IL35751A - Coital timing device - Google Patents

Description

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APPLICATION OF LAWRENCE M. SHERMAN and JAMES E. RICHARDSON for COITAL TIMING DEVICE ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A cdital timing device for determining .the days in which coitus should occur in order to maximize the chances for conception. The timing device calculates the woman's fertile period based upon her past menstrual cycle history and then indicates a coital tiiaing period within which are displayed days for coitus and coitus abstention. A monthly calendar scale is provided to relate the coitus and coitus abstention days to the actual days, of the week and month. - With appropriate marking of the coital timing period, the timing device can be used to minimize the chanc s for conception. family. The "subfertile" group can be further divided into: Sterile Couples 1.1 mm Subfertile Fertile Couples .. 4.1 mm 5.2 : Total ' 7.5 As soon as the. couples experience failure, anxiety develops and the couples begin to fear that they will be unable to have the number of children they desire. This fear increases, for both partners, as their lack of success continues. As a result, the interest and motivation of these couples for help are extremely high. ■'.'-"■··■' There are many reasons why an individual couple may have trouble conceiving. First, let us discuss the so-called "normal" couples. Most normal couples do not know when the fer¬ tile period occurs. Consequently, they do not have intercourse at the optimum time for successful conception. The reason for their ignorance is that many normal couples do not go to the doctor for timing advice, but instead, rely on their own judgment and "rules of thumb" to estimate the fertile period. In most cases , this procedure is not good enough.

; , ;;. ' For . the normal couples who do seek help from their doctors, the rituation is not much better because most doctors do not or cannot provide accurate timing information . The rea¬ sons for this are two. fold: first, the determination of the fer¬ tile period for an individual couple is a very time consuming process1 and most doctors aire jus too busy to be able to spend this amount of time because, of patients with more serious problems; and, second, most doctors are unaware of the latest medical research and the many complicated factors which influence the conception process. As a result, the doctors often recommend an oversimplified and often incorrect intercourse schedule.

The key factors in the conception process are as follows 1. The fertile period during any given menstrual cycle is brief—only 48 hours each month. For many women it is only 24 or 12 hours. This means that random coitus will often miss the crucial period and conception will not occur. 2. "The fertile period varies each month, making it difficult to predict. The date upon which a woman, will, next ovulate (and the fertile period) is subject to the random variations surrounding most biological phenomena. Ovulation is triggered by the pituitary gland, which in turn is affected by the women's: emotional makeup.. Even if a woman had a perfectly regular 28-day cycle, psychological conditions change, and the fertile period would not occur exactly the same time each month. Since there are virtually no women who are this regular, additional variations in the ovulation date are caused by the changes in cycle length.

Even if the "normal." cjuples do get good timing advice, nature improperly. Women generally have difficulty making the required complex calculations and it is time consuming and tedious to calculate/ record, and keep track of menstrual cycles and intercourse schedule. Some couples, in fact, just disregard the doctor's advice because they do not want to have intercourse according to a plan. .;' Additional factors also influence the conception rate among normal couples. Too frequent intercourse can limit the ability to conceive because of reduced sperm, potency. A logical' error which many couples make is to assume that the chance of conception increases with the number of acts of intercourse. The fallacy lies in the fact that some men have oligospermia—barely enough sperm to effect conception. For the oligospermic male, having intercourse too frequently . reduces the quantity of sperm to below the amount necessary for conception. This is a major cause of subfertility . : Another factor is that anxiety and trying "too hard" reduce the ability to conceive. It has beenshown that minor physical problems which might not prevent conception if the individuals were relaxed, can be aggravated by ,anxiety to the point where conception will not occur.

All of these factors help explain why the conception rate among perfectly normal couples is only 25% per month and ot 100%. In other words , if 100 normal couples decide to attempt conception during any- month . without any special nelp, All of the factors mentioned above hold true for the subfertile couple as well as the normal couple. In addition, however, these couples may have one or more physical problems which further reduce their ability to conceive. The subfertile physical problems include: ...·--.. ■.- Ί. Oligospermia 2. Other male pathology ' 3; ; Tubal patholog . ' 4. " Cervical; patholog - ■* ' ."· . Femal endrocrinopathy 6. Gross pelvic pathology ':■:':· - 7. Periodic anovulation ·.· ·.. -,_--·- ■ 8. Extreme irregularity These problems, plus the timing factors, result in a conception rate among subfertile couples of only 1% per month.

