Patent Abstract:
A diaper having wetness detectors, a system thereof and a wetness detecting method are adapted to detect the excreting status of an animal. The diaper includes a first set of contacts and a second set of contacts which are constituted by conductive material. The first set of contacts and the second set of contacts are respectively disposed on proximal and distal area of the diaper corresponding to the excretory organ of the animal. A detecting circuit detects the electrical property of the first set of contacts and the second set of contacts and then determines the excretion status of the animal to be a reference for a caregiver.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 100125228 filed in Taiwan, R.O.C. on Jul. 15, 2011, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Technical Field 
         [0003]    The disclosure relates to a diaper having wetness detectors, a system thereof and a wetness detecting method. 
         [0004]    2. Related Art 
         [0005]    The technology of disposing a detection device in a diaper to acquire information about whether the diaper should be changed has already been developed for years. Such detection devices may be electrode-lead type (applicable from the characteristic of electrical conductivity), coil type or chemical type. The electrode lead type was disclosed in ROC Utility Model Patent No. 422088, entitled “Paper diaper with a urination or excretion annunciator device”. In this patent, two conductive flat metal foils may be sandwiched between a waterproof layer and an absorption body of the paper diaper to serve as sensors. The outside parts of the two metal foils extend away from the front curvy side-edge of the paper diaper to connect to a controller. The controller is triggered as the two metal foils are conducted by the water absorbed by the absorption body when the paper diaper gets wet due to urination or excretion. Therefore, the efficacies such as easy fabrication, automatic mass production and cost down are achieved, and the problems of health safety and environmental protection are avoided. 
         [0006]    The electrode lead type was also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,700,821, entitled “Method and device for determining the need to replace an absorbent article”. The coil type was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,141,715, entitled “System and method for assessing fluid distribution in a urine detection network”. The chemical type was disclosed in US Publication, Patent Application No. 20090157023, entitled “Urine volume hydration test”. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    The disclosure is a diaper having wetness detectors, a system thereof and a diaper wetness detecting method adapted to detect an excretion status of an animal. 
         [0008]    According to an embodiment, a diaper having wetness detectors comprises an inner layer, an absorption layer, a detection layer and an outer layer. The inner layer is disposed at an excretory organ of an animal. The detection layer and the absorption layer are sandwiched between the inner layer and the outer layer. The detection layer comprises conductive wires. The conductive wires form a first set of contacts and a second set of contacts. A distance between the first set of contacts and the excretory organ is smaller than another distance between the second set of contacts and the excretory organ. 
         [0009]    According to an embodiment, a diaper wetness detecting system comprises a diaper, detection circuit and management host. The diaper comprises an inner layer, an absorption layer, a detection layer and an outer layer. The inner layer is disposed at an excretory organ of an animal. The detection layer and the absorption layer are sandwiched between the inner layer and the outer layer. The detection layer comprises conductive wires. The conductive wires form a first set of contacts and a second set of contacts. A distance between the first set of contacts and the excretory organ is smaller than another distance between the second set of contacts and the excretory organ. The detection circuit is electrically connected to the conductive wires and outputs a contact signal when the electrical property of the first set of contacts or the second set of contacts exceeds a threshold value. The management host displays an excretion status according to the contact signal. 
         [0010]    According to an embodiment, a diaper wetness semi-quantitative detecting method comprises: disposing a diaper at an excretory organ of an animal, in which the diaper comprises a first set of contacts and a second set of contacts, a distance between the first set of contacts and the excretory organ is smaller than another distance between the second set of contacts and the excretory organ; sensing electrical properties of the sets of contacts and outputting a contact signal; searching in a lookup table for an excretion status corresponding to the contact signal according to the contact signal; and outputting the excretion status. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The disclosure will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below for illustration only, and thus are not limitation of the disclosure, and wherein: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a schematic perspective view of a diaper according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a schematic structural plan view of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a schematic structural view of a partial section of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is a schematic circuit block diagram of a detection circuit of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0016]      FIG. 5A  is a schematic structural plan view of a diaper according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure; 
           [0017]      FIG. 5B  is a schematic structural plan view of a diaper according to a third embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0018]      FIG. 6A  is a schematic structural plan view of a diaper according to a fourth embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0019]      FIG. 6B  is a schematic circuit block diagram of a detection circuit of the diaper according to the fourth embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0020]      FIG. 6C  is a schematic structural view of a first connector of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0021]      FIG. 7  is a schematic view of a diaper wetness management system according to the disclosure; 
           [0022]      FIG. 8A  and  FIG. 8B  are schematic views of experimental results of the diaper according to the second embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0023]      FIG. 8C  is a schematic view of an experimental result of the diaper according to the fourth embodiment of the disclosure; 
           [0024]      FIG. 9  is a schematic enlarged plan view of a detection layer of a diaper according to the disclosure; 
           [0025]      FIG. 10  is a schematic flow chart of a diaper wetness detecting method according to the disclosure; and 
           [0026]      FIG. 11  is a schematic flow chart of an operation of a diaper wetness detecting system according to the disclosure. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0027]    The detailed features and advantages of the disclosure are described below in great detail through the following embodiments, the content of the detailed description is sufficient for those skilled in the art to understand the technical content of the disclosure and to implement the disclosure there accordingly. Based upon the content of the specification, the claims, and the drawings, those skilled in the art can easily understand the relevant objectives and advantages of the disclosure. 
