Dosing device and information acquisition system for dosing device

Abstract

A dosing device 10 transmits information through the vibration of a device 10 itself, the dosing device comprising an ultrasonic oscillator 20 therein, wherein the curvature of an outer surface 11 located on a vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is 0.18 to 0.50.

Description

Administered device and administered device information acquisition system

[0001] The present invention relates to a medication device and an information acquisition system for a medication device.

[0002] There is a need for a method to confirm whether a patient has taken the prescribed medication, and a method to confirm what biological reactions occur when a patient takes a medication. For this reason, development of medication devices that transmit signals from inside the body to outside the body after being ingested along with medication is underway.

[0003] Patent document 1 describes a swallowing sensor device that includes sensors including a sensor and a device for wirelessly transmitting information detected by the sensor, and a group of substrates formed by stacking multiple rigid substrates.

[0004] Patent No. 6914567

[0005] However, the swallowing sensor device described in Patent Document 1 communicates using radio waves, so signals are transmitted omnidirectionally, both inside and outside the body, and there is a possibility that they may be obtained by a third party, posing a security issue.

[0006] In response to this, it is conceivable to use a ingestible device that emits ultrasonic signals, and receive the ultrasonic signals emitted from the ingested device with, for example, a receiver attached to the body surface of the user. With this method, the ultrasonic signals emitted from the ingested device basically propagate inside the user's body, but are reflected at the interface between the body and the air, so that almost no signal leaks into the air, reducing the possibility of them being obtained by a third party.

[0007] However, because ultrasonic signals are easily attenuated by obstacles, there was room for improvement in terms of how to improve the sound pressure of the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingestible device.

[0008] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and aims to provide a medication device that can improve the sound pressure of the emitted ultrasonic signal, and an information acquisition system for medication devices that includes the medication device.

[0009] The medication device of the present invention is a medication device that transmits information by vibrating the device itself, and is equipped with an ultrasonic oscillator inside, and the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less.

[0010] The information acquisition system for a medication device of the present invention comprises a medication device of the present invention, a processing device, and a receiver that acquires information from the medication device by receiving an ultrasonic signal emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator and transmits the acquired information to the processing device.

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a medication device capable of improving the sound pressure of an emitted ultrasonic signal, and an information acquisition system for a medication device that includes the medication device.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating an example of a ingested device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a cross section of the ingested device shown in FIG. 1 taken along the line segment A1-A1. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a cross section of the ingested device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 taken along the line segment A2-A2. FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between the sound pressure ratio and the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator, obtained from a simulation. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating another example of a ingested device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a plan view schematically illustrating an example of the positional relationship between a battery and a board on which the battery is mounted, in a ingested device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically illustrating an analytical model used to simulate the maximum sound pressure of an ultrasonic signal emitted from a ingested device. FIG. 8 is a graph showing the relationship between the maximum sound pressure of an ultrasonic signal and the thickness of a sealant, obtained from a simulation using the analytical model shown in FIG. 7. FIG. 9 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an example of an information acquisition system for a ingested device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0013] The following describes the medication device and medication device information acquisition system of the present invention. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following configurations and may be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present invention. In addition, a combination of multiple individual preferred configurations described below also constitutes the present invention.

[0014] The following embodiments are merely examples, and it goes without saying that partial substitution or combination of the configurations shown in different embodiments is possible. From the second embodiment onwards, descriptions of matters common to the first embodiment will be omitted, and differences will be mainly described. In particular, similar effects resulting from similar configurations will not be mentioned one after the other for each embodiment.

[0015] In the following description, unless otherwise specified, each embodiment will be referred to simply as the "medication device of the present invention."

[0016] In this specification, terms indicating the relationship between elements (e.g., "perpendicular," "parallel," "orthogonal," etc.) and terms indicating the shape of elements are not expressions that only express a strict meaning, but are expressions that also include a range of substantial equivalence, for example, a difference of about a few percent.

[0017] The drawings shown below are schematic diagrams, and the dimensions, aspect ratio, scale, etc. may differ from those of the actual product.

