JP7144638B1 - Condition improvement device - Google Patents

Abstract

A condition improving device capable of sufficiently improving the physical and mental condition of a user by effectively stimulating the user with vibration using vibration or the like is provided. A condition improving device is a device that provides vibration-based stimulation to promote improvement of the user's mental and physical condition, acquires information indicating the user's heartbeat, and uses the information indicating the heartbeat to obtain information indicating the user's heartbeat. a heartbeat recognition unit that recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user; and a stimulation content determination unit that determines a tempo synchronized with the heartbeat tempo of the user recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as the tempo of the stimulation to be provided to the user. and a stimulus generating unit configured to generate the stimulus at the tempo determined by the stimulus content determining unit toward the user. [Selection drawing] Fig. 8

Description

The present invention relates to a device for improving a user's condition.

Conventionally, a vibration control device for awakening or relaxing a user is known (see Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-57954

According to the invention of Patent Document 1, vibration can be given to the user to wake him up or relax him. However, the user's mental and physical condition could not be sufficiently improved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a condition improving device capable of sufficiently improving the physical and mental condition of a user by effectively giving vibration stimulation to the user.

The condition improving device of the present invention is
A device that provides vibration stimulation to promote improvement of the user's mental and physical conditions,
a heartbeat recognition unit that acquires information indicating the heartbeat of the user and recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat;
a desired state reception unit that receives designation by the user of a desired state indicating a state desired by the user;
a stimulation content determination unit that determines a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as the tempo of the stimulation to be provided to the user;
a stimulus generation unit that generates the stimulus with the tempo and length determined by the stimulus content determination unit toward the user;
The stimulus content determination unit
determining a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as a tempo at the start of the stimulus, and determining a length of the stimulus according to the tempo at the start of the stimulus;
When the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit is a state in which parasympathetic nerves are dominant, the change in tempo is determined so as to be delayed from the start time point to the end time point of the stimulation. It is characterized by

Alternatively, the condition improving device of the present invention is
A device that provides vibration stimulation to promote improvement of the user's mental and physical conditions,
a heartbeat recognition unit that acquires information indicating the heartbeat of the user and recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat;
a desired state reception unit that receives designation by the user of a desired state indicating a state desired by the user;
a stimulation content determination unit that determines a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as the tempo of the stimulation to be provided to the user;
a stimulus generation unit that generates the stimulus with the tempo and length determined by the stimulus content determination unit toward the user;
The stimulus content determination unit
determining a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as a tempo at the start of the stimulus, and determining a length of the stimulus according to the tempo at the start of the stimulus;
When the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit is a state in which sympathetic nerves are dominant, the change in tempo is determined so as to increase from the start point of the stimulus to the end point of the stimulus. It is characterized by

According to the inventor's research, the parasympathetic nerve is dominant by starting the vibration and music included in the stimulation provided to the user at a tempo that is synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat, and then slowing down the tempo. It was found that the user is easily guided to, and the effect of improving the user condition increases.

In addition, the user is guided to a state in which the sympathetic nervous system is dominant by starting the vibration and music included in the stimulus provided to the user at a tempo that is synchronized with the user's heartbeat tempo, and then changing the tempo so that it becomes faster. It was found that it is easy to use, and the effect of improving the user state increases.

According to the present invention, if the desired state specified by the user is a state in which the parasympathetic nerves are dominant, the vibration and music included in the stimulation provided to the user are started at a tempo that is synchronized with the tempo of the heartbeat of the user. Since the vibration and music that change so as to slow down the tempo after the start are generated for the user, the user can be effectively guided to a state in which the parasympathetic nerves are dominant. Alternatively, if the desired state specified by the user is a state in which the sympathetic nerves are dominant, the vibration and music that change so that the tempo becomes faster after that are generated for the user, so that the user is in a state in which the sympathetic nerves are dominant. can be effectively induced.

Therefore, when the state desired by the user is the state in which the parasympathetic nerves are dominant or the state in which the sympathetic nerves are dominant, the user is guided to the desired state to effectively improve the user's state. can be done.

<Details of test results>
Test results of the effect of improving the user's mental and physical conditions (work efficiency, fatigue state, ease of inducing sleep) using the condition improving device of the present invention are shown below.

<Effect of improving work efficiency and fatigue state>
The details and results of the test regarding the effect of improving work efficiency and fatigue state are as follows.

<First test on improvement effect of work efficiency and fatigue state>
· Test overview Mental workload creates a fatigued and stressed state.
Indices related to fatigue and stress (fatigue, work efficiency, cortisol level) were measured in that state.
After the measurement, the subjects were allowed to experience vibration under any one of the four conditions, and after the experience, the same index as before the mental workload was measured.
Calculate the amount of change in each index after mental work load (before vibration experience) and after vibration experience (- if the numerical value decreased after the vibration experience compared to after mental work load, and + if it increased). , the effect of vibration on the state of fatigue was confirmed by comparing the average of responses regarding the degree of fatigue under Condition 1 (no vibration presentation) and the average of responses under Conditions 2, 3, or 4.

・Flow of the test The flow of actions on the day is as follows.
(1) Arrive at the examination venue and spend 10 minutes quietly.
(2) Mental workload was performed for 45 minutes.
(3) 0.5 mL of saliva was collected for cortisol measurement, responses to fatigue by VAS, and tasks for evaluating work efficiency were performed.
(4) Experience vibration under any of conditions 1 to 4 for 2 minutes.
The subjects are divided into four groups, and each group experiences one of conditions 1-4.
(5) After resting for 10 minutes, 0.5 mL of saliva was collected for cortisol measurement, and a response to fatigue by VAS and a task for evaluating work efficiency were performed.

・Conditions for vibration experience Hold the vibration device with both hands for 2 minutes and experience one of the following 4 conditions.
Condition 1: No vibration is presented = Target for comparison Condition 2: Heartbeat-like vibration of bpm synchronized with heartbeat is presented Condition 3: Heartbeat-like vibration of bpm added to heartbeat is presented Condition 4: Heartbeat of bpm that is subtracted 20bpm from heartbeat similar vibration is presented

・ Test participants 60 men in their 30s and 40s Divided into 4 groups of 15 people each and experienced one of the test conditions 1 to 4

・Conditions for Exclusion from Participation Those who have difficulty holding the device with both hands due to finger injuries

・Specific method of mental workload 2-back task 30 minutes + ATMT (R task) 15 minutes, total 45 minutes.
(2-back task)
A short-term memory task in which alphabets are randomly displayed on a personal computer screen every 3 seconds, and if the currently displayed alphabet is the same as the alphabet displayed two characters ago, the right click is performed, and if they are different, the left click is performed.
(ATMT (R task))
A simple visual search reaction task in which 25 letters of the alphabet from A to Z are randomly displayed on the computer screen, and the arrangement is set to change each time the "R" is clicked, and the "R" is quickly clicked.