         [0028]    First,  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  are respectively a schematic perspective view and a schematic structural plan view of a diaper according to a first embodiment of the disclosure. The diaper having a wetness detector  10  is applicable to sensing an excretion status of an animal. The animal may be a human, a cat, a dog and a livestock, but is not limited to the above-mentioned animals. The sensing of the excretion status may be sensing urine or sensing excrement, but is not limited to the above-mentioned excretion. The excretion status refers to, but is not limited to, “whether excretion occurs” or “an excretion amount”. Although a human is taken as an example for illustration in the following embodiments, the disclosure is not limited thereto. 
         [0029]      FIG. 3  is a schematic structural view of a partial section of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the disclosure. A diaper  10  comprises an inner layer (also referred to as a diaper inner layer)  20 , an absorption layer  30 , a detection layer  40 , and an outer layer (also referred to as a diaper outer layer)  50 . 
         [0030]    The inner layer  20  is disposed at an excretory organ of an animal. The excretory organ may be the urethra or the anus of an animal. The inner layer  20  being disposed at the excretory organ of the animal may be the inner layer  20  covering, surrounding, circling or wrapping the urethral orifice or anus. Taking a human body as an example, the inner layer  20  may be a layer of the diaper  10  which is in contact with the human body. Usually, the area of the inner layer  20  is greater than the size of an opening of the urethral orifice or anus, or even the inner layer  20  may at the same time wraps the urethral orifice, anus and a part of the buttocks; however, the disclosure is not limited thereto. Referring to  FIG. 2 , the indication  92  in  FIG. 2  represents a position corresponding to a urethral orifice of the human body, and the indication  94  represents a position corresponding to an anus of the human body. In this embodiment, the illustration is given by taking the example of sensing an excretion status of urine excreted from a urethral orifice (excretory organ), and the urethral orifice (excretory organ) is represented by the indication  92  for ease of illustration. 
         [0031]    The absorption layer  30  is also referred to as a water absorption layer, which is sandwiched between the inner layer  20  and the outer layer  50  for absorbing a body fluid (urine) discharged by an animal (human body). 
         [0032]    The detection layer  40  is also sandwiched between the inner layer  20  and the outer layer  50 . According to the embodiment in  FIG. 3 , the detection layer  40  is sandwiched between the absorption layer  30  and the outer layer  50 . However, the disclosure is not limited thereto, and the detection layer  40  may be sandwiched between the inner layer  20  and the absorption layer  30 . 
         [0033]    The detection layer  40  comprises a number of conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  (for the ease of illustration, the conductive wires are generally numbered as  44 ). The conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  form a first set of contacts  45   a  and a second set of contacts  45   b . A distance between the first set of contacts  45   a  and the urethral orifice (excretory organ)  92  is smaller than another distance between the second set of contacts  45   b  and the urethral orifice  92 . In other words, the first set of contacts  45   a  is disposed at a proximal end and the second set of contacts  45   b  is disposed at a distal end. The proximal end here refers to a position closer to the urethral orifice  92 . The distal end refers to a position further away from the urethral orifice  92  or is near another excretory organ (such as an anus), for example, the distal end is at the indication  94  or around the indication  94 . 
         [0034]    It could be known that when a user urinates, the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a  changes. The electrical property may be a resistance value or a voltage value, but is not limited in the above-mentioned electrical property. That is to say, before the user urinates, the first set of contacts  45   a  is in a dry state and no conductor exists. After the user urinates, the absorption layer  30  absorbs the urine and a part of urine permeates among the first set of contacts  45   a  and, then, the first set of contacts  45   a  is in a partially conductive state. Therefore, the resistance value before urination is greater than the resistance value after urination. Next, the amount of urinary output also affects the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a . For example, after the amount of the urinary output increases, the amount of urine between the first set of contacts  45   a  also increases accordingly, so the resistance value between the first set of contacts  45   a  decreases as the amount of urine increases. When the amount of urine keeps increasing but the resistance value of the first set of contacts  45   a  no longer decreases (the resistance value at this time may be referred to as a saturation value), it may be estimated that the urine of the water absorption layer  30  close to the proximal end already reaches a saturated state. Therefore, the amount of the urine urinated by the user (excretion status) may be estimated by the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a.    
         [0035]    Moreover, the amount of the urinary output also affects the amount of the urine permeated among the second set of contacts  45   b . That is, if the amount of the urine is smaller, no urine may exist among the second set of contacts  45   b , so that the resistance value of the second set of contacts  45   b  is still at initial state. If the amount of urine is larger, the resistance value of the second set of contacts  45   b  decreases. When the resistance value of the second set of contacts  45   b  reaches the saturation value, the front portion and the rear portion of the diaper may be regarded as being soaked and, therefore, it is needed to replace the diaper. 
