JP6934826B2 - Cognitive function maintenance and improvement system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cognitive function maintenance and improvement system for maintaining or improving a person's cognitive function.

In general, dementia is a symptom in which the cognitive function of a normally developed person is impaired by an acquired organic disorder of the brain, which hinders one's life. Dementia is not a formal disease name, it is a so-called syndrome, and the diagnostic method has not been established medically and the cause is not clear, but for example, Alzheimer's dementia, Lewy body dementia, brain Vascular dementia and the like can be mentioned.

In recent years, the number of patients presumed to have dementia has been increasing, but it is difficult to completely eliminate the cause, and at present, the symptoms of dementia should be alleviated or the symptoms of dementia should progress. Only restraining training and rehabilitation are being carried out. Relieving the symptoms of dementia is called improving cognitive function, and suppressing the progression of dementia symptoms is called maintaining cognitive function. In addition, it is possible to prevent the onset of dementia or delay the onset of dementia by preventing further deterioration of cognitive function in the pre-diagnosis stage of dementia, that is, in mild cognitive impairment. The maintenance of cognitive function in the pre-diagnosis stage of dementia has been emphasized.

Patent Document 1 discloses a dementia preventive device that prevents dementia by asking a simple question. This dementia prevention device asks multiple types of questions, accepts the user's answer, and then determines the pros and cons based on the correctness of the accepted answer and the time required for the answer. The frequency of questions with a strong tendency is higher than the frequency of questions with a tendency of weakness.

Patent Document 2 discloses a dementia prevention system that presents a problem used for training to prevent dementia. This dementia prevention system is configured to divide a plurality of users into groups, determine the problems to be asked for each group, and present the determined problems to the users.

Patent Document 3 discloses a device for improving dementia by singing. This device collects the voice emitted by the user singing, evaluates the singing ability based on the collected voice, and automatically selects another song to be sung by the user based on the evaluation result. It is configured to output.

Japanese Patent No. 6277008 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-180933 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-51124

By the way, a method of preventing dementia by having a user answer a problem as in Patent Documents 1 and 2 has been conventionally known, but further improvement in its effect is desired. Further, in the case of Patent Document 3, although it is an attempt to improve dementia by having the user sing, the number of users is limited because some users are reluctant to sing.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to further enhance the effect of maintaining cognitive function and the effect of improving cognitive function of various users.

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, the user is allowed to perform aerobic exercise in combination with a cognitive function training game.

The first invention is a cognitive function maintenance / improvement system for maintaining or improving a person's cognitive function, in which a rotating member that rotates by a user moving his / her hand or foot to perform aerobic exercise, and the rotating member together with the rotating member. An aerobic exercise device having a pulse generation unit that rotates and generates a plurality of pulses per rotation of the rotating member, a pulse detection unit that detects a pulse generated by the pulse generation unit, and a pulse detection unit. An image generation unit that generates a game image for cognitive function training that changes according to the interval of the detected pulse, a display unit that displays the game image for cognitive function training generated by the image generation unit, and the cognitive function. The image generation unit includes an operation reception unit that accepts an input operation by the user when the training game image is displayed on the display unit, and a heart rate measurement unit that measures and outputs the user's heart rate. Before displaying the cognitive function training game image on the display unit, a warm-up screen instructing the user to start warm-up is generated and displayed on the display unit, and the game using the cognitive function training game image ends. After that, a cool-down screen for urging the user to perform a cool-down exercise is generated and displayed on the display unit, and the heart rate measured by the heart rate measuring unit during the warm-up, the game, and the cool-down exercise is measured. When the user's aerobic exercise area is exceeded, a warning is displayed on the display unit, and the operation reception unit signals by pressing with a hand or foot with a touch sensor that accepts an input operation by the user's finger. composed of at least one of the input and the signal input device for performing the characterized Rukoto.

According to this configuration, when the user performs aerobic exercise with an aerobic exercise device, the rotating member rotates, and a pulse is generated by the pulse generating unit. The generated pulse is detected by the pulse detection unit. The image generation unit generates a game image for cognitive function training that changes according to the interval between pulses detected by the pulse detection unit. At this time, since a plurality of pulses are generated per rotation of the rotating member, even if the user can rotate the rotating member only slowly, the interval between the pulses becomes narrow, and therefore within a predetermined time. The change in the pulse interval in is likely to appear. Therefore, not only users who can perform aerobic exercise quickly, but also users who perform slow aerobic exercise will change the game image for cognitive function training displayed on the display, so use it. One can be aware of the link between his aerobic exercise and the game image for cognitive function training.

That is, in the present invention, the cognitive function training game is played while being aware of the interlocking of the aerobic exercise and the cognitive function training game image while obtaining the effect of maintaining and improving the cognitive function by the aerobic exercise. Compared with the case of only solving the problem or singing as in the conventional example, the effect of maintaining the cognitive function of the user and the effect of improving the cognitive function are further enhanced.