[0018] [Embodiment 1] Fig. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of a medication device according to embodiment 1 of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a cross section of the medication device shown in Fig. 1 taken along line segment A1-A1. In each figure, the X-axis direction is the longitudinal direction of the medication device, and the Z-axis direction is the lateral direction of the medication device. The Y-axis is an axis perpendicular to both the X-axis and the Z-axis.

[0019] The ingestible device 10 shown in FIG. 1 can transmit information by vibrating the device 10 itself. The ingestible device 10 is taken by a person with or without a drug. The ingestible device 10 may be taken by itself. The information transmitted from the ingestible device 10 is not particularly limited and may be a signal. Specific examples include a signal indicating that a drug has been taken or administered with the ingestible device 10, and biological information acquired within the body. The drug that can be taken with the ingestible device 10 is any drug. Specifically, the drug may be taken by a person who has difficulty recognizing the act of taking a drug. In this case, the drug intake rate of such people can be improved. Furthermore, the burden on caregivers for such people can be reduced. In this specification, "transmission" is synonymous with "transmission" unless otherwise specified.

[0020] 2, the ingested device 10 includes an ultrasonic oscillator 20 therein, and is driven to generate an ultrasonic signal from the ultrasonic oscillator 20. The ultrasonic signal generated from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 propagates through a medium inside the ingested device 10 and is ultimately transmitted to the outside of the ingested device 10. That is, the ultrasonic signal generated from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 also vibrates the ingested device 10 itself, and transmits information as an ultrasonic signal to the outside of the ingested device 10, specifically, into the body.

[0021] The ultrasonic oscillator 20 emits ultrasonic waves, and the ultrasonic waves emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 have directionality in the direction of vibration of the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator 20. While the principle of ultrasonic oscillation by the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is not particularly limited, the ultrasonic oscillator 20 preferably includes a piezoelectric element, and preferably generates ultrasonic waves by vibrating the piezoelectric element. The piezoelectric element included in the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is also called a piezoelectric vibrator. Materials such as PZT (lead zirconate titanate), BT (barium titanate), and KNN (potassium sodium niobate) can be used for the piezoelectric element. In this case, the oral device 10 includes an IC, and the IC controls the piezoelectric element. The ultrasonic signal emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is received by a receiver attached to the user's body surface, such as the torso, neck, or wrist, using a fastener such as a belt. The receiver is attached so as to directly contact the body surface or so as to contact the body surface via an intervening material such as gel.

[0022] The shapes of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 and the piezoelectric element are not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a cube, a rectangular parallelepiped, and a disk shape.

[0023] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a cross section of the medication device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 taken along line A2-A2.

[0024] As shown in Figure 3, the ingested device 10 has an outer surface 11 located in the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20, and the curvature of the outer surface 11 is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less, thereby significantly improving the sound pressure of the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingested device 10.

[0025] More specifically, the sound pressure ratio can be made 0.3 or greater by setting the curvature of the outer surface 11 to be 0.18 or greater and 0.50 or less. Here, the sound pressure ratio is a value calculated using the formula: sound pressure ratio = (sound pressure at the receiver) / (sound pressure immediately after oscillation from the ultrasonic oscillator). A sound pressure ratio of 0.3 or greater ensures the sound pressure necessary for the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingestible device 10 to propagate through the body and reach the receiver.

[0026] Here, the "vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator" means the direction in which the displacement amount is greatest at the frequency at which the ultrasonic oscillator is to be driven.

[0027] In this specification, the "curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator" is calculated by the following method. That is, first, a cross-sectional image of the ingestible device is obtained, including the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator. Next, curve fitting is performed on the outer surface portion to obtain an ellipse extrapolated from the outer surface portion, and the major axis a and minor axis b of the ellipse and the parameter θ (0≦θ<2π) of the point located in the vibration direction when the ellipse is parametrically expressed are obtained. Then, the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is calculated by substituting the obtained a, b, and θ into the following formula for curvature κ.

[0028]

[0029] The calculated curvature may vary depending on how the cross-sectional image including the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is taken, i.e., the orientation of the cross-sectional image. However, in this specification, the largest curvature among the curvatures that can be calculated by the above method is defined as "the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator."

