ResMed to help Nintendo develop new contactless sleep sensor

ResMed has formed a partnership with Japanese videogame giant Nintendo, which is aiming to create a new contactless sleep sensor as part of a new business venture.

The Kyoto-based company has established a new quality of life division to complement its existing videogames business, with its first product to be a bedside device that visualises data pertaining to the user's sleep and fatigue.

ResMed has agreed to provide non-contact sensor measurement technology and sleep condition estimation technology to support the new platform, allowing it to analyse body movements, breathing and heartbeat without any need for physical contact.

The aim of this product is to monitor sleep in a way that will be unobtrusive, easy to use and engaging. It is also possible that it will be able to exchange data with Nintendo videogame consoles.

Satoru Iwata, president and chief executive officer of Nintendo, said: "Fatigue and sleep are themes that are rather hard to visualise in more objective ways. At Nintendo, we believe that if we could visualise them, there would be great potential for many people."

ResMed was chosen to partner on this project due to its proven experience in creating sleep monitoring technology of this kind, such as the recently-launched S Plus, the world's first non-contact sleep system.