If the sterile couples (1.1 million) and the women who have too irregular menstrual cycles (.5 million) are eliminated from the prime child-bearing age group who desire ; children , there will:-be ··approximately.'.5*9: mi'Ilion'dougleS" 'in '"the United States who could be aided in conceiving, by proper coital timing.

An unknown number of other couples could also benefit from proper coital timing information by using the information to minimize, the chances of conception.

An extensive body of art has developed which determines a women's fertile period by reference to her past menstrual hisor Va ious calculators have been desi ned which u e he women' & longest and shortest menstrual cycles to provide a calendar indication of the probable fertile period. Representative examples of the fertility calculators are illustrated i the following United States Patents: CULLIGAN, 2,047,942; SIFRIT, 2,239,344; BRANDAO, 2,350,219; LAUX ET AL, 2,465,238; GREEN, 2,520,208; SCHENK ET AL, 2,577,544; LEE, 2,642,225; ISAMU TSUJI ET AL, 3, 146,943; and, SHERMAN, 3,370,789.

Although the fertility calculators listed above and other prior art calculators all provide an indication of the women's fertile period, usually based upon her menstrual history, none of the calculators takes into account the important coital timing factors during and immediately preceding the calculated [fertile period. These factors, as discussed previously, contribute significantly to maximizing the chances for conception.

It is accordingly a general object of the present invention to provide a coital timing device which correlates a prede-I termined coitus schedule to the calculated fertile period.

It is a specific object of the invention to provide a coital timing device which indicates a coital timing period within .which are established alternating coitus and coitus abstention . periods.

I' ." ' It is another object of the invention to Calculate the coital timing period or fertile period with respect to the user's longest and shortest menstrual cycles.

..It is still a o h r object of the invention to- provide -the chances of conception depending upon the method of use by •the user. · ' -'■·'■■■"· It is a feature of the present invention that the coital timing device stores the user's menstrual cycle information and provides a means "for updating the information if the length of the longest and/or shortest cycles should change.

It is another feature of the invention that the coital timing device is hand-sized and easily manipulated by the user.

These objects and features, and other objects and features, will best be understood from a detailed description of a preferred embodiment, selected for purposes of illustration, and shown in the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a view in side-elevation showing the coital timing device of the present invention; Figure 2 is a. plan. view, of the coital timing device of Figure "1 shown with the. cover removed; Figure 3 is a diagrammatic view, in partial section, of the coital timing device showing the configuration of the calendar and coital timing belts; Figure, is a pla view of a portion of the calendar belt; ' .' Figure 5 is a plan view of a portion of the coital timing belt; ' ·.· '··. -;-· -,'.· ,., ■ · .

·' : ·' ' ■ Figure 6 is a simplified plan view of an embodiment cl !»0 coital timing device viewing windows and associated scales; Figure 7 is a plan view of a days-of-the-week scale; Figure 8 is a plan view of a portion of the coital timing device showing the calendar and coital timing belts assembled in superimposed relation beneath the viewing window scales ; Figure 9 is a partial schematic and block diagram of an electroluminescent lamp, power supply and an actuating micro-switch; and, • Figure 10 is a view in cross-section showing edge illumination of . the calendar and coital timing belts in the coital timing device.

. Turning now to the drawings, and particularly to Figures 1 and 2 thereof, there is shown in side elevation and plan view, respectively, a coital timing device constructed in accordance with the present invention arid indicated generally by-; the reference numeral 10.. Before discussing in detail the structure and operation of the coital timing device 10, it will be helpful to briefly review the physiological basis for the timing device and the computations which are required to predict the user's probable fertile period.

In order to maximize the probability that fertile sperm will.be introduced into the' female genital tract during the most propitious period for eventual fertilization of the egg, seven separate factors must be considered..- A cornerstone in understand ing the, effect of theso factors is the fact that n^t b?. o.l ogical I. at precisely the same time. .What is predictable and definable about these phenomena is the range over 'which they will occur and the degree to which they will be concentrated near the center of the range. ' -· - ··- . - -/ The seven factors that help determine the optimum time for fertile coitus are: I. Conception, or fertilization, can occur only when a sperm joins with an egg. " -2. Almost always, only one egg is released from an ovary during any" single menstrual cycle. "This process is called ovulation. 3. Ovulation most often occurs from 12 to 16 days before the onset of the following menstrual period.

