JPH03222964A - Sleeping inducing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To smoothly perform the transfer to a sleeping state within a short time by accelerating the relaxed state of a living body by applying the stimulation corresponding to the state of the present stage of the living body or the stimulation corresponding to the conspcuousness lowering state of the next stage and naturally obtaining calm and regular respiration. CONSTITUTION:A respiration detection part 1 is equipped with a respiration sensor 11 and a low-pass filter 12 and a signal wherein a noise component is removed from the output signal of the respiration sensor 11 is outputted. A respiration cycle detection part 2 consists of a waveform shaping circuit 21, a differentiation circuit 22 and a comparator 23 and amplifies the output signal of the low-pass filter 12 to shape the same into a rectangular wave and compares the same with a predetermined reference level to output a pulse at every one cycle of respiration. The operation circuit 41 of an operation/control part 4 has memory function or operation function to operate the average value or dispersion value of a plurality of respiration cycles and judges the sleeping point of time or sets a stimulation level gradually reduced corresponding to the passage of time. Next, the stimulation level applied to a living body is adjusted by a stimulation level control part 45 and amplified by a drive circuit part 5 and a stimulation output apparatus 6 is driven. As the stimulation output apparatus 6, for example, a light emitting apparatus is used.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a sleep inducing device that provides optimal stimulation to induce sleep in a living body based on the breathing of the living body.

[Prior Art] In recent years, in a society that has become more complex, psychological and mental stress such as anxiety, dissatisfaction, anger, and impatience has increased, and these stresses have become the cause of insomnia, etc. There is. One way to relieve stress is to take deep breaths and regulate your breathing. In other words, regulating your breathing is an effective way to relax.
It helps relieve stress.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] In this way, regulating breathing can be done through self-control, so it is considered an easy and good way to relieve stress, but breathing is not done unconsciously. However, there is a problem in that continuous conscious breathing actually increases the level of consciousness and makes it difficult to transition to a sleep state.

The purpose of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems. By functioning as a kind of pacemaker to regulate breathing in front of the human eye, it can regulate breathing and relax, and after falling asleep, it can promote deeper sleep. By outputting a stimulation cycle that matches the breathing state of the organism at that time for each state of rest, light sleep, and deep sleep, and further fading out the magnitude of the stimulation, the It is an object of the present invention to provide a sleep induction device that allows the user to enter a deep sleep state in a short period of time.

The present inventors have also proposed detecting abdominal respiration and using the detection signal directly as a dimming signal to induce sleep by brightening and darkening light synchronized with respiration. However, since this method does not change the cycle of the detection signal and dimming signal, it is not possible to shift the sleep state to a deeper state by changing the breathing cycle.Also, changes in the breathing detection signal due to turning over in bed Output as flickering,
It's possible to be so anxious that you can't sleep. The present invention attempts to solve these inconveniences at the same time.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the sleep induction device according to the present invention includes a respiration detection section 1 that detects the respiration of a living body, as shown in FIG. The apparatus is characterized by having a stimulation output device 6 that applies stimulation to the living body at a predetermined period based on the breathing cycle of the living body detected by the respiration detection unit 1.

Note that it is preferable that the period of stimulation be close to the average breathing period detected at regular intervals.

Further, it is preferable that the magnitude of the stimulation gradually decreases over time.

Furthermore, it is preferable that the stimulation output device 6 is a device that alternately outputs stimulation at a predetermined period based on the breathing cycle and stimulation at a certain fixed period at certain time intervals.

[Operation] If the above configuration is adopted, the current state of 1114 (
It is possible to provide stimulation according to the state of stress, relaxation, falling asleep, light sleep, deep sleep, etc., or the next stage of decreased consciousness, so calm and orderly breathing becomes natural. As a result, the relaxed state of the living body is promoted, and the transition to a sleep state is carried out smoothly and in a short period of time.

The principle will be explained in detail below.

As a living body's level of consciousness decreases, that is, changes from a stress state to a relaxed state, falling asleep state, light sleep state, and deep sleep state, the breathing cycle generally becomes longer, and the variation in the breathing cycle per hour increases. It becomes less. Therefore, if we detect the average period of respiration every 20, 30, or 60 seconds, and apply a stimulus with a period that is the same as or slightly slower than this average period, the living body will try to match its respiration to that period. When the body is in a relaxed state, it is maintained or promoted, making it easier to enter the next stage of decreased consciousness, and falling asleep smoothly.

