U.S. patent application number 16/275001 was filed with the patent office on 2019-06-13 for measurement device and measurement method.
This patent application is currently assigned to KYOCERA Corporation. The applicant listed for this patent is KYOCERA Corporation. Invention is credited to Asao HIRANO.
Application Number | 20190175034 16/275001 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54698494 |
Filed Date | 2019-06-13 |
![](/patent/app/20190175034/US20190175034A1-20190613-D00000.png)
![](/patent/app/20190175034/US20190175034A1-20190613-D00001.png)
![](/patent/app/20190175034/US20190175034A1-20190613-D00002.png)
![](/patent/app/20190175034/US20190175034A1-20190613-D00003.png)
![](/patent/app/20190175034/US20190175034A1-20190613-D00004.png)
![](/patent/app/20190175034/US20190175034A1-20190613-D00005.png)
United States Patent
Application |
20190175034 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
HIRANO; Asao |
June 13, 2019 |
MEASUREMENT DEVICE AND MEASUREMENT METHOD
Abstract
A measurement device includes a biosensor having a
light-receiving part to receive measuring light from a region to be
tested and configured to obtain a biometric output based on the
measuring light, and a controller configured to determine whether
or not to perform measurement of biological information based on
the biometric output and a predetermined threshold. A measurement
method includes obtaining a biometric output by a biosensor, and
determining, by a controller, whether or not to perform measurement
of biological information based on the biometric output and a
predetermined threshold.
Inventors: |
HIRANO; Asao; (Tokyo,
JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
KYOCERA Corporation |
Kyoto |
|
JP |
|
|
Assignee: |
KYOCERA Corporation
Kyoto
JP
|
Family ID: |
54698494 |
Appl. No.: |
16/275001 |
Filed: |
February 13, 2019 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
15311158 |
Nov 14, 2016 |
10231631 |
|
|
PCT/JP2015/002707 |
May 28, 2015 |
|
|
|
16275001 |
|
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61B 5/742 20130101;
A61B 5/6803 20130101; A61B 5/0245 20130101; H04R 1/1041 20130101;
A61B 5/7221 20130101; A61B 2562/16 20130101; H04R 1/028 20130101;
H04R 1/1016 20130101; A61B 5/6815 20130101; A61B 5/6817 20130101;
A61B 5/02416 20130101; A61B 5/6898 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A61B 5/024 20060101
A61B005/024; A61B 5/00 20060101 A61B005/00; H04R 1/02 20060101
H04R001/02; H04R 1/10 20060101 H04R001/10; A61B 5/0245 20060101
A61B005/0245 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
May 28, 2014 |
JP |
2014-110248 |
Claims
1. A measurement device, comprising: a biosensor having a
light-receiving part to receive measuring light from a region to be
tested and configured to obtain a biometric output based on the
measuring light; and a controller configured to determine whether
or not to perform measurement of biological information based on
the biometric output and a predetermined threshold.
2. The measurement device according to claim 1, wherein the
threshold is at least one of a first threshold according to a range
of the number of peaks of the biometric output in a predetermined
time and a second threshold according to variation in a height of a
peak.
3. The measurement device according to claim 2, wherein the
controller performs measurement of the biological information at
least one of when the biometric output is within a range of the
first threshold and when the biometric output is smaller than the
second threshold.
4. The measurement device according to claim 2, wherein the
controller does not perform measurement of the biological
information at least one of when the biometric output is out of the
range of the first threshold and when the biometric output is
greater than the second threshold.
5. The measurement device according to claim 1, wherein, when
performing measurement of the biological information, the
controller adjusts an output intensity of the biometric output of
the biosensor.
6. The measurement device according to claim 5 further comprising:
a light emitting part configured to output measuring light to the
region to be tested, wherein the controller adjusts an intensity of
the measuring light output by the light emitting part to adjust the
output intensity of the biometric output.
7. The measurement device according to claim 1, wherein the
controller allows a notification part to give a predetermined
notification when performing no measurement of the biological
information.
8. The measurement device according to claim 7, wherein the
notification is given to notify that a position adjustment of the
biosensor is needed.
