Circadian rhythms entrainment enhancement device

Abstract

A circadian entrainment enhancement device includes a housing, a first directional light source, a second directional light source, and a driver. During daytime, the driver turns on the first directional light source with a high melanopic ratio to enhance the daytime circadian entrainment of a user. During nighttime, the driver turns on the second directional light source with a low melanopic ratio to enhance the nighttime circadian entrainment of a user. A more advanced version of the present disclosure uses a light sensor, a memory module, and a computation module to calculate the necessary light output of the device by factoring the ambient light level into consideration. An even more advanced version of the present disclosure uses a distance sensor to adjust the light level of the light sources according to the distance between the device and the user.

Claims

1. A circadian entrainment enhancement device, comprising a housing; a first directional light source; and a first driver, wherein: the housing houses the first directional light source and the first driver, the first driver is configured to drive the first directional light source to generate a fixed first light output, the first directional light source has a first melanopic ratio >0.80, the first directional light source is configured to provide at least 50 equivalent melanopic lux (EML) at 60 cm at a 0-degree lighting zone, and the device is configured to shine a light of the first directional light source horizontally to eyes of a user.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the first directional light source has a spectral power distribution (SPD)>15% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the first directional light source comprises one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs).

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the first directional light source comprises one or more organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).

5. The device of claim 1, wherein a vertical beam angle of the device is less than 30 degrees with respect to a horizontal plane.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is disposed at least 30 cm from the eyes of the user.

7. The device of claim 1, further comprising: a second directional light source; and a second driver, wherein: the housing further houses the second directional light source and the second driver, the second driver is configured to drive the second directional light source to generate a fixed second light output, the second directional light source has a second melanopic ratio <0.40, the second directional light source is configured to provide no more than 50 EML at 60 cm at the 0-degree lighting zone, and the device is configured to shine a light of the second directional light source horizontally to the eyes of the user.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the second directional light source has a spectral power distribution (SPD)<3% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range.

9. The device of claim 7, wherein a ratio of the SPD of the first directional light source in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range to the SPD of the second directional light source in the 470˜480 nm wavelength range is at least 10 to 1.

10. The device of claim 7, wherein the first directional light source and the second directional light source are configured such that either of the first directional light source and the second directional light source is turned on at a time, but not simultaneously.

11. The device of claim 7, wherein the second directional light source comprises one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs).

12. The device of claim 7, wherein the second directional light source comprises one or more organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).

13. The device of claim 1, further comprising: a dimmer, wherein the first driver is a dimmable driver controllable via the dimmer to set the first light output of the first directional light source.

14. The device of claim 7, further comprising: a dimmer, wherein the second driver is a dimmable driver controllable via the dimmer to set the second light output of the second directional light source.

15. A circadian entrainment enhancement device, comprising a housing; a first directional light source; a first tunable driver; a first memory module; a first computational module; a light sensor; wherein: the housing houses the first directional light source, the first tunable driver, the first memory module, the first computation module, and the light sensor; the first tunable driver is configured to drive the first directional light source to generate a variable first light output, the first directional light source has a first melanopic ratio R.sub.1>0.80, the light sensor is configured to measure a vertical lux L.sub.A of an ambient light with respect to the device, the first memory module is configured to store Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) data of the first directional light source and configuration information used by the first computational module, the first computational module is configured to set a melanopic ratio R.sub.A1 of the ambient light of the device, the first computational module is configured to set a first equivalent melanopic lux (EML) target to EML.sub.T1, the first computation module is configured to calculate a first target lux L.sub.T1 of the first directional light source using the first melanopic ratio R.sub.1, the vertical lux L.sub.A of the ambient light, the melanopic ratio R.sub.A1 of the ambient light, the first EML target EML.sub.T1, and the IES data of the first directional light source such that a combination of an EML from the ambient light and an EML of the first directional light source at a 0-degree lighting zone approximates the first EML target EML.sub.T1, the first computation module is further configured to adjust the first tunable driver to set the light output of first directional light source to be the first target lux L.sub.T1 at the 0-degree lighting zone at zero distance, and the device is configured to shine a light of the first directional light source horizontally to eyes of the user.