[0030] 3, the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 may include a first direction 21a and a second direction 21b that is opposite to the first direction 21a, in which case the outer surfaces 11 located in the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 include a first outer surface 11a located in a position that is a straight line from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 in the first direction 21a, and a second outer surface 11b located in a straight line from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 in the second direction 21b. In this case, the curvature of at least one of the first outer surface 11a and the second outer surface 11b may be 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less, but the curvature of both the first outer surface 11a and the second outer surface 11b may be 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less.

[0031] The curvature of the outer surface 11 is preferably 0.20 or more and 0.40 or less, which can significantly improve the sound pressure, e.g., sound pressure ratio, of the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingestion device 10. Similarly, the curvature of the first outer surface 11a and / or the second outer surface 11b is preferably 0.20 or more and 0.40 or less.

[0032] Here, the results of simulating the sound pressure ratio of the ultrasonic signals when the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is changed will be described.

[0033] FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between the sound pressure ratio and the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator, obtained from the simulation.

[0034] 4, when the curvature of the outer surface 11 located in the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less, the sound pressure ratio can be 0.3 or more. When the curvature of the outer surface 11 located in the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is 0.20 or more and 0.40 or less, the sound pressure ratio can be 0.5 or more.

[0035] As shown in Figure 2, the oral device 10 may include a capsule-shaped housing 30, a substrate 40, a receiving coil 50, a battery 51, a biometric information acquisition unit 52, an A / D converter (not shown), and a sealant 54.

[0036] The ultrasonic oscillator 20 is disposed inside the housing 30 .

[0037] The housing 30 is made of, for example, a biocompatible resin or a general-purpose resin coated with a biocompatible material. An example of a biocompatible resin is epoxy resin. It is preferable that the material used for the housing 30 be one that will not dissolve in stomach acid or the like after the ingestible device 10 is taken into the body and will be excreted from the body.

[0038] The outer surface 11 having the above-mentioned curvature may be the outer surface of the housing 30. That is, the first outer surface 11a and / or the second outer surface 11b may be the outer surface of the housing 30. Furthermore, substantially all of the outer surfaces of the medication device 10 may be constituted by the outer surface of the housing 30.

[0039] 1 to 3 show a so-called capsule-shaped, more specifically, cylindrical housing 30 with hemispherical ends in the longitudinal direction, but the external shapes of the medication device 10 and housing 30 are not particularly limited as long as they do not interfere with administration, and may be spherical, ellipsoidal, disc-shaped, cylindrical, tablet-shaped, polygonal columnar with rounded corners, etc. The ellipsoidal shape may be an oblate spheroid or an oblate spheroid.

[0040] The substrate 40 is disposed inside the housing 30. There may be one or more substrates 40 disposed inside the housing 30. The substrate 40 may be made of, for example, glass epoxy resin, FR-4, or the like.

[0041] The substrate 40 is arranged parallel to the longitudinal direction of the medication device 10. That is, the substrate 40 is arranged perpendicular to the short side direction of the medication device 10. Note that the longitudinal direction of the medication device 10 is synonymous with the longitudinal direction of the housing 30, and the short side direction of the medication device 10 is synonymous with the short side direction of the housing 30.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 2, the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 may be perpendicular to the mounting surface 41 of the substrate 40 on which the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is mounted.

[0043] In this case, the outer surface 11 having the above-mentioned curvature is preferably located on the opposite side of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 from the substrate 40. That is, the substrate 40, the ultrasonic oscillator 20, and the outer surface 11 having the above-mentioned curvature may be arranged in this order on a straight line parallel to the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20. This allows the ultrasonic oscillator 20 to emit ultrasonic signals more efficiently on the side opposite to the substrate 40.

[0044] 5 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating another example of the oral administration device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 5 corresponds to the cross-sectional view of Fig. 2 .

[0045] 5, the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 may be parallel to the mounting surface 41 of the substrate 40. In this case, the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 may include a first direction 21c and a second direction 21d that is opposite to the first direction 21c, and the outer surface 11 located in the vibration direction 21 of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 may include a first outer surface 11c located in a position that is linearly moved from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 in the first direction 21c, and a second outer surface 11d located in a position that is linearly moved from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 in the second direction 21d. In addition, the curvature of at least one of the first outer surface 11c and the second outer surface 11d may be 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less, and the curvature of both the first outer surface 11c and the second outer surface 11d may be 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less. Also in this case, as in the case shown in Figure 1, the curvature of the outer surface 11 is preferably 0.20 or more and 0.40 or less, and the curvature of the first outer surface 11c and / or the second outer surface 11d is preferably 0.20 or more and 0.40 or less.