9. The measurement device according to claim 1 further comprising:
a position adjustment part configured to adjust a position of the
biosensor with respect to the region to be tested, wherein the
position of the biosensor with respect to the region to be tested
can be adjusted by the position adjustment part.
10. The measurement device according to claim 1, wherein the
biometric output includes pulse wave data.
11. A measurement method, comprising: obtaining a biometric output
by a biosensor; and determining, by a controller, whether or not to
perform measurement of biological information based on the
biometric output and a predetermined threshold.
12. The measurement method according to claim 11, wherein the
threshold is at least one of a first threshold according to a range
of the number of peaks of the biometric output in a predetermined
time and a second threshold according to variation in a height of a
peak.
13. The measurement method according to claim 12, further
comprising: determining, by the controller, to perform measurement
of the biological information at least one of when the biometric
output is within a range of the first threshold and when the
biometric output is smaller than the second threshold.
14. The measurement method according to claim 12, further
comprising: determining, by the controller, not to perform
measurement of the biological information at least one of when the
biometric output is out of the range of the first threshold and
when the biometric output is greater than the second threshold.
15. The measurement method according claim 11, further comprising:
adjusting, by the controller, an output intensity of the biometric
output of the biosensor when measurement of the biological
information is performed; and after adjusting, measuring the
biological information.
16. The measurement method according to claim 15, wherein the
controller adjusts an intensity of measuring light output by a
light emitting part to adjust an output intensity of the biometric
output.
17. The measurement method according to claim 11 further
comprising: determining, by the controller, to give a predetermined
notification when no measurement of the biological information is
performed.
18. The measurement method according to claim 17, wherein the
predetermined notification is given to notify that a position
adjustment of the biosensor is needed.
19. The measurement method according to claim 11, further
comprising: disposing the biosensor, by an ear canal connection
configured to be inserted in an ear canal, into the ear canal; and
after disposing, adjusting a position of the biosensor with respect
to a region to be tested.
20. The measurement method according to claim 11, wherein the
biometric output is pulse wave data.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 15/311,158 filed Nov. 14, 2016, which is the
U.S. National Phase of International Application No.
PCT/JP2015/002707 filed May 28, 2015, which claims priority to and
the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2014-110248 filed
May 28, 2014, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein
by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] This disclosure relates to a measurement device and a
measurement method.
BACKGROUND
[0003] A biological information measurement device that measures
the biological information, such as pulses or the like, of the user
has been known. The biological information is measured by various
methods by using a biological information measurement device.
SUMMARY
[0004] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a
measurement device includes, an ear canal connection, a shaft a
biological sensor and a controller. The ear canal connection is
configured to be inserted into an ear canal. The shaft is extending
from the ear canal connection along an insertion direction. The
biological sensor is configured to be turnable about the shaft
relative to the ear canal connection. The controller is configured
to measure biological information based on a biometric output
obtained from the biological sensor.
[0005] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a
measurement device includes a biosensor having a light-receiving
part to receive measuring light from a region to be tested and
configured to obtain a biometric output based on the measuring
light, and a controller configured to determine whether or not to
perform measurement of biological information based on the
biometric output and a predetermined threshold.
[0006] As described above, although a solution of this disclosure
has been explained as devices, this disclosure can be realized as
methods substantially corresponding to the devices, and it will be
appreciated that the scope of this disclosure includes them.
[0007] For example, according to an embodiment of the present
disclosure, a measurement method includes obtaining a biometric
output by a biosensor, and determining, by a controller, whether or
not to perform measurement of biological information based on the
biometric output and a predetermined threshold.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] In the accompanying drawings:
[0009] FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a measurement device
according to one embodiment of this disclosure;
[0010] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional schematic
configuration of an insertion part according to one embodiment of
this disclosure;
[0011] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state where the insertion
part in FIG. 2 is inserted into an ear canal;
[0012] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a process
performed by an earphone controller illustrated in FIG. 1;
[0013] FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B are a diagram illustrating one example
of the pulse wave data obtained by a biological sensor illustrated
in FIG. 1; and
[0014] FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of main parts of the
measurement device in the case where a predetermined control for
position adjustment is performed by a mobile phone controller
220.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] In the pulse measurement device, the measurement accuracy
varies depending on the positional relationship between the pulse
wave sensor and the blood vessel located on a measurement point of
the pulse wave. However, in the conventional pulse measurement
device, in some cases, the biological information could not be
measured accurately for a difficulty in adjusting the position of
the pulse wave sensor.
