Device for measuring organism condition

• US 6,547,728 B1
• Filed: 01/16/2001
• Issued: 04/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Accusplit, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Georges Marc Cornuejols
• Inventors: Cornuejols, Georges Marc
• Primary Examiner(s): Nasser, Robert L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mallari, Patricia C.
• Application Number:
  US09/646,105
• Time in Patent Office: 819 Days
• Field of Search: 600/300-301, 600/544-546, 600/481-483, 600/529, 600/532, 600/538
• US Class Current: 600/300
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 31/123 for beds or mattresses
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/0462 Apparatus with built-in sensors
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/11 Measuring movement of the entire body or parts thereof, e.g. head or hand tremor, mobility of a limb for measuring pulse A61B5/02 ;A61B5/1038 takes precedence; motion detection to correct for motion artifacts in physiological signals A61B5/721
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4809 Sleep detection, i.e. determining whether a subject is asleep or not
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/681 Wristwatch-type devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7207 of noise induced by motion artifacts
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2021/0022 by the tactile sense, e.g. vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2021/0027 by the hearing sense
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 21/00 Other devices or methods to cause a change in the state of consciousness; Devices for producing or ending sleep by mechanical, optical, or acoustical means, e.g. for hypnosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/005 Parameter used as control input for the apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/06 Heartbeat rate only
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/30 Blood pressure A61M2230/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G04B 19/264 with indicators for biological cycles
• CPC Class Codes: G04B 25/04 Alarm clocks or watches with devices stimulating the skin normal pocket or wrist alarm clocks G04B23/12
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 21/025 for measuring physiological data

Abstract

The device includes:

an information intake system that obtains a value representing a non-sensory biological activity of a user'"'"'s body, such as the pulse or the activity of a limb,

a filter for filtration of the value obtained by the said information intake device, which provides a relative position of the said value in a cycle representing a temporal variation of the said biological activity, and

an output system to allow the user to know information representing the relative position, for example an alarm, a screen, or a watch hand on a dial.

Claims

1. A method to allow a user to know information, that includes:

a step of obtaining instant values each representing an instant non-sensory biological activity of the user'"'"'s body,

a step of filtration of the obtained instant values to determine a duration of a cycle representing a temporal variation of said non-sensory biological activity, based on at least two obtained instant values, the duration of the cycle being more than one minute and less than a circadian cycle, and to provide an instant relative position of said value in the cycle, and

a step of instantly providing the user with an instant information representing said instant relative position.

2. A device that allows a user to know information relating to the user'"'"'s biological activity, the device including:

an information intake system that provides instant values each representing an instant non-sensory biological activity of the user'"'"'s body,

a filter that filters said instant values obtained by said information intake system, and determines a duration of a cycle representing a temporal variation of said non-sensory biological activity, based on at least two instant values, the duration of the cycle being more than one minute and less than a circadian cycle, the filter that provides an instant relative position of said value in the cycle, and

an output system that instantly provides the user with an instant information representing said instant relative position.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system provides instant values that each represents instant muscular activity of at least one limb of the user.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the information intake system provides instant values that each represents a rubbing of the user'"'"'s body on a surface.

5. The device of claim 2, wherein the filter integrates a difference of the obtained instant values with a predetermined value and provides the instant relative position in the form of a relative position of said integral in an array of values of said integral.

6. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system obtains instant values each representing a non-sensory biological activity of the user'"'"'s body, without bilateral contact with the human body.

7. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system obtains instant values each representing a cardiovascular activity of the user'"'"'s body.

8. The device of claim 2, wherein:

the information intake system provides instant values when the information intake system is in a predetermined relation with the user'"'"'s body,

the filter includes;

a memory of values obtained by said information intake system,

an estimator that provides an estimation of said instant relative position when the information intake system is not in the predetermined relation with the user'"'"'s body,

and the output system provides the user with said estimation when the information intake system is not in the predetermined relation with the user'"'"'s body.

9. The device of claim 2, that includes a memory of a predetermined position in said cycle, wherein the output system provides a signal when said instant relative position is equal to said predetermined position.

10. The device of claim 2, wherein the filter includes a processor that effectuates a frequency analysis of obtained instant values.

11. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system provides a number of biological events, and the filter determines the duration of a cycle of at least ten times greater than the average duration between two events obtained by the information intake system.

12. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system provides durations separating keystrokes on a keyboard.

13. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system provides the instant values each representing a non-sensory biological activity of the user'"'"'s body when the information intake system is positioned at a remote position from the user'"'"'s body, the instant values each representing movements of the user'"'"'s body.

14. The device of claim 2, wherein the output system includes a memory of stored values respectively corresponding to relative positions in the cycle, and displays, for each relative position, the stored value corresponding to the instant relative position provided by the filter.

15. The device of claim 2, that includes a memory of a duration of a cycle, wherein the filter determines the duration of the cycle, compares the determined duration of the cycle to the duration stored in the memory of the duration of a cycle, and, when the determined duration of the cycle is greater than this duration stored in the memory of the duration of a cycle, determines the relative position in comparison to the duration stored in the memory of a duration of a cycle or to a previous cycle duration determined by the filter.

16. The device of claim 2, that includes a memory that stores a predetermined relative position, the output system that displays a time at which said predetermined relative position will be attained.

17. The device of claim 2, wherein the filter detects the coming of a reference position in the cycle, and provides the relative position in relation with the reference position.

18. The device of claim 2, wherein the filter:

tests a first value of a cycle duration, called period, by detecting the cycles of variation of said instant values, and

if the number of detected cycles, during a reference duration given by taking into account said period, is greater than the ratio of the reference duration over said period, tests a new shorter cycle duration,

if the number of detected cycles, during a reference duration given by taking into account said period, is less than the ratio of the reference duration over said period, tests a new longer cycle duration,

and so forth until the number of detected cycles is equal to said ratio.

19. The device of claim 2, wherein the information intake system is incorporated in an object selected from the group consisting of jewelry, a pillow, a bed, a motion or presence detector, a piece of clothing, glasses and headphones.