Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G04—HOROLOGY
  • G04C—ELECTROMECHANICAL CLOCKS OR WATCHES
  • G04C21/00—Producing acoustic time signals by electrical means
  • G04C21/04—Indicating the time of the day
  • G04C21/12—Indicating the time of the day by electro-acoustic means
  • G04C21/14—Electro-acoustic time announcement, i.e. spoken
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G04—HOROLOGY
  • G04G—ELECTRONIC TIME-PIECES
  • G04G13/00—Producing acoustic time signals
  • G04G13/02—Producing acoustic time signals at preselected times, e.g. alarm clocks
  • G04G13/021—Details
  • G04G13/023—Adjusting the duration or amplitude of signals

Definitions

• the invention relates to an electrical alarm clock in which the wake-up time is programmable and which emits sound signals for waking up.
• Such electrical alarm clocks are e.g. Radio alarm clocks, which are often still equipped with a cassette part, so that you can be woken up either by the alarm tone or by the radio program or by a music cassette. If you have entered the wake-up time, you will be woken up the next morning with the volume set last. However, as the following considerations show, there are some difficulties in setting the correct volume in the evening to wake you up the next morning.
• the volume must not be set too low, otherwise the sleeper can oversleep, but on the other hand, the volume should not be set too high, so that the sleeper is suddenly torn from sleep or even startled. It is known that gentle waking has a beneficial effect on a person's psyche and nervous system, while sudden waking through loud noises can have a severe impact on the psyche and nervous system and even damage it. A distinction must be made between short-term damage, which usually gives you a messed up day in such a case, and the far more dangerous - because insidious - long-term damage. Most primitive peoples, for example the Indians, have always known about these relationships and avoid them it is therefore suddenly and rudely to wake up sleeping people.
• the set volume is not optimal for every morning, because unfortunately neither the sensitivity of the hearing nor the depth of sleep is the same from day to day at the time of the alarm. Many factors play a role here. A volume set once can therefore be too loud for one day, while on another day it can be to blame for the oversleeping of the person who relied on their clock radio, because unfortunately in the evening you never know what volume to wake up the next day Evolution is the right one.
• the invention solves this problem in that the volume begins with a predeterminable initial value and rises to a predefinable final value.
• the volume can e.g. increase linearly, logarithmically or exponentially. It can also rise in the shape of a staircase or a saw tooth. Solutions are possible in which the volume fluctuates but their mean value increases. For example, the volume increases according to a function that is formed from the sum of a sine curve and a straight line. However, the invention is in no way limited to the small selection of increase functions specified.
• the end value of the volume can be specified, it can always be set so that the volume just required for waking is swept over. On the one hand, this ensures a safe wake-up call. On the other hand, because the volume increases gradually, on the other hand, and Woken up wisely, because if the volume slowly gets too high and uncomfortable, the sleeper is already awakened and can turn it back down to a comfortable value.
• a particular advantage of a first exemplary embodiment is that the time in which the volume increases from the initial value to the final value can also be set. This allows you to set whether you want to wake up more or less gently. Also, in a further embodiment, the person using the clock radio can choose between several increase functions of the volume, which is the most comfortable for him, e.g. choose a logarithmic function.
• the possibility is also provided of changing the volume from a predeterminable initial value to a predefinable value Final value, e.g. Room volume to drop within a predetermined period of time. This method wakes you up quickly and safely, but it does wake you up roughly.
• a particular advantage of the invention can be seen in the fact that it can easily be supplemented with a device, a so-called sleep device, which is intended to facilitate falling asleep and promote sleep.
• the sleep time can be programmed, from which the volume drops to a predeterminable end value within a predefinable time period.
• HiFi systems with a cassette section and CD player are particularly suitable for this exemplary embodiment, because in HiFi systems with a cassette section and CD player the possibility can be provided to put together a music program for the night.
• a music program for the night For example, one or two tapes can be played, or e.g. with a CD magazine player, pieces of music can be played from various CD records in a desired order at a pre-defined volume. So everyone can put together their own little night music according to individual criteria.
• a cassette of a language course can also be heard during sleep, e.g. hard-to-learn vocabulary of a foreign language so that it sticks better in your memory.
• the volume is dependent on physiological variables, e.g. the pulse and / or respiratory rate is controlled.
• the physiological size can be reduced by means of an electrode on the body of the sleeper, for example on the wrist.
• caution should be exercised when choosing music or language for sleep because the subconscious mind, despite sleep, picks up these sounds - music or language - and can be greatly affected.
• the last-mentioned exemplary embodiments can be used as alarm clocks and asleep devices or only as alarm clocks or as sleepers at will.
• the wake-up times, the increase or decrease in the volume can be programmed for a week, a month or a year. It is also possible to program these parameters for working days, Sundays and public holidays.
• the electric alarm clock is equipped with a calendar for this.
• the wake-up times, the on Program increasing or decreasing the volume for a period of time that corresponds to the personal bio-rhythm or the phases of the moon. They are then repeated periodically according to the bio-rhythm or the phases of the moon.
• the volume can be increased or decreased at the desired times, it is possible, for example, to hear the news at normal volume every hour at a radio alarm clock and to switch the volume to a low whisper after the news or to switch off the radio alarm clock.
• signaling devices such as e.g. Smoke or gas detectors can be connected which cause acoustic warning signals to be emitted in the event of smoke or escaping gas.
• signaling devices such as e.g. Smoke or gas detectors can be connected which cause acoustic warning signals to be emitted in the event of smoke or escaping gas.
• the wake-up time can be postponed to a later point in time if the owner of the alarm clock would like to sleep longer in rainy weather.
• several different signaling devices can be connected to the electrical alarm clock at the same time.
• a further exemplary embodiment of the invention can be used as a time switch which switches electrical consumers on or off at the wake-up time or predefinable times before or after the wake-up time.
• an electric fan heater can be switched on in a desired room.
• Radio alarms with or without a cassette section and hi-fi systems with a tuner, cassette section and CD player are particularly suitable for the electrical alarm clock according to the invention.

Landscapes

• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
• Electric Clocks (AREA)
• Electromechanical Clocks (AREA)
• Control Of Motors That Do Not Use Commutators (AREA)
• Input Circuits Of Receivers And Coupling Of Receivers And Audio Equipment (AREA)
• Circuits Of Receivers In General (AREA)
• Mobile Radio Communication Systems (AREA)
• Cookers (AREA)
• Electrical Discharge Machining, Electrochemical Machining, And Combined Machining (AREA)
• Addition Polymer Or Copolymer, Post-Treatments, Or Chemical Modifications (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (3)

Family

ID=6353089

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (8)

Cited By (5)

Families Citing this family (4)

Family Cites Families (14)

• 1988
  • 1988-04-28 DE DE3814353A patent/DE3814353A1/de not_active Withdrawn
• 1989
  • 1989-04-05 SG SG1995904504A patent/SG30572G/en unknown
  • 1989-04-05 EP EP89105951A patent/EP0339316B1/fr not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1989-04-05 ES ES89105951T patent/ES2049271T3/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1989-04-05 AT AT89105951T patent/ATE100221T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1989-04-05 DE DE89105951T patent/DE58906663D1/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1989-04-27 JP JP1106119A patent/JPH0216489A/ja active Pending
  • 1989-04-28 KR KR1019890005617A patent/KR890016440A/ko not_active Ceased
• 1995
  • 1995-07-06 HK HK107995A patent/HK107995A/xx not_active IP Right Cessation

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