・Fatigue, work efficiency, specific measurement method for cortisol (Fatigue)
A subjective feeling of fatigue was measured by a VAS (Visual Analog Scale) method.
With the left end as no fatigue (0) and the right end as the maximum fatigue never felt before (100), the position of the current fatigue is checked. The checked position is measured as a number from 0-100.
(Measurement of work efficiency)
Three sets of ATMT (ABC task) (about 10 minutes) are performed, and the number of errors in C task is used for evaluation.
(ATMT (ABC task))
Task A: Task to press the numbers 11 to 35 fixed on the screen in order Task B: The layout does not change, and when you press the target number, the number disappears and a new number appears at an arbitrary position ( Example: If you press 11, 11 disappears and 36 appears.)
Task C: Each time you press the target number, the arrangement of all the numbers changes, and you press the numbers in order (cortisol measurement).
The saliva is collected using a saliva collection kit (Salipet (Sarstedt Co.)).
Put the sponge in the kit in your mouth, soak it with saliva, collect the sponge in a tube, and collect the saliva by centrifugation.
The amount of cortisol in the collected saliva is measured by a contracted inspection company.

（作業能率）
図２は、条件１～４のＣ課題のエラー数の変化量の平均値を対したグラフであり、表２は、条件１～４のＣ課題のエラー数の変化量の分析結果である。条件１と比較して条件２で有意にエラー数の減少が見られ、作業能率の向上効果が確認された。

（コルチゾール）
図３は、条件１～４のコルチゾールの変化量の平均値を対したグラフであり、表３は、条件１～４のコルチゾールの変化量の分析結果である。条件1と比較して条件２で有意にコルチゾールの減少が見られ、ストレス・疲労減少効果が確認された。

・Test result (fatigue)
FIG. 1 is a graph comparing average values of changes in fatigue scores in conditions 1-4, and Table 1 shows the analysis results of changes in fatigue scores in conditions 1-4. A significant reduction in fatigue was confirmed in condition 2 compared to condition 1. (“*” on the side of the table indicates that ***p<0.001, **p<0.01, *p<0.05. Same below.)

(work efficiency)
FIG. 2 is a graph showing the average value of the variation in the number of errors in Task C under conditions 1-4, and Table 2 shows the analysis results of the variation in the number of errors in Task C under conditions 1-4. A significant reduction in the number of errors was observed under condition 2 compared to condition 1, confirming the effect of improving work efficiency.

(Cortisol)
FIG. 3 is a graph of the mean values of changes in cortisol under conditions 1-4, and Table 3 shows the analysis results of changes in cortisol under conditions 1-4. A significant reduction in cortisol was observed in condition 2 compared to condition 1, confirming the effect of reducing stress and fatigue.

<Second test on improvement effect of work efficiency and fatigue state>
・Outline of the test The state of the autonomic nervous system was measured, and it was determined whether the subject was in a state of sympathetic nerve dominance, parasympathetic nerve dominance, or balanced, depending on the autonomic nerve balance.
After that, indexes (feeling of fatigue, work efficiency, cortisol level) regarding fatigue and stress during normal time (before experiencing vibration) were measured.
Considering the state of autonomic nerve balance, the subjects experienced vibration under any one of the four conditions, and after the experience, the same index as during normal time (before the vibration experience) was measured.
Calculate the amount of change in each index during normal time (before vibration experience) and after vibration experience, and calculate the average of the responses regarding fatigue under Condition 1 (no vibration presentation) and the average of the responses under Conditions 2, 3, or 4. By comparing, we confirmed the effect of experiencing suitable vibrations depending on the autonomic nerve state.

・Flow of the test The flow of actions on the day is as follows.
(1) Visit the test venue and measure for 2 minutes with an accelerometer to measure autonomic nerve balance.
(2) Collect 0.5 mL of saliva for measuring cortisol.
(3) Responses to fatigue by VAS and tasks for evaluating work efficiency.
(4) Experience the vibration of one of the conditions 1 to 4 for 2 minutes.
The subjects are divided into four groups, and each group experiences one of conditions 1-4.
(5) Collect 0.5 mL of saliva for measuring cortisol after resting for 10 minutes.
Responses to fatigue by VAS and tasks for work efficiency evaluation are implemented.

・Conditions for vibration experience (1)
Divide into four groups according to the results of autonomic balance A: Sympathetic nerve dominant, parasympathetic nerve dominant, balanced type, all humans are equally included B: Sympathetic nerve dominant human C: Parasympathetic nerve dominant human D : Balanced person ・Conditions for vibration experience (2)
Hold the vibrating device in both hands for 2 minutes and experience according to each group.
Condition 1 Subject: Group A No vibration presented = comparison target.
Condition 2 Subject: Group B A heartbeat-like vibration is presented, starting from bpm synchronized with the heartbeat and decreasing over 2 minutes to 50 bpm.
Condition 3 Subject: Group C A heartbeat-like vibration is presented starting from bpm synchronized with heartbeat and increasing to 1.5 times bpm over 2 minutes.
Condition 4 Subject: Group D A heartbeat-like vibration of bpm synchronized with the heartbeat is presented fixedly for 2 minutes.

・ Test participants 60 men in their 30s and 40s Divided into 4 groups of 15 people each and experienced one of the test conditions 1 to 4

・Conditions for Exclusion from Participation Those who have difficulty holding the device with both hands due to finger injuries

・ Specific method for grouping by autonomic nerve balance Accelerated pulse wave measurement system (Altet (Umedica Co., Ltd.)) Measured accelerated pulse wave LF (low frequency component) / HF (high frequency component) by frequency analysis of aa interval Calculate the frequency component) If the value of LF/HF is 2 or more, the sympathetic nerve is dominant, if it is less than 0.8, the parasympathetic nerve is dominant, and if it is 0.8 or more and less than 2, it is judged as a balanced type, and grouping is performed. conduct