Further , the cognitive function of the user is maintained or improved by performing the input operation while the user sees the game image for cognitive function training displayed on the display unit.

In addition, the training effect of cognitive function is further enhanced by incorporating the movement of the user's fingers and the movement of the hands and feet.

The second invention is characterized in that the aerobic exercise equipment includes a speed increasing mechanism that increases the rotation speed of the pulse generating unit to be higher than the rotation speed of the rotating member.

According to this configuration, when the user rotates the rotating member, the rotation speed of the pulse generating unit is higher than the rotation speed of the rotating member. Therefore, the number of pulses generated during one rotation of the rotating member should be increased. Can be done. As a result, even when aerobic exercise is performed slowly, the change in the pulse interval within a predetermined time is more likely to appear, so that the game image for cognitive function training displayed on the display unit is surely changed. be able to.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the image generation unit causes the display unit to display an image that changes its position in the horizontal axis direction or the vertical axis direction of the display unit according to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detection unit. It is characterized by being configured in.

According to this configuration, when the user changes the rotation speed of the rotating member, the position of the image displayed on the display unit changes. Therefore, the position of the image is controlled by the rotation speed of the rotating member, for example, the target position. It can be taken to, etc., and the training effect of cognitive function can be obtained by adjusting the rotation speed.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the image generation unit is configured to display on the display unit an image in which the moving speed appears to have changed due to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detection unit. It is a feature.

According to this configuration, when the user changes the rotation speed of the rotating member, it seems that the moving speed of the image displayed on the display unit has changed. The training effect of cognitive function by adjustment can be obtained .

According to the present invention, by combining aerobic exercise and a cognitive function training game, it is possible to further enhance the cognitive function maintenance effect and the cognitive function improvement effect of various users.

It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the cognitive function maintenance improvement system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the form of using the cognitive function maintenance improvement system connected to the Internet. It is a block diagram of a cognitive function maintenance improvement system. It is a perspective view of the aerobic exercise equipment. It is a top view of the aerobic exercise equipment. It is a cross-sectional view of the aerobic exercise equipment which concerns on modification 1. FIG. It is a top view of the aerobic exercise equipment which concerns on modification 2. FIG. It is a vertical cross-sectional view of the aerobic exercise equipment which concerns on the modification 3. It is a cross-sectional view of the aerobic exercise equipment which concerns on the modification 3. It is a flowchart which shows the operation of the cognitive function maintenance improvement system. It is a flowchart which shows the transition of a game screen. It is a figure which shows the screen of the 1st game. It is a figure which shows the screen of the 2nd game. It is a figure which shows the screen of the 3rd game.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the following description of the preferred embodiment is essentially merely an example and is not intended to limit the present invention, its application or its use.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 includes an aerobic exercise device 2, a tablet terminal 3, and a heart rate measuring device 4, and is a system for maintaining or improving a person's cognitive function. It can also be called a device. Examples of users of the cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 include, for example, patients with dementia and patients in the pre-diagnosis stage of dementia, that is, patients with mild cognitive impairment, but are not limited to these, for example, dementia and. It may be an elderly person who does not have mild cognitive impairment. Dementia is not an official name of the disease, but examples thereof include Alzheimer-type dementia, Lewy body dementia, and cerebrovascular dementia.

In addition, maintenance of cognitive function includes maintenance of cognitive function in the stage before diagnosis of dementia and maintenance of cognitive function that has declined to some extent, and if cognitive decline is prevented, dementia It can also prevent or delay the onset. Further, the improvement of cognitive function is to improve the deteriorated cognitive function. The cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 according to the present embodiment can not only maintain the cognitive function but also improve the cognitive function.

(Structure of aerobic exercise equipment 2)
The aerobic exercise device 2 is a device for the user to perform aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise is a mild or moderate load exercise that can be continued for a long period of time, and varies from person to person, but is performed while maintaining a heart rate lower than 70% to 60% of the maximum heart rate. It is an exercise. Exercise that can be continued for 20 minutes or more without difficulty can also be called aerobic exercise.

The aerobic exercise equipment 2 according to the present embodiment is configured to be capable of performing so-called bicycle-rowing exercise, and is called an exercise bike, fitness bike, or the like. As shown in FIG. 4, the aerobic exercise equipment 2 includes a main body portion 20, a crank (rotating member) 21, a pulse generation plate (pulse generation unit) 22, and a pulse detector (pulse detection unit) 23. ing. The main body 20 is, for example, a housing made of a resin material or the like, and is configured so as not to slip on the floor surface when placed on the floor or the like.

The crank 21 is a member that rotates when the user performs aerobic exercise. The left-right intermediate portion of the crank 21 is rotatably supported around the horizontal axis with respect to the main body portion 20 via, for example, a ball bearing (not shown). The left and right sides of the crank 21 project outward from the left and right side walls of the main body 20, respectively. Pedal 21a on which the user rests his / her foot is rotatably attached to the left end and the right end of the crank 21 around the horizontal axis. The left-right direction of the aerobic exercise device 2 corresponds to the left-right direction of the user when the user takes the posture to be used. Further, the user can perform aerobic exercise by placing the left and right feet on the pedals 21a while sitting on a chair or the like (not shown) and rotating the crank 21 in that state. The user can also perform aerobic exercise by holding the pedal 21a by hand and rotating the crank 21.