[0046] The receiving coil 50 is paired with the transmitting coil to perform wireless power supply, and is provided on the substrate 40. The receiving coil 50 is made of, for example, copper. Wireless power supply can be performed using electromagnetic induction technology or magnetic resonance technology. Note that magnetic resonance is a type of electromagnetic induction, as current flows through the receiving coil 50 in response to changes in the magnetic field created by the transmitting coil. Note that, although not shown in FIG. 2 , the receiving coil 50 is connected to a battery 51. The receiving coil 50 is provided, for example, on the substrate 40 on which the battery 51 is provided. However, the location where the receiving coil 50 is provided is not particularly limited to the substrate 40 on which the battery 51 is provided.

[0047] The battery 51 is, for example, a secondary battery that can be charged with power received by the power receiving coil 50. In this case, the battery 51 is not particularly limited as long as it is a rechargeable battery, and may be, for example, an all-solid-state battery having a solid electrolyte. All-solid-state batteries are suitable for the ingested device 10 because they do not leak. Furthermore, the battery 51 may be a primary battery as long as it is configured so that current flows through the ingested device 10 immediately before ingestion.

[0048] FIG. 6 is a plan view schematically showing an example of the positional relationship between a battery and a substrate on which the battery is mounted in the ingestion device of embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0049] 6, the battery 51 is preferably disposed on the center line 40c in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 40 on which the battery 51 is mounted. That is, when the substrate 40 is viewed in plan, the battery 51 preferably overlaps the center line 40c extending in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 40, i.e., it is preferably positioned on the center line 40c. This makes it possible to prevent a thick device, preferably the battery 51, from interfering with the capsule-shaped housing 30.

[0050] Although Figure 6 shows the substrate 40 having a rectangular shape when viewed from above, the planar shape of the substrate 40 is not particularly limited as long as it fits into the medication device 10, and may be circular, elliptical, or the like.

[0051] The biological information acquisition unit 52 acquires biological information such as the internal position of the ingested ingested device 10 and vital signs such as internal body temperature, gastric pH, and intestinal activity. The internal body temperature may be core body temperature. For example, the biological information acquisition unit 52 has a clock capable of measuring time, measures the time elapsed since the ingested device 10 was taken into the body, and estimates the internal position of the ingested device 10 based on the measured time. As another example, the biological information acquisition unit 52 includes sensors such as a temperature sensor, a pH sensor, and an acceleration sensor, and detects vital signs such as internal body temperature, gastric pH, and intestinal activity. The temperature sensor may include, for example, a thermistor. Note that biological information includes any information related to a living organism, and the biological information acquisition unit 52 can be configured to acquire any biological information. The biological information acquisition unit 52 is controlled by an IC.

[0052] When the biological information acquisition unit 52 acquires biological information, the frequency of the ultrasonic waves emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 may be changed for each type of biological information to be acquired.

[0053] Under the control of the IC, the A / D converter converts the analog biometric information acquired by the biometric information acquisition unit 52 into digital information and outputs the digital biometric information to the ultrasonic oscillator 20. The digital biometric information converted by the A / D converter is then transmitted by the ultrasonic oscillator 20 as an ultrasonic signal.

[0054] The ultrasonic oscillator 20, the IC, the biological information acquisition unit 52, and the A / D converter are supplied with power from a battery 51. In Fig. 2, the configuration in which the biological information acquisition unit 52 is provided on the substrate 40 on which the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is provided is shown, but the locations where the biological information acquisition unit 52, the IC, and the A / D converter are provided are not particularly limited to the substrate 40 on which the ultrasonic oscillator 20 is provided.

[0055] The sealant 54 is disposed inside the housing 30. The sealant 54 may fill substantially all of the space inside the housing 30.