・Fatigue, work efficiency, specific measurement method for cortisol (Fatigue)
Subjective fatigue is measured by the VAS (Visual Analog Scale) method. The current position of fatigue is defined as no fatigue (0) at the left end and the maximum fatigue (100) that has never been felt before at the right end. check. The checked position is measured as a number from 0-100.
(Measurement of work efficiency)
Three sets of ATMT (ABC task) (about 10 minutes) are performed, and the number of errors in C task is used for evaluation.
(ATMT (ABC task))
Task A: Task to press the numbers 11 to 35 fixed on the screen in order Task B: The layout does not change, and when you press the target number, the number disappears and a new number appears at an arbitrary position ( Example: If you press 11, 11 disappears and 36 appears.)
Task C: Each time you press the target number, the arrangement of all the numbers changes, and you press the numbers in order (cortisol measurement).
Collect saliva using a saliva collection kit (Salipet (Sarstedt Co., Ltd.) Place the sponge in the kit in your mouth, soak it in saliva, and collect the sponge in a tube Collect saliva by centrifugation Sampled saliva is contracted for testing Measuring cortisol levels in the company

（作業能率）
図５は、条件１～４のＣ課題のエラー数の変化量の平均値を対したグラフであり、表５は、条件１～４のＣ課題のエラー数の変化量の分析結果である。振動なしの状態と比較し、各人の自律神経状態に合わせた振動刺激の条件２，３，４で有意なエラー数の低下が確認され、作業能率の改善効果が確認できた。

（コルチゾール）
図６は、条件１～４のコルチゾールの変化量の平均値を対したグラフであり、表６は、条件１～４のコルチゾールの変化量の分析結果である。振動なしの状態と比較し、各人の自律神経状態に合わせた振動刺激の条件２，３，４で有意なコルチゾールの低下が見られ、ストレス・疲労の減少効果が確認された。

・Test result (fatigue)
FIG. 4 is a graph comparing the mean values of changes in fatigue scores in conditions 1-4, and Table 4 shows the analysis results of the changes in fatigue scores in conditions 1-4. A significant reduction in fatigue was confirmed under conditions 2, 3, and 4 of the vibration stimulation matched to the autonomic nervous state of each subject, compared with the state without vibration.

(work efficiency)
FIG. 5 is a graph showing the average value of the variation in the number of errors in Task C under Conditions 1-4, and Table 5 shows the analysis results of the variation in the number of errors in Task C under Conditions 1-4. A significant reduction in the number of errors was confirmed under conditions 2, 3, and 4 of vibration stimulation matched to each person's autonomic nervous state compared to a state without vibration, and an improvement in work efficiency was confirmed.

(Cortisol)
FIG. 6 is a graph of the mean values of changes in cortisol under conditions 1-4, and Table 6 shows the analysis results of changes in cortisol under conditions 1-4. A significant reduction in cortisol was observed under conditions 2, 3, and 4 of vibration stimulation matched to each person's autonomic nervous state compared to the state without vibration, confirming the effect of reducing stress and fatigue.

<Test on the effect of improving the ease of inducing sleep>
・Outline of the test Before going to bed, the subject held the device that presented heartbeat-like vibrations in their hands for 2 minutes, and went to bed after experiencing the vibration under any one of the three conditions.
After waking up, the subjective feeling of sleep was evaluated using the St. Marie's Hospital Sleep Questionnaire.
The effect of vibration on falling asleep was confirmed by comparing the average of responses under condition 1 (no vibration presentation) and the average of responses under conditions 2 and 3.

・Flow of the test The flow of actions on the day is as follows.
(1) Arrive at the test site by 19:00 (2) Finish eating, bathing, and changing clothes by 21:00 (3) Stay quiet until 22:45 (4) Wear a heart rate measurement device by 23:00 Heart rate measurement and vibration experience For the vibration experience, subjects were divided into 3 groups and experienced one of conditions 1 to 3 (5) Go to bed at 23:00 and turn off the light (6) Wake up at 6:30 the next morning Evaluation of subjective feeling of sleep is performed from 6:45.

・Evaluation of subjective feeling of sleep Questions about the feeling of falling asleep were asked from the sleep questionnaire at St. Marie's Hospital and asked to answer.
(Questions about the feeling of falling asleep)
How difficult was it to fall asleep last night? Score 1: Not at all or hardly any difficulty 2: Somewhat difficult 3: Fairly difficult 4: Extremely difficult

・Conditions for vibration experience Hold the vibration device with both hands for 2 minutes and experience one of the following three conditions: Condition 1: No vibration is presented = Comparison target Condition 2: Heartbeat-like vibration of bpm synchronized with heartbeat is presented Condition 3 Vibration is presented, starting from heartbeat-like vibration of bpm synchronized with heartbeat and decreasing bpm over 2 minutes up to 50bpm.

・ Test participants 30 men in their 30s and 40s Divided into 3 groups of 10 people each and experienced one of the test conditions 1 to 3

・Exclusion conditions for study participation Those who are undergoing sleep treatment by a doctor Those who are taking over-the-counter drugs or supplements claiming to induce or improve sleep Those who have difficulty holding the device with both hands due to finger injuries, etc.

・Specific method of presenting test conditions The vibrating device is connected to a PC.
By running a program that presents vibrations according to condition 2 or 3 on the PC, the subject experiences vibrations through the vibration device held by the subject.
In addition, the heart rate measurement necessary to present condition 2 or 3 is performed as follows. Measures average heart rate (bpm)

Test Results FIG. 7 is a graph comparing the average scores of Conditions 1-3, and Table 7 shows the analysis results of the scores of Conditions 1-3.
Compared to condition 1, heart rate-synchronized stimulation in condition 2 improved the score, and stimulation that decreased from heart rate-synchronized vibration in condition 3 had the highest effect. From these results, it was confirmed that stimulation synchronized with the heart rate, more preferably stimulation synchronized with the heart rate and further lowering the vibration frequency, has an effect of inducing sleep.

<Test of stress/fatigue reduction effect by stimulation of combination of vibration and sound>
·Outline of Test A state of fatigue and stress was created by mental workload, and indices (VAS, fatigue symptom examination, cortisol level) related to fatigue and stress were measured in that state.
Then, we compared the changes in these indexes after experiencing the stimulation of music alone or a combination of music and vibration.

・Flow of the test The flow of actions on the day is as follows.
(1) Arrive at the examination venue and spend 10 minutes quietly.
(2) An index related to fatigue and stress (VAS, examination of fatigue symptoms) is performed, and this is used as "before load" data.
(3) Mental workload was performed for 14 minutes.
(4) Collect 0.5 mL of saliva for post-loading cortisol measurement, and use this as "post-loading" data.
(5) Experience stimulation under any of the following conditions for 4 minutes.
* For the vibration experience, the subjects were divided into 3 groups and experienced all conditions 1 to 3 on different days for each group.
(6) Perform VAS and fatigue symptom examination after stimulation, and use this as "post-stimulation" data.
(7) After resting for 10 minutes, collect 0.5 mL of saliva for cortisol measurement, perform VAS, and examine fatigue symptoms, and use this as "post-rest" data.
(VAS and fatigue symptom survey obtained 3 times, saliva obtained 2 times)
(8) Comparison of changes in each item among the three groups.