Various methods can be used to obtain the pulse signal, and an example is shown below. The pulse generation plate 22 is a member that rotates together with the crank 21 to generate a plurality of pulses per rotation of the crank 21. The pulse generation plate 22 is fixed to an intermediate portion of the crank 21, and is composed of a circular plate extending in the radial direction of the rotation axis of the crank 21. A plurality of white regions 22a and black regions 22b are alternately provided on one side surface of the pulse generation plate 22 in the rotational direction. The number of pulses generated per rotation of the crank 21 can be changed depending on the number of the white region 22a and the black region 22b. The number of pulses generated per rotation of the crank 21 is 2 or more, preferably 5 or more, and more preferably 10 or more. The larger the number of pulses generated per rotation of the crank 21, the finer the changes in the game screen, which will be described later, which is preferable.

The pulse detector 23 is provided outside the main body 20 and has a light emitting element and a light receiving element made of an LED or the like (not shown), and converts a change in the intensity of light received by the light receiving element into a pulse signal. It is a conventionally well-known device configured to perform the above. The light emitting element of the pulse detector 23 irradiates light toward the side surface of the pulse generation plate 22 where the white region 22a and the black region 22b are provided. The light receiving element of the pulse detector 23 is arranged so as to receive the reflected light from the side surface of the pulse generation plate 22 where the white region 22a and the black region 22b are provided. Therefore, when the pulse generation plate 22 rotates while the light emitting element of the pulse detector 23 is irradiated with light, the intensity of the light received by the light receiving element changes periodically, and the intensity of the periodic light becomes A pulse signal can be obtained from the change. The pulse detector 23 is configured to be able to output a pulse signal.

As shown in FIG. 5 and the like, the aerobic exercise equipment 2 includes a load detector 26 and a load generator 27. As the load generator 27, a well-known one can be used, and examples thereof include a mechanical load generator, a load generator using a magnetic force (permanent magnet, an electromagnet), and the like. One or more can be used to load the rotation of the crank 21. As an example of a mechanical load generator, the crank 21 is caused by the frictional force generated between the rotary drum and the friction material by bringing the friction material fixed to the main body 20 into contact with the rotary drum fixed to the crank 21. There is something that puts a load on the rotation of. In this case, the rotational load of the crank 21 can be changed by changing the contact force (surface pressure) of the friction material with respect to the rotating drum. Further, in the case of a load generator using a magnetic force, the rotational load of the crank 21 can be changed by changing the magnetic force. The rotational load of the crank 21 is the exercise load of the user, and the exercise load of the user can be changed by changing the rotational load of the crank 21. The rotational load of the crank 21 may be changed so that the user can exercise in the aerobic exercise region.

The load detector 26 is an instrument for detecting the rotational load of the crank 21. In the case of a mechanical load generator, the rotational load of the crank 21 can be detected by directly or indirectly detecting the contact force of the friction material with respect to the rotating drum by various sensors. In the case of a load generator using a magnetic force, the rotational load of the crank 21 can be detected by detecting the change in the magnetic force with a sensor. The rotational load of the crank 21 can also be adjusted stepwise, in which case it is possible to detect in which load region. The load detector 26 is configured to be able to output the detected rotational load information of the crank 21 as an electric signal.

As shown in FIG. 5 and the like, the aerobic exercise equipment 2 includes a communication unit 24. The communication unit 24 can be composed of, for example, a communication module conforming to a wireless communication standard such as Bluetooth, an infrared communication module, or the like. A pulse signal is input from the pulse detector 23 to the communication unit 24, and rotational load information of the crank 21 is input from the load detector 26. The pulse signal input to the communication unit 24 and the rotational load information of the crank 21 are transmitted by the communication unit 24 to the tablet terminal 3. The shorter the pulse signal transmission interval is, the better, and the interval can be, for example, 0.1 second to 0.5 second. The rotational load information of the crank 21 may be transmitted only when there is a change in the load.

The communication unit 24 may be a wired communication module. In this case, the communication unit 24 of the aerobic exercise equipment 2 and the communication unit 34 (shown in FIG. 3) of the tablet terminal 3 may be connected by a signal line or the like.

Reference numeral 25 shown in FIG. 5 is a power supply. The power supply 25 can be, for example, a battery, and is for supplying electric power to the pulse detector 23, the communication unit 24, the load detector 26, and the like. The power may be supplied from, for example, a general outlet.

The pulse generation plate 22, the pulse detector 23, the communication unit 24, the load detector 26, and the power supply 25 can be attached to an aerobic exercise device that does not have them. As a result, the general-purpose aerobic exercise equipment in a general household or the like can be used as the aerobic exercise equipment 2 of the present invention, so that the introduction cost of the cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 can be reduced.

