Sleep research is entering a new era of accessibility thanks to a wearable app developed by engineers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The app, called BIDSleep, transforms consumer-grade Apple Watches into advanced sleep monitoring tools, allowing researchers to track sleep stages outside of clinical labs. This innovation could accelerate studies on sleep health and its connection to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Traditional sleep studies rely on polysomnography, a complex and expensive process that requires overnight monitoring in specialized facilities. These setups involve multiple sensors to measure brain activity, breathing, and movement, making them difficult to scale for large populations or long-term studies. BIDSleep addresses this limitation by using artificial intelligence to interpret data collected from Apple Watch sensors, including heart rate variability and motion patterns.
The app enables users to wear their Apple Watch during sleep and automatically classifies sleep stages such as REM, light, and deep sleep. The AI algorithms are trained to extract meaningful insights from limited sensor inputs, making the system both accurate and practical for everyday use.
BIDSleep is already being deployed in research focused on Alzheimer’s disease. Sleep disturbances are known to correlate with early signs of cognitive decline, and the app allows researchers to monitor these patterns continuously in natural environments. This could lead to earlier detection and more personalized interventions for individuals at risk.
The app is designed to be user-friendly and non-invasive, making it suitable for older adults and those with sleep disorders. It also supports long-term data collection, which is essential for understanding how sleep evolves over time and how it interacts with other health factors. Researchers envision broader applications in public health, remote clinical trials, and personalized sleep coaching.
Article from UMass Amherst: An App, an Apple Watch and AI: UMass Amherst Creates a New Way for Researchers to Study Sleep Health
Abstract in IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering: AI-Driven Sleep Staging Using Instantaneous Heart Rate and Accelerometry: Insights from an Apple Watch Study
