Umeå Institute of Design / 2021 / 20 weeks / research , form & interaction / individual project

Sleep is crucial for our health and well-being. Unfortunately, 2-9% of adults have obstructive sleep apnea. It's a disorder that affects breathing at sleep and doesn't allow one to get a necessary rest at night. As a result, those patients are asked to always sleep with a continuous positive airway pressure device - CPAP. However, the therapy is effective, it is also cumbersome. Around 50% of users drop it. And adherence to the therapy is not the only challenge that patients are facing. Most of them are advised to change their lifestyle to decrease the body mass, but also many of them have cardiovascular diseases connected with sleep apnea.

With medicine and technology limitations, CPAP will maintain as the most used therapy for at least the next few years. So how can those devices better support patients? What if CPAP therapy not only helps patients get a good night's sleep but also helps them tackle the disorder and its health consequences? Also, what's the behavior and appearance of the medical device for the home environment?

Luno is a product system that helps patients manage obstructive sleep apnea by monitoring their health and providing accurate guidance and support. The system consists of a CPAP device, sensor, and interface. CPAP device helps patients get a good night's sleep and monitors their disorder. The sensor collects data about users' cardiovascular systems and sleep. With a full picture of users' health and their needs, the device not only delivers airway pressure but it became a health assistant. So they are not left alone to face struggles of adherence, losing weight, lifestyle changes, and cardiac problems. The project aimed to challenge the competencies of the CPAP device, the way it interacts with the user, and its medical appearance that doesn't match the home environment. 

Luno, a smart sleep apnea assistant in a journey to improve health.