         [0036]    As can be seen from the above illustration, the current diaper wetness (the amount of the discharged body fluid) of the user may be estimated according to the electrical properties of the first set of contacts  45   a  and the second set of contacts  45   b , and in subsequent embodiments, a current posture of the user may also be known according to such electrical properties. 
         [0037]    Next, refer to  FIG. 3  again. The inner layer  20  comprises a permeable layer  22 , a first textile structure layer  24  and a urine distribution layer  26 . The outer layer  50  comprises a second textile structure layer  52  and a water isolation layer  54  in order from inside to outside. The material of the permeable layer  22  may be hydrophilic nonwoven fabric for permeation of body fluid, but is not limited to the above-mentioned material. The material of the first textile structure layer  24  and the second textile structure layer  52  may be porous nonwoven fabric, but is not limited to the above-mentioned material. The material of the urine distribution layer  26  may be hydrophilic nonwoven fabric for spreading (horizontal diffusion) the body fluid instead of gathering at a single position, but is not limited to the above-mentioned material. The material of the water isolation layer  54  may be waterproof nonwoven fabric or plastic (polyvinyl chloride, PVC), but is not limited to the above-mentioned material. 
         [0038]    The detection layer  40  comprises a first insulation layer  42  and a second insulation layer  46 . The conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  are sandwiched between the first insulation layer  42  and the second insulation layer  46 , and the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b  located at the first set of contacts  45   a  and the second set of contacts  45   b  leave and pierce the first insulation layer  42  to return to a position between the first insulation layers  42  and second insulation layers  46  (that is, the weave is the simple plan knit). In other words, the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b  located at the first set of contacts  45   a  and the second set of contacts  45   b  are exposed at the first insulation layer  42 . In this embodiment, a portion of each conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b  leaves the first insulation layer  42 , and a portion of each conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b  pierces the first insulation layer  42 . However, the disclosure is not limited thereto, and the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b  may also leave and enter the second insulation layer  46  (that is, exposed at the second insulation layer  46 ). 
         [0039]    Next, the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  may be blending stainless steel conductive wires (such as conductive metal threads, conductive metal foils, conductive metal strips, gold, silver, copper, tin or alloys thereof). In addition to that the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  may have conductivity at two ends, the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  may not be wrapped with insulation material. In this embodiment, the above-mentioned first set of contacts  45   a  or the second set of contacts  45   b  may be not formed of any endpoints of the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d . In addition, the contacts may be located at the position where is the smallest distance between two adjacent conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d.    
         [0040]    The size of the detection layer  40  may be the same as that of the inner layer  20  or the outer layer  50 . In some embodiments, the size of the detection layer  40  may be smaller than that of the inner layer  20  and the outer layer  50 . For example, as shown in  FIG. 1  or  FIG. 2 , the detection layer  40  is only near the excretory organ, and covers the positions near the urethral orifice and the anus. 
         [0041]      FIG. 4  is a schematic circuit block diagram of a detection circuit of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the diaper  10  may further comprise a detection circuit  61 . The detection circuit  61  is electrically connected to the conductive wires  44   a  and  44   b ,  44   c  and  44   d  and the detection circuit  61  outputs a contact signal when the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a  or the second set of contacts  45   b  exceeds a threshold value. The threshold value may be the saturation value but is not limited to the above-mentioned value. The output contact signal may be any electric signal, sound, vibration or light. By taking the light as an example, the detection circuit  61  drives a light element to emit a ray as the contact signal when the electrical property exceeds the threshold value. The light element may be a light emitting diode, but is not limited to the above-mentioned element. The detection circuit  61  may be disposed at the diaper  10 . In some embodiments, and the detection circuit  61  may be a separation part from the diaper  10 . 
         [0042]    The detection circuit comprises a power source  66 , a first resistor R 1 , a second resistor R 2 , a first connector  60 , a second connector  62  and a control circuit  64 . The first resistor R 1  and first set of contacts  45   a  are connected in series and then are electrically connected to the power source  66 . The second resistor R 2  and the second set of contacts  45   b  are connected in series and then are electrically connected to the power source  66 . The control circuit  64  is electrically connected to a serial connection point (that is, as shown by the number  44   a ) of the first resistor R 1  and the first set of contacts  45   a  and another serial connection point (that is, as shown by the number  44   c ) of the second resistor R 2  and the second set of contacts  45   b  by the first connector  60  and the second connector  62 , and outputs a contact signal according to the electrical properties of the two serial connection points. 