・Conditions for vibration experience Hold the vibration device with both hands for 2 minutes and experience one of the following three conditions Condition 1 Music only (same music as Condition 2)
Condition 2 Vibration that changes from heartbeat-like vibration synchronized with the subject's heartbeat to 50 bpm over 4 minutes + music synchronized with the tempo of the frequency shown on the left Condition 3 No stimulation

・Test participants: 36 males in their 30s to 40s. Divided into 3 groups of 12 people each, and experienced one of the test conditions 1 to 3.

・Conditions for Exclusion from Participation Those who have difficulty holding the device with both hands due to finger injuries

・Specific method of mental workload 3 sets of ATMT (ABC task, targets 1 to 35), 5 minutes of 2-back task, total 14 minutes.
(ATMT (ABC task, targets 1-35))
Task A: Task to press numbers 11 to 35 fixed on the screen in order.
B task: The placement does not change, and when you press the target number, that number disappears and a new number appears at an arbitrary position (If you press 11, 11 disappears and 36 appears, and if you press 12, 12 disappears. 37 appears) problem.
Task C: A task in which the arrangement of all numbers is changed each time the target number is pressed.
(2-back task)
A short-term memory task in which alphabets are randomly displayed on a personal computer screen every 3 seconds, and if the currently displayed alphabet is the same as the alphabet displayed two characters ago, the right click is performed, and if they are different, the left click is performed.

・VAS, Fatigue symptom survey, Cortisol specific measurement method (VAS measurement)
Subjective evaluation of stress, tension, and irritability was conducted using the VAS (Visual Analog Scale) method.
Check your current position with the left end as nothing (0) and the right end as the maximum you've ever felt (100). The checked position is measured as a number from 0-100.
(Examination of fatigue symptoms)
In order to understand the state of fatigue associated with work, subjective surveys were conducted on four categories: emotional fatigue, mental fatigue, physical fatigue, and eye fatigue.
There are 5 questions in each category, and they are scored on a 5-point scale from 1 "strongly disagree" to 5 "strongly agree", and the average score is calculated for each category.
Each category and corresponding question is as follows.
Emotional Fatigue: Feeling uneasy, depressed, restless, irritable, unable to think clearly Mental Fatigue: Feeling dizzy, heavy-headed, sick, light-headed, dizzy Fatigue of the body: tired arms, painful back, painful hands and fingers, tired legs, stiff shoulders Eye fatigue: tired eyes, tired eyes, painful eyes, dry eyes, blurred vision (measurement of cortisol)
The saliva is collected using a saliva collection kit (Salipet (Sarstedt Co.)).
Hold the sponge in the kit in your mouth, soak it with saliva, and collect the sponge in the tube.
Saliva is collected by centrifugation.
The amount of cortisol in the collected saliva is measured by a contracted inspection company.

表９は、負荷前と刺激後、負荷前と休憩後の、疲労症状調べの結果の変化を群間比較した結果である。条件３と条件２との比較でのみ有意差を確認した(網掛け部)。条件２のみ疲労症状調べでの効果が確認できた。

表１０は、負荷後と休憩後の唾液中コルチゾール量の変化を群間比較した結果である。条件３と条件２との間でのみ有意差が認められた。

Test Results Table 8 shows the results of comparison between groups of changes in VAS before loading and after stimulation, and before loading and after rest. If the numerical value is - (minus), it means that the condition has improved (the same shall apply hereinafter).
In the former, both conditions 1 and 2 show a significant difference from condition 3. In the latter, a significant difference was confirmed only by comparing conditions 3 and 2 (shaded area). From this, it can be said that the effect of condition 2 on stress lasts longer than condition 1.

Table 9 shows the results of inter-group comparison of changes in fatigue symptom examination results before loading and after stimulation, and before loading and after rest. A significant difference was confirmed only in the comparison between Condition 3 and Condition 2 (shaded area). Only condition 2 was able to confirm the effect in the examination of fatigue symptoms.

Table 10 shows the results of inter-group comparison of changes in salivary cortisol levels after stress and after rest. A significant difference was observed only between conditions 3 and 2.

Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. Graph showing the test results of Improving User Condition. 1 is a block diagram showing an overview of a condition improving device of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the condition improvement device of the present invention; 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the condition improvement device of the present invention; 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the condition improvement device of the present invention; The figure which shows the content of the data which the condition improvement apparatus of this invention uses for a process. 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the condition improvement device of the present invention; 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the condition improvement device of the present invention; 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the condition improvement device of the present invention; The flowchart which shows the example of a change of the processing content of the condition improvement apparatus of this invention.

<Configuration of condition improvement device>
First, the configuration of the condition improving device of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, about the same structure, the same code|symbol may be attached|subjected and description may be abbreviate|omitted.

The state improvement device of the present embodiment provides vibration-based stimuli to improve the user's mental and physical states, such as the user's work efficiency, fatigue state, and ease of sleep induction (hereinafter referred to as "user state"). It is a device that encourages improvement.

The condition improving device of this embodiment includes a device control unit 10, a storage unit 20, and a stimulus generation unit 30, or further includes an imaging unit 50, a display unit 70, and an input unit 90. be. A general-purpose device such as a smartphone or a tablet may be used as the main body of the condition improving device, but a dedicated terminal may also be used. Furthermore, a part of the mechanism that constitutes the condition improving device, such as the stimulus generator 30, may be provided as an external device that is separated from the main body of the condition improving device.

The device control unit 10 includes an arithmetic processing unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory, an I/O (Input/Output) device, and the like. By reading and executing a predetermined program, the device control unit 10 functions, for example, as a heart rate recognition unit 110 and a stimulation content determination unit 130, or further functions as an autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150, a desired state reception unit 170, and an answer reception unit. 190 , the user state information acquisition unit 210 , and the mode reception unit 230 .

The heartbeat recognition unit 110 acquires information indicating the heartbeat of the user and recognizes the tempo of the heartbeat of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat. The heartbeat recognition unit 110 recognizes information indicating the user's heartbeat based on an image of the skin of the user's face or fingers captured by the imaging unit 50, for example.

The stimulus content determination unit 130 determines a tempo that is synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 as the tempo of the stimulus to be provided to the user, such as vibration and sound. Alternatively, the stimulation content determination unit 130 determines the stimulation content based on the information indicating the user's heartbeat, the sign information included in the user condition information acquired by the user condition information acquisition unit 210, or the information on the LF/HF values.

Further, the stimulus content determination unit 130 determines the content of, for example, sound, text, or image information or scent to be provided to the user in combination with vibration, which is a stimulus to be provided to the user.

The autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes the user's autonomic nerve state. The autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes the user's autonomic nerve state, for example, based on the information indicating the user's heartbeat acquired by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 . Alternatively, for example, the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 may recognize the user's autonomic nerve state based on information indicating the user's breathing, blood pressure, body temperature, perspiration, urination, and other states.

The desired state reception unit 170 receives a user's designation of a desired state indicating a state desired by the user via the input unit 90, for example.

The answer accepting unit 190 accepts, via the input unit 90, for example, an input of the user's answer to the question about the state of the user's face displayed on the display unit 70. FIG.

Based on the answer accepted by the answer accepting unit 190, the user status information acquiring unit 210 acquires user status information including sign information indicating the user's condition appearing on the user's face. Alternatively, the user state information acquisition unit 210 acquires user state information including information about the user's LF/HF values based on information indicating the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 .

The mode reception unit 230 has a first mode for recognizing the user's heart rate based on the skin image of the user's face, and a second mode for recognizing the user's heart rate based on the skin image of the user's fingers. The user's specification of an operation mode including mode 2 and , is accepted via the input unit 90, for example.

The storage unit 20 is configured by a storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

The storage unit 20 stores, for example, the user's mental and physical conditions such as work efficiency, fatigue, ease of sleep induction (hereinafter referred to as "user condition"). In addition to storing stimulus information consisting of image and scent information, it also stores the processing result of the condition improvement device and the information necessary for the processing of the condition improvement device. Note that the sound is, for example, music, natural sound (including sound of waves, wind, or synthesized sound simulating these).

The stimulus generation unit 30 is a mechanism for generating a stimulus at a tempo determined by the stimulus content determination unit 130 toward the user, and includes a vibrating unit 310 such as a vibrator that generates vibrations. It is configured including a fragrance generating section 350 to be generated.

Alternatively, if the stimulus provided to the user includes a sound, the sound reproduction unit 40 such as a speaker may be used as the stimulus generator 30. If the stimulus provided to the user includes text or an image (still image or moving image, etc.), the display unit 70 may be used as the stimulus generation unit 30. Function.

The imaging unit 50 is, for example, a camera that acquires, for example, an image of the user's face, or an image of the skin of the face or fingers.

The display unit 70 is, for example, a display, and displays an image of the user's face captured by the imaging unit 50 . Further, the display unit 70 functions as an output unit that outputs the question to the user when the question about the state of the user's face displayed on the display unit 70 is output in the form of characters or an image.

It should be noted that when a question about the state of the user's face displayed on the display unit 70 is output by voice, the sound reproduction unit 40 functions as an output unit.

The input unit 90 is, for example, a touch panel that receives user input to the condition improvement device, but may be configured with an input mechanism such as a keyboard, mouse, or other pointing device.

<Overview of processing>
Next, the processing contents of the condition improvement device of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 16. FIG. FIG. 9 shows the contents of the overall processing of the condition improvement device of this embodiment.

In the state improvement device of the present embodiment, when the process is started, first, the desired state reception unit 170 receives designation of a desired state by the user indicating the state desired by the user (FIG. 9/S11).

The desired state indicating the state desired by the user is, for example, “dominant state of sympathetic nerves”, “dominant state of parasympathetic nerves”, “state of high work efficiency”, “state of recovery from fatigue”, “sleep induction”. However, other mental and physical conditions of the user may be adopted as appropriate.

After that, the imaging unit 50 acquires an image of the user's face (FIG. 9/S31), and the answer accepting unit 190 accepts an input of the user's answer to the question about the user's facial condition (FIG. 9/S33).

More specifically, the display unit 70 displays an image of the user's face captured by the imaging unit 50, and outputs to the user a question regarding the state of the user's face displayed on the display unit 70. . The answer accepting unit 190 accepts, via the input unit 90, the user's answer to the question about the state of the user's face.

In addition, the question is a question that has a correlation with the user's mental and physical conditions such as work efficiency, fatigue state, and sleep quality that appear on the user's face. , "darkness of dark circles around eyes", "state of pimples or pimples", "degree of rise or fall of corners of mouth", and "state of moist lips".

Subsequently, the heartbeat recognition unit 110 recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user (FIG. 9/S35). For example, the heartbeat recognition unit 110 acquires information indicating the user's heartbeat based on the image of the skin of the user's face captured by the imaging unit 50 . The image of the skin of the user's face may be captured in the process of S31, or may be captured again at the start of the process of S35, for example.

Various known methods may be used as a method for the heartbeat recognition unit 110 to acquire information indicating the user's heartbeat from an image of the user's facial skin. Acquisition of information indicating the user's heartbeat by analyzing the change in luminance of a specific color component (e.g., G (green)) included in the information on the change in luminance of each RGB color component of the image using a predetermined algorithm. do.

Then, the heartbeat recognition unit 110 recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat acquired as described above. The heartbeat recognizing unit 110 recognizes, for example, heartbeats per minute (bpm) as the heartbeat tempo of the user.

After that, the user state information acquisition unit 210 executes a process of acquiring user state information (FIG. 9/S37) as necessary, which will be described later.

Then, the stimulation content determination unit 130 determines the tempo of the stimulation to be provided to the user based on the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 (Fig. 9/S50), and furthermore, the content of the stimulation as necessary. is determined (FIG. 9/S80). Details of the process of determining the tempo and content of the stimulus will be described later.

Then, the stimulus generating unit 30, for example, the vibrating unit 310 or the sound reproducing unit 40 generates the stimulus at the tempo determined by the stimulus content determining unit 130 for the user (FIG. 9/S91). A series of processing of the condition improvement device of is completed.

<Processing to acquire user status information>
Processing for acquiring user state information will be described with reference to FIG. 10 .

When the process is started, the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes the user's autonomic nerve state (FIG. 10/S39).

Various methods may be used as a method for the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 to recognize the state of the user's autonomic nerves. That is, for example, the user state information generation unit 311 frequency-analyzes heartbeat fluctuations based on the information indicating the user's heartbeat acquired by the heartbeat recognition unit 110, and calculates LF (Low Frequency), which is a low-frequency component of the heartbeat fluctuations. and HF (High Frequency), which is a high frequency component (LF/HF), is acquired as autonomic nerve balance information.

Based on the answer received by the answer receiving unit 190, the user state information acquiring unit 210 recognizes symptom information indicating the user's state appearing on the user's face (FIG. 10/S41).

More specifically, for example, the user state information acquisition unit 210 displays on the user's face a value obtained by adding the values associated with the options selected by the user for each question about the state of the user's face. It is calculated as a score of symptoms of the user state that is being used, and the score is recognized as symptom information.

