Device for controlling equipment by using signals from a living body

• US 6,321,110 B1
• Filed: 08/30/1999
• Issued: 11/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Ito, Yoshitoshi, Yamashita, Yuichi, Yamamoto, Tsuyoshi, Maki, Atsushi, Koizumi, Hideaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lateef, Marvin M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lin, Jeoyuh
• Application Number:
  US09/385,419
• Time in Patent Office: 813 Days
• Field of Search: 600/473, 600/476, 600/475, 600/477, 600/310, 356/432, 356/41, 356/39, 356/40, 356/345, 250/339, 250/341, 250/351, 250/352
• US Class Current: 600/476
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/015 Input arrangements based on nervous system activity detection, e.g. brain waves [EEG] detection, electromyograms [EMG] detection, electrodermal response detection

Abstract

A device for controlling equipment includes a light projector adapted to project light onto a head of a living body, a light collecting device for collecting the light having passed through the head from the light projector, a light measuring device for measuring an intensity of the light collected by the light collecting device, a memory device for storing a previous history of changes of the intensity of the light measured by the light measuring device, a signal judging circuit for judging if both the intensity of the light measured by the light measuring device and the previous history of changes of the intensity of the light satisfy a predetermined condition, a display device for displaying the intensity of the light measured by the light measuring device and a result obtained by the signal judging circuit, and a control signal generating circuit for generating a control signal to be supplied to an external equipment if the predetermined condition is satisfied.

Claims

1. A device for controlling equipment comprising:

a light projector adapted to project light onto a head of a living body,

a light collecting section which collects the light having passed through the head from said light projector,

a light measuring section which measures an intensity of the light collected by said light collecting section,

a memory section which stores a history of changes of the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section,

a displayed section which displays the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section, and

a control signal generating section which generates a control signal to be supplied to external equipment,

wherein said device for controlling equipment is configured such that said control signal is generated when the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section has increased from a light intensity section B through a light intensity section C to a light intensity section D in succession, and the history of changes of the intensity of the light is reset when the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section has decreased from the light intensity section B to a light intensity section A,

where the light intensity section A is equal to or below a light intensity a,

the light intensity section B is equal to or below a light intensity b, but above the light intensity a,

the light intensity section C is equal to or below light intensity c, but above the light intensity b,

the light intensity section D is above the light intensity c, and

the light intensity c>

the light intensity be>

the light intensity a.

3. A device for controlling equipment according to claim 1, wherein said displaying section displays the light density of the light measured and the thresholds on a same display screen thereof at the same time.

2. A device for controlling equipment comprising:

at least one light projector adapted to project light onto a head of a living body,

a light collecting section which collects the light having passed through the head from said at least one light projector,

a light measuring section which measures an intensity of the light collected by said light collecting section,

a memory circuit which stores a previous history of changes of the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section,

said previous history being represented by events in which the intensity of the light measured crosses one of three different thresholds established in a region of the intensity of the light measured,

a signal judging circuit which judges if both the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section and said previous history of changes of the intensity of the light satisfy a predetermined condition,

a displaying section which displays the intensity of the light measured by said light measuring section and a result obtained by said signal judging circuit, and

a control signal generating circuit which generates a control signal to be supplied to an external equipment if said predetermined condition is satisfied.

4. A device for controlling equipment comprising:

a light projector adapted to project light onto a head of a living body,

a light collecting section which collects the light having passed through the head from said light projector,

a light measuring section which measures an intensity of the light collected by said light collecting section,

a data processing section which take in output signals from said light measuring section at a predetermined interval of time, calculates an average of the output signals at an interval of a predetermined number of the output signals, calculates a difference between the average and an average of the output signals a predetermined time earlier, and then outputs the difference as a brain function signal,

a memory section which stores a history of changes of the brain function signal,

a displaying section which displays the brain function signal and a result obtained by said signal judging section, and

a control signal generating section which generates a control signal to be supplied to external equipment,

wherein said device for controlling equipment is configured such that said control signal is generated when the intensity of the brain function signal has increased from a signal intensity section B through a signal intensity section C to a signal intensity section D in succession, and the history of changes of the intensity of the brain function signal is reset when the intensity of the brain function signal has decreased from the signal intensity section B to a signal intensity section A,

where the signal intensity section A is equal to or below a signal intensity a,

the signal intensity section B is equal to or below a signal intensity b, but above the signal intensity a,

the signal intensity section C is equal to or below a signal intensity c, but above the signal intensity b,

the signal intensity section D is above the signal intensity c, and

the signal intensity c>

the signal intensity b>

the signal intensity a.