         [0043]    As can be seen from  FIG. 4 , the resistance values of the first set of contacts  45   a  and the second set of contacts  45   b  change according to the degree of wetness (with different amount of the body fluid). Therefore, it may be regarded as that variable resistor VR 1  and variable resistor VR 2  exist between the first set of contacts  45   a  and the second set of contacts  45   b . As the resistance values of the variable resistors VR 1  and VR 2  change, the divided voltages of the two serial connection points change accordingly. The control circuit  64  may then obtain the wetness degree of the diaper  10  based on the divided voltages of the two serial connection points. 
         [0044]    Moreover,  FIG. 5A  is a schematic structural plan view of a diaper according to a second embodiment of the disclosure. Compared with the diaper  10  in the first embodiment, the diaper  10   a  further comprises a third set of contacts  45   c  and a fourth set of contacts  45   d . The third set of contacts  45   c  and the fourth set of contacts  45   d  are formed of conductive wires  44   e ,  44   f ,  44   g  and  44   h . The third set of contacts  45   c  and the fourth set of contacts  45   d  are located at two sides of a connecting line extending from the first set of contacts  45   a  to the second set of contacts  45   b  (that is, the left side and the right side in  FIG. 5A ). The distances between the third set of contacts  45   c  and the fourth set of contacts  45   d  across the connecting line between the first set of contacts  45   a  and the second set of contacts  45   b  may change based on the design demands and requirements. 
         [0045]    As shown in  FIG. 5A , when body fluid enters the first set of contacts  45   a , and a user is in a state of lying on back, the urine flows towards the second set of contacts  45   b  due to the gravity thereof. At this time, the resistance values of the third set of contacts  45   c  and the fourth set of contacts  45   d  might not change or may decrease slightly. Then the signal of  45   b  decreases last. When the user lies on left side (that is, presses the bed with the left shoulder), the urine enters the first set of contacts  45   a . The time point that the resistance of the third set of contacts  45   c  starts to drop is earlier than the another time point that the resistance values of the second set of contacts  45   b . The voltage of the fourth set of contacts  45   d  drops last. Therefore, according to the time points of changes in the electrical properties or the degrees of the electrical property values (for example, the resistance value or the voltage value) change at the different sets of contacts, the degree of wetness in the diaper and the current posture of the user may be obtained. 
         [0046]    In addition, if the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a  does not reach the saturation value but the electrical property of the second set of contacts  45   b  already changes or the change in electrical property of the second set of contacts  45   b  is greater than that of the first set of contacts  45   a , it may be that the user has excreted watery stool (diarrhea). 
         [0047]    As can be seen from the above content, there are many cases of urination or defecation by the user, the electrical property corresponding to each state is slightly different. The detection circuit  61  may obtain different electrical property values or the time points when the electrical property values change of all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  by tests and experiments to estimate the current excretion status of the diaper (a diaper wetness degree, that is so-called semi-quantitative analysis) instead of only acquiring the single result whether the diaper needs to be changed. 
         [0048]      FIG. 5B  is a schematic structural plan view of the diaper according to a third embodiment of the disclosure. It can be seen from  FIG. 5B  that the conductive wires  44   i  and  44   j  further form a fifth set of contacts  45   e . As the fifth set of contacts  45   e  is disposed, the detection circuit  61  may obtain more information about the wetness degree of the diaper to provide more accurate estimation result. 
         [0049]    Next,  FIG. 6A  is a schematic structural plan view of a diaper according to a fourth embodiment of the disclosure. It may be seen from  FIG. 6A  that the manner of disposing the conductive wires  44  in the diaper  10   c  is different from those in the first, second and third embodiments. In this embodiment, the conductive wires  44  comprise a number of contact wires  440 ,  441 ,  442  and  443  and a number of guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448 . Each of the contact wires  440 ,  441 ,  442  and  443  has two endpoints. By taking the contact wire  440  as an example, the two endpoints are respectively  440   a  and  440   b . The contact wire  441  has two endpoints  441   a  and  441   b . The adjacent two of the endpoints  440   a ,  440   b ,  441   a  and  441   b  form one of the sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d . For example, the adjacent endpoints  440   a  and  441   a  form the first set of contacts  45   a , and so on. A distance between the adjacent endpoints  440   a  and  441   a  may be, but is not limited to, 0.1 cm to 1 cm. The guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  are respectively electrically connected to the contact wires  440 ,  441 ,  442  and  443  one to one. The guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  are then connected to the first connector  60  to be electrically connected to the detection circuit  61 . 
         [0050]      FIG. 6B  is a schematic circuit block diagram of a detection circuit of the diaper according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. As can be seen form  FIG. 6B , the detection circuit  61   a  is electrically connected to guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  by the second connector  62 . The detection circuit  61   a  comprises a control circuit  64 , a switch element  65 , a voltage input end  67   a , a ground end  67   b  and a current measurement circuit  63 . The voltage input end  67   a  provides a voltage source. The current measurement circuit  63  is used to measure a current value. The current measurement circuit  63  may be a current meter or a similar circuit. The switch element  65  may be a four-way switch. The guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  are electrically connected to the switch element  65  to be selectively electrically connected to the voltage input end  67   a , the current measurement circuit  63  and the ground end  67   b.    