16. The device of claim 15, further comprising: a distance sensor, wherein: the housing further houses the distance sensor, the distance sensor is configured to measure a distance D between the device and the user, the first computation module is configured to calculate the first target lux L.sub.T1 of the first directional light source using the first melanopic ratio R.sub.1, the vertical lux L.sub.A of the ambient light, the melanopic ratio R.sub.A1, of the ambient light, the first EML target EML.sub.T1, the IES data of the first directional light source, and the distance D such that a combination of the EML from the ambient light and an EML of the first light source at the 0-degree lighting zone approximates the first EML target EML.sub.T1, and the first computation module is further configured to adjust the first tunable driver to set the light output of the first directional light source to meet the first target lux L.sub.T1 at the 0-degree lighting zone at the distance D.

17. The device of claim 15, wherein the vertical lux L.sub.A is configured by the light source measuring a horizontal lux of the ambient light with respect to the device and the first computation module to convert the horizontal lux to the vertical lux L.sub.A using a conversion ratio.

18. The device of claim 15, wherein the first directional light source has a spectral power distribution (SPD)>15% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range.

19. The device of claim 15, wherein the first directional light source comprises one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs).

20. The device of claim 15, wherein the first directional light source comprises one or more organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).

21. The device of claim 15, wherein a vertical beam angle of the device is less than 30 degrees with respect to a horizontal plane.

22. The device of claim 15, further comprising: a second directional light source; a second tunable driver; a second memory module; and a second computational module, wherein: the housing further houses the second directional light source, the second tunable driver, the second memory module, and the second computational module, the second driver is configured to drive the second directional light source to generate a variable second light output, the second directional light source has a second melanopic ratio R.sub.2<0.40, the second memory module stores IES data of the second directional light source and configuration information used by the second computational module, the second computational module is configured to set a melanopic ratio R.sub.A2 of the ambient light of the device, the second computational module is configured to set a second EML target to EML.sub.T2, the second computation module is configured to calculate the second target lux L.sub.T2 of the second directional light source using the second melanopic ratio R.sub.2, the vertical lux L.sub.A of the ambient light, the melanopic ratio R.sub.A2, of the ambient light, the second EML target EML.sub.T2, and the IES data of the second directional light source a such that a combination of the EML from the ambient light and an EML of the second directional light source at the 0-degree lighting zone approximates the second EML target EML.sub.T2, the second computation module is further configured to adjust the second tunable driver to set the light output of second directional light source to be the second target lux L.sub.T2 at the 0-degree lighting zone at zero distance, and the device is configured to shine a light of the second directional light source horizontally to the eyes of the user.

23. The device of claim 22, further comprising: a distance sensor, wherein: the housing further houses the distance sensor, the distance sensor is configured to measure a distance D between the device and the user, the second computation module is configured to calculate the second target lux L.sub.T2 of the second directional light source using the second melanopic ratio R.sub.2, the vertical lux LA of the ambient light, the melanopic ratio R.sub.A2, of the ambient light, the second EML target EML.sub.T2, the IES data of the second directional light source, and the distance D such that a combination of the EML from the ambient light and an EML of the second light source at the 0-degree lighting zone approximates the second EML target EML.sub.T2, and the second computation module is further configured to adjust the second tunable driver to set the light output of second directional light source to meet the second target lux L.sub.T2 at the 0-degree lighting zone at the distance D.

24. The device of claim 22, wherein the second directional light source has an SPD<3% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range.

25. The device of claim 22, wherein a ratio of the SPD of the first directional light source in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range to the SPD of the second directional light source in the 470˜480 nm wavelength range is at least 10 to 1.

26. The device of claim 22, wherein the first directional light source and the second directional light source are configured such that either of the first directional light source and the second directional light source is turned on at a time, but not simultaneously.

27. The device of claim 22, wherein the second directional light source comprises one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs).

28. The device of claim 22, wherein the second directional light source comprises one or more organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The accompanying drawings are included to aid further understanding of the present disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of the present disclosure. The drawings illustrate a select number of embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the detailed description below, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure. It is appreciable that the drawings are not necessarily to scale, as some components may be shown to be out of proportion to size in actual implementation in order to clearly illustrate the concept of the present disclosure.

(2) FIG. 1 shows the workflow of calculating the first target lux L.sub.T1 and determining the first driver wattage.

(3) FIG. 2 shows the workflow of calculating the first target lux L.sub.T1 and determining the first driver wattage with the consideration of the distance between the device and the user.

(4) FIG. 3 schematically depicts an embodiment of the present disclosure.

(5) FIG. 4 schematically depicts how the device is positioned when in use relative to the position of a user.

(6) FIG. 5 schematically depicts another embodiment of the present disclosure with a light sensor.

(7) FIG. 6 schematically depicts yet another an embodiment of the present disclosure with a distance sensor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(8) Overview

(9) Various implementations of the present disclosure and related inventive concepts are described below. It should be acknowledged, however, that the present disclosure is not limited to any particular manner of implementation, and that the various embodiments discussed explicitly herein are primarily for purposes of illustration. For example, the various concepts discussed herein may be suitably implemented in a variety of circadian entrainment enhancement device having different form factors.

(10) Example Implementations

(11) The FIG. 3 schematically depicts an embodiment 100 of the present disclosure. The first directional light source 101 comprises 5000K LED's with a melanopic ratio >0.80, and it provides at least 50 equivalent melanopic lux (EML) at 60 cm at 0-degree lighting zone. Moreover, the first directional light source 101 has a spectral power distribution (SPD)>15% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range. The second directional light source 103 comprises 2700K LED's with a melanopic ratio <0.40, and it provides at most 50 EML at 60 cm at 0-degree lighting zone. Moreover, the second directional light source 103 has an SPD<3% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range. Additionally, the ratio of the SPD of the first directional light source 101 in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range to the SPD of the second directional light source 103 in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range is over 10 to 1. A selection switch 105 is used to turn on either the first directional light source 101 or the second directional light source 103. When the first directional light source 101 is on, the dimmer 106 controls the dimmable first driver 102 to generate out of the first directional light source 101 a first light output in a range of 50 to 200 EML at 60 cm at 0-degree lighting zone. When the second directional light source 103 is on, the dimmer 106 controls the dimmable second driver 104 to generate out of the second directional light source 103 a second light output in a range of 0 to 50 EML at 60 cm at 0-degree lighting zone.

(12) As shown in FIG. 4, the embodiment 100 is configured to shine a light of the first directional light source 101 and the second directional light source 103 horizontally to the eyes of a user by being placed on top of a computer screen. The distance of the device is at least 30 cm from the eyes of the user. Moreover, the vertical beam angle 107 of the embodiment 100 is less than 30 degrees with respect to a horizontal plane, as shown in FIG. 4. The first directional light source 101 and the second directional light source 103 can be easily implemented by OLED light sources.

(13) The FIG. 5 schematically depicts another embodiment 200 of the present disclosure. The first directional light source 201 comprises 5000K LED's with a melanopic ratio >0.80. Moreover, the first directional light source 201 has an SPD>15% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range. The second directional light source 203 comprises 2700K LED's with a melanopic ratio <0.40. Moreover, the second directional light source 203 has an SPD<3% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range. Additionally, the ratio of the SPD of the first directional light source 201 in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range to the SPD of the second directional light source 203 in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range is over 10 to 1. The memory module 208 stores the IES data of the first directional light source 201, the IES data of the second directional light source 203, the melanopic ratio R.sub.A1 and the target EML.sub.T1 (for L.sub.T1 calculation), and the melanopic ratio R.sub.A2 and the target EML.sub.T2 (for L.sub.T2 calculation).

