For students trying to catch up on sleep, the constant background noises within college dorms are no longer an issue.
Developers over at Cambridge Sound Management have created a high-tech product that aims to reduce unwanted noise within residential areas. Nightingale masks displeasing sounds with customizable acoustics, and could be every college student’s dream.
With a successful 15 years of developing acoustic solutions for commercial estates, Cambridge Sound Management has become “the leader in commercial sound masking systems,” said David Sholkovitz, technology executive and marketing vice president of the company. The idea for Nightingale, a masking application specifically for residential spaces, was sparked when previous customers began inquiring if such a product existed.
After two years of innovating with the help of their engineering team, Cambridge Sound System developed the first-ever consumer residential smart-sleep system.
Nightingale is already challenging lower-tech sleep systems with strong tests of effectiveness. The company says the product can completely eliminate the nagging sounds of dripping water and whispering. Additionally, it can heavily reduce the sounds of conversation, crying, and traffic. With the tech-help business community’s rising awareness of sleep deprivation and the consumer demand for aid in easing the problem, however, Nightingale had to separate itself from the competition.
“Unlike other sound masking machines, Nightingale comes with two units, and what this does is prevent your ear from localizing the sound, which means it will blend in with the background better,” Sholkovitz said. “Traditional sound machines or white-noise machines produce masks coming from one sound source, and so your ear localizes that, and it actually becomes distracting.”
With the speakers located on the sides of the units instead of the front, Nightingale uses the walls of one’s bedroom to reflect the sound into his or her bedroom, and provide full coverage from the “sound blanket.” Sound blankets are the term that Sholkovitz uses to describe the entirely-customizable background sounds that Nightingale users enjoy that mask nearly all unwanted outside noises that would normally disrupt the user’s sleep. These 15 sound blankets are not only customizable to specific noises, but they can also be tailored to a room’s architecture.
“Not all rooms have the same acoustics, and sound absorption, so Nightingale can be customized based off the acoustics and architecture of the room to provide the best sound to help you sleep,” Sholkovitz said. “That’s different from any other white-noise machine out there.”
Nightingale is also accessible through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, and can be controlled from any iOS or Android device. This allows for easy monitoring and control with just a simple touch of your phone screen. Likewise, it can be integrated with other smart-home devices, such as Amazon Alexa or Google Home, expanding the product’s capabilities to controlling other aspects of your residence. Nightingale also serves as an outlet, eliminating the stress of taking up more and more charging/power stations in your room. Finally, Nightingale possesses multiple, colored LED lights, which can be used as a nightlight.
A study conducted at the University of Alabama has shown that 60 percent of college students say they do not get enough sleep at night. Without this rest and recovery, students may struggle to perform at their highest potential. Nightingale pushes for the growing awareness of issues regarding sleep among college students, and the effects that they entail.
“It’s exciting to be working on a product that actually helps you sleep better, and benefits you,” Sholkovitz said. “Students especially want to get a good night’s sleep to wake up for early the next morning for a test, or from a nap so they can continue studying.”
Having these concerns at the forefront of their motivation, the team behind Nightingale is set on helping college students confront their poor sleeping habits. With a multipurpose platform, smartphone accessibility, and an array of customizations, Nightingale can suit the sleep-deprived college student’s need, though the $249 price-tag currently on pre-orders currently makes it more of a luxury. The product is set to launch in February 2017, and in the final weeks before the release, the Nightingale developers are concentrating on working out the product’s final kinks.
“We are really focused on the launch in February, and receiving feedback from consumers, to see what we can add, and how we can better the sounds blankets, and the product as a whole,” Sholkovitz said. “We are bringing a sleep product to the market, unlike any other white noise or sleep masking machine.”
Featured Image Courtesy of Nightingale