         [0051]    When the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a  needs to be measured, the control circuit  64  controls the switch element  65  to make the guide wire  446  electrically connected to the voltage input end  67   a , make the guide wire  447  electrically connected to the current measurement circuit  63 , and make the guide wires  445  and  448  are electrically connected to the ground end  67   b . In such a manner, the voltage output by the voltage input end  67   a  flows to the current measurement circuit  63  through the first set of contacts  45   a . At this time, after the conversion of the current measured by the current measurement circuit  63  and the voltage inputted by the voltage input end  67   a  (the voltage is divided by the current), the resistance (electrical property) of the first set of endpoints  45   a  is obtained. In other words, the control circuit  64  is used to control the switch element  65  to electrically connect one of the guide wires, which is the guide wire  446 , to the voltage input end  67   a ; electrically connect another one of the guide wires, which is the guide wire  447 , to the current measurement circuit  63 , and electrically connect the other guide wires  445  and  448  to the ground end  67   b.    
         [0052]    Next, when the electrical property of the fourth set of contacts  45   d  needs to be measured, the control circuit  64  controls the switch element  65  to electrically connect the guide wire  447  to the voltage input end  67   a ; electrically connect the guide wire  448  to the current measurement circuit  63 , and electrically connect the guide wires  445  and  446  to the ground end, and so on. 
         [0053]    As can be seen from the fourth embodiment, each adjacent two of the contact wires  440 ,  441 ,  442  and  443  may form a set of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  or  45   d . Through the combination with the guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448 , the detection circuit  61  only needs to measure the electrical property between the guide wires  446  and  447  to obtain the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a , measure the electrical property between the guide wires  445  and  448  to acquire the electrical property of the second set of contacts  45   b , and so on. Therefore, the first connector  60  may only use four contacts to obtain the electrical properties of four sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d . Compared with the second embodiment, the number of contacts of the first connector  60  in the fourth embodiment may be reduced by half (from 8 to 4). Similarly, if an analog-to-digital conversion element or a controller is disposed on the detection circuit  61 , the number of elements or controller contacts may also be reduced by at least half. By taking the circuit in  FIG. 6B  as an example, the number of contacts of the controller may be reduced by half, and only one current measurement circuit  63  is needed. 
         [0054]      FIG. 6C  is a schematic structural view of a connector of the diaper according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. As can be seen from  FIG. 6C , the first connector  60  comprises conductive rings  69   a  and  69   b  and conductive contacts  68   a ,  68   b . The guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  are respectively wound on the conductive rings  69   a  and  69   b . The winding manner is not limited to knotting, hooking or rolling manner, as long as the objective of electrical connection is achieved. In addition, welding material may also be added at the windings to ensure the stability of the electrical connection thereof. 
         [0055]    Furthermore, the conductive contacts  68   a  and  68   b  may be, but are not limited to, metal conductive foils (or referred to as gold fingers). The conductive rings  69   a  and  69   b  are electrically connected to the conductive contacts  68   a  and  68   b  in one-to-one manner, so the guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  are electrically connected to the conductive contacts  68   a  and  68   b . When the first connector  60  is connected to the second connector  62 , the guide wires  445 ,  446 ,  447  and  448  are guided to the detection circuit  61   a.    
         [0056]    Moreover,  FIG. 7  is a schematic view of a diaper wetness management system according to the disclosure. The diaper wetness management system  70  is applicable to sensing an excretion status of an animal and comprises a diaper  10 , a detection circuit  61  and a management host  72 . The detection circuit  61  may output a contact signal according to the electrical property of a first set of contacts  45   a  and/or a second set of contacts  45   b  (as shown in  FIG. 2 ). The management host  72  displays an excretion status according to the contact signal. The management host  72  may be a notebook computer, a desktop computer, a handheld electronic device (for example, a mobile phone or a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)) or a server, but is not limited to the above-mentioned management hosts. The diaper  10  may also be the diaper  10   a ,  10   b  or  10   c  in the second embodiment, third embodiment or fourth embodiment. By taking the second embodiment as an example, the management host  72  may collect the electrical properties of the first, second, third and fourth sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  from the diaper  10 , and obtain a current diaper wetness status (or excretion status) of the diaper  10  by analysis or table lookup instead of only providing the information of whether the diaper needs to be changed. 
         [0057]    As can be seen from the above illustration, the contact signal transmitted to the management host  72  may be the electrical property of a single set of contact or may also be the electrical properties of all sets of contacts. Of course, the contact signal may also comprise a time message to determine or estimate a current diaper wetness status based on the events in sequence and time differences of the events (for example, taking the changes of the electrical properties as such events). 
         [0058]    The coupling between the management host  72  and the detection circuit  61  may be direct electrical connection or wireless connection (as shown by dotted lines in  FIG. 7 ). If the detection circuit  61  and the management host  72  are connected in a wireless manner, the detection circuit  61  may comprise a first wireless transceiver  610  and the management host  72  may comprise a second wireless transceiver  720 . The above-mentioned contact signal may be transmitted to the management host  72  through the first wireless transceiver  610  and the second wireless transceiver  720 . In addition, the first wireless transceiver  610  and the second wireless transceiver  720  may also be coupled with a router  74 . 
