CHAPEL HILL – Bleep wants you to sleep better.
The company, based in Chapel Hill, was awarded a $1.7 million SBIR grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to optimize the design of its positive airway pressure (PAP) mask.
The company announced the award in a statement, in which it also noted that it is the only PAP mask to be made, fully, in the United States.
The mask can be used in home as well as in hospital settings, the company stated.
The product is called the DreamPort and is described as “a one-size-fits-all, single SKU CPAP solution with zero headgear.” It has received FDA clearance, and can be used by individuals who are in need of a continuous positive air pressure solution, for instance, to treat sleep apnea, the company statement noted.
Bleep believes that not only could its product help individuals sleep, it could potentially help reduce total healthcare costs. By the company’s estimate, more than 54 million American adults have what could be diagnosed as obstructive sleep apnea, though nearly half of those adults do not receive a diagnosis.
The company stated that this costs the country roughly $150 billion annually.
The design of the company’s PAP mask is based on a design principle to ensure there is no headgear or straps, the company stated.
“The awarded grant helps Bleep take a step forward in addressing pain points with a significantly reduced footprint,” the statement reads.
The company plans to release a “generation two product” and referred to this product as “Eclipse” by the founder and executive chair of Bleep Stuart Heatherington.
Bleep believes the awarded will also result in producing the validation data necessary for successful market commercialization of the product, the statement reads.
