Inspiration
Our tool is driven by the belief that every individual's life story is valuable and deserves to be shared. With a focus on connecting younger generations with the experiences and wisdom of the elderly, we have developed a video chat and sentiment analysis platform for the sharing and preservation of these stories. By transforming the most impactful parts of these conversations into personalized bedtime stories, we hope to inspire and educate the next generation while also honoring the contributions of those who have lived long and rich lives. Join us in this meaningful initiative to promote human connection and celebrate the sharing of knowledge across generations.
What it does
BitTales is a cutting-edge web application designed to bridge the generational gap by harnessing the wisdom and expertise of elderly individuals to provide engaging and educational bedtime stories for young children. The platform utilizes sophisticated natural language processing and sentiment analysis algorithms to extract the most impactful elements of the conversation between elderly individuals and children, which are then transformed into compelling stories.
BitTales features a mental health support function that leverages machine learning models and a range of mental health resources to provide a safe and supportive space for seniors to share their experiences and feelings. The app serves as a community hub, helping to alleviate feelings of loneliness, isolation, and depression, and promoting social connections among the elderly.
The platform also enables parents to participate in their child's bedtime routine, offering a guilt-free way to upload their own stories and create a personalized storytelling experience. Additionally, BitTales allows parents to upload PDFs or links to books, providing a vast library of options to choose from. Overall, BitTales is a powerful platform that uses advanced technology to promote intergenerational learning, support senior well-being, and enhance children's mental development through the power of storytelling.
We have also incorporated gamification as a key feature of our app, we provide a silent mode that allows children to engage with the stories in a fun and interactive way. With the use of game elements such as points, rewards, and challenges, children can explore the stories and learn in an entertaining and engaging manner. This feature not only enhances the user experience for children but also encourages them to actively participate in the storytelling process, making the learning experience more enjoyable and memorable.
How we built it
We used Java, Spring Boot, and Docker for the backend and Cockroach DB, Azure Cloud, and Google Cloud database for storing data. We used HTML CSS, JS, CanvaJS, Bootstrap and JQuery for the front end. We developed Speech to text, Voice Cloning, Emotion Detection, and Text to Speech Models. We used PyTorch, Flask, Hugging Face, Transformer, and Open AI for making the ML model.
Challenges we ran into
Challenge 1: Our team faced difficulty in selecting a technology stack for our project as we did not have a common language or framework in which we were proficient. This led to lengthy discussions and debates to reach a decision that everyone agreed upon. Challenge 2: Our team did not have enough time to train a machine-learning model for voice cloning. Challenge 3: Domain name takes up to 24 hours to propagate A and CNAME changes. So, have to demo on docker. Challenge 3: Our team experienced unstable Wi-Fi connectivity during the project, causing delays in communication, slowing down the project's progress, and making it difficult to access resources or collaborate effectively with team members.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
The following are some of the salient features of BitTales: Voice setup: Parents can set up their voice and provide a sample recording to be used in the storytelling. We are generating more natural and fluent speech by cloning the sample provided. Story library: Browse a library of classic and original stories that are perfect for kids of all ages. These stories are curated from various books and knowledge learned from seniors and old age people (after obtaining consent from all parties involved). Parents can provide links, which we parse and generate stories for. Interactive storytelling: Engage your child with interactive elements in each story, including sound effects like voice modulation, automatic video brightness, and Question Answering with feedback. Personalization: Parents can personalize and choose what their children should consume. (Genre, Books, and Facts from our database.) Learning from seniors: Older adults can use the app as an AI companion to talk to and share their stories and knowledge. These stories will be checked for toxicity before being added to our knowledge base. Tracking Mental Health: This features a mental health support function that leverages machine learning models and a range of mental health resources to provide a safe and supportive space for seniors to share their experiences and feelings. Gamification: We provide functionality that allows children to engage with the stories in a fun and interactive way using game elements such as points, rewards, and challenges
What we learned
Through the development of BitTales, we gained valuable insights into how to connect and bridge the gap between two generations - the elderly and children. This web application not only promotes intergenerational learning but also serves as a means of improving mental health by taking a small step toward creating a community of support. Building this app required us to consider the needs and perspectives of three major sectors of society - children, working parents, and the elderly. Each perspective was crucial in the development process, and we learned the importance of considering different viewpoints. Overall, BitTales has taught us the significance of creating solutions that address the needs of diverse groups and the impact that technology can have on social connections and well-being.
What's next for BitTales
BitTales has various possibilities for growth and expansion. These include catering to the elderly population, offering educational resources, expanding globally for other languages (multilingual), and collaborating with mental health professionals to provide comprehensive support. Overall, there are many exciting opportunities for BitTales to continue making a positive impact on society.
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