Sudden infant death is the leading cause of death of infants under one year of age in Europe and cause for great concern in parents. Its cause is still unknown, although factors that predispose it. That is, there is no way to avoid it, although to prevent it.
A group of engineering students from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) yesterday presented a device that could help prevent sudden death syndrome in babies.
The invention consists of a system that is placed in the cradle that allows to detect respiratory abnormalities in the baby by issuing a warning to the parents who could intervene quickly to wake up the child.
It is composed of two small microphones that are placed one under the sheets at head level, to detect direct breathing, and another at the top of the crib, to control the ambient sound. "From the data received between the two microphones a subtraction of the two signals is made, which allows to obtain a reliable signal of the correct breathing", explained one of the inventors.
The sender sends data by radio frequency to a receiver held by the parents who receives data every 10 seconds. In the event that the baby stops breathing, audible and light alarms are raised that warn the parents that there is a problem causing the parents to wake the child, saving him from death.
For now, the only similar device I know is the Angel Care intercom that controls the baby's breathing and movements in the crib, but the inventors say that with financing and medical advice, the device to avoid sudden death could be put up for sale. at a price that is around 100 euros. Many parents would be happy to spend them to sleep more peacefully.
