Living body measurement apparatus with waveguide light source and light extracting pattern

• US 8,116,851 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2007
• Issued: 02/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Cho, Jae-Geol, Kim, Kyoung-Youm, Hwang, In-Duk, Park, Kun-Kook
• Primary Examiner(s): Casler, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): SIRIPURAPU, RAJEEV P
• Application Number:
  US11/787,964
• Publication Number:
  US 20080039729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,763 Days
• Field of Search: 600/473, 600/476, 600/310, 600/475, 600/477, 382/124, 382/115, 250/341.8
• US Class Current: 600/473
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0059 using light, e.g. diagnosis by transillumination, diascopy, fluorescence A61B5/0093, A61B5/1455, A61B5/02416 and A61B5/0261 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02416 using photoplethysmograph signals, e.g. generated by infrared radiation A61B5/14552 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1455 using optical sensors, e.g. spectral photometrical oximeters
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/441 Skin evaluation, e.g. for skin disorder diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4869 Determining body composition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4872 Body fat

Abstract

Disclosed is a living body measurement apparatus including: a first light source placed on the surface of the skin in a living body and radiating a first light in a visible light wavelength range onto the surface of the skin; a second light source placed on the surface of the skin and radiating a second light in a near-infrared wavelength range onto the surface of the skin; an optical detector placed on the surface of the skin at a predetermined distance from the first and second light sources to detect, as an electric signal, first or second detection light penetrating up through the skin and inputted thereto among the radiated first or second light; and a controller for sequentially driving the first and second light sources.

Claims

1. A measurement apparatus for measuring a particular body composition of a living body that determines skin color and skin thickness to output a measurement of the particular body composition, said apparatus comprising:

a first light source being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with a first position of a skin surface of a living body and being configured to radiate a first light having a visible light wavelength range onto the skin surface;

a second light source being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with a second position of the skin surface and being configured to radiate a second light in a near-infrared wavelength range onto the skin surface;

an optical detector being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with the skin surface at a predetermined distance from the first and second light sources and being configured to detect the first and second lights being output from the skin and convert the detected first and second lights into electric signals; and

a controller configured for sequentially driving the first and second light sources and for determining skin color and skin thickness to output the particular composition of the living body based on a comparison of intensity values of lights detected and output by the optical detector with predetermined values in storage for a particular determined skin color and skin thickness;

a waveguide being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with the skin, between the optical detector and the first and second light sources, the waveguide being configured to allow the first or second light inputted from one of the first and second light sources to travel around the optical detector with total reflection; and

at least one light extracting pattern being configured to extract the first or second light traveling with total internal reflection from the waveguide by scattering or reflecting the first or second light and being configured to radiate the first or second light onto the surface of the skin.

2. The measurement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a memory being configured to store a first table that maps intensities of the detected first and second lights and according to a particular thickness and color of the skin for plurality of thicknesses and colors, and wherein said controller is configured to determine the particular thickness and the color of the skin corresponding to the mapped intensities of the detected first and second lights in the first table.

3. The living body measurement apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a third light source being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with a surface of the skin at third position located farther away from the optical detector than the first and second light sources and being configured to radiate a third light onto the surface of the skin, wherein said optical detector is configured to detect the third light being output from the skin and converting the detected third light output from the skin into an electric signal, and wherein said controller is configured to sequentially drive the first, second, and third light sources.

4. The measurement apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said memory is configured to store a second table mapping a thickness of subcutaneous fat and an intensity of the detected third light, according to the thickness and color of the skin, and wherein said controller is configured to determine the thickness of the subcutaneous fat corresponding to the intensity of the detected third light, based on a comparison with the second table.

5. The measurement apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said optical detector comprises a first optical detector, and further comprising a second optical detector being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with a surface of the skin at a location further away from the first and second light sources than the first optical detector, the second optical detector being configured to detect a third light output from the skin and convert the detected third light into an electric signal for output to the controller.

6. The measurement apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said memory being configured to store a second table mapping the thickness of a subcutaneous fat and an intensity of the detected third light, according to the determined thickness and color of the skin, and wherein said controller is configured to determine the thickness of the subcutaneous fat corresponding to the intensity of the detected third light based values in the second table.

7. The measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first light has a wavelength of substantially 660 nm.

8. The measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said second light has a wavelength of 940 nm.

13. The measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said waveguide has a circular ring shape, a bottom surface contacting the skin, and a top surface at the opposite side of the bottom surface, said at least light extracting pattern being formed on the top surface of the waveguide.

14. The measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first light source and said second light source are provided by a single source that outputs light with different wavelengths simultaneously or which outputs light wavelengths of different wavelengths sequentially.

15. The measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said waveguide has an endless ring shape, a bottom surface contacting the skin, and a top surface at the opposite side of the bottom surface, said at least light extracting pattern being formed on the top surface or the bottom surface of the waveguide.

9. A measurement apparatus comprising:

a first light source being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with a first position of a skin in a living body and being configured to radiate a first light having a first visible wavelength onto the surface of the skin;

a second light source being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with a second position of the skin and being configured to radiate a second light having a second wavelength of near-infrared light that is different from the first wavelength onto the surface of the skin;

a third light source being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with the skin at a location further away from an optical detector than the first and second light sources and being configured to radiate a third light onto the surface of the skin;

an optical detector configured to detect each of the first light, second light, and third light output from the skin; and

convert said each of the detected first light, detected second light, and detected third light into electric signals;

a controller configured to sequentially drive the first, second and third light sources and determine skin color and skin thickness to output a particular composition of a living body based on a comparison of intensity values of lights detected and output by the optical detector with predetermined values in storage for a particular determined skin color and skin thickness;

a waveguide being arrangeable in use when substantially in contact with the skin between the first and second light sources and the third light source and being configured to allow the third light inputted from the third light source to travel around the optical detector with total internal reflection; and

at least one light extracting pattern being configured to extract the third light traveling with total internal reflection from the waveguide by scattering or reflecting the third light and being configured to radiate the third light onto the surface of the skin.

10. The measurement apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising a memory configured to store a first table mapping intensities of the detected first and second lights and a thickness of the skin, and mapping intensities of the detected first and second lights and a color of the skin, and wherein said controller is configured for determining the thickness and color of the skin corresponding to the intensities of the detected first and second lights, based on the first table.

11. The measurement apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said memory is being configured to store a second table mapping a thickness of subcutaneous fat and an intensity of the detected third light, according to the thickness and color of the skin, and wherein said controller is being configured to determine the thickness of the subcutaneous fat corresponding to the intensity of the detected third light, based on the second table.

12. The measurement apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said waveguide has a circular ring shape, a bottom surface contacting the skin, and a top surface at the opposite side of the bottom surface, said light extracting pattern being formed on the top surface of the waveguide.

16. The measurement apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said waveguide has an endless ring shape, a bottom surface contacting the skin, and a top surface at the opposite side of the bottom surface, said at least light extracting pattern being formed on the top surface or the bottom surface of the waveguide.