[0016] The present embodiment has been conceived in light of the
above considerations and provides a measurement device and a
measurement method capable of improving the measurement accuracy of
the biological information.
[0017] The following describes embodiments of this disclosure with
reference to the drawings.
[0018] FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of main parts of the
measurement device according to one embodiment of this disclosure.
The measurement device according to this disclosure is realized by
an earphone 100. The earphone 100 includes an insertion part 110,
an earphone controller 120, a storage 130, a communication
interface 140 and a notification unit 150. The earphone 100
measures the biological information by using a biological sensor
111 mounted on the insertion part 110 with the insertion part 110
inserted to an ear canal of the user. When the earphone 100
according to this embodiment is used, the user may adjust the
position of the biological sensor 111 beforehand. After adjusting
the position once, the user does not need to adjust the position
again unless the position of the biological sensor 111 is changed,
for example.
[0019] The biological information is any information that can be
measured by using the biological sensor 111 provided in the
insertion part 110. As one example, the following explanation is
given assuming that the earphone 100 measures the pulse of the user
in this embodiment.
[0020] When the user measures pulse, he/she wears the insertion
part 110 in his/her ear. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a
cross-sectional schematic configuration of the insertion part 110
according to one embodiment of this disclosure. In FIG. 2, the
insertion part 110 is inserted into the user's ear canal to the
left. The insertion part 110 includes the biological sensor 111, a
sensor disposing part 112, a sound guide tube 113 as a shaft, a
vibration plate 114, a driving unit 115 and an ear canal connection
116.
[0021] The biological sensor 111 is a pulse wave sensor and obtains
pulse wave data, as a biometric output, from the user (living
body). The biological sensor 111 includes a light-emitting element
such as a LED (Light emitting diode) or the like and a
light-receiving element such as a PT (Phototransistor) or a PD
(Photodiode) or the like, for example. The biological sensor 111
measures the pulse wave data by allowing the light-emitting element
to irradiate the measuring light to a region to be tested in an ear
canal of the user and allowing the light-receiving element to
receive the reflected light from the region to be tested. In the
case of such measurement by the light, the biological sensor 111
does not always have to be in contact with the ear canal.
[0022] The biological sensor 111 is disposed on the outer periphery
of the cylindrical sensor disposing part 112. In the earphone 100
according to this embodiment, the sensor disposing part 112 is
disposed on the outer periphery side of the sound guide tube 113.
The sensor disposing part 112 has a turn adjusting part 117 on the
opposite side of the side inserting to the ear canal.
[0023] A part of the sensor disposing part 112 except for the turn
adjusting part 117 is covered with the ear canal connection 116.
The sensor disposing part 112 is configured to be turnable about
the sound guide tube 113 relative to the sound guide tube 113 and
the ear canal connection 116. The sensor disposing part 112 may be
configured to be turnable clockwise/counterclockwise 180 degrees,
respectively. The sensor disposing part 112 may include a lock
mechanism with respect to each predetermined rotating angle (e.g.
10 degrees) and be configured to be turnable in stages. As
illustrated in FIG. 3, for example, the user may pinch the turn
adjusting part 117 with his/her fingers to turn it with the
insertion part 110 inserted into his/her ear canal, thereby
allowing the sensor disposing part 112 to be turned. As a result of
this, the position of the biological sensor 111 disposed on the
sensor disposing part 112 is changed. Thus, the region to be tested
to which the biological sensor 111 irradiates the measuring light
in the ear canal is changed. The user adjusts the position of the
biological sensor 111 by turning the biological sensor 111.
