Right time to rise and shine

Getting out of bed in the morning can be a chore - but a new alarm clock promises to make waking up easier, using hi-tech sensors to detect the exact moment your body is ready to face the day.The smart Aura bio-clock features a sensor pad under the bed sheet linked to a users' iPhone and can measure body movements, breathing and heart rates to monitor sleeping pattens.The sensor is linked to a colour-changing bedside lamp with an embedded speaker to rouse the sleeper. Paired with an iPhone app, it can even to help explain a persons' sleeping habits.A combination of body movement and the light - which changes from red to yellow, white and blue - enables the device to recognise when it is time for the person to wake up, and sets off the alarm clock.The gadget, set to launch in Britain later this spring at a cost of around £180, can also measure room temperature and a sound system records noise levels.Meanwhile the light changes colour as morning approaches, gently preparing the user to wake up.Aura was launched by manufacturers Withings at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and the French company behind the clock believe it could herald the end of setting an alarm clock. Research has shown that blue light stimulates a pigment from the eye's retina, melanopsin, which triggers the brain into feeling more alert.Conversely red promotes sleep, and the colours rotate in the opposite direction to help the user fall asleep.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az