Audinotes

Inspiration

Millions of Americans are diagnosed with dementia. By 2050, the United States population of people living with dementia is expected to increase from 5.7 million to 13.8 million, with 24% of this population living at home alone. Although most early-stage dementia patients prefer to function independently, the combination of severe cognitive impairment and other aging-related conditions creates obstacles to perform daily tasks, such as remembering to take medication and turning off the stove after cooking. To combat forgetfulness, many people living with dementia often opt to use sticky-notes to remind themselves of important tasks. However, as their disease progresses, it becomes harder and harder to keep track of all the necessary tasks that must be performed. This not only decreases a patient’s sense of self-efficacy but also increases the risk and/or severity of other clinical conditions, such as social isolation and neuropsychiatric symptoms. Despite the potential health ramifications of decreased self-efficacy, current dementia care practices as well as existing reminder technologies do not take this into consideration. To address this, we propose a three-part audio recording device that allows the patients to record personal messages and remind themselves on a daily basis. The intuitive user-interface, low cost, and convenience of our solution will allow the patient to perform tasks with more independence and increase their perceived self-efficacy.

Proposed Solution

Our solution consists of three parts: a wristband, a refrigerator magnet, and an app for caretakers.

1. The wristband has two simple functions: recording messages and setting a reminder timer.
   • The recording message function utilizes one big red button that the user has to hold while talking, once they release the button, the device will repeat the message and then ask the user to choose a daily reminder time.
   • The setting reminder timer function utilizes a scroll wheel on the side of the red button. Every time the user turns the wheel by one click, the wristband uses auditory feedback to confirm the time, once they confirm the time, they can hit the red button again to confirm. If they forgot to hit the red button, the wristband will still store the message after 5 minutes or before they start recording another message. Once the message is recorded, it will be stored in the wristband until it comes in contact with a magnet, then it will upload the message to the magnet.
2. The refrigerator magnet will have three functions: volume control, repeat all the messages, and mark a task completed and delete it.
   • The volume control function utilizes another scroller wheel for adjustment. It will play a song with the according volume for feedback.
   • The repeat all the messages is controlled by a yellow button with a repeat symbol in the middle. Every time before the device repeats a message, it will promptly state when this message is recorded.
   • While the user is listening to the messages, they can hit the green button with a check mark on top to mark the task complete and erase the message.
   • There can be multiple magnets in the house, whichever one the user makes contact first will be activated in the morning
3. The app interface allows caretakers to record their own messages and control which messages are recurring and cannot be deleted.
   • The wristband and the magnet talk to each other using bluetooth connection. Once the wristband gets into close range of the magnet for the first time in a day, the magnet will be activated and start playing music and remind the user that they have messages to hear. Only until the user hits the repeat messages button, the device will stop playing the music and play the recorded messages.

Value Proposition

• The voice recording function of a wearable wristband enables recording tasks whenever and wherever patients come up with it.
• The patients could manage their daily tasks by recording messages themselves, while having a default routine guarantee set by caregivers.
• The interface of the device is intuitive and simple for the elderly to understand and operate. There are multiple embedded backup programs to ensure basic function and users’ safety in case of misoperations.
• When the patient plans the schedule, his/her brain gets a moderate level of exercise which also help prevent the dementia to develop into a late stage

Risk Identification

• Risk #1: Patient accidentally delete recurring messages
  • Mitigation strategy: Caregivers can use their app interface to protect recurring messages from being deleted
• Risk #2: Patients forget to charge the wristband and it runs out of power
  • Mitigation strategy: We will use wireless charging pad to create the smoothest charging experience, and will remind users if the battery is low
• Risk #3: Patients forgot to put the wristband on in the morning and cannot record their messages or listen to previous messages
  • Mitigation strategy: We will program a default reminder within our product. The magnets located around the house will remind the user to put on their wristband in the morning.

What's next for Audinotes (Implementation Strategy)

Our implementation strategy is divided into 3 parts: design and development of magnet and wristband, accompanying app development, and verification and validation testing. To do this, we will divide our team into 2 groups. The first group will be focusing on creating prototypes of the magnet and wristband, and the second group will be working on developing an app that accompanies our solution. Finally, to test our solution with respect to our design criteria (intuitiveness, convenience, and low cost), we plan to conduct a pilot study, where dementia patients who live alone are asked to evaluate their experience in using our solution as well as their perceived self-efficacy before and after using our solution. We will quantify the impact of our solution on patient self-efficacy via subjective surveys and quantitative measurements.

Our marketing strategy will be centered around the main appeal of our product as a more affordable, more accessible, intuitive, and robust alternative to simply using sticky-notes to set reminders. To ensure the successful launch of our product into the market, we will conduct thorough market research through interviews with dementia patients, caregivers, and geriatricians. Furthermore, we will partner with local geriatric practices to increase awareness around our product. As our customer base grows, we will continue to update our product to increase its usability and accessibility.