In the above example, the case where the aerobic exercise equipment 2 is composed of an exercise bike, a fitness bike, or the like has been described, but the aerobic exercise equipment 2 is not limited to these, and although not shown, for example, walking exercise ( It may be a treadmill or the like capable of performing walking) or light jogging. The roller (rotating member) rotates when the user walks on the belt of the treadmill. A pulse generation unit may be provided so as to rotate with the roller, and a pulse detection unit may be provided on the main body of the treadmill.

(Structure of heart rate measuring device 4)
As shown in FIG. 1, the heart rate measuring device 4 includes a heart rate measuring unit 40 and a band 41. The band 41 is configured so that it can be wrapped around the user's wrist, and is a member for fixing the heart rate measuring unit 40 to the wrist. The heartbeat measuring unit 40 is a portion that measures the heartbeat by a conventionally known method. For example, the wrist artery is irradiated with infrared light, and the reflected infrared light is received by a light receiving element to change the light receiving intensity. It has a built-in heart rate sensor 42 (shown in FIG. 3) that can measure the heart rate based on the above. The heart rate sensor 42 can be obtained as a heart rate by measuring the pulse rate.

Further, the heart rate measuring device 4 has a built-in communication unit 43. The communication unit 43 can be configured by a communication module similar to the communication unit 24 of the aerobic exercise equipment 2. The heart rate (the number of heart beats per minute) output from the heart rate sensor 42 is input to the communication unit 43, and the input heart rate is transmitted to the tablet terminal 3. The shorter the heart rate transmission interval, the better, and the interval can be, for example, 0.1 second to 0.5 second.

Although not shown, the user's heart rate can also be obtained from changes in blood flow in the user's earlobe. In this case, a heart rate sensor is attached to the earlobe. The heart rate of the user can also be obtained by attaching a heart rate sensor to the chest of the user.

(Configuration of tablet terminal 3)
As shown in FIG. 1, the tablet terminal 3 includes a housing 30 and a display 31. The tablet-type terminal 3 can include a terminal equipped with a small display such as a smartphone. The display 31 is a display unit of the present invention and is attached to the housing 30. The display 31 is composed of various flat display devices such as a liquid crystal display panel and an organic EL panel, and can display various information such as characters, moving images, and still images. The display 31 is controlled by the control device 32. The display 31 displays a game image for cognitive function training generated by the image generation unit 32a, which will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 3, the tablet terminal 3 further includes a control device 32, a touch sensor 33, a communication unit 34, and a storage unit 35. The touch sensor 33 is provided in a state of being laminated on the surface of the display 31, and therefore can also be called a touch panel. The touch sensor 33 is a sensor capable of detecting the pressed position on the display screen, and a conventionally known sensor can be used. For example, various methods such as a resistance film method that detects the pressed position on the display 31 by measuring a change in voltage, a capacitance method that detects a change in capacitance, and an infrared optical imaging method can be used. can. The touch sensor 33 can detect both the pressing by the user's finger or the like and the pressing by the operating member such as the pen. The pressing position on the display screen detected by the touch sensor 33 is output to the control device 32. The touch sensor 33 is an operation reception unit that receives an input operation by the user when the game image for cognitive function training is displayed on the display 31. The operation reception unit may be a signal input device 44 that inputs a signal by pushing it with a hand or a foot. As the signal input device 44, for example, a push button or the like can be used, and a device or the like that detects that the push button is pressed by a hand or a foot and outputs a predetermined signal can be mentioned. The push button can be used for up / down / left / right operations and determination operations. Further, when the crank 21 is rotated by hand, the signal input device 44 can be operated by the foot, and when the crank 21 is rotated by the foot, the signal input device 44 can be operated by the hand. The input device 44 can be arranged.

The storage unit 35 is configured to be able to store programs and applications (game applications for cognitive function training) and also to store game results and the like, which will be described later. The storage unit 35 can be composed of, for example, a semiconductor element memory such as a solid state drive (SSD), a hard disk, or the like. The storage unit 35 is connected to the control device 32, and data can be exchanged with the control device 32.

The communication unit 34 is a communication module configured to be able to communicate with the communication unit 24 of the aerobic exercise device 2 and the communication unit 43 of the heart rate measuring device 4. The pulse signal output from the communication unit 24 of the aerobic exercise device 2, the rotational load information of the crank 21, and the user's heart rate output from the communication unit 43 of the heart rate measuring device 4 are received by the communication unit 34. It is sent to the control device 32.

The control device 32 is composed of a central processing unit (CPU), a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and is configured to operate according to an OS program and an application program installed in advance.

The control device 32 includes an image generation unit 32a that generates a game image for cognitive function training that changes according to the interval between pulses detected by the pulse detector 23. The image generation unit 32a can be configured by software or hardware. Details of the game image for cognitive function training generated by the image generation unit 32a will be described later.

