Blood Pressure Measuring Cuffs and a Blood Pressure Measuring Device

• US 20090264774A1
• Filed: 09/28/2006
• Published: 10/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha (Terumo Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha (Terumo Corporation)
• Inventors: Watanabe, Takashi, Ozawa, Hitoshi, Nakanishi, Masaru, Oonishi, Shuichi, Kondo, Akira
• Granted Patent: US 8,147,418 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/499
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02241 of small dimensions, e.g. adapted to fingers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6815 Ear
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6838 Clamps or clips

Abstract

The present invention enables making uniform contact with the tragus using inner and outer cuffs, each of said inner and outer cuffs being comprised of a cuff member 40 connected to a duct 4 and a cuff bladder 22 having a body 27 which is fixed onto said cuff member in an air-tight manner and can expand and contract, comprised in such manner in order to carry out accurate blood pressure measurement at any one given point in time without being affected by the pinch width of the tragus and depth to the tragus even with repeated mounting and removal from the ear auricle, and also comprised such that a lid 23 of said cuff bladder forms a pressing surface 25 in a shape of a protrusion.

Claims

1. Blood pressure measuring cuffs which measures blood pressure using an inner cuff which is inserted in to the acoustic canal and an outer cuff placed on the outer surface of the tragus,

said inner cuff and outer cuff are comprised of:

a cuff member connected to a duct,

and a cuff bladder fixed onto said cuff member in an air-tight manner and has a body which can expand and contract,

and a lid of said cuff bladder has a pressing surface formed in a shape of either a protrusion or a collapsed protrusion.

2. Blood pressure measuring cuffs according to claim 1 characterized in that said lid is formed in a shape of either a circle, an ellipse or an oval, and the surface area of said pressing surface is formed to be approximately 50 to 70% of the surface area of said lid, and said cuff member is formed in a shape which is congruent to said body.

3. Blood pressure measuring cuffs according to claim 1 characterized in that,

if said lid is circular, the diameter of said cuff bladder is within a range of 5 to 10 mm and the diameter of said pressing surface is within a range of 3 to 6 mm,

and the thickness of said pressing surface within a range of 0.4 to 1 mm and the thickness of said body is within a range of 0.1 to 0.8 mm.

4. Blood pressure measuring cuffs according to claim 1 characterized in that,

if said lid is elliptical or oval, the major axis is within a range of 15 to 5 mm and preferably about 10 mm, and the minor axis is within a range of 10 to 4 mm,

and the thickness of said pressing surface within a range of 0.4 to 1 mm and the thickness of said body is within a range of 0.1 to 0.8 mm.

5. Blood pressure measuring cuffs according to claim 1 characterized in that, said cuff bladder is integrally molded from an elastic material including silicon rubber, natural rubber, and predetermined synthetic resin materials having a Shore hardness value of 30 to 60.

6. Blood pressure measuring cuffs according to claim 1 characterized in that,

the employed pulse wave detecting means is an optical means comprised of a light-emitting element (LED) and a light receiving element (phototransistor) installed inside said cuff(s) which capture signals from absorption and reflection of light caused by blood flowing through blood vessels,

and a hole is drilled on said pressing surface after forming said cuff bladder from a light shielding material, and into said hole an light permeable layer is inserted and is integrally formed by vulcanization as a single piece light shielding layer, excluding the designated area of said pressing surface of said inner cuff inserted with the light permeable layer.

7. Blood pressure measuring cuffs according to claim 1 characterized in that,

a hole is drilled on said pressing surface after forming said cuff bladder from a light shielding material, and into said hole an light permeable layer is inserted and is integrally formed by vulcanization as a single piece light shielding layer, excluding the designated area of said pressing surface of said inner cuff inserted with the light permeable layer,

and at the same time, said light permeable layer has a shape of a circle, an ellipse or an oval, and is formed concentrically or with its center off set.

8. A blood pressure measuring device comprised of:

an inner cuff to be inserted into the acoustic canal and an outer cuff to be placed on the outer surface of the tragus,

a holding means which holds said inner cuff and said outer cuff,

a pulse wave detection means installed in at least one of said inner cuff and said outer cuff, and detects pulse wave signals from blood flowing through blood vessels,

a pressuring and depressurizing, which applies or decreases pressure using a fluid body including air to said inner cuff and outer cuff that are pinching the tragus,

ducts for supplying a fluid body connecting said inner cuff and said outer cuff to said pressure adjusting means,

a pressure detecting means which detects pressures of said inner cuff and said outer cuff, and a blood pressure measurement controlling means which measures blood pressure from said pulse wave signals,

wiring which connects said pulse wave detecting means and said blood pressure measurement controlling means,

where said inner cuff and outer cuff are comprised of;

said cuff member connected with said ducts, and a cuff bladder fixed onto said cuff member in an air-tight manner and a body which can expand and shrink, and forms a pressing surface shaped like a protrusion on the lid of said cuff bladder.