In addition, in a state of deep sleep, the variation in the breathing cycle decreases, and by matching the stimulation cycle of this device, which outputs stimulation with a constant cycle at a certain time (m), with the breathing cycle, it is possible to induce even deeper sleep. It is promoted.

Furthermore, by determining the stimulation cycle based on the average breathing cycle over a certain period of time, it is possible to prevent the stimulation from fluctuating as the patient turns over in bed. In other words, the period of rolling over is as short as 1 to 2 seconds, and the intervals for detecting the average breathing cycle are 20 seconds and 30 seconds.
Since only the immediately preceding 5 to 6 breathing cycles are detected at intervals of seconds or 60 seconds, turning over in bed will cause an error in the average breathing cycle, but it will not have a large effect, and in some cases, turning over in bed will not be detected. Furthermore, since the cycle of the next stimulation is determined based on this cycle, although there is a slight error in the cycle of the output stimulation when the patient turns over, the variation in stimulation caused by turning over can be suppressed to a level that the living body cannot be conscious of.

Note that if the magnitude of the stimulus is gradually decreased over time, the stimulus will be more strongly recognized during wakefulness, and the transition from the relaxed state to the sleep state will be accelerated. When the second point is 114, weaken the term 14 to 1. This can help stabilize your sleep.

Further, by alternately outputting stimulation at a predetermined period based on the breathing cycle and stimulation at a certain fixed period at certain time intervals, effective sleep induction can be performed without causing discomfort to the living body.

The more detailed structure and operation of the present invention will become clearer in the following description of the embodiments.

Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a block circuit diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 5 is a drive circuit section, and 6 is a stimulation output device.

The configuration of each part will be explained below. The respiration detection unit 1 is
It is equipped with a breathing sensor 11 and a low-pass filter 12.

The breathing sensor 11 is of a type that is attached to the abdomen or chest, for example, and is configured to detect changes in swelling caused by breathing using a strain gauge or the like. In addition, the breathing sensor 11 may be of a sheet type using the same strain gauge, or a type that has a thermistor attached near the critical point to detect temperature changes. The low-pass filter 12 passes only low frequency components of approximately 28Z or less, and cuts out noise and fine movements other than breathing. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, a signal (broken line) obtained by removing the noise component from the output signal (solid line) of the respiratory sensor 11 is obtained as the output of the low-pass filter 12. Here, the signal output from the low-pass filter 12 has a phase lag with respect to the output signal from the respiratory sensor 11.

The respiratory cycle detection section 2 includes a waveform shaping circuit 21 and a differentiation circuit 2.
2 and a comparator 23. The waveform shaping circuit 21 amplifies the output signal of the low-pass filter 12 in the respiration detection section 1 and shapes it into a rectangular wave. The differentiating circuit 22 generates a positive output when the rectangular wave output from the waveform shaping circuit 21 changes from negative to positive, and generates a negative output when the rectangular wave output from the waveform shaping circuit 21 changes from positive to negative. The comparator 23 compares only the positive or negative output generated from the differentiating circuit 22 with a predetermined reference level, thereby outputting a pulse for each cycle of respiration. Note that the respiratory cycle detection section 2 may have any configuration as long as it is a circuit that outputs a pulse for each respiratory cycle.

The time measuring section 3 includes a clock circuit 31 and a counter circuit 32.
It becomes more. The counter circuit 32 is reset by an arithmetic circuit 41, which will be described later, and thereafter, each time one clock wave is input from the clock circuit 31, the count value increases by one. It goes without saying that the clock value must satisfy the Nyquist theoretical value depending on the breathing cycle.

The calculation/control unit 4 includes a calculation circuit 41 , a timer 42 , a voltage-frequency conversion circuit 43 , a waveform generation circuit 44 , and a stimulation level control unit 45 . The calculation circuit 41 has a memory function and a calculation function, and calculates the average value, variance value, etc. of a plurality of breathing cycles, and determines the point of sleep onset based on the calculation result, The stimulation level is set to gradually decrease accordingly. When the pulse from the comparator 23 is input to the arithmetic circuit 41, the arithmetic circuit 41 reads the count value from the counter circuit 32, and then resets the counter circuit 32. Arithmetic circuit 41
When a reset signal is input to the counter circuit 32 from
The count value of the counter circuit 32 returns to zero. A timer 42 provides a time signal to the arithmetic circuit 41 every 20 seconds, 30 seconds or 60 seconds. The arithmetic circuit 41 calculates the average value of 5 to 6 memorized respiration cycles from the respiration immediately before the time point at which this time signal is input.

