Among my other trivial problems, I hate going to sleep at 10:00 pm and setting my alarm for 6:00 am, giving me a healthy 8 hours of sleep. What's the problem with this you ask?

Glad you did. I never fall asleep at 10:00 pm, so I am constantly short-changed on sleep. This chronic dilemma results in hours or even days of missed sleep when calculated over a year long period.

The solution: A handy-dandy (of course) alarm clock, that upon touching its "I'm about to pass out" button, sets the alarm to go off 8 hours from this point. No more trying to fall asleep at 10:00 pm, turning on the TV because you can't, and staying up till 11:30, and then being rudely awoken by your annoying irritating alarm at 6:00 am anyway.

No sir, not anymore. The days of 7.5 hours of sleep are soon to pass. The only alarm clock guaranteed to improve your rest, your health, and most importantly, even your mood. No more cranky-coworkers, just happy campers.
-- djjosh1200, Jan 06 2003

T-8 and counting... http://www.clickbro....com/alarmclock.htm
[Shz, Oct 04 2004]

psych doc, on insomniacs http://test.bagus.o...chdoc.12-01-98.html
[Amos Kito, Oct 04 2004]

sleep-sensing alarm http://www.halfbake...eep-sensing_20alarm
Redundant? Good idea, though. [Monkfish, Oct 04 2004]

Here's one version Please_2c_20just_20let_20me_20sleep
[normzone, Jun 23 2007]

Incorporate a baby silencer and Mrs-coming-to-bed-at-1am- after-watching-crappy-late- night-film-ignorator, and I'm in!!
-- egbert, Jan 06 2003


/No more cranky-coworkers/

Because this will create a chronic pattern of arriving late to work (hence no job, hence no co-workers), one could reasonably assume.

When my patent is granted and licensing sold, and I no longer work for anyone but myself, I shall have one of these alarm clocks! (with a one hour snooze alarm instead of the customary nine minutes, of course) +
-- X2Entendre, Jan 06 2003


Note from the inventor - I forgot to add that there is a latest time to wake up that can be set by the user. This is when you will wake up if you somehow forget to hit the "I'm about to pass out" button.
-- djjosh1200, Jan 06 2003


The only multiple of 90 mins that I can seem to achieve is 0. I'm an insomniac - anybody know any sleeping tricks?
-- sild, Jan 06 2003


glass of milk and a bicky [sild] you sleep better with something for your stomach to be getting on with.
-- po, Jan 06 2003


Ambien (tm).
-- snarfyguy, Jan 06 2003


I hate to disagree with forni's link but I am pretty sure that those 90 minutes sleep cycles actually get shorter during the night.
-- po, Jan 06 2003


Churchill and Thatcher were both infamous catnappers. I don't say that as if its a good thing or a bad thing.
-- po, Jan 06 2003


[UnaBubba] Because, according to the Oxford English Dictionary at least, the obsolete definition of "kid" which forms the first part of "kidnapping" meant "indentured servant." Kidnapping was originally understoodto be the practice of stealing humans to serve as indentured servants on American plantations.
-- EvilHomer, Jan 06 2003


I'd but it.
-- NotSoQuick, Nov 03 2003


Ok, back to business...

Djjosh1200: I would suggest to improve upon the idea by making the 'set' switch on the alarm clock have two alarm setting modes - one which sets the alarm time as time of day, and another which sets alarm time as hours of sleep. This way, whoever buys the product can decide how they use it for each and every use.

The next difficulty I see is in the concept of the pass-out button. If I knew I was going to pass out and could still get up, then I'm not really going to pass out am I? And, if I could get up, then I could just readjust a regular alarm clock at that point.

The idea of timing from the start of sleep makes me think that a more sophisticated device is required - one that uses various forms of bio feedback (such as brain activity, heart rate, etc), but that would be very complicated and expensive to develop, and there could be no assurance of its reliability, so I'd still poo poo on that idea.

I still think the 'hours of sleep' is a good idea to incorporate into alarm clocks, and that there must be some way to protect your intellectual property, and then sell it to alarm manufacturers.

P.S. I just remembered that my Timex watch has both an alarm as well as a 'timer'. The timer can be set for hours-minutes-seconds, so you could just buy one of these, set the timer for 8 hours, and hit the 'go' button when you're ready to pass out. Use your regular alarm clock as your 'do not sleep in' alarm.
-- garyspare2, Jun 20 2007



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