[0056] The sealant 54 preferably has an acoustic impedance between the acoustic impedance of the material constituting the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 and the acoustic impedance of water, and is filled between the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 and the outer surface 11 having the above-mentioned curvature. Furthermore, the sealant 54 having such an acoustic impedance is preferably filled between the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 and the first outer surface and / or the second outer surface having the above-mentioned curvature. Here, since the acoustic impedance of water is approximately equal to the acoustic impedance of a living body, as described above, by filling the space between the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 and the outer surface 11 having the above-mentioned curvature with a sealant 54 having an acoustic impedance between the acoustic impedance of the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator 20 and the acoustic impedance of water, the attenuation of the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator 20 can be effectively suppressed. As a result, the sound pressure of the ultrasonic signal emitted into the body from the ingestible device 10 can be further improved.

[0057] More specifically, the acoustic impedance of PZT, which is one of the materials used for piezoelectric elements, is 32 MPa·s / m ３ The acoustic impedance of water (≒ living body) is 1.5 MPa s / m３ Therefore, the acoustic impedance of the sealant 54 is 1.5 MPa·s / m ３ Above, 25MPa・s / m ３ It is preferable that:

[0058] Examples of materials that can be used for the sealant 54 include epoxy resin, polyphenylsulfone (PPS), ceramic material, glass epoxy, and resin filled with filler such as metal or oxide.

[0059] Here, the results of simulating the maximum sound pressure of the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingestion device 10 by changing the material and thickness of the sealant 54 will be described.

[0060] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of an analytical model used to simulate the maximum sound pressure of an ultrasonic signal emitted from a ingestible device.

[0061] In the analysis model shown in Fig. 7, a piezoelectric element 71, a sealant 72, and a living body 73 were arranged adjacently in this order in the Z-axis direction. Then, using the analysis model shown in Fig. 7, a resonance analysis was performed in a piezoelectric / acoustic analysis. The applied electric field was 75 V / mm, and the resonance frequency was 1.3 MHz. The material of the sealant 72 was glass epoxy, quartz glass, or epoxy resin. The thickness of the sealant 72 was in the range of 0.2 mm to 4.5 mm. The thickness of the sealant 72 is the dimension of the sealant 72 in the Z-axis direction. The acoustic impedance of the piezoelectric element 71 was 32 MPa·s / m ３ The acoustic impedance of the living body 73 is 1.5 MPa·s / m ３ The acoustic impedance of the sealant 72 is 6.2 MPa·s / m in the case of glass epoxy. ３ and in the case of quartz glass, it is 12.6 MPa·s / m ３ and in the case of epoxy resin, it is 1.7 MPa·s / m ３ The results are shown in Figure 8.

[0062] Fig. 8 is a graph showing the relationship between the maximum sound pressure of the ultrasonic signal and the thickness of the sealant, obtained from a simulation using the analytical model shown in Fig. 7. In Fig. 8, the left axis shows the maximum sound pressure in the cases of glass epoxy and quartz glass, and the right axis shows the maximum sound pressure in the case of epoxy resin.

[0063] Table 1 below shows the maximum sound pressure obtained with each material of the sealant 72 and the thickness of the sealant 72 at that time.

[0064]

[0065] As shown in FIG. 8 and Table 1 above, it was found that the maximum sound pressure can be effectively obtained by designing the thickness of the sealant 72 according to the material of the sealant 72.

[0066] [Embodiment 2] Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of an information acquisition system for a medication device according to embodiment 2 of the present invention.

[0067] The information acquisition system 100 for a taken device shown in FIG. 9 is a system for acquiring information from a taken device 110, and includes the taken device 110, a processing device 120, and a receiver 130.

[0068] The ingested device 110, like the ingested device 10 described above, includes an ultrasonic oscillator 111, a battery 112, a biological information acquisition unit 113, and an A / D converter 114. The ingested device 110 also includes a control unit 115 that controls the timing of acquiring biological information, processes the acquired information, and controls transmission of the information to the receiving unit of the receiver 130.

[0069] The medication device 110 may be provided with a storage unit 116, and for example, the biometric information acquired by the biometric information acquisition unit 113 may be stored in the storage unit 116.