It occurs more frequently 14 days prior to menstruation than 12, 13, 15 or 16 days. 4. Sperm is maximally capable of fertilizing the egg for up to two days following coitus.

. The cervix (the entrance to the uterus) is maximally receptive to sperm only during the two days immediately preceding ovulation. 6. The. menstrual cycles of most women vary continually but somewhat predictably between a certain maximum and' a certain minimum number of days. For a woman" who'has menstrual cycles ' .ranging fron 26-31 days in length, more of her cycles will ^ o. and ¾ days rather than 26, 7. The capacity of the male to produce sperm to " fertilize the egg may be impaired by frequent ·'- ' · - coitus . ■ - .

Since an egg must be released from the ovary before II fertilization can take place, the first step in calculating a woman's fertile period is to predict when ovulation will occur. The only phenomenon, that is observable and can conveniently be utilized in predicting ovulation is menstruation. While ovulation and menstruation are parts of the same cycle, the time of ovula-' tion is more directly related to the onset of the following menstrual cycle than to the preceding cycle. To predict the time of ovulation, therefore, the beginning day of the next menstrual cycle must first be established. Since every woman's menstrual cycle varies continuously, but within a predictable range, this can. be any one of several limited dates—revealed in advance by reviewing the woman's menstrual- cycle experience over the past 6 months . ; From each date so "established as a possible beginning day of menstruation, it is necessary to count backwards 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 days. The dates arrived at .by this calculation j represent the days of probable ovulation. .

"•Once the days of probable ovulation have been established, the fertile period can be calculated. The fertile period begins approximately 48 hours prior to ovulation. This 48 hours coincides "both with'the time of maximum receptivity of the cervix II to sperm and to the life span of the sperm itself. The receptivity oi Lrie cervix depends on the condition of a secretio called the It the above-described relationships between menstruation, ovulation, and the fertile period. The specific formula is as follows: 1. Estimate the number of days in the shortest menstrual cycle over the past six months. 2. From this number, subtract 14 days to determine the 'first suggested day of coitus. 3. For individuals with cycles of 25 days or more, and a variation of 3 days or less between the longest and shortest cycles, coitus is recommended on two additional occasions--two days and four days following the first recommended day. 4. The individuals with a variation of 4 to 5 days between the longest and shortest cycles, another suggested day of coitus is added—again, two days t: following the last one. . 5. For individuals with a variation of 8 to 10 days , a sixth recommended coital day is added--two days following the preceding one. 6. For women with cycles of 24 days or less, additional adjustments are made in the calculations. This is necessary because in short cycles, ovulation occurs later on in the cycle, ■J closer to the succeeding menstruation. A i ;· i : greater variation between longest and shortest cycles is allowed in women whose shortest cycle d e Shortest Cycle Longest Cycle Days for Coitus 29 29 -' 32 15, 17, 19 33 - 34 15, 17 , 19, 21 - 36 15, 17, 19 , 21, 23 37 39 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25 30 33 16, 18, 20 3 - 35 16, 18, 20, 22 36 - 37 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 38 40 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26 31 31 34 . 17, 19, 21 - 36 17, 19, 21 , 23 37 38 17, 19, 21, 23, 25 39 41 17, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27 32 32 35 18, 20, 22 36 - 37 18, 20, 22, 24 38 - 39 18, 20, 22, 24, 26 • 40 42 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28 - 33 33 36 19, 21, 23 37 - 38 19, 21, 23, 25 39 - 40 19, 21, 23, 25, 27 41 43 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29 34 _.34 37 ■ 20, 22, 24 38 - 39. 20, 22, 24, 26 40 - 41 20, 22, 24, 26, 28 42 4 20, 22, 24, 26 , 28, 30 35 38 21, 23, 25 39 - 40 21, 23, 25, 27 41 - 42 21, 23, 25, 27, 29 43 - 45 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31 beneath the coital timing increment extending scale 58 in the tim ing window 24. Alternatively, the coital timing increment extending scale 58 can be placed on the face plate.. The coital timing increment extending scale 58 comprises alternating coitus and coitus abstention increments 62 and 64, respectively, each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of. the corresponding coitus and coitus, abstention increments on the timing belt which, in turn, have the same scalar length as the daily increments on the calendar scale.

