deployable enmasse via enmod...how many of these symptoms have YOU
experienced in the last 6 years?? notice reference to DEW in abstract...

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United States Patent 5,800,481
Loos September 1, 1998

Thermal excitation of sensory resonances


Abstract

In man, autonomic and cortical resonances of the nervous system can be
excited by inducing subliminal heat pulses in the skin by means of a
resistive heat patch, laser, heat lamp, or microwave radiation, or through a
slow air jet that carries a small periodic fluctuation in temperature.
Deeply subliminal skin temperature oscillations of frequency near 1/2 Hz
induced in a subject by any of these means cause sleepiness, drowziness,
relaxation, a tonic smile, ptosis of the eyelids, a tense feeling, sudden
loose stool, or sexual excitement, depending on the precise pulse frequency
used. For certain higher frequencies, the induced subliminal skin
temperature oscillations cause fractured thought and a slowing of certain
cortical processes. The method and apparatus can be used by the general
public as an aid to relaxation, sleep, or arousal, and clinically for the
control and perhaps treatment of tremors, seizures, and emotional disorders.
There is further application in the form of nonlethal weapons, involving a
pulsed infrared laser or a pulsed microwave beam, tuned to a sensory
resonance pulse frequency.

Inventors: Loos; Hendricus G. (3019 Cresta Way, Laguna Beach, CA 92651)
Appl. No.: 580346
Filed: December 28, 1995

Current U.S. Class: 607/100
Intern'l Class: A61F 002/00
Field of Search: 607/96,98,100-101,107,97-102,115.3,148,152,88-89
128/741-743,734 600/26,38 606/2,3,13 219/212 165/46

References Cited [Referenced By]

U.S. Patent Documents

4676246 Jun., 1987 Korenaga 128/399.
5315994 May., 1994 Guibert et al. 607/101.
5447530 Sep., 1995 Guibert et al. 607/107.
Foreign Patent Documents
9409850 May., 1994 GB 607/88.
Primary Examiner: Bahr; Jennifer
Assistant Examiner: Carter; Ryan

Claims


I claim:

1. Apparatus for exciting in a subject a sensory resonance, the sensory
resonance having a resonance frequency, the apparatus comprising:

generator means for generating voltage pulses with a pulse frequency in the
range 0.1 to 45 Hz;

heat inducing means, connected to the generator means, for inducing in the
skin of the subject heat pulses with an intensity less than 10 mW/cm.sup.2,
and a frequency equal to the pulse frequency; and

tuner means for tuning the pulse frequency to the resonance frequency.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heat inducing means comprise:

resistor means for producing heat; and

thermal conduction means for partially conducting the produced heat to the
subject when the conduction means are in thermal contact with the skin of
the subject.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the generator means, resistor
means, and the thermal conduction means are confined to a single enclosure.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heat inducing means comprise

radiator means for delivering radiative electromagnetic power to the skin of
the subject.

5. Apparatus for exciting in a subject a sensory resonance, the sensory
resonance having a resonance frequency, the apparatus comprising:

radiation means for producing at the subject a beam of electromagnetic
radiation with an intensity less than 10 mW/cm.sup.2 ;

chopping means for modulating said beam, the chopping means having a
chopping frequency in the range 0.1 to 45 Hz; and

tuner means for tuning the chopping frequency to the resonance frequency.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heat inducing means comprise:

electric blower means for producing an air jet; and

electric heater means for heating the air jet.

7. A method for influencing the central nervous system of a subject,
comprising the steps of:

inducing in the skin of the subject heat pulses with a dominant frequency in
the range 0.1 to 45 Hz and a peak intensity less than 10 mW/cm.sup.2 ; and

selecting a value for the dominant frequency appropriate for excitation of a
sensory resonance.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the inducing comprises applying
heat to the skin of the subject by conduction.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the inducing comprises applying
electromagnetic radiation to the skin of the subject.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein the inducing comprises applying
heat to the skin of the subject convectively.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the inducing is initiated by
the subject at the time that the need for said influencing is perceived.

12. Apparatus for exciting in a subject a sensory resonance, the sensory
resonance having a resonance frequency, the apparatus comprising:

generator means for generating voltage pulses with a pulse frequency in the
range 0.1 to 45 Hz;

microwave means, connected to the generator means, for producing microwave
radiation pulses with a frequency equal to the pulse frequency; and

tuner means for tuning the pulse frequency to the resonance frequency.

Description


BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In man, the nervous system responds markedly to certain sensory signals in a
narrow band of frequencies near 1/2 Hz; the response to the sensory signals
includes sleepiness, drowsiness, relaxation, a tonic smile, ptosis of the
eyelids, the feeling of a "knot" in the stomach, sudden loose stool, and
sexual excitement, depending on the precise frequency used. The narrowness
of the band of effective frequencies is suggestive of a resonance, and the
phenomenon is therefore called "the 1/2 Hz sensory resonance". The resonance
can be excited through the sense of balance, as we know from "rocking the
baby" or relaxing in a rocking chair. But the resonance can also be excited
by physical means other than motion, such as externally generated weak
electric and magnetic fields, as discussed in the copending patent
application Ser. Nos. 08/447394, ›1!, and 08/486918, ›2!. The electric field
excitation appears to involve stimulation of Ruffini endings in the skin
›1!, and the magnetic field excitation is believed to occur through
stimulation of muscle spindles and the vestibular end organ ›2!. All the
receptors mentioned use frequency coding in their data transmission.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It has been shown in our laboratory that the induction of subliminal heat
pulses with a frequency near 1/2 Hz in the human skin can cause sleepiness,
drowsiness, relaxation, a tonic smile, ptosis of the eyelids, a tense
feeling, sudden loose stool, and sexual excitement, depending on the precise
pulse frequency used. The need for rather precisely tuned frequencies
suggests that one is dealing with a resonance phenomenon. Since the
resonances are excited through the senses and involve the autonomic nervous
system, they are called "autonomic sensory resonances". Experiments have
shown that, for the mentioned responses to occur, the amplitude of the skin
temperature oscillations must fall in a rather restricted range, called the
effective intensity window.

Further experimentation has shown the existence of resonances at higher
frequencies. These resonances appear to involve cortical processes and are
therefore called "cortical sensory resonances". A large resonance of this
type has been found near 2.4 Hz, and smaller resonances have shown up near
2.2, 3.9, and 6.9 Hz. These resonances are detected by letting the subject
repeatedly count backward from 100 to 70, while the frequency of the heat
pulses is varied very slowly. The resonances show up as pronounced peaks in
the graph of counting time versus heat pulse frequency. As is the case for
autonomic sensory resonances, for the physiological effects to occur, the
heat pulse amplitude must lie in a certain effective intensity window. The
cortical sensory resonances cause a slowing of certain cortical processes.
Furthermore, prolonged exposure to heat pulses near 2.4 Hz can cause mental
states that may be characterized as "fractured thought". It takes
considerable time for the responses to develop fully.

The heat pulses may be induced in the skin by conductive, convective, or
radiative means. For conductive induction, the apparatus can be a
battery-powered pulse generator that powers a small resistive heat patch
placed on the skin of the subject. The heat patch employs either a resistive
wire or a sheet of conductive polymer. Heat pulses suitable for excitation
of autonomic or cortical sensory resonances are so weak as to be deeply
subliminal.

Convective heat pulse induction may be achieved by an air jet which is
heated in pulsed fashion. The jet is aimed at the face of the subject. The
full array of physiological responses can be obtained even when the air
velocity over the skin is imperceptibly small and the periodic fluctuations
of the air temperature in the jet cause skin temperatures variations of
subliminal magnitude.