         [0059]    Next, the diaper wetness management system  70  may further comprise a scanner  76  (for example, but not limited to a barcode reader). A medical worker (or an employee) may scan a recognition data (for example, a patient number or a patient ID number) of a human (for example, a patient) wearing the diaper  10  by using the scanner  76 . Then the diaper wetness management system  70  combines the recognition data and the serial number of the diaper  10  into a recognition signal and transmits the recognition signal to the management host  72 . The management host  72  may obtain the related information (for example, the electrical property of each set of contacts) of the current diaper  10  by querying the detection device  61  periodically. In addition, the detection device  61  may also actively transmit the recognition signal to the management host  72  when a certain event happens (such as when the electrical property of each set of contacts changes), then the management host  72  analyzes and displays the recognition signal. 
         [0060]    The management host  72  may comprise a health history database. The health history database consists of basic information, such as health history, weight, height and age. Upon receiving the recognition signal, the management host  72  may search for the basic data, health history and anamnesis of the patient in the database according to the received recognition signal. The health history and the anamnesis include, for example, the age, body weight, examination results, medication administration record, dietary water amount and defecation and urination record of the patient, but are not limited to the above-mentioned records. The operation of the management host  72  and the health history database is illustrated below. 
         [0061]    In addition, the diaper  10  may further comprise an input element  612 . When being actuated, the input element  612  outputs an actuation signal. Then the management host  72  receives the actuation signal to output an alarm signal. The input element  612  may be, but is not limited to, a button. The button may be pressed by a caregiver, a nurse or a patient during defecation of the patient. When being pressed (actuated), the input element  612  outputs the actuation signal. Upon receiving the actuation signal, the management host  72  outputs an alarm signal immediately. The alarm signal may be an alarm displayed on a screen that the diaper needs to be changed, or a sound of changing the diaper emitted by a buzzer. 
         [0062]    Next,  FIG. 8A  and  FIG. 8B  are schematic views of experimental results of the diaper according to the second embodiment of the disclosure. In this experiment, the diaper  10   b  in the second embodiment is adopted. In the experiment in  FIG. 8A , a state that a patient lying on back (with the face up) urinates is simulated. In  FIG. 8B , the experiment that the patient lies on the right side (that is, the right shoulder is in contact with the bed) and discharges urine (represented by the arrows from top to bottom in  FIG. 8A ) about 50 milliliter (cc) every three minutes is made. The horizontal axis in  FIG. 8A  and  FIG. 8B  represent the practical total urine discharge amount (that is, the amount absorbed by the diaper  10 ) and the vertical axis in  FIG. 8A  and  FIG. 8B  represent the normalized relative electrical property (for example, the voltage). 
         [0063]      FIG. 8A  shows the situations of changes of the electrical properties of all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  after adding 50 milliliter (ml) of urine every three minutes. The thin solid line represents the electrical property value of the first set of contacts  45   a . The center line represents the electrical property value of the second set of contacts  45   b . The dotted line represents the electrical property value of the third set of contacts  45   c . The thick solid line represents the electrical property value of the fourth set of contacts  45   d . When the 50 milliliter urine is added for the first time (that is, the leftmost first downward arrow), as the first set of contacts  45   a  is the closest to the urethral orifice, the electrical property (resistance or voltage) of the first set of contacts  45   a  changes first, and the electrical properties of the other sets of contacts  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  are still the same. As time passes by, before the urine is added for the second time (that is, the leftmost second downward arrow), the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a  presents a stable state. Next, after the urine is added for the second time (that is, the leftmost second downward arrow), the electrical property of the first set of contacts  45   a  starts dropping again, and the electrical property of the third set of contacts  45   c  also starts to drop. As shown in  FIG. 8A , when the electrical properties of the first, third and fourth sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   c ,  45   d  all drop to a saturation value, that is, all of the electrical properties no longer drops. After that the urine continues to be added for several times, the electrical property of the second set of contacts  45   b  starts to drop again. This phenomenon occurs because the second set of contacts  45   b  is the farthest set of contacts from the urethral orifice. 
         [0064]    In addition, by observing in the above manner in  FIG. 8B , it may be known that as the patient lies on the right side, the electrical property of the third set of contacts  45   c  is the last one to starts dropping. It may be also known from the above experiment that the semi-quantitative analysis and posture analysis may be achieved by the combination of the diaper  10  and the detection circuit  61 . 
