As strange as it might sound to some readers, Nintendo has reportedly filed a patent for a bizarre new device which, according to Forbes contributor Dave Thier, appears to transform sleep into something of a video game.

The device, which comes as part of Nintendo’s “quality of life” initiative, is designed to monitor people in their sleep and it comes equipped with a ceiling projector, IGN reports.

The recently filed patent, which was was reportedly unearthed by a NeoGAF user, offers a glimpse into what the company has planned for the future and it is, without doubt, an odd future at that, as the English part of the patent application, the abstract, indicates that the “portable terminal” will “assess a user’s emotions.”

This information processing system comprises a portable terminal. The portable terminal detects sensor information for assessing a user’s emotions. It would be permissible, as an example, for the sensor information to be sound information which is detected by a microphone, or image information which is captured by a camera. The information processing system assesses the user’s emotions on the basis of the sensor information. The portable terminal detects the sensor information in a period when the said portable terminal is in a standby state. As an example, the said standby state is a state wherein a display of the portable terminal is off.

An image of the device conveys what appears to be a docking station for a handheld device, such as a smartphone, which is seemingly referred to as a “portable terminal” in the patent filing.

Could it be that Nintendo intends on monitoring people while they sleep and somehow transforming it into a video game? What do you think this strange new device is all about?