This is shown in FIG. 6 and will be explained. In the figure, tl.

t2 is the time when the time signal from the timer 42 is obtained. For example, at time L2, the time signal is obtained from the timer 42 from the arithmetic circuit 41.
When a time signal is input to
is read from memory and its average value TAV (t2)
-(TRI + TR2±TR+TR4+TR
5) Calculate 15. (However, since breathing cannot be detected for the first 20, 30, or 60 seconds, a standard breathing cycle stored in advance is output.

In the embodiment (■) described below, the period T of stimulation given to the living body is made to match the respiration cycle of the living body, but in the embodiment (■) described below.
Now, send an output corresponding to a period of 0°9 to 1.2 times the above average respiration period TAV to the voltage-frequency conversion circuit 43 to determine the period T of stimulation given to the living body (see Fig. 7). This period T is maintained until the next time signal from the timer 42 is input. With the period T output from the voltage-frequency conversion circuit 43, a sine wave, a half-wave rectified wave of a sine wave, a waveform obtained by blunting the waveform, or a waveform close to breathing is generated at the waveform generation port i ¥844. .

The stimulation level control unit 45 sets the stimulation level so that the stimulation level gradually decreases over time.

Incidentally, the passage of time may be detected by counting the number of times the time signal from the timer 42 is obtained by the calculation circuit 41, or by detecting the passage of time by a decrease in the variance value of the breathing cycle calculated by the calculation circuit 41. The stimulation level control unit 45 may adjust the level of stimulation applied to the living body by determining that the living body has entered a deep sleep state and assuming that a certain amount of time has elapsed. , the stimulation level is amplified by the amplifier 51 of the drive circuit section 5, and the stimulation output device 6 is driven. The stimulation output device 6 uses, for example, a light emitting device for generating light. The amplifier 51 of the drive circuit section 5 has a 6-order transistor, a thyristor, etc., for controlling the power supplied to the light emitting device according to the output of the stimulation level control section 45.
Some embodiments of the sleep induction device according to the present invention will be described in relation to a living body.

Kei Huchi ■ As mentioned above, regulating the rhythm of your breathing has been shown to reduce mental stress and help you relax.

Furthermore, it is known that in a state of wakefulness, the respiratory rate changes (usually tends to decrease) in accordance with the decrease in the state of wakefulness at that time. Therefore, during the waking period, the stimulation output device 6
For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the luminance of the light emitted by the patient is adjusted to match the rhythm of breathing. That is, the luminescence brightness is controlled to be gradually increased during inspiration, and the luminance is gradually decreased during exhalation. Therefore, when awake, the low-pass filter 12
The light emission brightness is adjusted in synchronization with the output. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, the relative brightness of the light stimulus was controlled in an open manner so that the luminescence brightness was gradually decreased over time until it was determined that the person had fallen asleep, and the light gradually became darker. Immediately after it is determined that this is the case, feedback control is performed so that light stimulation that matches the depth of sleep is provided, and the light becomes darker as the sleep deepens.

The determination of whether or not one has fallen asleep is based on the relationship between the variance of the breathing cycle and the depth of sleep.As shown in Figure 5, the variance of the breathing cycle becomes slightly larger just before falling asleep.
Since it is known that the variance gradually decreases as sleep deepens, it is possible to determine whether a person has fallen asleep by calculating the variance of the breathing cycle. Therefore, the switching point between oven control and feedback control can be set using this property.

Furthermore, as described above, since the output of the breathing sensor 11 passes through the low-pass filter 12, the output signal of the breathing detection unit 1 has equalized exhalation time and inhalation time, and has a rhythm of light and darkness that is synchronized with the rhythm of breathing. It can provide light stimulation. In other words, if the light is not passed through the low-pass filter 12, it will become bright in an instant during inhalation, and gradually darken during exhalation, making it feel unnatural to be in a dark environment for a relatively long period of time. By providing the low-pass filter 12, it is possible to reduce the time difference between light and dark, and it is possible to synchronize with the natural rhythm of breathing.

Furthermore, as another embodiment of the dimming method, it is also effective to perform dimming in accordance with the average value of the breathing cycle determined every 20 seconds, 30 seconds, or 60 seconds. When the light is adjusted in this way, it becomes easier for the living body to adjust its breathing to the brightness and darkness of the light, and as a result, the breathing becomes regular, the body gradually becomes relaxed, and the body transitions from falling asleep to deep sleep. Further, the amplitude of the dimming is exponentially faded out by the stimulation level control unit 45, and furthermore, as the sleep becomes deeper, the dispersion of the breathing cycle is significantly reduced, so In the device of the present invention, which provides optical stimulation with a constant period, the matching between the light brightness period and the respiration period is particularly good.

