22nd December 2013

Bedroom of the future revealed

Self-cleaning blankets, furniture that monitors your health, bedside holograms... all of these features and more could appear in the bedrooms of the future.

We love our bedrooms. Over two-thirds of us (68%) say this is the room we enjoy spending most of our time in. As the bedroom – and the bed in particular – increasingly becomes the ‘hub of the home’, we're also very clear about what we want from the Bedroom of the Future. According to a recent survey by the Sleep Council, the top five features people would like to see are:

1. Self-cleaning/bacteria-resistant materials, i.e. mattresses with self-sterilisation systems (47%)
2. Heat/humidity adaptive materials, i.e. mattresses that heat/cool in response to conditions (42%)
3. Smart Bed monitoring your vital statistics as you sleep, i.e. warning you if you have an infection, oncoming cold or if you are about to have a heart attack (33%)
4. Seasonally adaptive lighting, i.e. lights that turn on in darker winter months to help you wake up in the morning (32%)
5. Energy-harvesting flooring and fixtures, i.e. carpet that attracts light and transfers this to usable energy (24%)

The survey, which interviewed 2,042 people across the UK, also found:

• 27% now surf the Internet in their bedrooms, compared to only 11% a decade ago
• 17% now talk on the phone in their bedrooms, compared to only 10% a decade ago
• 55% are intimate in the bedroom with their partner, compared to 65% a decade ago
• 62% of 16-24 year olds like to eat in their bedrooms, compared to only 22% of respondents overall. This age group likes to do most things in their bedrooms, in fact: 28% do hobbies/crafts (compared to only 8% overall); 76% listen to music (compared to only 36% overall); and 28% like to exercise (compared to only 12% overall)
• Reading is still among the favourite bedroom activities (65%), second only to sleeping

Some of the quirkier and more interesting responses from people, when asked what features they would like in their bedroom of the future (and bed specifically) were as follows:

- A hologram of Mr Darcy to read to you
- Ambient sounds, e.g. falling asleep to rainfall, or waking to birdsong
- A bed that raises you to standing position on awakening
- Personally adapted supportive mattress to ensure the body wakes up without aches and pains

Design scientist and futurist Melissa Sterry, a leading authority on the homes and cities of the future, said of the survey: “The message we’re getting is clear. While new science and technology presents many novel and interesting applications, the bedroom and the bed of the future that people actually want is that which benefits their health and wellbeing. Four out of the top five features the public chose for their future bedroom enhance comfort, mood and safety and three of the five features relate directly to the bed. So, no matter how many other activities we do in our bedrooms, it seems sleep is – and will remain – the most important of these.”

Carpetright (multi-national carpet and bed retailer): "We see the bed of the future being super high-tech: a sleek and curved bed that floats using clever magnetic forces, helping it to literally become our daily cloud of comfort. Imagine climbing into a bed that recognises you as the sleeper and adjusts accordingly, providing optimum support, comfort and temperature as well as regulating moisture and allergens to provide the perfect sleeping environment and a heavenly night's sleep. By using a single device, such as a portable tablet, we'll be able to control the TV, our daily alarms and the temperature of the room. Of course we'll be able to check social media and emails on it too. It will be an all-in-one futuristic bed that folds itself away into the subfloor when not in use. So no longer will you need to worry about having enough bedroom space, as this perfect invention stores itself away at the click of a button."

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