         [0065]      FIG. 8C  is a schematic view of an experimental result of the diaper according to the fourth embodiment ( FIG. 6A ) of the disclosure. In this embodiment, 30 milliliter (ml) liquid is added at the position of the simulated urethral orifice every three minutes, and the electrical properties of all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  are measured every three minutes. In the drawing of the experimental result, the horizontal axis is time with the unit of minute. The vertical axis is an impedance value with the unit of kiloohm (kΩ). As shown in  FIG. 8C , the impedance of the first set of contacts  45   a  drops first and the slope of this interval is the steepest line in  FIG. 8C . The start time point that the impedance of the third set of contacts  45   c  drops is close to that of the impedance of the first set of contacts  45   a . However, the extent of the dropping impedance of the third set of contacts  45   c  is smaller than that of the first set of contacts  45   a , and a stable internal exists between the two impedances. After 12 minutes, the impedance values of the first set of contacts  45   a  and the third set of contacts  45   c  are closer than other set of contacts. After 15 minutes, the impedances of the second set of contacts  45   b  and the fourth set of contacts  45   d  also drop and both impedances are relatively close to the impedance value of the first set of contacts  45   a . Therefore, it may be acquired that the whole diaper is soaked and the critical time point of changing the diaper is reached. 
         [0066]    For the implementation of the semi-quantitative analysis and posture analysis, experiments shall be made first before the diaper  10  is shipped from the factory. The experiments are made by using the posture and the amount of urine as variables to acquire a comparison table of electrical properties of all sets of contacts, the amount of urine and the posture, and then the comparison table is made into a lookup table. Therefore, both the detection circuit  61  and the management host  72  may estimate a current diaper wetness status (excretion status) and a posture through the lookup table after collecting the electrical property information of all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  to provide more information to the caregiver. 
         [0067]    The semi-quantitative analysis and posture analysis are illustrated by taking  FIG. 8C  as an example. In the above illustration of  FIG. 8C , the different postures of the simulated dummy lies in bed wearing the diaper are not illustrated. However, according to the time sequence of changes of the electrical properties of all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d , the lying posture may be estimated. It may be seen from  FIG. 8C  that the electrical property of the third set of contacts  45   c  changes earlier than the electrical property of the second set of contacts  45   b , so that it may be assumed that the third set of contacts  45   c  is closer to the bed surface than the second set of contacts  45   b . Indeed, in this experiment, the simulated dummy lies on a side with the left shoulder pressing the bed. Therefore, if the analysis of other postures needs to be acquired, several experiments of different postures may be made to acquire the data of several groups of changing time points and changing degrees of electrical properties of different postures to further make a posture lookup table. 
         [0068]    Next, a volume of liquid absorbed in the diaper may be estimated according to the electrical properties of all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  from  FIG. 8C . For example, if there is no change in the electrical properties of the second set of contacts  45   b  and the fourth set of contacts  45   d , the electrical property (impedance) of the first set of contacts  45   a  drops to about 500 ohms, and the impedance of the third set of contacts  45   c  drops to about 800 ohms (approximately the state between the twelfth minute and fifteenth minute in  FIG. 8C ), it may be estimated that the user might already discharge urine of about 120 milliliters to 150 milliliters (the premise is that the user is lying down on the left shoulder). Therefore, during the implementation, after experimental data of various different postures, liquid amounts and electrical property changes is established, the above-mentioned semi-quantitative lookup table may be established. 
         [0069]      FIG. 9  is a schematic enlarged plan view of a detection layer of a diaper according to the disclosure. The detection layer  40  is taking the diaper in the fourth embodiment as an example, but is also applicable to the second or third embodiment. The positions where all sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  are disposed can be seen from  FIG. 9 . An intersection  47  refers to an intersecting position of the connecting line between the first and second sets of contacts  45   a  and  45   b  and another connection line between the third and fourth sets of contacts  45   c  and  45   d . The distance from the intersection  47  to the first, second, third, fourth sets of contacts  45   a ,  45   b ,  45   c  and  45   d  (to a midpoint of the endpoints of two wires in the same set of contacts) are respectively L 1 , L 2 , L 3  and L 4 . The distance between the first set of contacts  45   a  and the front edge  48  of the diaper is L 6 . The distance between the second set of contacts  45   b  and the rear edge  49  of the diaper is L 5 . The length of L 4  plus L 3  is smaller than or equal to the width of the diaper (L 1  is 0.5 to 1.5 times of L 2 . Next, the intersection  47  may be either of the two positions of the urethral orifice corresponding to the indication  92  and the anus corresponding to the indication  94  in  FIG. 2  or any position in the middle of the two positions). 
         [0070]      FIG. 10  is a schematic flow chart of a diaper wetness detecting method according to the present disclosure. The diaper wetness detecting method is applicable to detecting excretion status of an animal. The method comprises the following steps. 
         [0071]    Step S 90 : A diaper is disposed at an excretory organ of an animal. The diaper comprises a first set of contacts and a second set of contacts. A distance between the first set of contacts and the excretory organ is smaller than a distance between the second set of contacts and the excretory organ. 
         [0072]    Step S 92 : Electrical properties of the first and second sets of contacts are sensed and a contact signal is output. 
         [0073]    Step S 94 : According to the contact signal, an excretion status corresponding to the contact signal is searched in a lookup table. 
