There are many helpful sensors for your smart home, from humidity sensors to door and window sensors.But there's one sensor in particular that sounds a little crazy, but can actually be incredibly useful.What is a bed presence sensor? A bed presence sensor is exactly what it sounds like.
It's a dedicated sensor that can tell when one or more people are in bed, and when the bed is empty.Not all bed presence sensors use the same method for determining if someone is in bed.Options such as the Bed Presence for ESPHome from Elevated Sensors, the GoveeLife Smart Button Pressure Sensor, and the ASC SlumberTek work by measuring the pressure from the mattress above.
Some bed presence sensors, such as the Withings Sleep Analyzer, take things even further and use pneumatic sensors to detect not just your presence, but your heart rate and breathing, too.While designed for use with Withings' own software, you can integrate the Withings Sleep Analyzer into Home Assistant for advanced sleep tracking and automation.Related 7 smart home upgrades you need in the bedroom Sleep better, wake up gently.
Posts 1 By Tim Brookes You can use other sensors for bed presence You don't have to buy a dedicated bed presence sensor to detect when someone is in bed.It's possible to utilize other sensors for the same purpose.For example, you can use an mmWave presence sensor such as the Aqara FP2 or the Everything Presence Lite sensor to detect presence within a specific zone.
By setting one up facing your bed and creating a "bed" zone, you can determine when people are in bed.It may also be possible to use an mmWave sensor underneath the bed; some sensors are able to detect presence even through the mattress.You can even use DIY options to create your own bed presence sensors.
There are options such as placing a temperature sensor inside your mattress or using a PIR motion sensor to determine when people enter and exit the bedroom.A bed presence sensor unlocks new automation possibilities All of this raises the question: why do you need to know when someone is in bed? Is a bed presence sensor even something that is worth having? While it may not seem like it at first, there's a lot that a bed presence sensor can bring to your smart home.We spend a third of our lives in bed, and the way we want our smart homes to operate is very different when we're awake and when we're asleep.
Knowing when we're in bed and when we're up can be very useful information.For example, many people have a bedtime routine that performs a series of actions such as turning off lights, lowering the temperature, locking the door, turning off smart plugs, muting notifications, and more.There are multiple ways you can trigger these types of automations, but a bed presence sensor can make it something that can run automatically by triggering once everyone is detected as being in bed.
Knowing when you're getting out of bed in the morning is great for triggering morning automations, too.You can start your coffee machine when your alarm goes off, but if you struggle to get out of bed, by the time you get to the kitchen, your coffee is cold.With a bed presence sensor, you can automatically start the coffee machine the moment you physically get out of bed, so that when you get to the kitchen, it's still piping hot.
Even during the night, a bed presence sensor can be incredibly useful.If you need to go to the bathroom at night, for example, the bed presence sensor can detect that you've got out of bed and turn on low-level lighting so you're not stumbling to the bathroom in the dark.Taking bed presence to the next level You can use bed presence sensors for more than just telling whether the bed is empty or has people in it.
With the right setup, you can determine how many people are in bed, and on which sides.Subscribe for smart-home sensor tips including bed presence Discover why bed-presence sensors matter and how to use them — subscribe to the newsletter for hands-on guides, gear comparisons, and step-by-step automations (including DIY options) to build smarter sleep and wake routines with your smart home.Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
You can unsubscribe anytime.There are several ways to achieve this.You can use two pressure sensors on different sides of the bed to determine when each person is in bed.
You can use load sensors under each foot of the bed and compare the load on each foot to determine which sides of the bed are occupied, or use an mmWave sensor and set up two different zones for each side of the bed.This allows you to create more personalized automations.For example, your smart speaker in the kitchen could play a different morning briefing depending on which person was identified as having gotten out of bed.
It also ensures that your bedtime routine doesn't run until everyone is in bed, so you don't suddenly have the TV turn off and the lights go dark when you're up late watching TV.Bed presence sensors might not seem like the most necessary smart home devices for your home.After all, you already know if you're in bed or not.
You may be surprised just how useful they can be, however.
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