1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic device for measuring a health index (also called as vital information) that is mainly a blood pressure or the like, and a control method of the electronic device under special circumstances.
2. Description of the Related Art
As an example of the electronic device for health index measurement of this type, a case of an electronic blood pressure meter will be explained. In recent years, it has become essential for the electronic blood pressure meter, being accompanied by increase of its performance, to be set to a dedicated operation mode for adjustment or inspection during a manufacturing process, an inspection process, or maintenance besides a normal operation. An example of the dedicated operation mode is a pressure display mode (a test mode to conduct the pressure display only) that is used when conducting a pressure inspection.
By the way, switching from a normal pressure measurement mode to a test mode for example should be easily set during a manufacturing process, an inspection process, or maintenance, but then it is needed not to be easily set to such a mode during a normal using state (a state that it is used in a normal blood pressure measurement mode). In other words, it is needed that an accidental switch of setting should not occur during normal use.
Consequently, the test mode is conventionally configured to start up, for example, when the following operations are carried out, which are normally impossible to happen.
(1) Long Pressing of a Particular Operating Switch Method:
In this method, as shown in FIG. 6, the test mode starts up when a power switch is pressed for a predetermined time T or longer.
(2) Special Operation of an Operating Switch Method:
In this method, as shown in FIG. 7, the test mode starts up when a particular operating switch A is operated for the predetermined number of times (“n” times) within a predetermined time T.
(3) Simultaneous Operation of Plural Operating Switches Method:
In this method, as shown in FIG. 8, the test mode starts up when operating switches A and B are simultaneously operated.
(4) Operation in a Particular Operating State Method:
In this method, as shown in FIG. 9, the test mode starts up when its power is turned ON in a state that an operating switch A is turned ON.
(5) Combination of the Above Method:
In this method, as shown in FIG. 10, the test mode starts up when its power is turned ON in a state that operating switches A and B are simultaneously turned ON and being kept on for a predetermined time T or longer.
However, all of these conventionally adopted methods (1) to (5) are focused on preventing a misoperation in a general using state, so that a demand for “easy switching” during a manufacturing process, an inspection process, or maintenance has been sacrificed.
Meanwhile, on many of blood pressure meters in recent years, the number of operating switches is reduced to minimum for an easiness of operation or cost reduction. For example, there is a model that uses one switch both as a power ON/OFF switch and a measurement start/stop switch. In a case of such model, it is practically impossible to adopt the above-described method (3) that is a combinatorial operation of plural operating switches. Therefore, for switching to the test mode, this model has no choice but to adopt the method (1) of long pressing operation or the method (4) of synchronous operation in a particular timing. However, while there is no problem for switching to one test mode, it is necessary to have a highly complicated operation for switching to other plural operation modes, or it has to abandon the switching itself to such plural operation modes. Specifically, in many cases, it is not possible to realize, due to the restriction on the number of switches, an attempt of providing the plural operation modes other than a normal operation mode, or a need of plural separate operations in an operation mode other than the normal operation mode.
In addition, the switching operation of operation modes needs to be performed on each one of manufactured products separately, so that, for example, when the long pressing of an operating switch method (1) is adopted, with the test mode being set to start up by pressing a power switch for two seconds, the switching operation of the operation mode on 50 of blood pressure meters takes 2 seconds×50=100 seconds at the minimum. Therefore, it has been a contributing factor to decrease production efficiency in a case of a pressure inspection process or the like for inspecting plural manufactured products all at once.
Consequently, to solve these disadvantages, such a method is devised that a connection terminal for testing is provided on the body of a blood pressure meter, and a dedicated device is externally connected to this terminal. However, while this method allows many testing operations to be easily performed externally, it includes a demerit of causing a complication of the structure and a cost increase since the dedicated connection terminal is newly provided on the body of the blood pressure meter.
In addition, besides these problems about the switching of the operation mode, there have been other problems as follows.
Conventionally, when an individual function setting is respectively performed on separate devices, function selection circuits are provided on electronic circuits of these devices, and the function setting is performed by switching switches or jumper lines. Otherwise, the individual function setting is carried out by writing a program into a nonvolatile memory. However, in many cases, these methods have a restriction that they can only be implemented in limited processes in a manufacturing stage and of course not after completion of the product.
Also, in recent years, as a technique for recording individual information in separate devices (for example, a serial number, information of a place of destination, and so forth), this information is recorded as electrical information in a nonvolatile memory or the like, and the opportunity of using this information for automation of maintenance or the like is increasing. However, when such individual information is to be recorded, it is impossible to write into a nonvolatile memory at a finishing stage of a product without connecting a dedicated communication circuit externally, which results in causing decrease in production efficiency. In addition, it is needless to mention that addition of a dedicated communication port causes complication of the structure and a cost increase.
As described above, it is conventionally required a lot of time and labor for switching the setting to an operation mode other than the normal mode such as the test mode for example, which causes a problem of low production efficiency when inspecting a large number of devices all at once. In addition, the restriction in inputting or changing individual information or the like also causes the problem of low production efficiency.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds