It was back in October 2014 when mHealth Spot covered the Sleep Shepherd beanie. The same Colorado-based team that created that device is out with a new device that will also help people have a better night’s sleep.
Called Sleep Shepherd Blue, this headband plays “binaural beats” at different frequencies into each ear to induce a meditative state, thus making it easier to fall to sleep and stay asleep. These sounds are typically less than 1500 Hz, with less than a 40 Hz difference between them.
Sleep Shepherd Blue has EEG sensors that monitor the wearer’s brainwave activity to “react” accordingly.Binaural beats are what’s known as an “auditory illusion” that can also train a person’s brain to become better at relaxing, and at the end — make him/her fall asleep even without any third party gadgets.
“Unlike simpler binaural beat apps, the Sleep Shepherd uses real-time brainwave data to precisely determine the frequency offset to play at any given moment,” Michael Larson, a mechanical engineer and Sleep Shepherd’s inventor said in a statement. “This ensures the wearer is always exposed to the most effective, customized binaural beats.”
In addition, the Sleep Shepherd Blue has EEG sensors that monitor the wearer’s brainwave activity to “react” accordingly, to play more or less of the desired sound. It also connects to a mobile app that measures sleep patterns, including what time the user went to bed, fell to sleep and what time they woke up to give a Quality Sleep Score.
The Sleep Shepherd Blue is now available for pre-order from Kickstarter, starting at $159. The headbands are expected to ship in May 2016.