twice.

[0026] Meanwhile, the attached FIGS. 6 and 7 represent another embodiment of the present invention, wherein one or more first magnets (14 and / or 14') are placed on the outer surface of a cover (21b) that seals the open upper side of a chamber (21) included in an ultrasonic coupling, and one or more second magnets (22 and / or 22') are placed on the inner surface of the cover (21b) to be traction-moved in a non-contact manner with the first magnets (14 and / or 14'). At this time, a moving guide part (30) protruding as a pair of parallel strip-shaped structures, as exemplified in FIG. 6, is installed on the outer surface and inner surface of the cover (21b). The contact surfaces of the first magnet (14 and / or 14') and the second magnet (22 and / or 22') that come into contact with the moving guide part (30) form a line contact limited to the rail contact surface, and thus the moving guide part (30) plays a role in reducing frictional force due to linear movement.

[0027] In other words, the above-mentioned moving guide (30) may be a rail structure that guides linear movement of forward or return while maintaining a constant non-contact distance between the first magnet (14 and / or 14') and the second magnet (22 and / or 22').

[0028] Accordingly, in another embodiment of the present invention, the moving guide part (30) forming the rail structure acts as a lubricating layer, thereby minimizing the frictional force during the linear movement of the first magnet (22 and / or 22') and the linear movement of the second magnet (22 and / or 22') that is pulled by it, so that the problem of the vibrator assembly moving away from the driving assembly and not moving to a desired position, that is, the problem of delayed movement with a time delay, can be prevented.

[0029] Although the technical concept of the HIFU treatment device of the present invention has been described above together with the attached drawings, this is merely an illustrative description of the best embodiment of the present invention and does not limit the present invention.

[0030] Accordingly, the present invention is not limited to the specific preferred embodiments described above, and anyone with ordinary knowledge in the art to which the invention pertains can make various modifications without departing from the essence of the invention as claimed in the claims, and such modifications will be within the scope of the claims. Explanation of the symbols

[0031] 10; Handpiece 11; Drive motor 12; Drive shaft 13; Moving bracket 14, 14'; 1st magnet 20; cartridge 21; Chamber 21b; Cover 22, 22'; 2nd magnet 23; vibrator bracket 24; ultrasonic transducer 25; first moving shaft 26; 2nd moving shaft 30; movement guide part

Claims

Claim 1 delete Claim 2 A handpiece having a drive assembly comprising a drive motor, a drive shaft, a moving bracket, and a first magnet, which is held by a user; and a cartridge having a transducer assembly comprising a second magnet, a transducer bracket, an ultrasonic transducer, and first and second moving shafts in a chamber, which is magnetically coupled to the drive assembly and moves by traction in a non-contact manner to emit high-intensity focused ultrasound using a transducer, which is detachably mounted to the handpiece. The apparatus is provided with a plurality of first magnets and a number of second magnets corresponding to the number of first magnets, wherein the plurality of first magnets and second magnets are arranged such that their respective polarities face each other to combine suction and repulsion forces, and wherein the open upper side of the chamber is installed to be sealed by a cover, wherein a single or multiple first magnets are arranged on the outer surface of the cover, and a single or multiple second magnets are arranged on the inner surface of the cover to be traction-moved in a non-contact manner with the single or multiple first magnets, wherein a pair of parallel strip-shaped structures protrude from the outer and inner surfaces of the cover, so that the contact surfaces of the first magnets and second magnets contacting them make line contact, A HIFU treatment device having an anti-slip structure using multiple magnets, characterized by the installation of a movement guide section that reduces frictional force due to linear movement. Claim 3 A HIFU treatment device having an anti-slip structure by multiple magnets, characterized in that, in claim 2, the moving guide part is a rail structure that guides linear movement of forward or return while maintaining a constant non-contact distance between the first magnet and the second magnet.

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