Gravity Sensor Oral Appliance for Sleep Position Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Approximately 56% of sleep apnea sufferers experience position-dependent apneic events, and snoring is often position-dependent, indicating a need to alter sleeping positions to reduce these issues effectively.
Innovation Solution
A system integrating a gravity sensor into a therapeutic oral appliance that detects the sleep position and generates an alarm to prompt the individual to change to a more conducive position for deep, restorative sleep, using audible sounds or tactile vibrations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a gravity sensor is integrated into a therapeutic oral appliance to detect sleep position, then the measurement precision of sleep position is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gravity sensor is integrated directly into the therapeutic oral appliance, combining the treatment device with the monitoring function. This merging approach enables sleep position detection without requiring a separate sensing device, thereby improving measurement precision while managing device complexity through functional integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The oral appliance serves dual purposes: providing therapeutic treatment for sleep apnea and simultaneously monitoring sleep position through the integrated gravity sensor. This multi-functionality allows one device to perform multiple tasks, improving measurement capabilities without proportionally increasing complexity.
2Reliability
If an alarm system is added to alert patients of undesired sleep positions, then the effectiveness of position correction is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The alarm system provides real-time feedback to patients when they are in undesired sleep positions. This feedback mechanism enables patients to immediately correct their position, improving the reliability of position correction. The system continuously monitors and alerts, creating a closed-loop control that enhances effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The alarm system empowers patients to self-correct their sleep positions without requiring external intervention. By providing immediate alerts, the system enables patients to independently adjust their positioning, improving correction effectiveness while avoiding the need for complex external monitoring or assistance systems.
3Speed
If the alarm is triggered immediately upon detecting undesired position, then the responsiveness of position correction is improved, but false alarms increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a predetermined time threshold before triggering the alarm. This preliminary action allows the system to monitor the sleep position continuously and only activate the alarm when the undesired position is maintained beyond the threshold duration. This approach balances responsive correction with false alarm reduction by filtering out transient position changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The alarm system dynamically adjusts its response based on the duration of the detected position rather than triggering immediately. This dynamic behavior allows the system to distinguish between temporary position variations and sustained undesired positions, improving alarm accuracy while maintaining appropriate responsiveness to genuine positioning issues.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Effectively reduces apneic events and snoring by encouraging the individual to adopt a position that correlates with desired sleep positions, enhancing the quality of sleep.
Implementation Method 1
a gravity sensor sized and configured to provide a position dependent output indicative of the relative sleep position of the individual
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
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AI summary
Systems and methods provide a position sensing component that carries a gravity sensor sized and configured to provide a position dependent output indicative of the relative sleep position of the individual. The position sensing component can take the form of a strap sized and configured to be worn about the neck, or be integrated into a therapeutic oral appliance sized and configured to be worn within an oral cavity of the individual. The position sensing component is worn by the individual during sleep. The systems and methods compare the position dependent output with one or more benchmark conditions that correlate to a desired sleep position, and generate an alarm output when the individual is not in a desired sleep position, to thereby influence or alter the individual's sleep position to return the individual to a sleep position that correlates to a desired sleep position.