US 5,507,716 A · Equipment and methods used to induce lucid dreams in sleeping persons

Abstract

Equipment and methods employed to assist people to achieve lucid dreams (dreams in which one is aware that one is dreaming) function by detecting and monitoring the eye and head movements of sleeping persons for the presence of sufficient eye movement activity in the absence of head movement to indicate the presence of REM sleep and then applying sensory stimuli to sleepers in REM sleep, which if incorporated into their dreams, can cue them that they are dreaming without producing awakening. With this equipment and methods, people are able to have more lucid dreams than they otherwise would. A preferred embodiment includes a face mask that contains two infrared emitter-detector pairs, one for sensing eye movements and one for sensing body movements, a state-test button, and components that produce low intensity sensory stimuli such as light and sound. A microprocessor monitors the fluctuating voltage from the infrared pairs for the occurrence of a predetermined sequence of voltages, adjustable in software, and when the correct sequence occurs, triggers the stimuli-producing components in the mask into activity, to cue the sleeper to become lucid. The methods include many procedures and adjustable parameters for optimizing the timing of the application of the sensory cues to the sleeper. Among these procedures and parameters are those used to locate the time in the sleeper's REM periods when the cue will be most effective, and those used to apply the sensory stimuli at these optimal times.

Claims40

Dependent claims

Equipment used to provide low level sensory stimuli to a sleeping person so that he or she may become consciously aware that he or she is dreaming, while he or she continues to sleep and dream, thereby having lucid dreams, comprising:

a) a means to detect the eyelid movements of a sleeping person and to create signals of such eyelid movements;
b) electrical and electronic component means to supply electrical power to the means to detect eyelid movements, and to receive signals from the means to detect eyelid movements, and when these signals reach a designated rate, then conduct electrical power to a low intensity stimuli producing component means;
and
c) a low intensity stimuli producing component means to receive electrical power from the electrical and electronic component means, while a person is dreaming and effectively stimulating this sleeping person;
and
d) a means whereby the intensity of said stimuli producing means is adjusted so that the stimulus, when applied to the sleeping person, is of low enough intensity so that it does not awaken them, yet is high enough to cause them to become consciously aware they are dreaming while they continue to sleep, thereby having lucid dreams.

3 more elements

Equipment used to provide low intensity level sensory stimuli to a sleeping person so that he or she may become consciously aware that he or she is dreaming, while he or she continues to sleep and dream, thereby having lucid dreams, comprising:

a) infrared emitter and detector means positioned to detect the eyelid movements of a sleeping person;
b) electrical and electronic component means to supply electrical power to the infrared emitter and to receive an electrical signal from the infrared detector means, and thereafter modify this electrical signal into a digital form;
c) computer means to receive the digital form of the eyelid movement signals;
d) software means to process such digital exe movement information, and, based upon preset conditions, control the operation and intensity of a low intensity level stimulus producing component means;
and
e) a low intensity stimuli producing component means located adjacent the sleeping person and arranged to receive energy to create stimuli as determined by the operation of the computer means, when the sleeping person is dreaming, whereby the created stimuli provide the sleeping person with a cue, without awakening her or him, that she or he is lucidly dreaming.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Equipment and methods used to induce lucid dreams in sleeping persons

Life of this patent

Equipment and methods used to induce lucid dreams in sleeping persons

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims40