Inventors:
JURGEN G. SCHMIDT - SAN ANTONIO TX, US
SHIRLEY JEAN SCHMIDT - SAN ANTONIO TX, US
International Classification:
A61H001/00
Abstract:
An apparatus and method for inducing alternating tactile stimulations in a human subject is disclosed. The device includes a first vibrating element and a second vibrating element connected to a controller. The subject holds the first vibrating element in one hand and the second vibrating element in the other hand. When the device is activated the following occurs in sequence: the first vibrating element vibrates, pauses, the second vibrating element vibrates, pauses, the first vibrating element vibrates, pauses, the second vibrating element vibrates, pauses, and so forth, until the device is deactivated. The first and second vibrating elements are preferably of a hand-held size and shape. The controller has several operating features including: (a) a vibration-duration control which regulates and controls the duration, and thereby intensity, of vibrations (typically 50 to 200 milliseconds), and (b) a pause-duration control which regulates and controls the length of the pause between vibrations (typically 100 to 2000 milliseconds). The controller has a visual display module with: (a) left and right blinking indicators which are synchronized to the activation of the first and second vibrating elements, and (b) a counter display which shows a count of the number of times the first and second vibrating elements have cycled.