(Internet connection)
As shown in FIG. 2, the cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 can also be connected to the Internet. In this case, a server 100 is provided so that the tablet terminal 3 and the server 100 can be connected via the Internet. A conventionally well-known method can be used for connection via the Internet. The tablet terminal 3 and the Internet may be either wireless communication or wired communication. Further, the communication between the server 100 and the Internet may be either wireless communication or wired communication. Public telephone lines can also be used for these communications. Further, the tablet terminal 3 and the server 100 can be connected by a LAN (Local Area Network) or the like. In this case, it may be a wired LAN or the like, or it may be a wireless LAN. The cognitive function maintenance and improvement system 1 can also be included including the server 100.

The tablet terminal 3 can determine whether or not the aerobic exercise device 2 is used based on the pulse signal, and grasps the state of the user based on the heart rate detected by the heart rate measuring device 4. You can also do it. The tablet-type terminal 3 periodically stores the usage state such as the frequency and time of use of the aerobic exercise device 2 and the heart rate detected by the heart rate measuring device 4 in the server 100.

A medical institution can connect to the server 100 via the Internet. Examples of medical institutions include family clinics and hospitals of users. The person in charge of the medical institution can browse the usage state and the heart rate of the aerobic exercise device 2 stored in the server 100, thereby grasping the health state and the like of the user.

Further, only relatives and the like can connect to the server 100 via the Internet. By connecting a smartphone owned by a relative or the like to the server 100, only the relative or the like can view the usage status and heart rate of the aerobic exercise equipment 2 stored in the server 100.

(Modified example of aerobic exercise equipment 2)
In the modification 1 shown in FIG. 6, the pulse generation plate 22 and the pulse detector 23 are provided inside the main body 20. As a result, disturbance is reduced during pulse detection, and detection accuracy is improved.

In the second modification shown in FIG. 7, the aerobic exercise device 2 is provided with a speed-increasing mechanism that increases the rotation speed of the pulse generation plate 22 to be higher than the rotation speed of the crank 21. The speed-increasing mechanism is composed of a drive pulley 21b fixed to an intermediate portion in the left-right direction of the crank 21, a driven pulley 28 that rotates about a horizontal axis with respect to a side wall portion of the main body portion 20, and a transmission belt 29. There is. The drive pulley 21b rotates at the same speed as the rotation speed of the crank 21. The driven pulley 28 is rotatably supported by the main body 20 via the support shaft 28a, and is formed to have a smaller diameter than the drive pulley 21b. The transmission belt 29 is wound around the drive pulley 21b and the driven pulley 28, and transmits the rotational force of the drive pulley 21b to the driven pulley 28. A pulse generating plate 22 is fixed to one side surface of the driven pulley 28, and the driven pulley 28 and the pulse generating plate 22 rotate integrally. When the crank 21 rotates, the driven pulley 28 has a smaller diameter than the drive pulley 21b, so that the rotation speed of the pulse generating plate 22 is higher than the rotation speed of the crank 21. Therefore, the number of pulses generated per rotation of the crank 21 can be increased. In the case of this modification 2, the aerobic exercise apparatus of the present invention is attached by attaching them to an aerobic exercise apparatus that does not include the drive pulley 21b, the driven pulley 28, the transmission belt 29, the pulse generation plate 22, and the pulse detector 23. It can be 2.

In the modification 3 shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the drive pulley 21b, the driven pulley 28, the transmission belt 29, the pulse generation plate 22, and the pulse detector 23 are provided inside the main body 20 as in the modification 1. ..

(Maintenance and improvement training for cognitive function)
Next, how to proceed with the maintenance and improvement training of cognitive function using the cognitive function maintenance and improvement system 1 will be described. When the tablet terminal 3 is operated to launch the cognitive function training game application, the process of step SA1 after the start of the flowchart shown in FIG. 10, that is, the title screen is displayed on the display 31. The title screen indicates that the training is for maintaining and improving cognitive function, and the user can grasp that the training for maintaining and improving cognitive function is started by looking at the title screen. The title screen is generated by the image generation unit 32a of the control device 32.

After displaying the title screen on the display 31 for a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step SA2, and the image generation unit 32a generates a device connection and interlocking confirmation screen and displays it on the display 31. While the device connection and interlocking confirmation screen is displayed, is the aerobic exercise device 2 and the heart rate measuring device 4 connected and whether the communication with the aerobic exercise device 2 and the heart rate measuring device 4 is performed normally? Check if it is not. If the communication is normally performed, the process proceeds to step SA3 below, and if the communication is not normally performed, reconnection or the like is requested.

In step SA3, the image generation unit 32a generates a menu screen and displays it on the display 31. On the menu screen, a selection button for selecting one from a plurality of types of games, a result viewing selection button, and the like are displayed. The button operation can be received by the signal input device 44 or the touch sensor 33. Browsing the result is to browse the result of the game played in the past, for example, the score of the game, the highest score of the game, the date and time when the game was played, the number of times the game was played, and the case where the game was played multiple times. Changes in scores, etc.