Looking specifically at Figures 5, 6 and 8, it can be seen that the spacing of the shortest and longest cycle indicia 52 and 54 with respect to the associated coital timing increment 46 is designed so that the shortest and longest cycle indicia will be visible in the corresponding shortest and longest cycle windows 26 and 28 when. the elements are assembled as shown in Figure 8. The spacial relationship is such that when the shortest cycle indicia representing, a "28" day shortest cycle is visible in the shortest cycle window 26 and the longest cycle indicia representing a "28-31" day longest cycle is visible in the corresponding longest cycle window 28, the three coitus increments 48 on the timing belt will be positioned exactly beneath the three coitus increments 62 on the coital timing increment extending scale 58. As the coital timing belt 42 is moved upwardly, as viewed in Figures 5, 6 and 8, the shortest cycle indicia will still indicate "28", while the longest cycle window will display, longest cycles corresponding to "32-33", "34-35" and "36-38" day cycles. ! -through' gearing (not shown) to a calendar belt drive wheel 66. I A housing mounted spring 88 provides the desired rachet action ; for, the calendar belt. Thus, for the user, rotation of the ; calendar belt. control knob 84 will "click" advance or reverse j the movement of the calendar belt by an amount which equals one .daily increment on the. calendar scale. ......

•The coital- timing device 10 is set for the user's par-.

I .

I ' ■ ■ ; ticular menstrual. history in the following manner. The calendar ; belt knob 74 is rotated until the correct shortest cycle indicia !f 52 appears in the face. plate window.26. The coital timinq-* belt \ control knob 74 is . then; "fine tuned" to position the correct ; longest cycle indicia .range within the face plate window 28. At : this point . the . coital timing . device has been set for the woman's ; particular menstrual history. However, it should be noted that ; the coital timing information displayed in the timing -window 24 ! bears no relation to the current calendar. The correct calendar relationship is obtained by rotating the calendar belt control ,' knob 84 until the calendar scale 36 is correctly aligned to cor-·. respond to the commencement day of the current menstrual cycle.

For example, looking at. Figure 8, the coital timing device has i been set for a shortest cycle of "28" days and a longest cycle ! within the range of "36-38" days.- -Assuming that the current cycle began on October .8 ,. the calendar belt control knob 84 'is rotated until the calendar scale daily increment for October 8 is positioned over the beginning of cycle index 56.

When this is done., the coital timing device will correctly display the proper sequence of coitus and coitus abstention days ■ within the probable fertile period in relation to the calendar. j; In order to facilitate the use of the coital timing j! device, it is desirable . to' provide a days-of-the-week reference ii for the calendar scale and coital timing increments. For this jj purpose, the preferred embodiment of the present invention in- . eludes a relatively movable days-df-the-week scale 90 as shown • in Figures 2 and 7. Positioning of the days-of-the-week scale 90 j! is performed by moving an attached slide handle 92 in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the calendar One additional user convenience that is desirable in •I a coital timing device of the type described is some means for •I the user to determine the length of her cycles without requiring —j' any:comput-atio-n. ·-Loo-king at Figures 6 and 8, a separate begin-jj ning-of-cycle index 94 and cycl.e le..ng.th.nu..me.ra.l.s.cal.e 96. is pro-!; vided on the transparent window member 60. The length of any H I; ■par■t■i■c■ular'■■cycle ·is .determine·d by setting the calend.a'r. scale so jj that the date of the beginning of the current cycle is aligned j with the beginning of cycle index 94. When the next cycle begins, ί! the user locates the correct date on the calendar scale and then il , j' reads the cycle length directly off the scale 96 by looking !· at the number opposite the date of the new cycle.

It will be appreciated from the preceding description :i that the coital timing belt 42, calendar belt 34, and . the face !i plate window scales are assembled in superposed relation over a ; support 98 as shown in Figure 8. Given this configuration, the : coital timing belt 42 can be made of opaque, translucent, or tran |:. parent material. The overlying calendar belt 34 is formed from a transparent material as is the face plate coital timing window < member 60. Since the coital timing device may be used under • elfl i v<=>iy dim. illumi.n?.^-5 n c.ndi tionc , the fcelf support 98 in

Claims (1)