         [0074]    Step S 96 : An excretion status is output. 
         [0075]    In Step S 90 , the diaper may be the diaper  10 ,  10   a ,  10   b  or  10   c  in the first, second, third or fourth embodiment. In Step S 92 , the electrical property of each set of contacts in the diaper  10  is output in a signal manner. The signal may be the electrical property signal of a single set of contacts, or may also be electrical property signals of a number of sets of contacts or all sets of contacts. Of course, the time point that the electrical property of each set of contacts starts to change can also be output. Step S 92  may be performed by the detection circuit  61 . 
         [0076]    In Step S 94 , upon receiving the contact signal, the management host  72  searches according to the contact signal in the lookup table for an excretion status corresponding to the contact signal. The excretion status may be a diaper wetness estimated through the lookup table or a wetness degree of each position of the diaper  10 , but is not limited to the above-mentioned excretion status. Next, the excretion status is output in Step S 96 . For example, a display displays an amount of urine or a wetness degree at each position of the diaper. 
         [0077]    In addition, if the wetness degree of the diaper is higher than a threshold value (for example, a saturation value), in Step (S 96 ) of displaying the excretion status, a light emitting diode may also be driven to emit a light, or a buzzer is driven to emit an alarm sound. 
         [0078]    In conclusion, the diaper  10  may acquire the electrical property value of each set of contacts by the two set of contacts respectively disposed at a far end and a near end. After the analysis of the electrical property values, sequences, time points, and duration that the electrical property values changes, the diaper wetness may be analyzed in a semi-quantitative manner. In addition, due to the design of disposing the conductive wires, the electrical properties of the sets of contacts may be detected more effectively and the wiring of the conductive wires and the contact number of the connectors may be simplified. 
         [0079]    For the interaction between the diaper  10  and the management host  72  in the diaper wetness management system  70 , please refer to  FIG. 7  in combination with  FIG. 11 . After a medical worker helps a patient to wear a diaper  10 , the number of the diaper  10  and the recognition data of the patient may be scanned by using the scanner  76 , and the number and recognition data are integrated into a recognition signal and transmitted the recognition signal to the management host  72  (Step S 970 ). Upon receiving the recognition signal, the management host  72  may analyze the recognition signal, record the start time and search for the patient data in the database (Step S 980 ). In such a manner, the management host  72  may synchronize the patient data, the diaper data and the data in the management host. Next, the management host  72  sets a parameter according to the patient data (for example, the body weight, age, dietary water amount, medical record and illness) (that is, Step S 981 ). The parameter may be a normal range of an amount of urine, a normal urination frequency range, an anuresis time critical value and a constipation time critical value, but is not limited to the above-mentioned parameters. The parameter is used for providing information for the procedure of analyzing the excretion status in Step S 982 . 
         [0080]    After scanning the diaper, a caregiver may initiate the operation of the diaper  10  (that is, the process turns to Step S 972 ). This operation may be accomplished by a caregiver pressing a switch key disposed on the diaper, or the diaper  10  may be actuated by a signal emitted by the management host  72  after the management host  72  finishes Step S 981 . In Step S 972 , the diaper  10  may periodically retrieve the contact signal and transmit the contact signal to the management host  72 . The management host  72  analyzes the excretion status by using the parameter and the contact signal (S 982 ). Next, when the caregiver finds that the defecation event occurs to the patient, the caregiver may actuate the input element  612 , and the diaper  10  transmits the actuation signal (Step S 974 ) to the management host  72 . The actuation signal is used for providing information for analyzing the excretion status (or referred to as a diaper state) in Step S 982 . 
         [0081]    After Step S 982 , the management host  72  performs determination in Steps S 983 , S 984  and S 985 . In Step S 983 , it is determined whether the diaper needs to be changed. When the analysis result shows that the urinary output already exceeds the normal range of amount of urine, the state needs to be displayed as “Change diaper” (Step S 986 ). If the urinary output does not exceed the normal range of amount of urine, it is determined that whether the analysis result is higher than a critical value of anuresis time. If the analysis result is higher than the critical value of anuresis time, the state is displayed as anuresis (or non-urinary alert) (Step S 986 ). If the analysis result is not higher than the critical value of anuresis time, it is further determined whether the analysis result exceeds the critical value of constipation time. If the analysis result exceeds the critical value of constipation time, the state is displayed as constipation (Step S 986 ). If the analysis result does not exceed the critical value of constipation time, the process returns to Step S 982  to continue to analyze the excretion status (diaper state). 
         [0082]    In Step S 986 , the state (the excretion status or the diaper state) may be output at the management host  72  (by displaying or triggering an alarm bell). Alternatively, the management host  72  outputs the excretion status to the diaper or another management center and the diaper or management center then displays the excretion status. In addition, when the determine results in Steps S 983 , S 984  and S 985  are all null, the excretion status may also be output. The output content might be information such as the amount of urine absorbed by the current diaper, the frequency that the patient urinates and the posture of the patient.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0