Device and method for determining the mass or volume of a body part

Abstract

An easily manipulable device for determining the volume of an area under examination, comprises a probe having an actuator imparting motion to the prostate, a sensor for measuring the displacement of the actuator, and a load cell for measuring the force exerted by the prostate in response to the imparted motion or alternatively, the force exhibited by the probe. Signals obtained by the load cell and signals generated by the sensor are sent to a computer processing unit whereby the mass and the volume of the area are each determined and outputted numerically on a visual display. In another embodiment, the probe has only two sensing elements, a sensor for measuring displacement, and a load cell for measuring the force exerted by the prostate or alternatively, by the probe. In this embodiment, the tapping motion of one's finger against the prostate replaces the actuator. In another embodiment, the probe has only two sensing elements on its distal end, a motor driven actuator and a load cell. The motor driven actuator has a known displacement, thus eliminating the need to measure the displacement via a sensor. In each of the above embodiments, the probe may be hand-held or alternatively, adapted to conform to and encircle a portion of the finger. In conforming to the finger, the probe may optionally enable the operator to effectuate a tactile examination of the area in question while volumetric determinations are being carried out.