Patent ID: 8630716

Claim:
A method, comprising: generating a neural stimulation signal only during a duty cycle of a stimulation period to provide intermittent neural stimulation for a neural stimulation therapy, including: generating the neural stimulation signal during the duty cycle of the stimulation period to provide the neural stimulation therapy with an intensity at a therapy level for a portion of the duty cycle, the neural stimulation signal including a stimulation pulse train; and implementing a ramp up protocol to begin the duty cycle, a ramp down protocol to end the duty cycle, or both the ramp up protocol to begin the duty cycle and the ramp down protocol to end the duty cycle; wherein the ramp up protocol includes a programmed value for at least one programmable ramp up parameter, and wherein implementing the ramp up protocol includes stepping up the intensity from a zero value before the duty cycle when the neural stimulation signal is not generated to a non-zero first subthreshold level for the neural stimulation therapy at the beginning of the duty cycle, and implementing a programmed ramp up algorithm to ramp up the intensity from the non-zero first subthreshold level at the beginning of the duty cycle to the therapy level; and wherein the ramp down protocol includes a programmed value for at least one programmable ramp down parameter, and wherein implementing the ramp down protocol includes implementing a programmed ramp down algorithm to ramp down the intensity from the therapy level to a non-zero second subthreshold level for the neural stimulation therapy at the end of the duty cycle, and stepping down the neural stimulation intensity from the non-zero second subthreshold level at the end of the duty cycle to the zero value after the duty cycle.