Radiative induction may be achieved by a a pulsed heat lamp, a chopped heat
lamp beam, a keyed laser beam, or by pulsed microwave radiation. The
effective intensity window for excitation of the cortical sensory resonance
near 2.4 Hz has been measured for the case of heat pulses induced in a large
skin area by pulsed heat lamp radiation; the window has been found to extend
from 0.8 to 3.0 mW/cm.sup.2.

These discoveries open the way for influencing the nervous system of a
subject by delivering weak heat pulses to the subject's skin. Devices for
such purpose can be used by the general public as a sleeping aid, and as an
aid for relaxation, control of anxiety and stage fright, or for facilitation
of sexual arousal. Clinical use is seen for the control, and perhaps the
treatment, of emotional disorders, tremors, and seizures.

Radiative heat pulse induction lends itself to application in non-lethal
weapons for remotely exerting an influence on a subject's nervous system.
This can be done covertly with a keyed infrared laser beam or with a pulsed
microwave beam. In the latter case, high frequency is desirable since it
results in small skin depths in human tissue, thereby minimizing the wasted
heat generated in deeper lying tissue much below the cutaneous
thermoreceptors.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment in which weak heat pulses are induced
conductively in the skin of a subject.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment in which weak heat pulses are induced in the
subject's skin by means of an infrared laser.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram for a pulse generator suitable for use in the
arrangement of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 shows a packaging of the pulse generator and heat patch in a single
enclosure.

FIG. 5 depicts an embodiment in which weak heat pulses are convectively
induced in the subject's skin by means of an air jet.

FIG. 6 shows a heat patch designed to minimize the emanated electromagnetic
field.

FIG. 7 shows schematically an embodiment in which a beam of pulsed microwave
radiation is produced for the purpose of thermal excitation of sensory
resonances in exposed subjects.

FIG. 8 shows a source of pulsed radiation in the form of heat lamp that is
periodically switched on and off by a solenoid.

FIG. 9 shows an embodiment in which pulsed radiation is produced by chopping
a beam of radiation from a heat lamp.

FIG. 10 shows cortical sensory resonances in a graph of a subject's 100-70
counting time versus the frequency of radiatively induced heat pulses.

FIG. 11 shows excitation of the cortical sensory resonance near 2.4 Hz, for
different levels of power density at the subject's skin, and reveals the
effective intensity window.

FIG. 12 shows the effect on the subject of the stray 60 Hz electromagnetic
field emanating from the heat lamp.

FIG. 13 shows schematically two cross-coupled timers which produce a chaotic
output.

FIG. 14 shows schematically the hookup of two timers such as to produce a
square wave of frequency f.sub.1, amplitude-modulated by a square wave of
frequency f.sub.2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As mentioned in the Background Section, the excitations of the 1/2 Hz
sensory resonance by rocking motion, weak external electric fields ›1! and
weak magnetic fields ›2! all are believed to involve sensory receptors that
use frequency coding for reporting information to the central nervous
system. Since cutaneous thermoreceptors also use frequency coding ›3,5!, and
skin temperature fluctuations may occur in rocking motions as a result of
induced air currents, the question arises whether perhaps the 1/2 Hz sensory
resonance can be excited also through cutaneous thermoreceptors. It has been
found in our laboratory that this is indeed the case; when heat flux pulses
of appropriate pulse frequency and intensity are delivered to the skin by a
small resistive heat patch, the subject experiences autonomic nervous system
responses that include sleepiness, drowsiness, relaxation, a relaxed soft
feeling in the stomach, a tonic smile, ptosis of the eyelids, a "knot" in
the stomach, sudden loose stool, and sexual excitement. The various
responses occur at slightly different frequencies near 1/2 Hz. The
appropriate frequency for each of these responses can be determined, either
by the subject or by someone else in attendence, through manual frequency
scanning, wherein the frequency of the heat pulses is manually adjusted,
usually in monotonic fashion, in small steps until the desired response is
obtained. From the observation that the various responses occur at slightly
different frequencies it appears that the 1/2 Hz sensory resonance
encompasses a multiplet of resonance frequencies, one for each particular
autonomic response. When the heat pulses are first applied, the resonance
frequencies are observed to undergo a downward drift, large at first, but
diminishing in time. Eventually the frequency drift stops altogether, so
that the resonance frequencies become steady. Crude preliminary experiments
suggest that the multiplet of resonant frequencies drifts downward as a
whole. Upon discontinuing the administration of heat pulses, the multiplet
frequencies drift back up again, as can be seen during a brief resumption of
the pulses. The frequencies for the various physiological responses depend
somewhat on the state of the nervous system.

