The Chromacoustic

Inspiration

By 2050, an estimated 2.5 billion people will have hearing loss and another 5% of the global population will require rehabilitation for hearing loss. Furthermore, over 1 billion people are at risk of permanent hearing damage. Consequently, we designed the Chromacoustic to utilize the concept of synesthesia to combat the struggles of those who are hard of hearing. Synesthesia is a condition in which information meant to stimulate one sense stimulates others as well. We take the concept of differently abled to a new level by engineering a method of "artificial synesthesia," allowing people with hearing loss to process sound information.

What It Does

The Chromacoustic takes in audio signals and converts them to waveforms. These waveforms are then decomposed by the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) algorithm and the strongest frequency is found. Based on the strongest frequency, the RGB value is set consistent with the wave's frequency and amplitude. The LED lights would light up according to the volume and the pitch of the audio signal.

How We Built It

The product was built using an ESP 32 and was assembled on a breadboard. LED lights and a microphone were also used.

Challenges We Ran Into

A challenge we encountered was getting the FFT working. For example, the algorithm had to be executed in loops rather than in one single pass. Another challenge was normalizing the data to produce values within the typical auditory range.

Accomplishments That We're Proud Of

An accomplishment includes implementing a fast and efficient algorithm of FFT. Additionally, we were able to take a decomposed wave and translate it into frequency and amplitude, which were then translated into RGB values.

What We Learned

From the implementation, we learned how the FFT algorithm works. We also learned how to better troubleshoot Arduino code.

What's Next For The Chromacoustic

In the future, we hope to make the Chromacoustic wearable. We also hope to add additional features to the bracelet by creating a toggle function between two modes—sound visualization and a potentially harmful volume indicator.