[0070] The receiver 130 receives ultrasonic signals emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator 111 of the ingested device 110 to acquire information from the ingested device 110 and transmits the acquired information to the processing device 120. The receiver 130 is used by being attached to the body surface of the user, such as the torso, neck, or wrist, using a fastener such as a belt. The receiver 130 is attached so as to come into direct contact with the body surface or so as to come into contact with the body surface via an intervening object such as gel.

[0071] The receiver 130 includes, for example, a receiving unit 131, a transmitting unit 132, a battery 133, and a display unit 134.

[0072] The receiving unit 131 receives an ultrasonic signal emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator 111 of the ingested device 110. As a result, the receiver 130 acquires information, such as biological information, from the ingested device 110.

[0073] The receiving unit 131 is composed of an ultrasonic receiver that receives ultrasonic waves. The principle of ultrasonic wave reception by the ultrasonic receiver is not particularly limited, but the ultrasonic receiver preferably includes a piezoelectric element that generates a voltage when receiving ultrasonic waves. The piezoelectric element included in the receiving unit 131 is also called a piezoelectric vibrator. Materials that can be used for the piezoelectric element include PZT (lead zirconate titanate), BT (barium titanate), and KNN (potassium sodium niobate).

[0074] The transmitting unit 132 transmits information acquired from the medication device 110 to the processing device 120 via wireless communication. Wireless communication is, for example, communication using a data communication line using radio waves from a mobile phone, an Internet line, Bluetooth (registered trademark), etc. Note that communication between the transmitting unit 132 and the processing device 120 is not limited to wireless communication, and may be communication via a wired connection such as a USB cable connection, an Ethernet cable connection, or a serial cable connection.

[0075] The battery 133 supplies power to each component of the receiver 130 and may be a rechargeable secondary battery. The specific type of the battery 133 is not particularly limited.

[0076] The display unit 134 is configured to be able to display, for example, information acquired from the medication device 110. The display unit 134 may be, for example, a liquid crystal display.

[0077] The processing device 120 acquires information transmitted from the transmission unit 132 of the receiver 130, i.e., information from the ingested device 110. The processing device 120 performs various data processing and data management based on the acquired information. Specifically, for example, the processing device 120 manages and analyzes biological information acquired from the ingested device 110, manages medications taken together with the ingested device 110, and so on.

[0078] The medication device information acquisition system 100 confirms whether the patient has taken the prescribed medication, for example, by the following method.

[0079] The medication device 110 is configured to automatically turn on when it is removed from its sealed container, and when it is turned on, the medication device 110 continues to emit an ultrasonic signal of a constant frequency from the ultrasonic oscillator 111.

[0080] When the ingested device 110 is outside the body, air is present between the ingested device 110 and the receiver 130, and therefore the receiver 130 cannot receive the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingested device 110. On the other hand, when the ingested device 110 is ingested by a patient together with a drug and the ingested device 110 enters the body, the acoustic impedance within the body is capable of transmitting an ultrasonic signal, and therefore the receiver 130 can receive the ultrasonic signal emitted from the ingested device 110. In other words, the receiver 130 detects the ultrasonic signal, thereby detecting that a drug has been ingested along with the ingested device 110.

[0081] When the receiver 130 detects that the drug and the medication device 110 have been taken, it transmits information indicating this to the processing device 120, and the processing device 120 that receives the information manages whether the drug has been taken, the time of taking the drug, etc.

[0082] The present specification discloses the following:

[0083] <1> An oral device that transmits information by vibrating itself, characterized in that it has an ultrasonic oscillator inside, and the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less.

[0084] <2> The medication device described in <1>, further comprising a sealant having an acoustic impedance between the acoustic impedance of the material constituting the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator and the acoustic impedance of water, wherein the sealant is filled between the vibration surface and the outer surface of the ultrasonic oscillator.

[0085] <3> The medication device according to <1> or <2>, further comprising a battery and a substrate on which the battery is mounted, wherein the battery is arranged on the longitudinal center line of the substrate.

[0086] <4> The dosage device described in any one of <1> to <3>, further comprising a substrate on which the ultrasonic oscillator is mounted, wherein the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is perpendicular to the mounting surface of the substrate.

[0087] <5> The dosage device described in <4>, wherein the outer surface is located on the opposite side of the ultrasonic oscillator from the substrate.