In step SA4, it is determined whether or not one of a plurality of types of games is selected on the menu screen. If NO is determined in step SA4 and the game is not selected, the process proceeds to step SA5. In step SA5, it is determined whether or not the result viewing is selected on the menu screen. If NO is determined in step SA5 and the result viewing is not selected on the menu screen, the menu screen is continuously displayed on the display 31.

If YES is determined in step SA4 and the game is selected, the process proceeds to step SA6. In step SA6, the image generation unit 32a generates a game screen and displays it on the display 31.

The transition of the game screen will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. In step SB1 after the start, the image generation unit 32a generates a warm-up screen and displays it on the display 31. The warm-up screen encourages the user to exercise with the aerobic exercise equipment 2. For example, an instruction such as "Please start warming up" is issued, and a timer countdown display is displayed so that the instruction is continued for a predetermined time. The control device 32 determines whether or not the warm-up is performed based on the pulse output from the aerobic exercise device 2, and if it is determined that the warm-up is performed, the predetermined time elapses as it is. Wait, and when the predetermined time elapses, the process proceeds to step SB2. If it is determined that the warm-up has not been performed, the process does not proceed to step SB2 and waits.

In step SB2, the image generation unit 32a generates a game screen and displays it on the display 31. Examples of the game screen are shown in FIGS. 12 to 14. FIG. 12 shows an example of the screen of the first game, FIG. 12 shows an example of the screen of the second game, and FIG. 14 shows an example of the screen of the third game. Whether to play the first game, the second game, or the third game can be selected on the menu screen.

In the first game shown in FIG. 12, a large number of obstacles 201 having an arbitrary shape exist in the moving space, and a passage 200 is formed between them. This is a game in which a passage 200 bent into an arbitrary shape moves from the right side to the left side of the display 31, and an image 202 of a moving object stays inside the moving passage 200.

The passage 200 is continuous in the left-right direction of the display 31, and constantly moves from the right side to the left side of the display 31 from the start to the end of the game. The image 202 of the moving object moves below the display 31 when the interval between the pulses detected by the pulse detector 32 becomes wide, that is, when the rotation speed of the crank 21 decreases, and the interval between the pulses detected by the pulse detector 32 When becomes narrower, that is, when the rotation speed of the crank 21 becomes faster, the crank 21 moves onto the display 31. When the image 202 of the moving object comes into contact with the obstacle 201, points are deducted and the score is reduced. Therefore, the user rotates the crank 21 while looking at the display 31 so that the image 202 of the moving object does not come into contact with the obstacle 201. Adjust the speed. That is, when the image 202 of the moving object is about to come into contact with the lower obstacle 201, the rotation speed of the crank 21 is increased, and conversely, when the image 202 of the moving object is about to come into contact with the upper obstacle 201, the rotation speed of the crank 21 is increased. Decrease. Therefore, the image generation unit 32a is configured to display an image 202 that changes its position in the vertical axis direction (vertical direction) of the display 31 on the display 31 according to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detector 23. There is.

It should be noted that the screen shown in FIG. 12 can be displayed on the display 31 in a state of being rotated by 90 °. By displaying in this way, the passage 200 is continuous up and down, and when the image 202 of the moving object is about to come into contact with the obstacle 201 on the right, the rotation speed of the crank 21 is increased, and on the contrary, the image 202 of the moving object. The rotation speed of the crank 21 may be reduced when the crank 21 is about to come into contact with the obstacle 201 on the left side. In this case, the image generation unit 32a causes the display 31 to display an image 202 of a moving object that changes its position in the horizontal axis direction (horizontal direction) of the display 31 according to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detector 23. Will be configured in.

In the second game shown in FIG. 13, at first, a plurality of numbers are randomly displayed in the number display area 203 at the upper part of the screen, and the numbers disappear after a lapse of a predetermined time. The user stores the numbers displayed in the number display area 203. On the screen, the road 204 is displayed so as to flow from the back side to the front side of the screen, and the car 205 is displayed on the road 204. The car 205 can be repositioned on the right and left sides of the road 204. When the user touches the left side of the road 204 displayed on the display 31 with a finger, the touch sensor 33 detects this and makes the image of moving the car 205 to the left side of the road 204. On the other hand, when the user touches the right side of the road 204 displayed on the display 31 with a finger, the touch sensor 33 detects this and makes the image of moving the car 205 to the right side of the road 204. Therefore, the touch sensor 33 is configured to be able to accept an input operation by the user's finger. Apart from the touch sensor 33, it is also possible to receive an input operation by the signal input device 44.

In addition, numbers are displayed on the right side and the left side of the road 204, respectively, and the numbers move from the back side to the front side of the screen so as to accompany the movement of the road 204. When the user performs an operation to move the car 205 to the side where the number displayed in the number display area 203 is located, the car 205 comes into contact with the number and the number is displayed in the number display area 203. Will be done. This is repeated to complete the sequence of numbers displayed in the number display area 203. If the car 205 is brought into contact with the wrong number, points will be deducted.

