Patent Application
20220118218
When seeking treatment for various afflictions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), conventional treatment methods often include the use of a therapist to perform various treatment therapies. Some of these therapies include audio, visual, light, smell, and the like.
It is with these and other concerns that an improved system and method for therapies is described herein.
The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanying figures. The use of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similar or identical items or features.
Examples of the present disclosure can comprise systems and methods for remotely controlled therapy. As used herein, “remotely controlled” means that a therapist or other person controls a therapy device installed on a patient. In one example, a headset is provided that allows a therapist to control various environment aspects of the user (client or patient—used interchangeable herein) wearing the headset. The headset may include various visual, light, and audio outputs that can be used by a therapist to administer a therapy. In some example, the therapist may be able to control visual cues, and in some instances, provide audial instructions or input for a therapy session. In one example, the headset may be a fully integrated unit that includes all functionality needed to establish communications with a device a therapist uses to administer a therapy. In another example, the headset may be configured to use additional devices. For example, the headset may be in communication with a user equipment (such as a cell phone) or the headset may be configured to hold the user equipment in visual proximity to the eyes of the patient undergoing therapy. In additional examples, the headset and/or a user device (such as a cell phone) may be configured to execute an application to administer a therapy.
The therapist, at the therapist workstation or other device, send instructions to have the headset display various types of visual images. The therapist may also be in audible communication with the patient, asking the patient to describe various events, thoughts, and the like while the headset is displaying the various types of visual images. In some examples, the therapist may be able to control other aspects of the headset to provide different types of therapy input. Some examples include, but are not limited to, luminotherapy, sound therapy, and the like. In addition, other forms of therapy may be used, including relaxation therapy whereby sound and/or an image are used to attempt to invoke a relaxing experience in the patient. Some additional examples include heart (cardiac) coherence and neurofeedback therapies. In some examples, cardiac coherence therapy uses biofeedback to control heart rate variability (HRV). The patient can use the biofeedback for relaxation and may be used as a stress management tool. In some examples, neurofeedback (or electroencephalogram) biofeedback, is a therapeutic technique that uses feedback to assess a patient's brainwave activity. The device then uses sound or other visual signals in an attempt to modify, or reorganize, these brain signals. The patient can learn how to regulate and improve these brain signals to reduce the effects of various disorders.
The use of a remotely controlled device according to various examples of the presently disclosed subject matter may provide various advantages over current systems. For example, patients suffering from various afflictions, including PTSD, may find it difficult to go to the therapist's location because of their affliction. Further, those needing therapy may not have available to them the means or ability to travel, such as those in remote locations or without a reliable means of transport. Additionally, in certain conditions in which the patient and/or the therapist are isolated (such as during a pandemic or viral outbreak), it may be undesirable for the therapist and the patient to be in the same room. Thus, the various examples of the presently disclosed subject matter may overcome limitations and disadvantages of conventional therapy.
An example of therapy that may be provided by the examples provided herein is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). EMDR therapy is an eight-phase treatment. Eye movements (or other bilateral stimulation) are used during one part of the session. After the therapist has determined which memory to target first, the therapist asks the patient to hold different aspects of that event or thought in mind and to use the patient's eyes to track the therapist's hand as it moves back and forth across the patient's field of vision. Another type of therapy is Eye Movement Integration (EMI). EMI uses guided eye movements to assist a patient to access recorded information in all its multisensory, cognitive and emotional forms. EMI recruits these resources to the integration and resolution of distressing experiences and their problematic psychological consequences. Another type of therapy that may be used with examples of the presently disclosed subject matter is light therapy (or luminotherapy). Light therapy is also known as bright light therapy or phototherapy. Luminotherapy uses various light intensities, colors, and the like for treatments. Uses of luminotherapy, heart (cardiac) coherence, and neurofeedback therapies include treatment for seasonal depression, jetlag, and cutaneous diseases.
Further, because the presently disclosed subject matter may use two or more types of therapies in a combined treatment, the effectiveness of the therapy device may be increased. The therapy may be adapted during the session based on answers provided by the user. Thus, instead of a passive device, various examples of the presently disclosed subject matter create an active and changing engagement with the user to enhance the effectiveness of the therapy in some examples.
