Characteristic analysis of an air cell for active air mattress of prevention for pressure ulcer

• Published in: Advanced robotics Vol. 28; no. 7; pp. 497 - 504
• Main Authors: Takashima, Atsushi, Misaki, Akitsugu, Takasugi, Shin-ichiro, Yamamoto, Motoji
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis 03-04-2014
• Subjects: active air mattress; air cell; capacitive pressure sensor; pneumatic actuator; pressure ulcer
• ISSN: 0169-1864; 1568-5535
• DOI: 10.1080/01691864.2013.876937

Today, the number of elderly people in Japan is increasing, and the number of families who have members in need of nursing care is also increasing. A home care is promoted by Japanese government, but there is a big problem of a pressure ulcer. Accordingly, many types of antidecubitus aids have been developed. However, these aids are not enough for controlling the body pressure. To address this problem, we developed novel active air mattress, which has soft pressure sensor sheet and can control its air cells independently. In this paper, we analyze the characteristics of the air cell and the relationship between value of the sensors and states of the mattress. As a result, we demonstrate that the condition of the mattress can be estimated from sensor values.