[0024] The sound guide tube 113 is cylindrical and extends along
the direction inserting to the ear canal. The sound guide tube 113
serves as a rotating shaft when the sensor disposing part 112 turns
relative to the ear canal connection 116. The sound guide tube 113
transmits the sound generated by the sound generator (speaker unit)
configured with the vibration plate 114 and the driving unit 115 in
the insertion direction of the ear canal connection 116 to the ear
canal, that is, transmits the sound into the ear of the user. The
driving unit 115 causes the vibration plate 114 to vibrate based on
a sound signal of the sound generated by a mobile telephone 200 as
a sound source device. The vibration plate 114 vibrates based on
the driving of the driving unit 115 to reproduce sound. Driving of
the driving unit 115 is controlled by the earphone controller 120,
for example.
[0025] The ear canal connection 116 covers a part of the insertion
part 110 and contacts the ear canal when the insertion part 110 is
inserted into the ear canal. The ear canal connection 116 is formed
from a material that allows the measuring light irradiated from the
biological sensor 111 and the reflected light from the region to be
tested to transmit easily. For example, when the measuring light
and the reflected light are infrared rays, the ear canal connection
116 may be formed from silicon.
[0026] With reference to FIG. 1 again, the earphone controller 120
is a processor that controls overall operation of the earphone 100.
When the user measures the biological information, the earphone
controller 120 measures pulse as the biological information based
on the pulse wave data obtained from the biological sensor 111.
[0027] When the user adjusts the position of the biological sensor
111, the earphone controller 120 performs a predetermined control.
For example, the earphone controller 120 determines whether or not
the pulse wave data, which is the biometric output, is within the
allowable range that can be used for measurement of the biological
information. When the earphone controller 120 determines that the
pulse wave data is not within the allowable range, it allows the
notification unit 150 to indicate that the biological sensor 111 is
needed to be turned. On the other hand, when the earphone
controller 120 determines that the pulse wave data is within the
allowable range, it adjusts the intensity of the measuring light
irradiated from the biological sensor 111 to the region to be
tested. The predetermined control performed by the earphone
controller 120 when the user adjusts the position of the biological
sensor 111 will be described in detail below with reference to FIG.
4.
[0028] The storage 130 can be configured with a semiconductor
memory, a magnetic memory or the like, for example, and stores
various kinds of information and a program for operating the
earphone 100, or the like. The storage 130 stores the information
(threshold) relating to the allowable range that is a criterion for
determining whether or not the pulse wave data obtained by the
biological sensor 111 can be used for the measurement of the
biological information.
[0029] The communication interface 140 is connected to the sound
source device wired or wirelessly by Bluetooth.RTM. or the like to
communicate with each other. The sound source device can be any one
of miscellaneous sound source devices such as, for example, a
mobile telephone, a mobile music player, a laptop computer, a
tablet terminator, a game machine, or the like. In this
specification, explanation is give on the assumption that the sound
source device is a mobile telephone 200. The earphone 100 transmits
the biological information measured by the earphone controller 120,
for example, to the mobile telephone 200 via the communication
interface 140. The earphone 100 receives the information relating
to a sound signal of the sound reproduced from the mobile telephone
200, for example, via the communication interface 140.
[0030] The notification unit 150 notifies the user that the
biological sensor 111 is needed to be turned, based on the control
by the earphone controller 120, by a visual method with images,
characters, light emission or the like, an auditory method such as
sound or the like, or a combination thereof. In the case of
notification by an auditory method, the notification unit 150
provides a notification by displaying images or characters on a
display device configured with a liquid crystal display, an organic
EL display, an inorganic EL display or the like, for example. The
notification unit 150 may notify by light emission of a
light-emitting element such as a LED or the like that is configured
separately from the biological sensor 111, for example. In the case
of notification by an auditory method, the notification unit 150
provides a notification by outputting alarm sound, sound guide, or
the like, from the sound generator provided in the insertion part
110, for example. It should be noted that the notification provided
by the notification unit 150 is not limited to an auditory or
visual notification, and the notification may be provided in any
method that can be recognized by the user.
[0031] It should be noted that the earphone controller 120 may
provide a notification by displaying images or characteristics on a
display 260 of the mobile telephone 200 connected via the
communication interface 140, for example. In this case, the
earphone 100 does not need to include the notification unit
150.
[0032] The mobile telephone 200 can be a smartphone, for example,
and is connected to the earphone 100. The mobile telephone 200
includes a mobile telephone controller 220, a communication
interface 240, a display 260 and an input interface 270.
[0033] The mobile telephone controller 220 is a processor that
controls overall operation of the mobile telephone 200. The mobile
telephone controller 220 allows the display 260 to display the
biological information measured by the earphone 100, for example.
The mobile telephone controller 220 generates a sound signal of the
sound reproduced from the insertion part 110 of the earphone 100,
for example.
[0034] The communication interface 240 is connected wired or
wirelessly to the earphone 100 to communicate with each other. The
mobile telephone 200 receives the biological information measured
by the earphone 100 via the communication interface 240, for
example. The mobile telephone 200 transmits the information
relating to the sound signal of the sound reproduced from the
insertion part 110 of the earphone 100 to the earphone 100 via the
communication interface 240, for example.
[0035] The display 260 is a display device such as, for example, a
liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, an inorganic EL
display, or the like. The display 260 displays the biological
information measured by the earphone 100. The user can know his/her
own biological information by confirming the display on the display
260.
[0036] The input interface 270 accepts an operation input from the
user, and is configured with operation buttons (operation keys),
for example. The input interface 270 may be configured with a touch
screen, and an input region that accepts an operation input from
the user may be displayed on a portion of the display 260 so that a
touch operation input by the user can be accepted.
[0037] Next, the control performed by the earphone controller 120
when the user adjusts the position of the biological sensor 111 is
described in detail below. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating one
example of a process performed by the earphone controller 120
illustrated in FIG. 1 when it adjusts the position. When the user
measures the biological information by using the earphone 100
according to this embodiment, he/she adjusts the position of the
biological sensor 111 beforehand. When the user adjusts the
position, he/she performs a predetermined input to the input
interface 270 of the mobile telephone 200, for example, to allow
the earphone controller 120 to start the flow illustrated in FIG.
4.
[0038] First, the earphone controller 120 obtains the pulse wave
data by using the biological sensor 111 (step S101). In particular,
the earphone controller 120 obtains the pulse wave data by allowing
the biological sensor 111 to irradiate the measuring light to the
region to be tested and receive the reflected light from the region
to be tested. At this time, the intensity of the measuring light to
be irradiated is any intensity that allows the earphone controller
120 to determine whether the position of the biological sensor 111
should be changed or not. The intensity of this measuring light may
be constant and may not change each time the flow in FIG. 4 is
executed.
[0039] The earphone controller 120 determines whether or not the
obtained pulse wave data is within the allowable range that can be
used for measurement of the biological information (step S102).
[0040] Here, the method performed by the earphone controller 120 to
determine whether or not the pulse wave data is within the
allowable range is described in detail. The earphone controller 120
determines whether or not the obtained pulse wave data is within
the allowable range according to the threshold relating to the
allowable range stored in the storage 130. The threshold relating
to the allowable range is, for example, a threshold relating to the
number of peaks in a predetermined period of time, for example, and
the earphone controller 120 determines whether or not the pulse
wave data is within the allowable range based on whether or not the
number of peaks of the pulse wave data is within the range of the
threshold.
[0041] FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B are a diagram illustrating an example of
the pulse wave data obtained by the biological sensor 111
illustrated in FIG. 1. When comparing FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B, the
number of peaks of the pulse wave data in FIG. 5A is greater than
that of the pulse wave data in FIG. 5B. For example, when the
number of peaks of the pulse wave data in FIG. 5A is out of the
range of the threshold stored in the storage 130, the earphone
controller 120 determines that the pulse wave data includes a lot
of noise and the pulse wave data is not within the allowable range.
On the other hand, when the number of peaks of the pulse wave data
in FIG. 5B is within the range of the threshold stored in the
storage 130, for example, the earphone controller 120 determines
that the pulse wave data is within the allowable range.