The therapy device 102 is in communication with a communication device 110. The communication device may include an individual's cellular phone, tablet, a personal computer, and the like. The communication device 110 may be an integral part of the therapy device 102 or may be a separate piece of equipment that facilitates communication between the therapy device 102 and a therapy server 112. In some examples, a cellular phone may be integrated into, or added as a component to, the therapy headset 104 and may be used for various purposes, including as the communication device 110 or a screen. In some examples, the therapy device 102 is connected to a personal computer or tablet serving as the communication device 110. The communication device 110 may be connected using a wireless or wired connection to the therapy device 102. These and other examples are considered to be within the scope of the presently disclosed subject matter.
The communication device 110 receives and transmits information from and to the therapy server 112 through a network 114. The network 114 may be various types of networks that provide communication access between the communication device 110 and the therapy server. It should be noted that presently disclosed subject matter is not limited to the use of a particular type of network, including cellular networks, and communication device. The systems and methods discussed herein are discussed generally with respect to communication devices such as cellular UEs, tablets, computers, and the like, and in terms of components (e.g., network entities) associated with Wi-Fi networks, Bluetooth networks, wired networks, fourth-generation (4G) and fifth-generation (5G) cellular networks, and other types of networks. The systems and methods can be used with other types of equipment and on other types of networks, however, where users may wish to have increased flexibility in sending and receiving calls, video calls, and messages. Thus, the systems and methods described herein may be described in terms of the 4G and 5G networks merely because these networks represent the state of the current art. One of skill in the art will recognize, however, the systems and methods could also be used on other networks that provide video calling such as, for example, Internet of Things (IoT), machine-to-machine (M2M), sixth-generation (6G), and other current and future networks.
During use, a therapist or other personnel/computer software (not shown) may select one or more treatment options from a therapy menu 116. The therapy menu 116 can be established for the user 108 based on a predetermined treatment regimen or may include multiple therapies available. The therapy menu 116 may be displayed on a user device controlled by the therapist, whereby the therapist can select or deselect one or more therapies. Further, once the therapy device 102 is in communication with the therapy server 112, the therapy menu 116 may be updated based on the capabilities of the therapy device 102. For example, the therapy device 102 may only be capable of specific light, visual, or audible outputs, limiting the types of therapy that may be available. By updating the therapy menu 116 once connected, the therapist (or another person or computer program acting at the direction of the therapist) may have for selection from the therapy menu 116 those treatments that are available. Further, the treatment menu 116 may be updated based on specifics applied to a particular therapy. For example, it is usually not recommended to perform luminotherapy in the evening. Additionally, one or more therapies may be selected at any particular time for a combined therapy session. For example, EMDR or EMI may be selected along with luminotherapy as well as an audio therapy and/or a relaxation therapy, or various combinations thereof.
The therapies and their results may be stored as therapy results 118. The therapy results 118 may be an online or locally-stored record of data taken during past therapy treatments. The therapy results 118 may include, but are not limited to, the types of therapies, the patterns used in an EMDR or EMI session (or a similar eye movement session), when the therapies were performed, the location of the user 108 during the therapy, results of the eye tracking system, a percentage of patterns completed, any notes taken during a particular therapy session, and the like.
In an example of a therapy session, such as EMI, the user 108 may be asked a series of questions through the therapy headset 104. For example, the user 108 may be shown various patterns on a screen (not shown) of the therapy headset 104. The user 108 may be asked if the user 108 is better/worse/same after each pattern. The user 108 may answer using a remote control 120 which is in communication with the therapy device 102. In some examples, the user 108 may answer using head movements or eye movements. The therapy device 102 records and transmits the answers to the therapy server 112 for storage as the therapy results 118. In some examples, if the user 108 answer that they are worse after a particular pattern, the therapy server 112 may update the server menu 116 to prevent the particular pattern from being shown again. During a typical EMI or EMDR session, eye movement of the user 108 is controlled using a pointer on a screen and a message may be displayed on the screen of the therapy headset 104 if the therapy device 102 detects that the user 108 has stopped looking at the pointer.
In some examples, a biologics sensor 122 may be used to measure the user's 108 biological conditions. For example, the biologics sensor 122 may perform various analytical functions, including, but not limited to, electrocardiogram (ECG), Fc, heart rate variability (HRV), respiratory frequency, O2/CO2 expired, arterial pressure, electroretinography, electroencephalogram (EEG), neurofeedback, heart coherence, blood pressure, pulse rate, body temperature, and the like.
