In January, however, attendees at the Consumer Electronics Show saw three smart, high-tech anti-snoring devices on display. First there was Hupnos , a sleeping mask with a silicone nose piece. Hupnos can determine the position a snorer is sleeping in and pair to a bedside phone app that listens for snoring. Once detected, the device gently vibrates to move a snorer from their back, a position that flops tissue back into our throats-often increasing airway vibrations-and onto their side, ideally without waking them. If that fails, it then activates the nose piece, which delivers expiratory positive airway pressure (EPAP)-allowing a wearer to breathe in through the nose, but making it hard to breathe out in the same way. This creates resistance meant to expand lung volume and reduce airway vibrations. It also tracks snorers sleep and snoring patterns so that they can better track which lifestyle activities, like drinking or exercise, seem to help or hurt their snoring.
The Philips SmartSleep Snoring Relief Band , on the other hand, straps around a users torso, likewise to monitor their sleeping position and unobtrusively nudge them onto their sides if they start snoring. And the Smart Nora , an inflatable insert that goes under a snorers old pillow, listens via a paired bedside monitor for snoring and, when detected, unobtrusively lifts their head to reduce snoring without forcing the user into a new position. Like Hupnos, it too offers users tracking features to monitor possible lifestyle snore factors. (Its worth noting that the Smart Nora is not actually new; its been around for a few years . But CES gave it a visibility boost.)
These are far from the only smart anti-snoring devices on the market. In 2017, the Sleep Number 360 smart bed made its debut at the CES , for example, touting its ability to detect snoring and elevate a user as needed for relief. And in 2018, the ZEEQ smart pillow made a few waves, promising to listen for snoring and gently roll a snorer into a new position with internal motors. A couple of other devices also promise to cancel out the sound of snoring. But anti-snoring features have usually been side-notes for bigger sleep tech projects, and snore sound-canceling tech has not gained widespread attention. This latest trio of devices, arguably, has put dedicated snoring solutions on the smart tech map. And while they are not perfect solutions-far from it, actually-they may herald a new and hopeful era for many of the worlds snorers. Or rather, for snorers long-suffering partners, roommates, and so on.
Before jumping into what makes this latest wave of smart anti-snoring tech so powerful and promising, however, its worth understanding all the low-tech ways humans try to tackle this issue. Humans have been trying to stifle snores for literally thousands of years; ancient Egyptian medical texts list herbal remedies not dissimilar from some still on sale today. For at least the last few hundred years, we have focused in on developing straps, pillows, and prods that make it difficult for snorers to sleep on their backs; nose plugs or nasal strips to widen our nasal airways, or in the case of plugs provide EPAP; and chin straps or mouth inserts to change the position of our jaws, or even move our tongues forward.
The biggest innovation in the field was probably the invention of the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine and mask, which pushes warm, moist air down a snorers throat to keep the airway wide. This device is widely successful in reducing snoring, but is not convenient to use-hence why anti-snoring innovators have, until relatively recently, focused on making it smaller and more comfortable.