AUXILIARY INSTRUMENT FOR INDUCING SLEEP AND THE LIKE BY UTILIZING LIGHT

Abstract: An auxiliary instrument for inducing a man into the states of sleep, meditation and the like by utilizing light. This instrument (1) has such a construction that illuminants (9, 10, 11 and 12) are disposed on blinders corresponding to the both eyes at locations on opposite sides of, and above and below respective center points (14a, 14b) of the blinders. The conventional inducing auxiliary instrument has been constructed such that one each illuminant is provided at each of the eye positions of the blinders, whereby the respective illuminants are frequently shifted from the eye positions due to variations in the distance between the both eyes, thus reducing the effect by half. In this respect, by use of the inducing auxiliary instrument according to the present invention, some of the illuminants on the opposite sides, and above and below correspond to the positions of the both eyes, so that a desired inducing effect can be obtained reliably.

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD This present invention relates to an aid for inducing sleep or the like which induces a person to a state such a sleep or meditation utilizing light. TECHNICAL BACKGROUND As taught by US-A-4 892 106 there is a conventional aid having a configuration wherein one or several light emitting bodies are disposed at each of the both-side positions of a bandage. When this bandage is attached to the face, the eyes are closed, and thereafter each light emitting body performs a blinding operation at a predetermined period, light from each light emitting body is projected intermittently from above the eyelid. When this light stimulation acts on the brain through the optic nerve, the brain waves transit from α waves β waves, and induces the person to a sleeping state or the like. However, the inducing aid of this kind has a problem that the interval between the right and left eyes individually varies more or less when the bandage is attached, and therefore the right and left light emitting bodies deviate often from the positions of both eyes, and the effect thereof is reduced by half. In FR-A-2 554 605, a plurality of lamps circumferentially disposed are used : as the lamps are not near the center of the eyes, the effect on sleep inducing is reduced. The present invention purposes to reliably obtain a desired inducing effect even if individual differences exist in the interval between both eyes. DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION An aid for inducing sleep utilizing light of the present invention is characterized by the features recited in appended claim 1. In accordance with the present invention, a light emitting body is disposed at each of the both sides and top and bottom positions of the positions of both eyes of the bandage around the centers thereof, and therefore when the bandage is attached, any of the light emitting bodies of the both-side positions or the top and bottom positions corresponds to each of the positions of both eyes even if the interval between the right and left eyes individually varies more or less, and therefore a desired inducing effect is obtained reliably. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Figure 1 is a perspective view of an inducing aid of an embodiment in accordance with the present invention. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line A-A in figure 1. Figure 3 is a front view of a bandage. Figure 4 is a front view showing a state of connection of the inducing aid to a drive controlling apparatus. Figure 5 is an explanatory view showing a state of use. Figure 6 is a block diagram of a controlling circuit. PREFERRED FORM FOR THE EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Figure 1 and figure 2 show an aid for inducing sleep or the like 1 of an embodiment in accordance with the present invention. This inducing aid 1 has a whole form similar to eyeglasses, and is configurated with a bandage 2 and a holder 3. The holder 3 comprises a main body 4 consisting of color glasses and a pair of left and right supports 5a and 5b, being pivotally connected with both ends of the main body 4 in a manner freely bendable. Each of the supports 5a and 5b are curved along the side-shape of the face, and fixing parts 6 to the ears are formed at the tips thereof. The above-mentioned bandage 2 is configurated with a pair of right and left printed boards 7 and 7 mounted on the main body 4 of the holder 3, and eye-touch plate 8 superposed continously on the both boards 7, and light emitting bodies 9-12 consisting of right and left groups of four light emitting diodes mounted on the both boards 7. The above-mentioned eye-touch plate 8 is formed with a soft foaming agent in a shape running along the main body 4 of the holder 3, and four through-holes 13 are opened at each of the positions of both eyes, and the above-mentioned light emitting bodies 9-12 are projected through the respective through-holes 13. As shown in figure 3, these light emitting bodies 9-12 are disposed at the both sides and the top and bottom positions of the positions of both eyes around the centers 14a and 14b thereof. The above-mentioned centers 14a and 14b are set statistically from an average distance d between the both eyes, and the light emitting bodies 9 and 10 are positioned at the positions on a horizontal line 15 symmetrically with respect to the center 14a and 14b, and the light emitting bodies 11 and 12 are positioned at the positions on a vertical line 16 symmetrically with respect to the centers 14a or 14b, respectively. In a case of this embodiment, the distance between the light emitting bodies 9 and 10 at the positions of both sides is set to 12.5 mm, and the distance between the top and bottom light emitting bodies 11 and 12 is set to 13.5 mm, respectively. Among these light emitting bodies 9-12, for the light emitting bodies 9 and 11 at the inside position and the top side position, light emitting diodes emitting red light are used, and for the light emitting bodies 10 and 12 at the outside position and the bottom side position, light emitting diodes emitting green light are used. As shown in figure 4, the above-mentioned inducing aid 1 is electrically connected to a drive controlling apparatus 17 by a connecting wire 18, and to this drive controlling apparatus 17, a headphones 19 and a power connecting terminal 20 are further connected respectively by the connecting wires 21 and 22. The above-mentioned drive controlling apparatus 17 incorporates a controlling circuit in a case 23, and a keyboard 24 with plural keys is installed on the surface of the case 23. Figure 6 shows an example of circuit configuration of a controlling circuit 25. In figure 6, a CPU 26 is a main unit of arithmetic operations and controls, being connected to a ROM 28 storing programs and a RAM 29 as a working area through a Bus 27. To the CPU 26, a reference signal generator 30 is connected, and a clock signal CK is supplied. To the above-mentioned Bus 27, the keyboard 24, a light signal generating circuit 35 and a sound signal generating circuit 36 and the like are connected through 1/0 interfaces 31-33. The light signal generating circuit 35 drives the above-mentioned inducing aid 1, and the sound signal generating circuit 36 drives the headphones 19, and the light signal generating circuit 35 outputs light signals for making the red light emitting bodies 9 and 11 and the green light emitting bodies 10 and 12 alternately perform blinking operations to the inducing aid 1, and the sound signal generating circuit 36 outputs sound signals for intermittently generating buzzer sound to the headphones 19, respectively. Time of lighting and period of blinking of the light emitting bodies 9-12, and frequency, time of generation and period of intermittence of buzzer sound are set by a plurality of programs stored in the ROM 28, and these programs can be selected by the operation of the keyboard 24. In the case of this embodiment, the period of blinking of the light bodies 9-12 and the period of intermittence of buzzer sound are made to agree with each other. UTILITIES IN APPLICATION TO INDUSTRIES Figure 5 shows a state that this inducing aid 1 is used. The inducing aid 1 is held at the position of eyes, and the headphones 19 are set at the ears, and then the drive controlling apparatus 17 is driven. In this case, when the bandage 2 is attached, any of the light emitting bodies 9 and 10 at the positions of both sides or the light emitting bodies 11 and 12 at the top and bottom positions corresponds to each of the positions of both eyes even if the interval between the right and left eyes individually varies more or less, and therefore a desired inducing effect is obtained reliably.

