A new pulse pillow of Traditional Chinese Medicine - The Wrist Fixer System

Abstract

This research developed a new Wrist Fixer System and used it to fix the patient's wrist as the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) doctors did to make Pulse Diagnosis. The system contains a wrist fixer made by two step motors with a specific structure, a PC-Based controller, an USB input output interface card, and two Accelerometers. The four diagnostic methods in TCM are Inspection, Listening and Smelling Examination, Inquiry, and Palpation, and the Palpation is the most objective diagnostic method. When TCM doctors make the pulse diagnosis, they always use the pulse pillow to fix the patient's wrist. Besides fixing the patient's wrist, it can also make the radial artery of wrist horizontal. Bi-Sensing Pulse Diagnosis Instrument (BSPDI) is a tool used to take pulse from patient's wrist automatically. This research was done to make a Wrist Fixer System and used it to fix the patient's wrist when BSPDI took pulse. And using the ultrasonic to verify shapes of the patient's wrist radial artery could be found that the wrist fixer reconstruct the angle and position of patient's wrist. The angle of patient's wrist which is fixed on the wrist fixer system is similar to that of being put on TCM Pulse Pillow. It enables the BSPDI to take pulse accurately.