Biological information measurement system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017089875-A1
Application number	US-201615270244-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 20, 2016
Priority date	Sep 29, 2015
Publication date	Mar 30, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

The present invention is a biological information measurement system that measures physical condition of a test subject, and includes: a suction device that sucks gas in the bowl; a gas detector with a gas sensor sensitive to odiferous gas and hydrogen gas included in the defecation gas; a control device; a data analyzer that analyzes the physical condition of the test subject on the basis of detection data; and an output device that outputs an analysis result. In the system, the gas sensor includes first and second detectors that have different sensitivities to hydrogen gas and odiferous gas, and detect first and second detection data, respectively, and the data analyzer includes a gas arithmetic circuit that acquires concentration of odiferous gas on the basis of a conversion table of a relationship between the first and second detection data and concentration of the odiferous gas.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A biological information measurement system that measures physical condition of a test subject on the basis of defecation gas discharged into a bowl of a toilet installed in a toilet installation space, the biological information measurement system comprising:
a suction device that sucks gas in the bowl into which the defecation gas was discharged by the test subject; a gas detector provided with a gas sensor that is sensitive to odiferous gas, containing a sulfur component, as well as to hydrogen gas, included in the defecation gas sucked by the suction device; a control device that controls the suction device and the gas detector; a data analyzer that analyzes physical condition of the test subject on the basis of detection data items that are detected by the gas detector; and an output device that outputs an analysis result acquired by the data analyzer, the gas sensor including a first detector and a second detector that have different sensitivity to hydrogen gas and to odiferous gas detect first detection data and second detection data, respectively, and the data analyzer including a gas arithmetic circuit that determines content or concentration of the odiferous gas on the basis of a conversion table showing a predetermined relationship between the first and second detection data and content or concentration of the odiferous gas.

2 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 1 , wherein the first detector and the second detector have material or preset temperature that is selected so that a ratio between sensitivity to the hydrogen gas and sensitivity to the odiferous gas differs between the first and second detectors.

3 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 2 , wherein
the data analyzer sets a reference value of the odiferous gas existing in the toilet installation room before defecation is started on the basis of each detection data acquired by the first and second detectors before the test subject starts defecation, and the gas arithmetic circuit detects the odiferous gas contained in defecation gas of the test subject on the basis of a variation from the reference value of each of the first and second detection data.

4 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 3 , wherein
the data analyzer is configured to analyze physical condition of the test subject on the basis of defecation gas discharged early during a defecation act of the test subject, and the gas arithmetic circuit is configured to determine content or concentration of the odiferous gas on the basis of the first and second detection data acquired early during the defecation act of the test subject.

5 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 3 , wherein
the data analyzer further includes a compatibility maintenance circuit to maintain compatibility of the first and second detection data detected this time with the conversion table provided in the gas arithmetic circuit, and the compatibility maintenance circuit changes calculation manner performed by the gas arithmetic circuit, or corrects content or concentration of the odiferous gas determined by the gas arithmetic circuit, to maintain the compatibility of the first and second detection data with the conversion table.

6 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 5 , wherein
the compatibility maintenance circuit changes calculation manner performed by the gas arithmetic circuit on the basis of at least one of humidity, temperature, and residual odiferous gas in the toilet installation room, or corrects content or concentration of the odiferous gas determined by the gas arithmetic circuit.

7 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 5 , wherein
the compatibility maintenance circuit changes calculation manner performed by the gas arithmetic circuit, or corrects content or concentration of the odiferous gas determined by the gas arithmetic circuit on the basis of a period of use of the first or second detector.

8 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 5 , further comprising:
a deterioration measuring device that measures a level of deterioration of the first or second detector when detection of defecation gas is not performed, wherein the compatibility maintenance circuit changes calculation manner performed by the gas arithmetic circuit, or corrects content or concentration of the odiferous gas, determined by the gas arithmetic circuit on the basis of the level of deterioration of the first or second detector, measured by the deterioration measuring device.

9 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 8 , wherein
the deterioration measuring device includes a calibration gas generator that discharges or generates gas for calibration, sensitive to the first detector, and the deterioration measuring device measures the level of deterioration of the first detector on the basis of detection data on the detected gas for calibration.

10 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 9 , wherein
the calibration gas generator includes an hypochlorous acid water cleaning device that sprays hypochlorous acid water for sterilization on a surface of the bowl, and the compatibility maintenance circuit detects hydrogen gas generated when the hypochlorous acid water is generated, as the gas for calibration.

11 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 10 , wherein
the hypochlorous acid water cleaning device is configured to sterilize the surface of the bowl after use of the toilet by spraying hypochlorous acid water, and the compatibility maintenance circuit detects gas, as the gas for calibration, generated when the hypochlorous acid water is generated by using the hypochlorous acid water cleaning device separately from sterilization by using the hypochlorous acid water after use of the toilet.

12 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 3 , wherein
the gas detector is configured to detect also hydrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas, or methane gas, and the data analyzer determines a first index based on detection data on the odiferous gas, and a second index based on detection data on hydrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas, or methane gas, for defecation acts performed multiple times in a predetermined period to analyze physical condition of the test subject on the basis of a tendency of time-dependent change of the first and second indexes.

13 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 12 , wherein
the data analyzer corrects an analysis result of physical condition to be outputted to the output device so that the analysis result outputted to the output device does not greatly vary for each defecation act.

14 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 3 , wherein
the first and second detectors of the gas sensor are disposed in a gas passage for measurement through which sucked defecation gas flows, and the first detector is disposed upstream from the second detector.

15 . The biological information measurement system according to claim 1 , wherein
the first detector is formed of a material sensitive to the hydrogen gas and the odiferous gas, and the second detector is formed of a material that is sensitive to the hydrogen gas and is insensitive to the odiferous gas or is less sensitive to the odiferous gas than the first detector.

Assignees

• Toto Ltd

Inventors

• Hasegawa Aya
• Kizuka Satoko
• Nagaishi Masayuki
• Takeshita Akemi
• YAMAYA Shingo
• Oka Hidenori
• Sonoda Koji
• Tsuboi Hiroshi

Classifications

• G01N33/57535

  of the large intestine, e.g. colon, rectum or anus · CPC title

• G01N33/0044 Primary

  Sulphides, e.g. H2S · CPC title

• G01N33/005 Primary

  H2 · CPC title

• G01N33/0073

  Control unit therefor · CPC title

• A61B2010/0083

  for taking gas samples · CPC title