[0042] It should be noted that the threshold relating to the
allowable range is not limited to this example. The threshold
relating to the allowable range can be any threshold that allows
the earphone controller 120 to determine whether or not the pulse
wave data is within the allowable range. For example, the threshold
can be those relating to variation in the heights of peaks of the
pulse wave data. The variation in the heights of peaks is defined
by the standard deviation, for example. In this case, when the
standard deviation of the height of peak is larger than the
predetermined threshold, the earphone controller 120 determines
that the pulse wave data has a lot of noise and the pulse wave data
is not within the allowable range. On the other hand, in the case
where the variation in the heights of peaks is smaller than the
predetermined threshold, the earphone controller 120 determines
that the pulse wave data is within the allowable range.
[0043] With reference to FIG. 4 again, in step S102, when the
earphone controller 120 determines that the obtained pulse wave
data is not within the allowable range (No in step S102), it
displays an instruction to the user indicating that the position of
the biological sensor 111 is needed to be changed (step S103). The
earphone controller 120 can allow the notification unit 150 to
notify the instruction indicating that the position of the
biological sensor 111 is needed to be changed, for example. The
earphone controller 120 can allow the display 260 of the mobile
telephone 200 to display the instruction indicating that the
position of the biological sensor 111 is needed to be changed, for
example. Based on the instruction to change the position, the user
changes the position of the biological sensor 111 by turning the
turn adjusting part 117.
[0044] The earphone controller 120 uses the biological sensor 111
and obtains the pulse wave data again (step S101). At this time,
the position of the biological sensor 111 has been changed based on
the instruction of the earphone controller 120 in step S103, thus
the region to be tested from which the biological sensor 111
obtains the pulse wave data has been changed. Since the pulse wave
data varies depending on the positional relationship between the
region to be tested and the biological sensor 111, it is assumed
that the pulse wave data to be obtained by the earphone controller
120 is different from the pulse wave data that has been obtained
earlier.
[0045] The earphone controller 120 determines whether or not the
newly obtained pulse wave data is within the allowable range that
can be used for measurement of the biological information (step
S102).
[0046] When the earphone controller 120 determines that the
obtained pulse wave data is not within the allowable range (No in
step S102), it displays an instruction indicating that the position
of the biological sensor 111 is needed to be changed again to the
user (step S103). In this manner, the earphone controller 120
repeats steps S101 to S103 until it determines that the obtained
pulse wave data is within the allowable range.
[0047] When the earphone controller 120 determines that the
obtained pulse wave data is within the allowable range (Yes in step
S102), it adjusts the measured intensity of the biometry
information in the biological sensor 111 (step S104). For example,
the earphone controller 120 adjusts the intensity of the measuring
light outputted from the light-emitting element of the biological
sensor 111. As a result of this, the earphone controller 120 can
adjust the light receiving intensity of the reflected light in the
pulse wave data obtained by the biological sensor 111 to the
intensity suitable for measurement of the biological information.
In this manner, the earphone controller 120 finishes control for
adjusting the position of the biological sensor 111. After
adjusting the position of the biological sensor 111, the user can
measure the biological information.
[0048] It should be noted that, once adjusting the position of the
biological sensor 111, for example, the user can repeatedly measure
the biological information without adjusting the position again
unless there is a change in the position of the biological sensor
111 in the insertion part 110, for example.
[0049] As explained above, in the earphone 100, the position of the
biological sensor 111 is adjusted before the biological information
of the user is measured. Since the biometric output obtained by the
biological sensor 111 varies depending on the positional
relationship between the biological sensor 111 and the region to be
tested, in the earphone 100, the biological sensor 111 can be
disposed on a position where the biological information can be
measured with a high accuracy by adjusting the position before
measuring the biological information. Thus, according to the
earphone 100, the measurement accuracy of the biological
information can be improved.
