Sleep Monitoring System

Abstract

A method comprising monitoring a user's movements and determining when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session. The method further comprising identifying the sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep, and waking up the user at a predetermined time, based on a combination of user preferences and measured information regarding the sleep session.

1 . A method comprising:
 monitoring a user's movements;   determining when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session;   identifying the sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep;   waking up the user at a predetermined time, based on a combination of the identifying, user preferences, and measured information regarding the sleep session.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the identification is an automatic identification based on one or more of: a current time of day, a period since a last longer sleep, and a location of the user. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the identification is based on a command is entered by the user using one of: a user interface dial, a user interface button, or a menu. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the monitoring of the user's movements is done using an accelerometer worn on a wrist strap. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the wrist strap comprises a wristband, and the accelerometer is part of a monitoring device coupled to the wristband. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 providing the user's movement data to a server; and   making the user's movement data available to the user.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the pre-determined time is based on a default optimum time for a power nap, adjusted based on historical data from the user. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 when a longer sleep is identified, determining whether there is an alarm set, the alarm set based on one of: a min/max time, a number of sleep cycles completed, or a number of sleep cycles completed within a max time window.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein when the alarm is set based on the min/max time, the user is woken up at an optimal sleep cycle time, at a latest point in the min/max time. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein when the alarm is set based on the number of sleep cycles and a maximum time window, the system attempts to wake the user at an optimal time, when the maximum time window will expire prior to the completion of the number of sleep cycles set in the alarm. 
     
     
         11 . A monitoring system to assist in sleep comprising:
 a motion identification system to determine when the user is falling asleep into a sleep session;   a sleep type identifier to identify the sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep; and   a sleep timer to monitor the sleep session, and to trigger an alarm to wake up the user at a predetermined time, based on a combination of user preferences and measured information regarding the sleep session.   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the identification of the sleep session is automatic and based on one or more of: a current time of day, a period since a last longer sleep, and a location of the user. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the identification of the sleep session is based on a command is entered by the user using one of: a user interface dial, a user interface button, or a menu. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the monitoring system is worn on a wrist strap. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the pre-determined time for the power nap is based on a default optimum time, adjusted based on historical data from the user. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 when a longer sleep is identified, determining whether there is an alarm set, the alarm set based on one of: a min/max time, a number of sleep cycles completed, or a number of sleep cycles completed within a max time window.   
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein when the alarm is set based on the min/max time, the user is woken up at an optimal sleep cycle time, at a latest point in the min/max time. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein when the alarm is set based on the number of sleep cycles and a maximum time window, the system attempts to wake the user at an optimal time, when the maximum time window will expire prior to the completion of the number of sleep cycles set in the alarm. 
     
     
         19 . A system of optimizing sleep comprising:
 a sleep identifying logic to identify a sleep session as a power nap or a longer sleep;   user settings to set user preferences for waking from the sleep session;   motion identification logic to track stages of sleep during the sleep session; and   a sleep timer to utilize the user settings and the stages of sleep to wake the user from the sleep session at an optimal time.   
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19 , wherein the sleep identifying logic automatically identifies the sleep session based on one or more of: a current time of day, a period since a last longer sleep, and a location of the user.