1. Claims A coital timing device a first support means having a first scale divided a pl ural i ty of increments representing a of calendar months said monthly being subdivided dai ly a second support having a second scale into a plural ity of spaced coi tal timing timing increments being subdivided into al ternating coitus and a corresponding plural i t of shortes t and longest cycle indicia posi tioned on second support means and a beginning of cycle index for each of coital timing increments positioned on second support means at a predetermined scalar distance from the ponding coital timing predeteralned being a function of the numerical value of the corresponding shortest cycle means associated said second scale for Increasing the apparent of coitus and coitus abstention by an amount whic 1s a function of the selected longest cycle and the selected shortest cycle and means for securing support means to permit rel tive movement The coital timing device of claim 1 said coital timing e nto al ternating coi tus and coi tus abstention each having scalar length at least equal to the scalar length of one of first scale ly The timing device of claim 1 further characterized by second support means second scale having a corresponding plural ity of spaced initial coi tus abstention period each having a a scalar length equal to the scalar length of a predetermined number of said first scale dally said Initial coitus abstention ments being positioned on said second scale Immediately preceding the corresponding coital timing The coi tal timing device of claim further characterized by support means having third scale divided Into a plurality of each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of one of first scale ly and means for positioning third support means scale al sa d first suppor means calendar scale to provide indication for each wi thin a selected portion of calendar The timing device of claim 2 further characterized by a third support means having a third scale divided a plurality of each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of one of first scal e increments for posi tioning third support means scale 1n al ignment with first support means calendar scale to provide a indication for each ly within a selected portion of A coital timing device a a first parallel lateral ly spaced rollers rotatably mounted 1n a calendar mounted on and extendi ng between first pair of rol lers said belt being longer than tie lateral spacing between said rol lers so that the rol lers function as both iupply and takeup l depending upon the direction of and calendar belt having a calendar scale divided Into a plurali ty of representing number of calendar monthly increments a second of parallel lateral ly spaced rollers mounted 1n housing 1n paral lel relation to first of rollers a coital belt mounted on and g between said second pair of rol belt being longer than the lateral spacing between said rollers so that the rollers function as both supply and takeup rolls depending upon thei ection of rotation said coi tal t iming belt havi a al timing scale divided into a plural of spaced coital timing a corresponding plurali ty of shortest and longest cycle indicia tioned on sa d bel and a beginning of cycle Index for each of coital timing i ncrements positioned on said belt at a predetermined scalar distance from corresponding coital timing predetermined scalar distance being a function of the numerical val ue of the corresponding shortest cycle indicia and said coital timing being positioned with respect to said calendar belt so that the coi tal timing scale and beginning of cycle indicia can be to the calendar and means operatively associated coital timing scale for the apparent scalar length of coital by an amount which Is a function of the selected longest cycle Indicia and the selected shortest cycle The coital timing device of claim further characterized by said coital timing scale a corresponding plural ity of spaced tial coitus abstention period increments each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of a predetermined number of calendar scale increments coitus abstention being positioned on coital timing scale Immediately the corresponding coital timing The device of 6 further characte by a support means having a day scale divided a plurali ty of each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of one of calendar scale ly Increments and means for positioning said support means day scale 1n alignment wi th said calendar bel t calendar to provide a Indication for each da ly I crement a selected portion of said calendar The timing device of claim 6 further characteri by means for coital timing t 1n corresponding to the scalar length of two of calendar bel t calendar scale ly The coi tal timing device of claim 9 further characterized by means for moving said calendar 1n Increments corresponding to the scalar length of of said calendar belt calendar scale ly The coi tal timing device according to claim 6 wherein coital timing are subdivided into alternating coitus and coitus abstention ncrements ach a scalar length at least equal to the scal ar length of one of calendar scale ly increments The coital timing device according to claim 6 wherein said tal timing are subdivided coitus and coitus abstention which predetermined intercourse The coital timing device of claim further characterized by coital scale having corresponding plural i ty of spaced coitus abstention period each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of a predetermined number of calendar scale dally initial coitus abstention being positioned on said coital timing scale preceding the coital increments The coital timing device of claim 12 further characterized by support means havin said calendar scale ly Increments and means for positioning said support mean day scale 1n alignment with calendar t calendar scale to a Indication for each increment within a selected portion of calendar The coital timing device of claim 1 wherein said coi tal timing are subdivided coitus and coitus abstention increments which define predetermi The coital timing device of claim further characterized by said second support means second scale having a corresponding plural i ty of spaced initial coitus abstention period increments each having a scalar length equal to the scalar length of a predetermined number of first scale increments coitus abstention being positioned on said second immediately the corresponding coital timing increments insufficientOCRQuality