Here, the reason why the average breathing cycle is detected every 20 seconds, 30 seconds, or 60 seconds is because the sleep of the living body, especially at the time of falling asleep, changes as it becomes shallower or deeper at the above-mentioned time intervals.
This is to cope with the physiological phenomenon that results in a transition to sleep.

In addition, it is known that the average value and variance of the respiratory rate decrease during sleep compared to when awake, and the reason for outputting stimulation with a cycle slightly slower than the average value of the respiratory cycle is to correspond to this. This is because it has been found that outputting stimulation with an average breathing cycle or a slightly slower cycle makes it easier to induce a living body into a deeper sleep state. On the contrary, there are cases where stimulation with a cycle slightly faster than the average breathing cycle is output, because some living organisms have a higher breathing rate during sleep than when awake.

Figure 7 shows the relationship between the brightness of light and the breathing rhythm of the living body from the time of awakening to the time of falling asleep. FIG. 7(a) shows changes in brightness and darkness of light. For 20 seconds, 30 seconds or 60 seconds,
A period T of about 0°9 to 1.2 times the previous average respiratory cycle
It repeats light and dark. In FIG. 7 (11), the living body is inhaling air when it is bright. When awake, there is a large variation in the breathing cycle, so the timing of inhalation may deviate from when it is bright, but it can be seen that the timing of inhalation quickly synchronizes with when it is bright. In Figure 7 (c), the living organism is inhaling when it is dark, so the timing of inhalation is different from the brightness of the light, but it soon adjusts its breathing so that it inhales when it is bright this time, and gradually You will notice that your breathing becomes regular. In this way, the living body regulates its breathing, relaxes, and enters a sleep state. Note that whether a living body inhales when it is bright or when it is dark has different results depending on the individual (or the state at that time). Living organisms match the brightness and darkness of light with the timing of inhalation in a way that is easy for them to match.

1111 In addition, as another embodiment of sleep onset determination, there is a method of ensuring reliable sleep onset determination by taking into consideration a plurality of sleep onset patterns of respiratory rate or breathing cycle. In other words, as shown by the broken line in Fig. 8(a), the respiratory rate gradually decreases until the sleep reaches a certain level, and then takes on a more or less constant value, which is the same as the first pattern. As shown by the solid line in Figure (a), there is a second pattern in which the value temporarily decreases dramatically just before falling asleep, and then increases again to a stable value. Furthermore, as shown by the broken line in Fig. 8(b), the variance of the respiratory cycle gradually becomes smaller until sleep or a certain degree of deep sleep occurs, but after that, the first pattern shows a constant value. As shown by the solid line in FIG. 6B, there is a second pattern in which the variance value temporarily becomes extremely high just before falling asleep, and then rapidly decreases to a nearly constant value. In both cases, the first pattern is a conventionally known change pattern, and the second pattern is a change pattern found as a result of research by the present inventors. Therefore, the above-mentioned calculation circuit 41 calculates the variance of the breathing rate or cycle, monitors changes in these data, and when the first or second pattern is detected, it is determined that the patient has fallen asleep.

In this way, if not only the first pattern but also the second pattern is taken into account, there will be no difference between individuals when determining sleep onset, and sleep onset can be determined with high reliability.

In addition, as another embodiment of how to apply stimulation, in addition to the above-mentioned stimulation with a predetermined period, stimulation with a certain regular period may be used in combination, and these stimulations may be alternately applied several times. By repeatedly applying it to a living body, more effective sleep induction can be achieved.

In this case, the time signal from the timer 42 of the calculation/control unit 4 is thinned out and given to the calculation circuit 41 at predetermined intervals at the beginning of the stimulation, and is sent to the calculation circuit 41 every time after several minutes have passed from the start of stimulation. Given. In addition, the respiratory cycle TR1
~Recall TR5 from 5 memories and find the average value T
When calculating AV, if the previous breath cannot be detected, a pre-memorized period (for example, about 45 seconds to 6 seconds) is output.