The user state information acquisition unit 210 also recognizes information about the user's LF/HF values based on the information indicating the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 (FIG. 10/S43).

More specifically, for example, the user state information acquisition unit 210 recognizes the LF/HF value recognized by the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 as the user's autonomic nerve state in S39.

Also, the user state information acquisition unit 210 determines an autonomic nerve balance score indexed by a score between 1 and 10 for the LF/HF value. For example, the score approaches 1 as the sympathetic nerve is dominant, and the score approaches 10 as the parasympathetic nerve is dominant.

Then, the user state information acquisition unit 210 acquires the thus recognized user state sign score and autonomic nerve balance score as user state information (FIG. 10/S45), and ends the processing for acquiring user state information. do.

<Stimulus tempo determination processing>
First, with reference to FIG. 11, the case where the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 is "sympathetic nerve dominant state" and "parasympathetic nerve dominant state" will be described.

When the process starts, the stimulation content determining unit 130 first determines a tempo that is synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognizing unit 110 as the start tempo of the vibration that is the stimulation (FIG. 11/S51).

Note that "the tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat" does not only mean that the tempo completely matches the tempo of the user's heartbeat. For example, if the heartbeat tempo of the user is between 85 and 89 bpm, 85bpm is determined as the stimulation tempo. , may be configured to determine the recognized tempo as the stimulus tempo.

After that, the stimulus content determining unit 130 determines the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 (FIG. 11/S53).

When the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 is the “dominant state of the sympathetic nerves”, the stimulation content determining unit 130 speeds up, for example, step by step from the stimulation start point to the end point. The tempo change is determined (FIG. 11/S55).

More specifically, for example, the stimulus content determination unit 130 refers to a table such as that shown in FIG. Recognize that the ending tempo is "150% of the tempo of the user's heartbeat" when determining changes.

Then, for example, if the user's heartbeat tempo (that is, the tempo at the start of stimulation) is 55 bpm, 55 bpm×150%=82.5 bpm is determined as the tempo at the end of stimulation.

On the other hand, if the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 is the “predominant state of the parasympathetic nerves”, the stimulation content determination unit 130 delays, for example, step by step from the stimulation start point to the end point. The tempo change is determined as follows (FIG. 11/S57).

More specifically, for example, the stimulus content determination unit 130 refers to a table such as that shown in FIG. Recognize that the ending tempo is "80% of the user's heartbeat tempo" when determining changes.

For example, if the heartbeat tempo of the user (that is, the tempo at the start of stimulation) is 75 bpm, the stimulation content determination unit 130 determines 75 bpm×80%=60 bpm as the tempo at the end of stimulation.

In this way, when the stimulus content determination unit 130 determines a change in which the tempo becomes slower from the start point of the stimulation to the end point of the stimulation, the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 is set to be slower than the tempo by a predetermined degree. If the change is determined so that the tempo at the end of stimulation is slow, and the tempo increases from the start of stimulation to the end of stimulation, the heart rate recognition unit 110 recognizes the tempo. The change is determined so that the tempo at the end of the stimulus is a tempo faster than the tempo of the user's heartbeat by a predetermined amount.

It should be noted that the stimulus content determination unit 130 refers to, for example, a table such as that shown in FIG. (or the lower limit when determining the change so that the tempo slows down from the start of the stimulation to the end), and the speed below the predetermined upper limit (or the speed above the lower limit) may be configured to determine the change such that the tempo of the stimulus is the tempo at the end of the stimulus.

The stimulus content determination unit 130 then determines the tempo at the start and end of the stimulus, and also determines how the tempo is changed from the tempo at the start of the stimulus to the tempo at the end of the stimulus.

For example, if the tempo at the start of the stimulus is 65 bpm and the tempo at the end of the stimulus is 55 bpm, the stimulus content determining unit 130 sets the stimulus with a tempo of 65 bpm for 20 seconds and the stimulus with a tempo of 60 bpm for 20 seconds. Seconds, determine to generate a stimulus with a tempo of 55 bpm for 80 seconds. The stimulus length in this case is 120 seconds.

Alternatively, if the tempo at the start of the stimulus is 70 bpm and the tempo at the end of the stimulus is 55 bpm, the stimulus content determination unit 130 sets the stimulus with a tempo of 70 bpm for 10 seconds, the stimulus with a tempo of 65 bpm for 20 seconds, We decide to generate a stimulus with a tempo of 60 bpm for 20 seconds and a stimulus with a tempo of 55 bpm for 70 seconds. The stimulation length in this case is also 120 seconds.

Alternatively, for example, if the tempo at the start of the stimulus is 90 bpm and the tempo at the end of the stimulus is 55 bpm, the stimulus content determination unit 130 sets the stimulus with a tempo of 90 bpm for 10 seconds and the stimulus with a tempo of 85 bpm for 10 seconds. , 80 bpm tempo 10 sec, 75 bpm tempo 10 sec, 70 bpm tempo 10 sec, 65 bpm tempo 20 sec, 60 bpm tempo 20 sec, 55 bpm tempo Determine that the stimulus will occur for 60 seconds. The stimulation length in this case is 150 seconds.

In this manner, the stimulus content determination unit 130 may determine the length of the stimulus to differ according to the tempo of the user's heartbeat (that is, the tempo at the start of the stimulus).

For example, the stimulus content determination unit 130 stores the tempo of the user's heartbeat (or the tempo at the start of stimulation), the method of changing the tempo as described above, the length of the stimulation, etc., which are stored in advance in the storage unit 20. , to determine how to change the tempo from the tempo at the start of the stimulus to the tempo at the end of the stimulus.

Next, with reference to FIG. 13, a case where the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 is "a state in which sleep is easily introduced", a "state in which work efficiency is high", and a "state in which fatigue is recovered" will be described.

In this case, after the process of S51, the stimulus content determining unit 130 determines the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 (FIG. 13/S53), and the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 is If the subject is in a state in which it is easy to induce sleep, the change in tempo is determined so as to slow the stimulus from the start point to the end point (Fig. 13/S59), and the tempo decision process ends.

For example, if the tempo at the start of the stimulus is 65 bpm and the tempo at the end of the stimulus is 50 bpm, the stimulus content determiner 130 creates a stimulus with a tempo of 65 bpm for 30 seconds at 60 bpm. tempo for 32 seconds, 55 bpm for 35 seconds, and 50 bpm for 130 seconds. The length of stimulation in this embodiment is about 4 minutes, which is longer than when the desired state is "high work efficiency" or "recovered from fatigue" (described later). Then, the length of time (30 seconds to 35 seconds) during which the stimulus is generated at the tempo of each stage (65 bpm to 55 bpm) before changing to the tempo at the end of the stimulus (50 bpm in the above) is less than the end time. The change in tempo is determined so that the length of time (130 seconds) during which the stimulus is generated at the tempo of . Also, the time during which the stimulation is provided at the ending tempo (130 seconds) is determined to be longer than the total time (97 seconds) before that. Note that the magnitude of tempo change between stages, the length of each stage, and the length of the entire stimulation may be set as appropriate (the same shall apply hereinafter).