In this second game, when the interval between the pulses detected by the pulse detector 23 becomes wide, the moving speed of the road 204, that is, the moving speed of the numerical value becomes slow, and conversely, the interval between the pulses detected by the pulse detector 23 becomes narrow. Then, the moving speed of the road 204, that is, the moving speed of the numerical value becomes faster. The shorter the time required to complete the sequence of numbers displayed in the number display area 203, the higher the score. In addition, the numbers displayed on the road 204 include numbers other than the numbers displayed in the number display area 203, and it is necessary to adjust the moving speed of the numbers so as not to touch these numbers. be. In this way, the image generation unit 32a is configured to display on the display 31 an image (numbers on the road 204) in which the moving speed appears to have changed due to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detector 23. ing.

In the third game shown in FIG. 14, first, a number in the number display area 207 at the upper part of the screen is displayed, and the number disappears after a lapse of a predetermined time. After that, the calculation instruction is displayed in the number display area 207. Assuming that the number initially displayed in the number display area 207 is 10, when the instruction to add 20 is displayed in the number display area 207, the user calculates 10 + 20.

Further, the sea level 208 is displayed on the screen, and the yacht 209 is displayed so as to float on the sea level 208. The yacht 209 is displayed in a form that advances in the left-right direction of the screen, and when the interval between the pulses detected by the pulse detector 23 becomes wider, the yacht 209 moves to the right side of the screen, and on the contrary, it is detected by the pulse detector 23. As the pulse interval narrows, the yacht 209 moves to the left side of the screen. Since the yacht 209 disappears from the screen when the pulse becomes 0, the user must always rotate the crank 21 in order to continue the game.

When the user touches the upper side of the sea surface 208 displayed on the display 31 with a finger, the touch sensor 33 detects this and makes an image in which the yacht 209 is moved to the upper side of the sea surface 208. On the other hand, when the user touches the lower side of the sea level 208 displayed on the display 31 with a finger, the touch sensor 33 detects this and makes the image of moving the yacht 209 to the lower side of the sea level 208.

On the sea level 208, numbers that are the answers to the above calculations and other numbers are displayed so as to float, and these numbers are moving from the right side to the left side of the screen. The numbers are displayed on the top and bottom of the screen, respectively. When the user performs an operation of moving the yacht 209 to the side where the number that is the answer to the above calculation is located, the yacht 209 comes into contact with the number and if the answer is correct, a score is obtained. If you touch the yacht 209 to the wrong number, you will be deducted.

The position of the straight line 210 extending in the vertical direction of the screen is fixed. With the yacht 209 positioned on the straight line 210, contacting the correct number will increase the score. Therefore, the user needs to adjust the rotation speed of the crank 21 so that the yacht 209 is located on the straight line 210. Apart from the touch sensor 33, it is also possible to receive an input operation by the signal input device 44.

The first to third games are examples of cognitive function training games, and the shape, size, color, and the like of the image can be arbitrarily determined.

The cognitive function training game preferably uses short-term memory or computational power. The difficulty level of the cognitive function training game can be changed according to the cognitive function.

When the game is completed, the process proceeds to step SB3 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 11, and the image generation unit 32a generates a cool-down screen and displays it on the display 31. The cool-down screen encourages the user to perform a cool-down exercise with the aerobic exercise equipment 2. For example, an instruction such as "Please cool down" is issued, and a timer countdown is displayed so that the instruction is continued for a predetermined time.

The control device 32 constantly monitors the heart rate during warm-up, game, and cool-down. Then, when the heart rate exceeds the aerobic exercise area of the user, a warning is displayed on the display 31 to instruct to stop the exercise.

When the cool-down is completed, the process proceeds to step SA8 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 10, and the image generation unit 32a generates a game result screen and displays it on the display 31. The score of the game and the like are displayed on this game result screen.

After displaying the game result screen on the display 31, or in parallel with displaying the game result screen on the display 31, the result saving process of step SA9 is performed. This is a process of storing the score of the game and the like in the storage unit 35. At this time, the score of the game or the like can be transmitted to the server 100 shown in FIG. 2 and saved.

In step SA10, it is determined whether or not the "end" button displayed on the game result screen has been pressed. If NO is determined in step SA10 and the "End" button is not pressed, the process returns to step SA3 and the menu screen is displayed on the display 31. If YES is determined in step SA10 and the "End" button is pressed, this flow ends.

In step SA7, which is determined to be YES in step SA5, the image generation unit 32a generates a result viewing screen and displays it on the display 31. On the result viewing screen, the results of the games played in the past are displayed.

