Vestibular Examination Platform with Six Degrees of Freedom
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vestibular system examination methods, such as rotatory chair testing, are limited in detecting defects in all semicircular canals and suffer from subjective and inaccurate results due to manual operation and restricted horizontal rotation capabilities.
Innovation Solution
A vestibular system examination device with a platform unit providing six degrees of freedom movement and an examining unit that includes a detector for eye movement, a measuring module for data collection, and a processing module for data analysis, allowing for comprehensive detection and treatment of nystagmus across all semicircular canals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If rotatory chair testing is used for vestibular system examination, then the examination can be performed with simple horizontal rotation, but it can only detect nystagmus from lateral semicircular canals and cannot examine anterior and posterior canals
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from single-axis horizontal rotation to six-degree-of-freedom motion capability, enabling the platform to rotate around multiple axes (pitch, roll, yaw) and translate in three dimensions. This dimensional expansion allows stimulation of all three semicircular canals (anterior, posterior, lateral) that were inaccessible with horizontal rotation only.
Solution Approach 2:
The examination platform is designed with multi-functional motion capabilities including rotational movement around three orthogonal axes and translational movement along three axes, making it universally applicable for examining all semicircular canals rather than being limited to a single canal type.
2Measurement precision
If manual operation is used for rotatory chair testing, then the device is simple to operate, but the results are subjective and inaccurate due to confounding factors
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates detectors that monitor eye movement and nystagmus responses in real-time, with this feedback information processed by a control module that adjusts stimulation parameters dynamically. This closed-loop feedback mechanism eliminates subjectivity by using objective sensor data rather than manual observation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical operation with an automated control system that uses electronic sensors, processors, and actuators to perform examinations. The control module automatically executes examination protocols and analyzes detector signals, substituting human judgment with objective computational analysis.
3Adaptability or versatility
If fixed horizontal rotation is used, then the testing procedure is simple, but it cannot detect nystagmus from anterior and posterior semicircular canals
Solution Approach 1:
The examination platform employs dynamic motion control with six degrees of freedom, allowing the system to adapt its movement pattern based on which semicircular canal is being examined. The platform can dynamically adjust rotation axes, angles, and velocities to optimally stimulate specific canals, rather than being constrained to fixed horizontal rotation.
Data Source
AI summary
A vestibular system examination device includes a platform unit and an examination unit. The platform unit includes a base, a driving mechanism mounted to the base, and a seat mounted to the driving mechanism and adapted for a user to sit thereon. The seat is driven movably and rotatably with six degrees of freedom by the driving mechanism. The examining unit includes a detector adapted for detecting eye movement or electrooculography of the user, a measuring module electrically connected to the platform unit for measuring location and displacement thereof, and a processing module electrically connected to the detector and the measuring module for receiving and processing data acquired from the detector and the measuring module.