Of all the responses to the 1/2 Hz sensory resonance, ptosis of the eyelids
stands out for distinctness, ease of detection and frequency sensitivity.
When voluntary control of the eyelids is relinquished, the eyelid position
is determined by the relative activities of the sympathetic and
parasympathetic nervous systems. The heat pulse frequency for maximum ptosis
is called the ptosis frequency; it can be found by manual frequency
scanning. The ptosis frequency initially drifts downward, eventually
settling at the steady ptosis frequency. The latter can be determined by
manual tracking of the ptosis frequency, in which the frequency is manually
adjusted such as to keep the ptosis maximum. At a fixed frequency slightly
above the steady ptosis frequency the ptosis oscillates with a period of one
or several minutes. Therefore, the steady ptosis frequency can also be
determined by finding the frequency setting at which this oscillation
ceases, and the ptosis remains strong and steady.

The intensity of the heat pulses delivered to the skin is an important
parameter in the experiments; it has been noticed that the heat flux density
must be very small, in fact deeply subliminal, for the mentioned responses
to occur. This experimental result can be understood in terms of
nuisance-guarding circuitry in the brain, that blocks nuisance signals from
higher processing. Of course, these signals must exceed a certain strength
for the guard circuits to be activated, and this signal strength determines
the upper limit of a window of effective stimulus intensities. The lower
limit of the window is determined by a signals which are only marginally
able to excite the resonance. It has been found that a radiative power
density of 0.6 mW/cm.sup.2 from a heat lamp applied to a large part of the
skin is suitable for exciting the 1/2 Hz resonance, evoking the whole array
of autonomic responses mentioned for various frequencies near 1/2 Hz. At
very low power densities it takes considerable time, up to half an hour, for
physiological effects to develop. The frequency drift decreases with
diminishing power density, but of course the slow development of responses
makes frequency tracking difficult.

In extensive sleep experiments it has been found that pulse frequencies
effective for inducing sleep are somewhat lower than the steady ptosis
frequency. Before using a heat pulse device for the first time as a sleeping
aid, it is recommended that a ptosis frequency is first determined by manual
scanning. Then, starting with this frequency, the subject should adjust the
tuning control every few minutes by a small downward frequency step, until
sleep sets in. The final frequency setting should be written down in the
morning, as it can be used as a fixed setting for the next session.

..........................

An embodiment in which the heat pulses are induced by microwave radiation is
depicted schematically in FIG. 7. Shown are a microwave dish 43 illuminated
by a horn 44 driven by a power supply 45, labeled "PWR SUPPLY". A pulse
generator 1, labeled "GEN", is connected to the power supply such that the
microwave voltage supplied to the horn 44 is modulated by a square wave 5.
The frequency of the square wave 5 can be adjusted by the tuning control 6.
Subjects within the microwave beam 46 will undergo a weak pulsed heating of
an outer layer of their bodies, the thickness of which is about the skin
depth ›6! for the microwave frequency used; for a microwave frequency of 250
GHz, the skin depth in human tissue is about 1 mm. In a certain window of
microwave power densities, the induced temperature oscillation of cutaneous
thermoreceptors will cause excitation of sensory resonances at appropriate
pulse frequencies. The device can be used as a nonlethal beam weapon for
remotely influencing the nervous system of foes. ... continued at above
link.....