ORGANISM STATE QUANTITY MEASURING APPARATUS

• US 20130201049A1
• Filed: 01/08/2013
• Published: 08/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: SUGIMOTO, Naoya
• Granted Patent: US 9,041,582 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 341/167
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1459 invasive, e.g. introduced into the body by a catheter A61B5/1464 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/6428 Measuring fluorescence of fluorescent products of reactions or of fluorochrome labelled reactive substances, e.g. measuring quenching effects, using measuring "optrodes" in vivo A61B5/00; immunoassay G01N33/53
• CPC Class Codes: H03M 1/52 Input signal integrated with linear return to datum

Abstract

An apparatus including a detecting unit that detects information indicating a state of an organism from the organism or an organism specimen extracted from the organism and outputs the detected information as a current, a current-voltage conversion circuit that converts the current output from the detecting unit into a voltage, a double-integration-type A/D conversion circuit having an integration capacitor that is charged based on a voltage output from the current-voltage conversion circuit and is thereafter discharged, and a counter that measures a charge time during which the integration capacitor is charged and a discharge time during which the integration capacitor is discharged, the A/D conversion circuit converting into digital quantities the charge time and the discharge time measured by the counter, and outputting the digital quantities, and an information processing unit that calculates a state quantity of the organism based on the digital quantities output from the A/D conversion circuit.

Claims

1. An organism state quantity measuring apparatus comprising:

a detecting unit that detects information indicating a state of an organism from the organism or an organism specimen extracted from the organism and outputs the detected information as a current;

a current-voltage conversion circuit that converts the current output from the detecting unit into a voltage;

a double-integration-type A/D conversion circuit having an integration capacitor that is charged based on a voltage output from the current-voltage conversion circuit and is thereafter discharged, and a counter that measures a charge time during which the integration capacitor is charged and a discharge time during which the integration capacitor is discharged, the A/D conversion circuit converting into digital quantities the charge time and the discharge time measured by the counter, and outputting the digital quantities; and

an information processing unit that calculates a state quantity of the organism based on the digital quantities output from the A/D conversion circuit.

2. The organism state quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the current-voltage conversion circuit converts the current output from the detecting unit into a voltage based on a first reference voltage, and

the double-integration-type A/D conversion circuit discharges the integration capacitor based on a second reference voltage different from the first reference voltage.

3. The organism state quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the double-integration-type A/D conversion circuit operates based on a first reference voltage;

the current-voltage conversion circuit converts the current output from the detecting unit into a voltage based on a third reference voltage different from the first reference voltage;

in a case where the current-voltage conversion circuit outputs a negative voltage with respect to the third reference voltage, the third reference voltage is set higher than the first reference voltage; and

in a case where the current-voltage conversion circuit outputs a positive voltage with respect to the third reference voltage, the third reference voltage is set lower than the first reference voltage.

4. The organism state quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detecting unit includes:

an illumination light source that applies illumination light to the organism or the organism specimen; and

a photodiode that receives a reflected part of the illumination light reflected by the organism or the organism specimen or a transmitted part of the illumination light transmitted through the organism or the organism specimen, and outputs the reflected or transmitted light as a current.

5. The organism state quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detecting unit includes at least two electrodes that are brought into contact with the organism or the organism specimen to detect a current flowing through the organism or the organism specimen.

6. The organism state quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detecting unit includes:

an excitation light source that irradiates the organism or the organism specimen with excitation light for exciting a fluorescent material borne on the organism or the organism specimen; and

a photodiode that receives fluorescence from the fluorescent material and outputs a current corresponding to the fluorescence.