The robot that cuddles you to sleep: Kidney-shaped Somnox costs £549 and claims it can banish insomnia – but user warns it is like sleeping with a ‘miniature Darth Vader’
- The peanut shaped sleeping buddy is able to slow down the users’ breathing
- Somnox was developed by robotics students at Delft University, Netherlands
- It’s creators say it was designed to be ‘cradled’ and ‘spooned’ by users in bed
A sleep robot, designed to be cuddled in bed, can help users fall asleep with ease by breathing along in a calming rhythm with them.
The peanut shaped sleeping buddy is able to slow down the users’ breathing by simulating breathing rhythms that a human body naturally adapts to.
While subconsciously preparing your body for sleep it also acts as a calming distraction to those suffering from racing thoughts before sleep by playing meditation music or nature sounds.
Somnox is the brainwave of a group of robotics and engineering students from Delft University of Technology, Netherlands, and is now available to buy for £549.
Somnox, a high-tech sleep robotic, has been created by a group of four Dutch students to try and tackle rising levels of insomnia in their home country
Somnox creators say it was designed to be ‘cradled’ both while users are in bed and as they relax and claim the device eases its users into better and longer nights of rest.
One in three adults don’t get enough sleep, according to one study.
The NHS recommends that most adults get a good eight hours of sleep a night.
But with the busy pace of modern life and worries leaving some people lying awake, for many this is an achievable luxury.
The four students behind the project are industrial designer Julian Jagtenberg, software engineer Job Engel, mechanical engineer Stijn Antonisse, electrical and software engineer Wouter Kooyman van Guldener.
About their product, the group said: ‘Sleep experts, called somnologists, have helped to develop Somnox.’
‘Multiple studies have shown that breathing is one of the most important factors of a good night of sleep.’
‘A slow breathing rhythm can induce a person to sleep in minutes; your heart rate decreases and you’ll become relaxed in minimal time.’
A reviewer from the Guardian said spooning the device was ‘like being in bed with a baby Darth Vader’.
However they found that the device was more useful during the day as the ‘purring’ from the robot’s breathing kept them awake at night.
Adding: ‘I don’t have a cat, so used this as a substitute, sitting it on my lap with a bowl of minestrone while I watched Friends – and the weight was soothing.’
The peanut-shaped pillow measures your sleep and simulates breathing, based on your sleep pattern, to ensure a deep and restful night’s sleep
Deep and slow breathing can reduce your stress levels and boost your immunity to infections and illnesses. Poor shallow breathing can lead to panic attacks and even conditions like insomnia and depression.
The extra oxygen taken in in deep breaths when synced with the robot can have a relaxing effect on the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes a state of calmness.
During times of stress, the nervous system becomes over stimulated leading to an imbalance that can cause a lack of sleep.
Founded in 2015, Somnox is headquartered out of the YES!Delft Tech Incubator in The Netherlands and currently has multiple patents pending.
Somnox is still in the prototype phase, but the entrepreneurial engineers behind its creation hope to obtain enough funding to take it to market
Somnox gathers information using multiple sensors. This data can determine whether you are awake or in a deep sleep