Sleep monitoring system

• US 9,192,326 B2
• Filed: 07/10/2012
• Issued: 11/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DP Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: DP Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Kahn, Philippe Richard, Kinsolving, Arthur
• Primary Examiner(s): TOWA, RENE T
• Application Number:
  US13/545,963
• Publication Number:
  US 20130018284A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,232 Days
• Field of Search: 600300-301, 600/587, 600/595, 340/500, 340/540, 340/573.1, 340/573.7, 340/575
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0219 Inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes, tilt switches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4806 Sleep evaluation A61B5/4821 takes precedence; devices for inducing sleep A61M21/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4809 Sleep detection, i.e. determining whether a subject is asleep or not
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4812 Detecting sleep stages or cycles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/681 Wristwatch-type devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7275 Determining trends in physiological measurement data; Predicting development of a medical condition based on physiological measurements, e.g. determining a risk factor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/746 Alarms related to a physiological condition, e.g. details of setting alarm thresholds or avoiding false alarms alarms per se G08B
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7475 User input or interface means, e.g. keyboard, pointing device, joystick
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2021/0083 especially for waking up
• 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: G04G 13/026 acting at a number of different times
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 21/04 using radio waves radio-controlled time-pieces G04R
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation

Abstract

A method comprising monitoring a user'"'"'s movements and determining when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session. The method further comprising identifying the sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep, and waking up the user at a predetermined time, based on a combination of user preferences and measured information regarding the sleep session.

Claims

1. A method for measuring sleep, the method comprising:

monitoring, by a sleep monitoring device, a user'"'"'s movements;

determining, by the sleep monitoring device, based on the user'"'"'s movements, when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session;

determining, by the sleep monitoring device, based on the user'"'"'s location, whether the user falling asleep would have a negative effect on the user, and when the user falling asleep would have a negative effect on the user, notifying the user to change the user'"'"'s location;

automatically identifying, by the sleep monitoring device, a sleep session type based on a plurality of the user'"'"'s location, time since a last longer sleep, and time of day, the sleep session type defined as one of a power nap or a longer sleep, wherein the power nap consists of a portion of a sleep cycle, wherein a length of the power nap is based on a plurality of settings associated with the power nap;

when the user falling asleep does not have a negative effect on the user, allowing the user to fall asleep and waking up, by the sleep monitoring device, the user with an alarm at a predetermined time, based on a combination of the sleep session type, user preferences, and measured information regarding the sleep session such that the user is in a light sleep stage when the alarm wakes the user; and

when the sleep session type is a power nap, adjusting, by the sleep monitoring device, the plurality of settings associated with the power nap based on the measured information regarding the sleep session.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user preferences are automatically determined based on calendar information for the user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying further comprises a command made using one of:

a user interface dial, a user interface button, or a menu.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitoring comprises an accelerometer, wherein the accelerometer is worn on a wrist strap.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the wrist strap comprises a wristband, and the accelerometer is part of a monitoring device coupled to the wristband.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the wrist strap includes an integral monitoring device, and further includes an integral connector through which the monitoring device may be coupled to a computing device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the alarm comprises one or more of:

an increasingly louder sound and an increasingly stronger vibration.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing the user'"'"'s movement data to a server; and

making the user'"'"'s movement data available to the user.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the pre-determined time is based on a default optimum time for a power nap, adjusted based on historical data from the user.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

when a longer sleep is identified, determining whether there is an alarm set, the alarm set based on one of;

a min/max time, a number of sleep cycles completed, or a number of sleep cycles completed within a max time window.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein when the alarm is set based on the min/max time, the user is woken up at an optimal sleep cycle time, at a latest point in the min/max time.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein when the alarm is set based on the number of sleep cycles and a maximum time window, waking up the user with the alarm comprises waking the user at an optimal time, when the maximum time window will expire prior to the completion of the number of sleep cycles set in the alarm.

13. A method for measuring sleep, the method comprising:

monitoring, by a sleep monitoring device, a user'"'"'s movements using an accelerometer in close proximity to the user;

determining, by the sleep monitoring device, when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session based on the user'"'"'s movements;

determining, by the sleep monitoring device, based on the user'"'"'s location, whether the user falling asleep would have a negative effect on the user, and when the user falling asleep would have a negative effect on the user, notifying the user to change the user'"'"'s location;

automatically identifying, by the sleep monitoring device, a sleep session type of the sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep, wherein the power nap consists of a portion of a sleep cycle, based on a combination of a current time of day, a time since a last longer sleep, and a location of the user, wherein a length of the power nap is based on a plurality of settings associated with the power nap;

when the user falling asleep does not have a negative effect on the user, allowing the user to fall asleep and waking up, by the sleep monitoring device, the user at a predetermined time, based on a combination of the current time of day, the time since the last longer sleep, the location of the user, user preferences, the sleep session type, and measured information regarding the sleep session, such that;

when the sleep session is identified as a power nap, the waking of the user is prior to a start of a deep sleep segment of a first sleep cycle and the plurality of settings associated with the power nap are adjusted based on the measured information regarding the sleep session;

when the sleep session is identified as a longer sleep, the waking of the user during a light sleep segment, after a plurality of sleep cycles.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the identifying is based on a command entered by the user using one of:

a user interface dial, a user interface button, or a menu.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the accelerometer is in a wristband, and the wristband comprises one of:

an accelerometer and computing device coupled to the wristband; and

an integral accelerometer, and an integral connector through which the monitoring device may be coupled to a computing device.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the computing device comprises a mobile phone device.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the alarm comprises one or more of:

an increasingly louder sound and an increasingly stronger vibration.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

providing the user'"'"'s movement data to a server, the server providing processing of the movement data; and

displaying the user'"'"'s movement data to the user on an associated device.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein when the sleep session is identified as the powernap, the pre-determined time is based on a default optimum time adjusted based on historical data from the user.

20. An apparatus to measure a user'"'"'s sleep comprising:

an accelerometer to monitor a user'"'"'s movements;

a processor configured to;

determine when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session based on the user'"'"'s movements;

determine, based on the user'"'"'s location, whether the user falling asleep would have a negative effect on the user, and when the user falling asleep would have a negative effect on the user, notifying the user to change the user'"'"'s location;

identify the sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep, wherein the longer sleep comprises an overnight sleep period and a power nap consists of a portion of a sleep cycle, the identification being based on a current time of day, a time since a last longer sleep, and a location of the user, wherein a length of the power nap is based on a plurality of settings associated with the power nap;

when the user falling asleep does not have a negative effect on the user, determine a time to wake up the user, based on a combination of the current time of day, the time since a last longer sleep, the location of the user, user preferences, and measured information regarding the sleep session, such that;

when the sleep session is identified as a power nap, the waking of the user is prior to a start of a deep sleep segment of a first sleep cycle;

when the sleep session is identified as an overnight sleep, the waking of the user during a light sleep segment, after a plurality of sleep cycles; and

when the sleep session type is identified as a power nap, adjust the plurality of settings associated with the power nap based on the measured information regarding the sleep session and adjust the length of the power nap based on the measured information regarding the sleep session and/or the adjusted plurality of settings associated with the power nap; and

an alarm to wake up the user at the time determined by the processor.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a memory to store the user'"'"'s movements; and

a display to show a sleep pattern to the user, based on the user'"'"'s movements, the sleep pattern showing periods of wakefulness, light sleep, and deep sleep.