(Action and effect of the embodiment)
As described above, in the cognitive function maintenance / improvement system 1 according to this embodiment, when the user performs aerobic exercise with the aerobic exercise equipment 2, pulses are generated and change according to the interval between the generated pulses. The image generation unit 32a generates a game image for cognitive function training. At this time, since a plurality of pulses, specifically 2 or more, preferably 10 or more pulses are generated per rotation of the crank 21, the user can rotate the crank 21 only slowly. Even so, the pulse interval becomes narrower, so that the change in the pulse interval within a predetermined time is likely to appear. Therefore, not only the user who can perform aerobic exercise quickly but also the user who performs aerobic exercise slowly changes the game image for cognitive function training displayed on the display 31. One can be aware of the link between his aerobic exercise and the game image for cognitive function training.

In other words, the user's cognition is achieved by playing the cognitive function training game while being aware of the link between the aerobic exercise and the cognitive function training game image while obtaining the effect of maintaining and improving the cognitive function by the aerobic exercise. The effect of maintaining function and the effect of improving cognitive function can be further enhanced.

(Other embodiments)
The above embodiments are merely exemplary in all respects and should not be construed in a limited way. Furthermore, all modifications and modifications that fall within the equivalent scope of the claims are within the scope of the present invention.

In the above embodiment, the display 31 of the tablet terminal 3 is used as the display unit of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the display of a television or a personal computer can also be used as the display unit of the present invention. In the case of a television, a control device and a storage unit are provided externally, and each of the above displays can be performed by inputting an output signal from the control device to the television. In the case of a personal computer, a control device and a storage unit can be configured by the main body of the personal computer.

In addition, since the heart rate and the load information during aerobic exercise can be obtained, the calories burned by the user during aerobic exercise can be calculated based on a conventionally known method.

Further, at the time of a game, not only the display 31 can be displayed, but also various sounds such as a rotation rhythm, sound effects, various songs, calls, and encouragement can be emitted from the speaker of the terminal.

It is also possible to calculate the evaluation score of the cognitive function based on the game result. It is also possible to connect an electronic sphygmomanometer to measure the change in blood pressure of the user and send the measurement result to the terminal. Graph and save the evaluation points of cognitive function, heart rate, and fluctuations in blood pressure, and judge cognitive function and analyze physical health from the evaluation points, the relationship between exercise load and heart rate, and the correlation of blood pressure. You can also do it.

Further, by counting the number of pulses, it is possible to predict the life time and the degree of wear of the parts of the aerobic exercise equipment 2, and it is possible to encourage the user to replace them.

As described above, the cognitive function maintenance and improvement system according to the present invention can be used, for example, when performing training for maintaining or improving a person's cognitive function.

1 Cognitive function maintenance and improvement system 2 Aerobic exercise equipment 3 Tablet type terminal 4 Heart rate measurement equipment 21 Crank (rotating member)
22 Pulse generator (pulse generator)
23 Pulse detector (pulse detector)
31 Display (display unit)
32 Control device 32a Image generator 33 Touch sensor 44 Signal input device

Claims (4)

In a cognitive function maintenance and improvement system for maintaining or improving human cognitive function
An aerobic member having a rotating member that rotates when the user moves his / her hand or foot to perform aerobic exercise, and a pulse generating unit that rotates together with the rotating member to generate a plurality of pulses per rotation of the rotating member. Exercise equipment and
A pulse detection unit that detects the pulse generated by the pulse generation unit, and a pulse detection unit.
An image generation unit that generates a game image for cognitive function training that changes according to the pulse interval detected by the pulse detection unit, and an image generation unit.
A display unit that displays the game image for cognitive function training generated by the image generation unit, and
An operation reception unit that accepts an input operation by the user when the cognitive function training game image is displayed on the display unit, and an operation reception unit.
Equipped with a heart rate measuring unit that measures and outputs the user's heart rate
Before displaying the game image for cognitive function training on the display unit, the image generation unit generates a warm-up screen instructing the user to start warm-up and displays it on the display unit for the cognitive function training. After the game based on the game image is completed, a cool-down screen for urging the user to perform a cool-down exercise is generated and displayed on the display unit, and the heart rate measuring unit performs the warm-up, the game, and the cool-down exercise. When the measured heart rate exceeds the aerobic exercise area of the user, a warning is displayed on the display unit.
The operation reception unit includes a touch sensor that receives an input operation by a user's finger, the signal input device cognitive maintained, wherein Rukoto composed of at least one of the inputting of the signal by pressing by hand or foot Improvement system. In the cognitive function maintenance and improvement system according to claim 1,
The aerobic exercise device is a cognitive function maintenance / improvement system characterized by including a speed-increasing mechanism that increases the rotation speed of the pulse generating unit to be higher than the rotation speed of the rotating member. In the cognitive function maintenance and improvement system according to claim 1 or 2.
The image generation unit is configured to display on the display unit an image whose position changes in the horizontal axis direction or the vertical axis direction of the display unit according to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detection unit. A cognitive function maintenance and improvement system characterized by. In the cognitive function maintenance and improvement system according to claim 1 or 2.
The image generation unit is configured to display on the display unit an image in which the movement speed appears to have changed due to a change in the pulse interval detected by the pulse detection unit. Improvement system.

Images