(14) A selection switch 205 is used to turn on either the first directional light source 201 or the second directional light source 203. When the first directional light source 201 is on, the computational module 207 calculates L.sub.T1 according to the workflow shown in FIG. 1. Once is L.sub.T1 is calculated, the computational module looks up the IES data of the first directional light source 201 to set the wattage output of the first driver 202 such that the first directional light source 201 would produce L.sub.T1 at 0-degree lighting zone at zero distance. Similarly, when the second directional light source 203 is on, the computational module 207 calculates L.sub.T2 according to the workflow similar to the one shown in FIG. 1 (by replacing L.sub.T1, EML.sub.T1, R.sub.A1, R.sub.1 with L.sub.T2, EML.sub.T2, R.sub.A2, R.sub.2, respectively). Once is L.sub.T2 is calculated, the computational module looks up the IES data of the second directional light source 203 to set the wattage output of the second driver 204 such that the second directional light source 203 would produce L.sub.T2 at 0-degree lighting zone at zero distance.

(15) Similar to the embodiment 100 as shown in FIG. 4, the embodiment 200 is configured to shine a light of the first directional light source 201 and the second directional light source 203 horizontally to the eyes of a user by being placed on top of a computer screen. Moreover, the vertical beam angle of the embodiment 200 is less than 30 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane. The first directional light source 201 and the second directional light source 203 can be easily implemented by OLED light sources.

(16) The FIG. 6 schematically depicts yet another embodiment 300 of the present disclosure. The first directional light source 301 comprises 5000K LED's with a melanopic ratio >0.80. Moreover, the first directional light source 301 has an SPD>15% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range. The second directional light source 303 comprises 2700K LED's with a melanopic ratio <0.40. Moreover, the second directional light source 303 has an SPD<3% in a 440˜490 nm wavelength range. Additionally, the ratio of the SPD of the first directional light source 301 in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range to the SPD of the second directional light source 303 in a 470˜480 nm wavelength range is over 10 to 1. The memory module 308 stores the IES data of the first directional light source 301, the IES data of the second directional light source 303, the melanopic ratio R.sub.A1 and the target EML.sub.T1 (for L.sub.T1 calculation), and the melanopic ratio R.sub.A2 and the target EML.sub.T2 (for L.sub.T2 calculation).

(17) A selection switch 305 is used to turn on either the first directional light source 301 or the second directional light source 303. When the first directional light source 301 is on, the computational module 407 calculates L.sub.T1 according to the workflow shown in FIG. 2. Once is L.sub.T1 is calculated, the computational module looks up the IES data of the first directional light source 301 to set the wattage output of the first driver 302 such that the first directional light source 301 would produce L.sub.T1 at 0-degree lighting zone at distance D, where D is the distance between the device and the user and is provided by the distance sensor 309. Similarly, when the second directional light source 303 is on, the computational module 307 calculates L.sub.T2 according to the workflow similar to the one shown in FIG. 2 (by replacing L.sub.T1, EML.sub.T1, R.sub.A1, R.sub.1 with L.sub.T2, EML.sub.T2, R.sub.A2, R.sub.2, respectively). Once is L.sub.T2 is calculated, the computational module would look up the IES data of the second directional light source 303 to set the wattage output of the second driver 304 such that the second directional light source 303 would produce L.sub.T2 at 0-degree lighting zone at distance D.

(18) Similar to the embodiment 100 as shown in FIG. 4, the embodiment 300 is configured to shine a light of the first directional light source 301 and the second directional light source 303 horizontally to the eyes of a user by being placed on top of a computer screen. Moreover, the vertical beam angle of the embodiment 300 is less than 30 degrees. The first directional light source 301 and the second directional light source 303 can be easily implemented by OLED light sources.

ADDITIONAL AND ALTERNATIVE IMPLEMENTATION NOTES

(19) Although the techniques have been described in language specific to certain applications, it is to be understood that the appended claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or applications described herein. Rather, the specific features and examples are disclosed as non-limiting exemplary forms of implementing such techniques.

(20) As used in this application, the term “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive “or.” That is, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, “X employs A or B” is intended to mean any of the natural inclusive permutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and B, then “X employs A or B” is satisfied under any of the foregoing instances. In addition, the articles “a” and “an” as used in this application and the appended claims should generally be construed to mean “one or more,” unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form.