In 1986, physicist Philip Isaacson and a team of engineers developed a pulse oximeter for measuring blood oxygen (SpO2) levels. The concept of oximetry was not new—O2 saturation measurement devices were first invented in the 1930s—but Isaacson and his team made the technology more compact and affordable. The name “Nonin” is short for “noninvasive.”
Since then, the company has introduced dozens of new products and developed several proprietary technologies that advance the quality and accessibility of noninvasive physiological monitoring. Significant achievements include:
1986—Company founded; first oximeter shipped
1990—Introduced the world’s first portable hand-held pulse oximeter
1995—Introduced the world’s first fingertip pulse oximeter
1997—Released the world’s first low-power pulse oximeter for OEM
2004—Introduced the world’s first pulse oximeter with Bluetooth® wireless technology
2007—Launched pulse oximeter/capnograph product to USA and Canada
2008—Founding member of Continua™ Alliance Group
2009—Recipient of Bluetooth SIG “Best of CES” Award
2009—Introduced the first and only regional cerebral/somatic tissue oximeter to use a dual light-emitting and detecting sensor architecture for industry-leading accuracy
2010—Certified to Microsoft HealthVault® eHealth consumer platform
2011—Introduced multiple innovations in regional oximetry: adult and neonatal/pediatric sensors for cerebral and somatic application; the world’s first sensor to automatically adjust for myelination variation in neonatal/pediatric brain tissue
2011—Released the world’s first regional oximetry components for OEMs
2012—Introduced the world’s first and only regional oximetry pediatric sensor to automatically account for pediatric brain-tissue-development variation when measuring oxygen saturation levels
2013—Made two introductions in Europe: the world’s first universal oximetry system combining pulse oximetry and regional oximetry in one system, and the world’s first medical device featuring Bluetooth® Low Energy (LE) wireless technology
2013—Won the Frost & Sullivan North American Product Quality Leadership Award for Pulse Oximeters
2020—Introduced the Nonin CO-Pilot™, a first-of-its-kind handheld device with wireless capabilities that can simultaneously track patient pulse oximetry (SpO2), pulse rate, carboxyhemoglobin (COHb), and methemoglobin (MetHb), helping EMS, firefighters, and military personnel measure patient parameters following cardiac arrest, traumatic injury, carbon monoxide, or smoke inhalation
2020—Nonin CO-Pilot™ Named Innovation Award Winner by EMS World for improving accessibility to new technologies and patient care
2020—Nonin Medical was recognized in Inc.’s “Best in Business” list in health products for making a positive impact on the healthcare industry in 2020
2021—Celebrated 35 years of reinventing healthcare through pulse oximetry innovation
2021—Nonin CO-Pilot™ is recognized in Fast Company’s 2021 World Changing Ideas Awards for pursuing innovation for the good of society and the planet
2024—Nonin partners with EnsoData to offer affordable, non-invasive at-home sleep testing for patients at risk of sleep apnea
2024—Secured FDA clearance for the TruO2® OTC over-the-counter fingertip pulse oximeter, providing clinical benefits due to its accuracy across patients of all skin colors
2025—Recognized as a Minnesota Top Workplace for the 3rd consecutive year by The Minnesota Star Tribune
2025—Launched the Nonin Health® Platform to improve the efficiency of home overnight oximetry testing and monitoring
2026—Nonin celebrated its 40th anniversary of making noninvasive patient monitoring devices more reliable and affordable
Today, Nonin Medical is globally recognized as an innovator in signal processing and sensor design; its technologies are used by hundreds of medical device manufacturers. Its products include pulse oximeters, regional oximeters, capnographs, sensors, software and accessories. With headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, and with a service center in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Nonin distributes products to health professionals and consumers in more than 125 countries.