FIG. 10 shows an example of how stimulation is applied according to the present embodiment F9. In FIG. 10, the horizontal axis represents the elapsed time from the start of stimulation. In addition, the shaded area is the period during which stimulation is applied with a longer period than normal breathing (for example, about 5 seconds).
The other blank areas are periods during which stimulation is applied in accordance with the average breathing cycle of the living body. According to this embodiment, breathing in accordance with a cycle longer than normal breathing and breathing in accordance with the average breathing cycle of the living body are performed alternately several times at the beginning of stimulation.
This is repeated at predetermined time intervals. This allows you to breathe naturally and slowly, calming your mind as if you were taking a deep breath, increasing the relaxing effect and quickly inducing sleep.

This is because if you breathe at a slightly longer period than your own breathing, you will find it easier to calm down, similar to when you take a deep breath. In addition, since stimulation is applied alternately in accordance with the average breathing cycle of the living body, there is an advantage that it tends to promote a decrease in the level of consciousness without causing a feeling of discomfort with self-breathing.

FIG. 10 illustrates the appearance of the sleep induction device.

In the figure, reference numeral 13 denotes a respiratory signal receiving section, which receives respiratory signals sent wirelessly. Reference numeral 46 denotes a device operating section, which is operated when giving instructions to the arithmetic/control section 4 to start or stop operation. 47 is a display section, which performs calculations and
The operation of the control unit 4 (for example, elapsed time after the start of stimulation, presence or absence of sleep onset determination, etc.) is displayed. Reference numeral 50 represents a light control unit for controlling light, etc., and reference numeral 60 represents a light generation unit containing a light bulb or the like.

FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 illustrate the external appearance of the respiration sensor. The respiratory sensor lla shown in FIG. 11 has a clip (scissors) shape and transmits a respiratory signal wirelessly. Further, the breathing sensor 11b shown in FIG. 12 has a band-shaped shape and transmits a breathing signal by wire.

Note that in the above example, light is used as a stimulus to promote sleep onset, but other stimuli include:
Possible factors include sound, vibration, wind, and scent. However, it is necessary to generate sounds, vibrations, wind, etc. at a predetermined frequency, and to amplitude-modulate the envelope at a predetermined period.

"Effects of the Invention" The sleep induction device of the present invention includes a respiration detection unit that detects the respiration of a living body, and a stimulation output that provides stimulation to the living body at a predetermined period based on the breathing cycle of the living body detected by the respiration detection unit. Because it has a device, it can provide stimulation to induce a deeper sleep state according to the state of the living body, allowing calm and orderly breathing to be achieved naturally without much awareness, and smooth deep sleep. The effect is that it can be reached in a short time.

In addition, if the stimulation cycle is close to the average breathing cycle detected at regular intervals, fluctuations in stimulation due to turning over will be less likely to occur, and stimulation will be provided that matches the next stage of decreased consciousness, leading to a deep sleep state. This will allow for a smooth transition.

Furthermore, if the size of the stimulus is gradually decreased over time, the stimulation level can be increased during wakefulness or light sleep to help synchronize breathing and stimulation, and the stimulation level can be increased during wakefulness or light sleep to help synchronize breathing and stimulation. It has the effect of lowering stress and stabilizing sleep.

Furthermore, if a stimulus with a predetermined cycle based on the breathing cycle of the living body and a stimulus with a certain fixed cycle are given to the living body alternately and repeatedly at certain intervals, it is possible to stimulate the long breathing cycle without causing discomfort to the living body. This has the effect of inducing sleep more quickly.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a block circuit diagram of an embodiment of the present invention, Figs. 2 to 9 are explanatory diagrams of the same operation as above, Fig. 10 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the sleep induction device of this embodiment, and Fig. 11 and FIG. 12 are perspective views showing the appearance of different respiratory sensors used in the above. Reference numeral 1 designates a respiration detection section, 2 a respiration cycle detection section, 3 a time measurement section, 4 a calculation/control section, 5 a drive circuit section, and 6 a stimulation output device.

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) A sleep induction device comprising: a respiration detection unit that detects the respiration of a living body; and a stimulation output device that provides stimulation to the living body with a predetermined cycle based on the breathing cycle of the living body detected by the respiration detection unit. (2) The sleep induction device according to claim 1, wherein the period of stimulation is close to the average breathing period detected at regular intervals. (3) The sleep induction device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the magnitude of the stimulation gradually decreases over time. (4) The sleep induction according to claim 1, wherein the stimulation output device is a device that alternately outputs stimulation of a predetermined period based on the breathing cycle and stimulation of a certain fixed period at certain time intervals. Device.