The aim of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) funded project was to develop a wireless EEG-based measurement system for the independent creation of sleep profiles in the home environment, as a basis for the diagnosis of insomniac symptoms. The developed system consisted of a cap with integrated measurement technology and an app to operate the system.

A patient with sleep disturbances receives the pre-configured system as a mobile sleep laboratory at home and can carry out the sleep measurement there on their own. The user then sees a simple evaluation, while the somnologists can evaluate the complete data set with the corresponding expert software.

The application of a user-centred design process led iteratively to a user-friendly intuitive application with which the patients could successfully perform measurements. A large number of questionnaires, which have to be filled out during an anamnesis in the sleep laboratory, were also digitised and integrated into the application in order to support the series of measurements with qualitative data. Since sensitive personal data was collected, we based the development on a correspondingly advanced data protection concept.

The developed measuring headband had to accommodate all the necessary electronics while placing the measuring electrodes in the right places on the head so that there was sufficient contact pressure for capacitive conduction, but without disturbing sleep. Furthermore, the measuring hardware had to be hygienically flawless and reusable. All components were evaluated in user studies.

A flexible training concept consisting of video tutorials, on-site training and ongoing support by phone or online were developed for the users and also the GPs who dispense the device to patients.