Method and apparatus for treating breathing irregularities

Claim 1

Apparatus for simulating natural breathing motions of a live subject which comprises a simulated animal adapted to be positioned within the immediate vicinity of such a live subject, said simulated animal having a torso including a back portion and a front portion, said portions being peripherally joined and enclosing an inflatable bladder member to simulate lungs of said simulated animal within its pleural cavity section formed between said back and front portions, said back portion being substantially stiffer across the area of said baldder member than said front portion, and said front portion being easily flexible, a plurality of appendages to simulate a head and manipulative or locomotive means, each of said appendages being flexibly connected to said torso adjacent the periphery of said bladder member, and air pump means for cyclically inflating said bladder member sufficiently to produce movement of the external surface of said front portion of said pleural cavity section relative to said back portion and to move at least one of said appendages to simulate motion accompanying a natural breathing pattern for said simulated animal, said pattern being relatable to the vestibular and tactile senses of said live subject, said air pump including means for heating the air supplied to said bladder, said bladder member including means permitting the air to bleed through the wall thereof.

Claim 6

A method for providing rhythmic stimulation which is biologically appropriate for treating respiration and sleep irregularities of a mammalian subject which comprises positioning a simulation of a live being in an environment conductive to sleeping in sufficiently close physical proximity to said subject to place it within easy reach of said subject, said simulation including a torso portion having a relatively stiff section along one side thereof and a relatively soft and flexible section along the other side thereof, said stiff and flexible sections being joined about their peripheries to form, respectively, the back and front walls of a variable-volume, expandable, pleural cavity in said torso portion, a plurality of appendages including a head and manipulative members flexibly secured to said torso portion at the peripheral edges of said expandable pleural cavity and a partially inflatable, expandable bladder enclosed within said pleural cavity, one surface portion of said bladder being in movement-resistive contact with said stiff section and an expandable surface of said bladder in contact with the front wall of said pleural cavity, and cyclicially inflating and deflating said bladder to an extent to impart external motion to the front wall of said torso portion and accompanying motion to said appendages relative to said stiff section controlling, such cyclical inflating and deflating to approximate respiratory movements at the rate of breathing of said subject, whereby the regular cyclicity of the movements of the device will tend to increase regularity of cyclicity in the breathing of the subject.

Claim 7

A method for providing rhythmic stimulation which is biologically appropriate for treating respiration and sleep irregularities of a mammalian subject which comprises positioning a simulation of a live being in an environment conductive to sleeping in sufficiently close physical proximity to said subject to place it within easy reach of said subject, said simulation including a torso portion having a relatively stiff section along one side thereof and a relatively soft and flexible section along the other side thereof, said stiff and flexible sections being joined about their peripheries to form, respectively, the back and front walls of a variable-volume, expandable, pleural cavity in said torso portion, a plurality of appendages including a head and manipulative members flexibly secured to said torso portion at the peripheral edges of said expandable pleural cavity and a partially inflatable, expandable bladder enclosed within said pleural cavity, one surface portion of said bladder being in movement-resistive contact with said stiff section and an expandable surface of said bladder in contact with the front wall of said pleural cavity, and cyclicially inflating and deflating said bladder to an extent to impart external motion to the front wall of said torso portion and accompanying motion to said appendages relative to said stiff section controlling, such cyclical inflating and deflating to approximate respiratory movements at the rate of breathing of said subject, whereby the regular cyclicity of the movements of the device will tend to increase regularity of cyclicity in the breathing of the subject.

Claim 8

A method for providing rhythmic stimulation which is biologically appropriate for pacifying a live subject which comprises positioning a simulation of a breathing animal, in an environment conductive to rest, within sufficiently close physical proximity of a subject to allow said subject to readily attain physical contact with the simulation, said simulation having a body portion including a broad spinal section along the simulated back of a torso portion, a flexible, expandable front wall section along the front of said torso portion directly opposed to said spinal section, said sections being peripherally joined one to the other at an interface to form an expandable pleural cavity section, a simulated head and a plurality of manipulative appendages flexibly secured to said torso portion adjacent said interface, said pleural cavity section having a partially inflatable bladder member enclosed therein with one surface portion of said bladder member in movement-resistive contact with said spine section and the opposite surface portion thereof being in expandable contact with the inner surface of said front wall section, and cyclically inflating and deflating said bladder member to an extent to substantially displace the front wall section of said torso relative to said spinal section, the inflation of said bladder being sufficient to cause motion of said appendages relative to said spinal section to simulate respiratory motions of an animal in the immediate vicinty of the subject to be pacified.

Claim 9

A method for providing rhythmic stimulation which is biologically appropriate for pacifying a live subject which comprises positioning a simulation of a breathing animal, in an environment conductive to rest, within sufficiently close physical proximity of a subject to allow said subject to readily attain physical contact with the simulation, said simulation having a body portion including a broad spinal section along the simulated back of a torso portion, a flexible, expandable front wall section along the front of said torso portion directly opposed to said spinal section, said sections being peripherally joined one to the other at an interface to form an expandable pleural cavity section, a simulated head and a plurality of manipulative appendages flexibly secured to said torso portion adjacent said interface, said pleural cavity section having a partially inflatable bladder member enclosed therein with one surface portion of said bladder member in movement-resistive contact with said spine section and the opposite surface portion thereof being in expandable contact with the inner surface of said front wall section, and cyclically inflating and deflating said bladder member to an extent to substantially displace the front wall section of said torso relative to said spinal section, the inflation of said bladder being sufficient to cause motion of said appendages relative to said spinal section to simulate respiratory motions of an animal in the immediate vicinty of the subject to be pacified.