The biologics sensor 122 may be in communication with the communication device 110 to provide the measurements to the therapy server 112. Thus, answers or input provided by the user 108 may be analyzed against the measurements. This may be especially helpful to determine the truthfulness of answers or identify potentially stressful issues not realized or provided by the patient. The presently disclosed subject matter is not limited to one biologics sensor 122, as multiple biologics sensors 122 may be used.
The therapy headset 104 illustrated in
The apertures 209 are an opening through the partition 208 through which the user 108 may view a display (shown in
The eye movement trackers 210 may be used to track the eye movements of one or more eyes of the user 108. In some examples, the eye movement trackers 210 may take a series of pictures or video of the eyes of the user and, based on various factors (such as the direction of the pupil, iris, and the like), determine the direction to which the eye is pointing and/or moving. In some examples, near-infrared light is directed to the center of the eyes, causing reflections. The reflections are tracked by an infrared camera. In some examples, the eye movement trackers 210 may be used additionally to provide feedback to the user or the therapist when the user does not follow a pointer. The feedback may be audible feedback or may be a message indicating that the eyes are not tracking and/or positive encouragement to follow the pointer. These and other eye movement tracking technologies, such as electro-oculographic technologies using electrodes, may be used and are considered to be within the scope of the presently disclosed subject matter.
The therapy headset 104 further includes display control 212. The display control 212 may include various computing resources, including a power supply, to control a display of the therapy headset 104 as well as provide audio to the therapy audio device 106 in some examples. The display control 212 may act as an interface with the communication device 110 or provide the functionality of the communication device 110. In some examples, the display control 212 may be a location into which a user may insert a cellular telephone or other device to provide a display for the therapy headset 104 in examples in which a display is not integrated into the therapy headset 104.
The therapy computing device 400 can comprise several components to execute various above-mentioned functions. The therapy computing device 400 can comprise memory 402 including an operating system (OS) 804 and one or more standard applications 406. The standard applications 406 can include applications to control the various components of the therapy computing device 400. In this case, the standard applications 406 can also comprise a therapy application 424 and an eye movement detection application 426. The therapy application 424 may be used to instantiate and provide the functionality of the various examples provided herein. For example, when instantiated, the therapy application 424 may cause the initialization of communication with the therapy server 112, may receive instructions from the therapy server 112, and may cause the initialization of the various forms of therapy, such as visual and audio commands. The eye movement detection application 426 may control the operation of the eye movement trackers 210 and may provide eye movement information to the therapy application 424. It should be noted that the therapy application 424 may be configured to provide the functionality of the eye movement detection application 426.
The therapy computing device 400 can also comprise one or more processors 412 and one or more of removable storage 414, non-removable storage 416, transceiver(s) 418, output device(s) 420, and input device(s) 422. In various implementations, the memory 402 can be volatile (such as random access memory (RAM)), non-volatile (such as read only memory (ROM), flash memory, etc.), or some combination of the two. The memory 402 may be used to store various data received from the therapy headset 104, for example.
The memory 402 can also include the OS 404. The OS 404 contains the modules and software that support basic functions, such as scheduling tasks, executing applications, and controlling peripherals. In some examples, the OS 404 can enable the therapy application 424, the eye movement detection application 426, and provide other functions, as described above, via the transceiver(s) 418. The OS 404 can also enable the therapy device 104 to send and retrieve other data and perform other functions. It should be noted that one or more functions of the presently disclosed subject matter may be executed by other systems than the OS 404, such as firmware/FPGA/ASIC.
The therapy computing device 400 can also comprise one or more processors 412. In some implementations, the processor(s) 412 can be a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), both CPU and GPU, or any other processing unit such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA), by way of example and not by way of limitation. The therapy computing device 400 may also include additional data storage devices (removable and/or non-removable) such as, for example, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape. Such additional storage is illustrated in
Non-transitory computer-readable media may include volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable tangible, physical media implemented in technology for storage of information, such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. The memory 402, removable storage 414, and non-removable storage 416 are all examples of non-transitory computer-readable media. Non-transitory computer-readable media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, electronically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technology, compact disc ROM (CD-ROM), digital versatile discs (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other tangible, physical medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can be accessed by the therapy computing device 400. Any such non-transitory computer-readable media may be part of the therapy computing device 400 or may be a separate database, databank, remote server, or cloud-based server.