On the other hand, if the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 is "a state of high work efficiency" or "a state of recovering from fatigue", the stimulus content determining unit 130 further determines the autonomic nervous state of the user. Determine (FIG. 13/S61).

That is, for example, when the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes that the user's autonomic nerve state is in a state in which the sympathetic nerve is dominant, the stimulation content determination unit 130 delays the stimulation from the start point to the end point of the stimulation. 13 (S63 in FIG. 13), and the tempo determination process ends.

More specifically, for example, when the user's LF/HF value is 2.0 or more, the stimulation content determination unit 130 recognizes that the user's autonomic nervous system is in a state in which the sympathetic nervous system is dominant. Then, if the tempo at the start of the stimulation is 65 bpm and the tempo at the end is 50 bpm, the stimulation content determination unit 130 starts the stimulation at a tempo of 65 bpm and then waits for two minutes. Decide to slow the tempo linearly to 50 bpm with the same deceleration (ie, negative acceleration) over the course of , and stop the stimulation.

On the other hand, when the autonomic nerve state recognizing unit 150 recognizes that the user's autonomic nerve state is in a state in which the parasympathetic nerve is dominant, the tempo is changed so as to become faster from the stimulation start point to the end point. After determination (FIG. 13/S65), the tempo determination process ends.

That is, for example, when the user's LF/HF value is less than 0.8, the stimulation content determination unit 130 recognizes that the user's autonomic nervous system is in a state in which the parasympathetic nervous system is dominant. Then, if the tempo at the start of the stimulus is 50 bpm and the tempo at the end is 75 bpm, the stimulus content determination unit 130 creates a stimulus with a tempo of 50 bpm for 24 seconds and a stimulus with a tempo of 56.3 bpm. 24 seconds, a stimulus with a tempo of 62.5 bpm for 24 seconds, a stimulus with a tempo of 68.75 bpm for 24 seconds, a stimulus with a tempo of 75 bpm for 24 seconds; and decides to stop stimulation.

Next, with reference to FIG. 14, a case of determining a change in stimulus tempo according to the autonomic nerve state will be described.

In this case, after the process of S51, the stimulus content determination unit 130 determines the user's autonomic nervous state (FIG. 14/S67).

That is, for example, when the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes that the user's autonomic nerve state is in a state in which the sympathetic nerve is dominant, the stimulation content determination unit 130 delays the stimulation from the start point to the end point of the stimulation. 14 (S69 in FIG. 14), and the tempo determination process ends.

Alternatively, for example, if the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes that the user's autonomic nerve state is in a balanced state, the stimulus content determination unit 130 adjusts the tempo from the start point to the end point of the stimulation. It decides to keep the tempo (Fig. 14/S71) and terminates the tempo decision processing.

For example, when the autonomic nerve state recognition unit 150 recognizes that the user's autonomic nerve state is in a state in which the parasympathetic nerve is dominant, the stimulation content determination unit 130 quickly changes the stimulus from the start time to the end time. 14 (S73 in FIG. 14), and the tempo determination process ends.

More specifically, for example, when the user's LF/HF value is 2.0 or more, the stimulation content determination unit 130 recognizes that the user's autonomic nervous system is in a state where the sympathetic nervous system is dominant. The details of determining the stimulus tempo in this case are the same as, for example, the case of FIG. 13/S63 described above.

Alternatively, for example, the stimulation content determination unit 130 recognizes that the user's autonomic nervous system is in a balanced state when the user's LF/HF value is 0.8 or more and less than 2.0. Then, it is determined to generate a stimulus at the tempo at the start of the stimulus (for example, 60 bpm) for 120 seconds.

Further, for example, when the user's LF/HF value is less than 0.8, the stimulation content determining unit 130 recognizes that the user's autonomic nervous system is in a state in which the parasympathetic nervous system is dominant. The details of determining the stimulus tempo in this case are the same as those in FIG. 13/S65 described above, for example.

In any of the above cases, if the stimulation to be generated for the user is a combination of vibration and sound, the stimulation content determination unit 130 determines the tempo of the vibration and sound included in the stimulation to be provided to the user. determine the tempo so that the

That is, for example, if the vibration and the sound start and end at the same time, the tempo at the start of the vibration and the sound is synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110, and the end of the vibration and the sound. The tempo at the time point is the same tempo determined by the stimulus content determination unit 130 .

Alternatively, for example, when the vibration included in the stimulus starts first and the sound starts in the middle, the stimulus content is adjusted so that the tempo at the start of the sound is the same as the tempo of the vibration at the start of the sound. Determined by the determining unit 130 . Similarly, when one of the vibration and the sound ends first and the other ends later, the stimulus content determination unit 130 determines the tempos of the vibration and the sound so that the tempos of the vibration and the sound are synchronized.

<Determination processing of stimulus content>
The process of determining the content of the stimulus will be described with reference to FIG. 15 .

When the process is started, the stimulus content determination unit 130 determines whether one or both of the sign information and the autonomic nerve state information included in the user state information is in a predetermined state (FIG. 15/S83), and the user If one or both of the symptom information and the autonomic nervous state information included in the state information are in a predetermined state, the predetermined action performed during the generation of the stimulus is to improve the user's work efficiency, improve the fatigue state, Information that prompts the user to take actions that have the effect of improving the user's mental and physical conditions, such as promotion of sleep, is determined (FIG. 15/S85).

For example, when the autonomic nerve balance score included in the user state information is 4 or less and the score of the sign of the user state is 6 or more (that is, the user's sympathetic nerves are If the condition is good as seen from the symptoms of the condition), it is determined that the user is in the predetermined state, otherwise it is determined that the user is not in the predetermined state.

The stimulus content determination unit 130 refers to information indicating a correspondence relationship between one or both of the autonomic nerve balance score and the sign score of the user state and whether or not the user is in a predetermined state, which is pre-stored in the storage unit 20, for example. Then, it is determined whether or not the user is in a predetermined state.

"Information that prompts the user to perform a predetermined action that has the effect of improving the user's mental and physical condition" is, for example, "Let's do a simple mindfulness meditation while feeling the vibration that changes at regular intervals." ”, “Straighten your back and correct your posture”, “Let’s relax your shoulders and breathe slowly through your nose”, etc., are combinations of sentences that encourage a predetermined action, a predetermined method of breathing, or meditation.