Claims: An aid for inducing sleep utilizing light which comprises a bandage (2) large enough to cover both eyes, and a holder (3) for holding said bandage (2) at the position of the eyes, two sets of light emitting bodies (9-12) being disposed symmetrically, characterized in that : centers (14a, 14b) of positions of both eyes are decided on said bandage by statistical average positions of both eyes, and said sets are two pairs of light emitting bodies (9 and 10), (11 and 12) disposed near each center (14a or 14b), in a manner that a first pair of light emitting bodies (9 and 10) are positioned symmetrically on a horizontal line (15) with respect to the center (14a or 14b), and a second pair of light emitting bodies (11 and 12) are positioned symmetrically on a vertical line (16) with respect to the center (14a or 14b). An aid for inducing sleep or the like utilizing sleep or the like accordance with claim 1, wherein among said light emitting bodies (9, 10, 11 and 12), the light emitting bodies (9 and 11) at the inside and the top-side positions are light emitting diodes emitting red light, and the light emitting bodies (10 and 12) at the outside and the bottom-side positions are light emitting diodes emitting green light.

Inventors: MASUDA ISAMU - SASAOKA -CHOME, MASUDA, ISAMU, 16-31, SASAOKA 3-CHOME CHUO-KU
Applicants: NIHON KENKOZOSHIN KENKYUKAI KK, NIHONKENKOZOSHINKENKYUKAI CO. LTD.
Application year: 1991
Main classification: A61M21
IPC codes: A61M21, A61N5