VEHICLE OPERATING ELEMENT AND METHOD FOR NONINVASIVELY MEASURING BIOMOLECULES

• US 20180228440A1
• Filed: 09/22/2015
• Published: 08/16/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TRW Automotive GmbH (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: TRW Automotive GmbH (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hirzmann, Guido, Seyffert, Martin, Glocker, Raymond, Chen, Chunnan, Dietrich, Hendrik
• Granted Patent: US 10,292,659 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2503/22 Motor vehicles operators, e.g. drivers, pilots, captains
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/02 Details of sensors specially adapted for in-vivo measurements
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0537 Measuring body composition by impedance, e.g. tissue hydration or fat content
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14546 for measuring analytes not otherwise provided for, e.g. ions, cytochromes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1477 non-invasive
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4845 Toxicology, e.g. by detection of alcohol, drug or toxic products A61B5/4848 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6893 Cars
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6898 Portable consumer electronic devices, e.g. music players, telephones, tablet computers
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 28/02 responsive to conditions relating to the driver
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/026 Dielectric impedance spectroscopy electrochemical impedance spectroscopy for measuring corrosion G01N17/02
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/3291 mounted in or on other locations inside the vehicle or vehicle body
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/38 formed by a conductive layer on an insulating support patch antennas H01Q9/0407; microstrip dipole antennas H01Q9/065; microstrip slot antennas H01Q13/106; transmission line microstrip antennas H01Q13/206; manufacturing reflecting surfaces using insulating material for supporting the reflecting surface H01Q15/142
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/285 Planar dipole H01Q9/065 takes precedence; patch antenna H01Q9/0407

Abstract

The invention relates to a vehicle operating element (12) comprising a sensor (14) for non-invasive measurement of biomolecules in the blood of an operator of a vehicle operating element (12) by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, comprising at least one antenna (16) which includes at least a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer and an insulating layer being sandwiched between the two conductive layers. By means of the second conductive layer an excitation signal can be coupled out and an off-resonance excitation signal can be coupled into the antenna (16). Furthermore, a method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules and a method of operating a vehicle are described.

Claims

1-27. -27. (canceled)

28. A vehicle operating element (12) comprising at least one sensor (14) for non-invasive measurement of biomolecules in the blood of an operator of the vehicle operating element (12) by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, comprising at least one antenna (16) which includes at least a first conductive layer (52), a second conductive layer (36) as well as an insulating layer (40b, 48a) being sandwiched between the two conductive layers (36, 52), and wherein by means of the first conductive layer (52) and/or the second conductive layer (36) an excitation signal can be coupled out and an off-resonance excitation signal can be coupled into the antenna (16).

29. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein the first or second conductive layer (36, 52) is configured to have an edge-side structuring, especially to exhibit a polygonal edge.

30. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein the first conductive layer (52) and the second conductive layer (36) are arranged substantially in parallel to each other.

31. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein the second conductive layer (36) is formed to be substantially curved and extends, especially eccentrically, around the first conductive layer (52).

32. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein a third conductive layer (42) is provided which is electrically coupled to the first or second conductive layer (36, 52) and forms a connecting layer (53), especially wherein the conductive layers of the connecting layer (53) are spaced apart from each other such that the second or first conductive layer (36, 52) is sandwiched between the conductive layers of the connecting layer (53).

33. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein the electrically conductive layers (36, 42, 52) are configured to be flexible.

34. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein a cover layer (54) to be contacted by the operator is provided which is the outermost layer of the antenna (16) and is especially made from an electrically insulating material.

35. The vehicle operating element (12) according claim 28, wherein the antenna (16) is a dipolar antenna or a multi-polar antenna.

36. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein the antenna (16) comprises a dielectric insert (58), especially made from fine ceramics, for improving the sensitivity of the antenna (16) in the low frequency range.

37. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein a control and evaluating unit (22) for controlling the at least one antenna (16) as well as for evaluating the off-resonance excitation signals received by the at least one antenna (16) is provided.

38. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 37, wherein the control and evaluating unit (22) is configured so that it generates different excitation frequencies for the antenna (16).

39. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 37, wherein the control and evaluating unit (22) is configured so that it evaluates wave functions of off-resonance excitation signals and, on the basis of the off-resonance, establishes the presence of biomolecules.

40. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein the vehicle operating element (12) is part of a vehicle steering wheel (10), actuating lever or shift lever of the vehicle.

41. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28 wherein plural antennas (16) are arranged to be spread over the vehicle operating element (12).

42. The vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28, wherein there is provided a heating layer (56) which is especially adjacent to or integrated in an insulating layer (40a, 40b, 46a, 46b, 48a, 48b).

43. A method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules, especially lactate, alcohol and/or urea, in the blood of an operator of a vehicle by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy using a vehicle operating element (12) according to claim 28.

44. The method according to claim 43, wherein plural biomolecules having different excitation frequencies are measured.

45. The method according to claim 43, wherein the measurement of the biomolecules in the operator'"'"'s blood is carried out contact-less.

46. The method according to claim 43, wherein a control and evaluating unit (22) evaluates the complex impedance between the excitation signal and the off-resonance excitation signal for quantifying the concentration of the biomolecules in the operator'"'"'s blood.

47. The method according to claim 48, wherein the real part of the complex impedance for determining the sample volume and the imaginary part of the complex impedance is evaluated for quantifying the biomolecules so as to calculate the concentration of the biomolecules.

48. The method according to claim 46, wherein, on the basis of the complex impedance, the control and evaluating unit (22) determines the measuring surface and/or the measuring points and/or the number of operators underlying the measurement.

49. The method according to claim 43, wherein a control and evaluating unit (22) controls the at least one antenna (16) in a synchronized manner, wherein, if plural antennas (16) are provided, the control and evaluating unit (22) sequentially controls the antennas (16).

50. The method according to claim 43, wherein a memory (24) is provided in which the established values can be stored, wherein a control and evaluating unit (22) calculates, especially extrapolates, trends for establishing forecasts about the development of the values on the basis of the stored values.

54. A method of operating a vehicle, wherein a method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules according to claim 43 is carried out, wherein at least one vehicle system (28) is operated depending on the result of the method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules.

51. A measuring instrument for non-invasive measurement of biomolecules, especially lactate, alcohol and/or urea, in the blood of an operator of a vehicle by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, wherein the measuring instrument can be coupled to a control and evaluating unit (22) of the vehicle.

52. The measuring instrument according to claim 51, wherein the measuring instrument includes at least one antenna (16) comprising at least a first conductive layer (52), a second conductive layer (36) as well as an insulating layer (40b, 48a) being sandwiched between the two conductive layers (36, 52), and wherein by means of the first conductive layer (52) and/or the second conductive layer (36) an excitation signal can be coupled out and an off-resonance excitation signal can be coupled into the antenna (16).

53. A method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules, especially lactate, alcohol and/or urea, in the blood of an operator of a vehicle by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy using a measuring instrument according to claim 51.

55. A method of operating a vehicle, wherein a method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules according to claim 53 is carried out, wherein at least one vehicle system (28) is operated depending on the result of the method of non-invasive measurement of biomolecules.