In this manner, the stimulus content determination unit 130 determines the stimulus content based on one or both of the symptom information and the autonomic nerve state information included in the user state information.

On the other hand, if one or both of the symptom information and the autonomic nerve state information included in the user state information are not in a predetermined state, the stimulus content determination unit 130 provides information prompting the user to perform a predetermined action during the generation of the stimulus. Do not perform any decision processing.

Then, when the stimulus content determining unit 130 determines the information prompting the user to perform a predetermined action during the generation of the stimulus, the vibrating unit 310 (and the sound reproducing unit 40) generates the stimulus to the user. The information determined by the stimulus content determination unit 130 is output for all or part of the time that the stimulus is present.

That is, for example, when a text prompting breathing or meditation by a predetermined action or a predetermined method is determined by the stimulus content determination unit 130 as character or image information, the display unit 70 displays the character or image, When the text is determined as voice, the sound reproducing unit 40 reproduces the voice and outputs it.

Based on the information indicating the user's heartbeat acquired by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 as necessary, the stimulation content determination unit 130 determines image information or scent content to be provided to the user in combination with the vibration stimulation ( FIG. 15/S87).

The image information or scent provided to the user in combination with the stimulus is, for example, an image or scent corresponding to the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit 170 . That is, for example, if the desired state is a state in which the sympathetic nerves are dominant, the stimulus content is determined from a list of images or scents pre-stored in the storage unit 20 that can image the state in which the sympathetic nerves are dominant. Selected by unit 130 .

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto. Various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention.

That is, for example, the image capturing unit 50 is configured to capture an image of the skin of the fingers of the user in addition to or instead of the image of the skin of the user's face, and the heartbeat recognition unit 110 captures an image of the fingers of the user captured by the image capturing unit 50. It may be configured to recognize information indicating the user's heartbeat based on the skin image.

There are various situations in which users who try to use condition improvement devices are placed. For example, if the condition improvement device is used at night before going to bed at home or when the user is alone, there is little hesitation in capturing the user's heart rate from the image of the skin on the face. not be considered to occur. However, if the person uses the condition improvement device in a conspicuous place such as the workplace or on the go during the daytime, he/she may hesitate to use the condition improvement device because he/she feels reluctance to take an image of the face.

According to the present embodiment, the user can specify which of the skin image of the face and the skin image of the finger is to be acquired. It is convenient because you can choose how to use it.

The flow of processing by the condition improvement device of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In this embodiment, when the process is started, the desired state reception unit 170 receives designation of the desired state (FIG. 16/S11), and then the mode reception unit 230 receives designation of the operation mode (FIG. 16/S11).

The operation modes are a first mode for recognizing the user's heart rate tempo based on the skin image of the user's face, and a second mode for recognizing the user's heart rate tempo based on the user's finger skin image. mode.

Then, the mode reception unit 230 determines whether the specified mode is the first mode or the second mode (FIG. 16/S15). If the designated mode is the first mode, the processing from S31 onwards is executed. Since the content of the processing is the same as in the case of FIG. 9, the description is omitted.

On the other hand, when the specified mode is the second mode, the imaging unit 50 first acquires an image of the skin of the user's fingers (FIG. 16/S131), and the heart rate recognition unit 110 captures the image with the imaging unit 50. Information indicating the heartbeat of the user is acquired based on the image of the skin of the user's fingers that has been received (FIG. 16/S133).

For example, the heartbeat recognition unit 110 acquires information indicating the user's heartbeat from the skin image of the user's fingers using the same technique as that for obtaining information indicating the user's heartbeat from the skin image of the user's face.

Then, the heartbeat recognition unit 110 recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat acquired as described above (FIG. 16/S135), and the user state information acquisition unit 210 acquires the user state information ( FIG. 16/S137).

Then, the stimulation content determination unit 130 determines the tempo of stimulation to be provided to the user based on the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit 110 (Fig. 16/S150), and furthermore, the content of the stimulation as necessary. is determined (FIG. 16/S180).

It should be noted that the contents of the processing of S135 to S180 are almost the same except that the processing for receiving the input of the user's answer to the question regarding the state of the user's face (FIG. 9/S33, FIG. 16/S33) is not performed. , the description is omitted.

Then, the stimulus generator 30 generates a stimulus at the tempo determined by the stimulus content determiner 130 (FIG. 16/S91), and the series of processes of the condition improving device of the present embodiment ends.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Apparatus control part 20... Storage part 30... Stimulation generation part 40... Sound reproduction part 50... Imaging part 70... Display part 90... Input part 110... Heart rate recognition part 130... Stimulation content determination part , 150... Autonomic nerve state recognition part, 170... Desired state reception part, 190... Answer reception part, 210... User state information acquisition part, 230... Mode reception part, 310... Vibration part, 350... Fragrance generation part.

Claims (2)

A device that provides vibration stimulation to promote improvement of the user's mental and physical conditions,
a heartbeat recognition unit that acquires information indicating the heartbeat of the user and recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat;
a desired state reception unit that receives designation by the user of a desired state indicating a state desired by the user;
a stimulation content determination unit that determines a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as the tempo of the stimulation to be provided to the user;
a stimulus generation unit that generates the stimulus with the tempo and length determined by the stimulus content determination unit toward the user;
The stimulus content determination unit
determining a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as a tempo at the start of the stimulus, and determining a length of the stimulus according to the tempo at the start of the stimulus;
When the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit is a state in which parasympathetic nerves are dominant, the change in tempo is determined so as to be delayed from the start time point to the end time point of the stimulation. A condition improvement device characterized by: A device that provides vibration stimulation to promote improvement of the user's mental and physical conditions,
a heartbeat recognition unit that acquires information indicating the heartbeat of the user and recognizes the heartbeat tempo of the user from the information indicating the heartbeat;
a desired state reception unit that receives designation by the user of a desired state indicating a state desired by the user;
a stimulation content determination unit that determines a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as the tempo of the stimulation to be provided to the user;
a stimulus generation unit that generates the stimulus with the tempo and length determined by the stimulus content determination unit toward the user;
The stimulus content determination unit
determining a tempo synchronized with the tempo of the user's heartbeat recognized by the heartbeat recognition unit as a tempo at the start of the stimulus, and determining a length of the stimulus according to the tempo at the start of the stimulus;
When the desired state received by the desired state receiving unit is a state in which sympathetic nerves are dominant, the change in tempo is determined so as to increase from the start point of the stimulus to the end point of the stimulus. A condition improvement device characterized by:

Images