In some implementations, the transceiver(s) 418 include any transceivers known in the art. In some examples, the transceiver(s) 418 can include wireless modem(s) to facilitate wireless connectivity with other components, the Internet, and/or an intranet, as well as wireless network adapters or other capable equipment.
The transceiver(s) 418 may also include one or more radio transceivers that perform the function of transmitting and receiving radio frequency communications via an antenna (e.g., Wi-Fi or Bluetooth®). In other examples, the transceiver(s) 418 may include wired communication components, such as a wired modem or Ethernet port, for communicating via one or more wired networks.
In some implementations, the output device(s) 420 include any output devices known in the art, such as a display (e.g., a liquid crystal or thin-film transistor (TFT) display), a touchscreen, speakers, a vibrating mechanism, or a tactile feedback mechanism. Thus, the output device(s) can include a screen, or display. The output device(s) 420 can also include speakers, or similar devices, to play sounds or ringtones when an audio call or video call is received. Output device(s) 420 can also include ports for one or more peripheral devices, such as headphones, peripheral speakers, or a peripheral display.
In various implementations, input device(s) 422 include any input devices known in the art. In some examples, the input device(s) 422 may include a camera, a microphone, or a keyboard/keypad or the remote control 120. The input device(s) 422 can include a touch-sensitive display or a keyboard to enable users to enter data and make requests and receive responses via web applications (e.g., in a web browser), make audio and video calls, and use the standard applications 406, among other things. The touch-sensitive display or keyboard/keypad may be a standard push button alphanumeric multi-key keyboard (such as a conventional QWERTY keyboard), virtual controls on a touchscreen, or one or more other types of keys or buttons, and may also include a joystick, wheel, and/or designated navigation buttons, or the like.
Referring to
The process 500 continues to operation 504, where the therapy server 112 is communicatively connected to the therapy device 102. It should be noted that in some examples, the communication connection may be through a network 114. In other examples, the communication connection may be an “offline” connection where the user 108 can download or access therapies selected by a therapist. For example, instead of a therapist doing a therapy in “real time,” there may be situations in which a user may not be able to use an online or active connection. So, in these cases, the user, when able, can download a therapy rather than it be provided in real time. For example, the user can be taking a plane ride. The user can download an “airplane therapy” from the therapist and start that therapy during the plane trip when the user doesn't have access to the Internet.
The presently disclosed subject matter is not limited to an active communication connection, such as a data or voice connection through a cellular network or WIFI network.
The process 500 continues to operation 506, where the selected therapies are commenced. As noted above, various examples of the presently disclosed subject matter provide for multiple therapies to commence at one time, though the presently disclosed subject matter is not so limited, as a single therapy may be commenced.
The therapies may vary. For example, one of the therapies may be an EMI session whereby patterns are displayed on a display, patterns such as those illustrated in
Returning to
The process 500 continues to operation 510, where the therapy results 118 are updated from information gleaned during the session. The updated therapy results 118 may be used to update the therapy menu 116.
The process 500 thereafter ends.
The stress detector 802, upon the detection of a stress condition of a user wearing or being measured, may communicate with a confirmation module 804. The confirmation module 804 may be a part of the therapy server 112 of
If the confirmation module 804 confirms that a condition exists requiring a therapy, the confirmation module 804 may communicate with the user suggesting that a therapy session take place. Further, the confirmation module 804 may communicate with the therapy device 102 the therapy to be used based on the confirmed condition. For example, a therapist may, at the therapy server 112 or another device, receive the communication from the stress detector 802 and, based on the biological measurements, determine that a combination of relaxation therapy and EMDR. The therapist may cause the transmission of the therapy to the therapy device 102 to allow the patient to commence a therapy in response to the detected stress condition. Further, a teleconsultation between the patient and a therapist may also be included as part of a therapy.
The presently disclosed examples are considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the disclosure is indicated by the appended claims, rather than the foregoing description, and all changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalents thereof are intended to be embraced therein.