[0050] In the earphone 100, the user can change the position of the
biological sensor 111 by pinching the turn adjusting part 117 with
his/her fingers to turn it, and thus the user can adjust the
position easily. Besides, even if the position of the biological
sensor 111 is changed by the turn adjusting part 117, the ear canal
connection 116 being in contact with the ear canal of the user does
not move in the ear canal of the user, and as a result, the wearing
feeling of the earphone 100 does not change.
[0051] As illustrated in FIG. 2, when the biological sensor 111 is
disposed in the sensor disposing part 112 that is different from
the sound guide tube 113 and the sensor disposing part 112 is
disposed on the outer periphery side of the sound guide tube 113,
the biological sensor 111 is less influenced by the vibration of
the sound transmitted through the sound guide tube 113. That is,
the biological sensor 111 is less vibrated by the vibration of
sound. As a result, the biological sensor 111 can obtain the
biometric output with a high accuracy.
[0052] It should be noted that this disclosure is not limited to
the above described embodiment, and a variety of modifications or
changes are possible. For example, the functions or the like
included in each component, step or the like may be reordered in
any logically consistent manner, and a plurality of components,
steps or the like may be combined into one or divided.
[0053] For example, in the above described embodiment, the earphone
controller 120 performs a predetermined control when the user
adjusts the position of the biological sensor 111. However, the
control is performed not only by the earphone controller 120. The
control may be performed by the mobile telephone controller 220,
for example.
[0054] FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of main parts of the
measurement device in the case where the mobile telephone
controller 220 performs a predetermined control when the position
is adjusted. In this case, the earphone 100 includes the insertion
part 110 having the biological sensor 111 and the communication
interface 140 that connects to the mobile telephone 200 wired or
wirelessly to communicate with each other. The user operates the
input interface 270 of the mobile telephone 200 and starts the
application for measurement of the biological information, for
example, to measure the biological information by using the
earphone 100. The biological sensor 111 obtains the pulse wave data
in the same manner as that of the above described embodiment. The
communication interface 140 transmits the pulse wave data obtained
by the biological sensor 111 to the mobile telephone 200.
[0055] When adjusting the position of the biological sensor 111,
the user uses the position adjustment function of the above
described application for measurement of the biological
information. When the mobile telephone 200 obtains the pulse wave
data from the earphone 100 via the communication interface 240, it
performs a predetermined control to adjust the position in the
mobile telephone controller 220. For example, the predetermined
control is the control illustrated by the flow in FIG. 4. When
performing the predetermined control, the mobile telephone
controller 220 refers to the information relating to the allowable
range that can be a criterion for determining whether the pulse
wave data can be used or not for measurement of the biological
information. The information relating to the allowable range is
stored in the storage 230 of the mobile telephone 200, for example.
When the mobile telephone controller 220 instructs to change the
position of the biological sensor 111 in the step S103 in FIG. 4,
it may instruct to change the position by providing a notification
from the notification part 250 of the mobile telephone 200.
[0056] The user measures the biological information after the
position of the biological sensor 111 is adjusted by controlling
the mobile telephone controller 220. In this case, the pulse wave
data obtained by the biological sensor 111 is transmitted from the
earphone 100 to the mobile telephone 200 via the communication
interface 140. In the mobile telephone 200, the mobile telephone
controller 220 measures the biological information based on the
obtained pulse wave data. The measurement results are displayed on
the display 260 of the mobile telephone 200.
[0057] In the above described embodiment, although the insertion
part 110 was explained as it includes the sensor disposing part 112
and the sound guide tube 113, the insertion part 110 is not limited
to that described in this embodiment. The insertion part 110 may
have any structure if the biological sensor 111 is configured to be
turnable relative to the ear canal connection 116. For example, the
insertion part 110 includes the sensor disposing part 112 in which
the biological sensor 111 is disposed, and the sensor disposing
part 112 may serve as a sound guide tube that transmits sound. That
is, in this case, unlike the above described embodiment, the
insertion part 110 includes only one cylindrical member. As a
result of this, the insertion part 110 can be configured in more
simplified structure.
[0058] In the insertion part 110, as a mechanism to apply
electrical signals to the biological sensor 111 and the driving
unit 115, a slip ring may be used.
* * * * *