[0088] <6> The dosage device described in any one of <1> to <3> further comprises a substrate on which the ultrasonic oscillator is mounted, and the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is parallel to the mounting surface of the substrate.

[0089] <7> The dosage device according to any one of <1> to <6>, wherein the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator includes a first direction and a second direction opposite to the first direction, the outer surfaces include a first outer surface located in a position straight ahead from the ultrasonic oscillator in the first direction and a second outer surface located in a position straight ahead from the ultrasonic oscillator in the second direction, and the curvature of both the first outer surface and the second outer surface is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less.

[0090] <8> The dosage device described in any one of <1> to <7>, wherein the ultrasonic oscillator includes a piezoelectric element.

[0091] <9> The dosage device according to any one of <1> to <8>, further comprising a capsule-shaped housing, wherein the ultrasonic oscillator is disposed inside the housing.

[0092] <10> The medication device according to any one of <1> to <9>, further comprising: a biometric information acquisition unit that acquires biometric information; and an A / D converter that converts the biometric information acquired by the biometric information acquisition unit into digital information, wherein the ultrasonic oscillator emits the biometric information converted into digital information by the A / D converter as an ultrasonic signal.

[0093] <11> An information acquisition system for a ingested device, comprising: a ingested device according to any one of <1> to <10>; a processing device; and a receiver that acquires information from the ingested device by receiving an ultrasonic signal emitted from the ultrasonic oscillator and transmits the acquired information to the processing device.

[0094] DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10, 110 Ingestion device 11 Outer surface 11a, 11c First outer surface 11b, 11d Second outer surface 20, 111 Ultrasonic oscillator 21 Vibration direction 21a, 21c First orientation 21b, 21d Second orientation 30 Housing 40 Substrate 40c Longitudinal center line of substrate 41 Mounting surface of substrate 50 Receiving coil 51, 112, 133 Battery 52, 113 Biometric information acquisition unit 54, 72 Sealant 71 Piezoelectric element 73 Biological 100 Information acquisition system 114 A / D converter 115 Control unit 116 Memory unit 120 Processing device 130 Receiver 131 Receiving unit 132 Transmitting unit 134 Display unit

Claims

1. An oral device that transmits information by vibrating the device itself, characterized in that it has an ultrasonic oscillator inside, and the curvature of the outer surface located in the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less.

2. The dosage device of claim 1, further comprising a sealant having an acoustic impedance between the acoustic impedance of the material constituting the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator and the acoustic impedance of water, the sealant being filled between the vibration surface of the ultrasonic oscillator and the outer surface.

3. The medication device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a battery and a substrate on which the battery is mounted, the battery being positioned on the longitudinal centerline of the substrate.

4. A dosage device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a substrate on which the ultrasonic oscillator is mounted, the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator being perpendicular to the mounting surface of the substrate.

5. The dosing device of claim 4, wherein the outer surface is located on the opposite side of the substrate from the ultrasonic oscillator.

6. A dosage device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a substrate on which the ultrasonic oscillator is mounted, the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator being parallel to the mounting surface of the substrate.

7. A dosage device as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the vibration direction of the ultrasonic oscillator includes a first direction and a second direction opposite to the first direction, the outer surface includes a first outer surface located in a straight line from the ultrasonic oscillator in the first direction and a second outer surface located in a straight line from the ultrasonic oscillator in the second direction, and the curvature of both the first outer surface and the second outer surface is 0.18 or more and 0.50 or less.

8. A dosage device as described in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the ultrasonic oscillator includes a piezoelectric element.

9. A dosage device as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a capsule-shaped housing, wherein the ultrasonic oscillator is disposed inside the housing.

10. A ingestible device as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising: a bioinformation acquisition unit that acquires bioinformation; and an A / D converter that converts the bioinformation acquired by the bioinformation acquisition unit into digital information, wherein the ultrasonic oscillator emits the bioinformation converted into digital information by the A / D converter as an ultrasonic signal.

11. An information acquisition system for a ingested device comprising: a ingested device according to any one of claims 1 to 10; a processing device; and a receiver that acquires information from the ingested device by receiving an ultrasonic signal generated by the ultrasonic oscillator and transmits the acquired information to the processing device.

Images