Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
58 Adherescent (Team 2) Auto Time Setting Scent Reminder
 Megan Shapland
Wenchang Qi
 Jiaming Xu design_document1.pdf
proposal1.pdf
 Adherascent
# Adherescent (Team 2) Auto Time Setting Scent Reminder

Team Members:
- Megan Shapland (meganls2)
- Wenchang Qi (qi14)

# Problem

Daily Medication is imperative to health, but is often easy to forget as we grow older and the reliability of our memories, sight, and sound decrease. Traditional medication reminders are lost in the frenzy of notifications and sounds that we experience on a daily basis. (As presented by Gaurav Nigam and Brian Mehdian at Adherescent ) There also is an ease of use problem. Many adaptive devices are not adopted due to the intimidation of learning to work with a new technology, particularly with time setting and confusing user interfaces.

# Solution

We propose a smart pill dispenser that utilizes scent as the primary notification mechanism. The system is built around a custom-designed PCB integrating an ESP32 microcontroller module. This allows for Wi-Fi connectivity, enabling time synchronization and remote scheduling potential. When a scheduled dose is due, the system triggers a scent release mechanism. The scent persists until the user opens the correct pill compartment. We will achieve the scent generation by electronically interfacing with and controlling a commercial aroma diffuser. The system will also employ magnetic sensors to detect the precise open/closed state of each medication compartment to close the feedback loop.

# Solution Components

## Subsystem 1: Custom Control Electronics (PCB Design)

This subsystem is the central processing unit of the device. Instead of using a pre-made development board, we will design and fabricate a custom PCB to ensure a compact form factor and specific power requirements.

* Microcontroller: An ESP32 Module will be used as the core processor to handle logic and Wi-Fi connectivity.
* Power Management: The PCB will include a Voltage Regulator circuit to step down the external power supply (5V USB) to the voltage required by the logic circuits (3.3V).
* Programming Interface: A UART interface will be exposed on the PCB to allow firmware flashing and debugging via an external serial adapter.

## Subsystem 2: Olfactory Notification Interface

This subsystem is responsible for generating the scent alert. We will adopt a system integration approach to leverage existing reliable atomization technology.

* Primary Approach (Commercial Integration): We will reverse-engineer a commercially available Ultrasonic Aroma Diffuser. The control signals of the diffuser will be intercepted and managed by our main PCB.
* Isolation Circuit: To safely interface the low-voltage ESP32 logic with the potentially higher-voltage circuit of the commercial diffuser, we will design an Optocoupler Isolation Circuit on our PCB. This acts as an electronic switch, simulating physical button presses to trigger the scent without electrical risk to the microcontroller.
* Backup Approach (Thermal Diffusion): In the event that the commercial unit cannot be successfully integrated due to space constraints, we will implement a fallback mechanism using Thermal Diffusion. This involves a PTC Heating Element driven by a MOSFET on our PCB to gently heat a scent-infused pad, promoting rapid evaporation.

## Subsystem 3: Compartment State Detection

This subsystem verifies user compliance by monitoring the physical state of the pill box lids.

* Sensors: We will utilize Hall Effect Sensors placed on the PCB or routed to individual compartments. These non-contact sensors offer superior durability compared to mechanical switches.
* Triggers: Small permanent magnets will be embedded into the lid of each pill compartment.
* Logic: The system will read the sensor state to determine if the correct compartment has been opened. If confirmed, the microcontroller will immediately send a signal to stop the scent generation.


# Criterion For Success

1. Scheduling Reliability: The device must trigger the scent notification within 5 seconds of the scheduled medication time.
2. Scent Control: The system must successfully turn on the external diffuser via the custom isolation circuit and turn it off automatically when the pill box is opened.
3. Sensor Accuracy: The Hall Effect sensors must detect the Open and Closed states of the compartment with 100% accuracy across consecutive test trials.
4. PCB Functionality: The custom-designed PCB must successfully power the ESP32 module and handle the logic levels without overheating or resetting due to power fluctuations.

Habit-Forming Toothbrush Stand

John Kim, Quinn Palanca, Rahul Vasanth

Habit-Forming Toothbrush Stand

Featured Project

I spoke with a TA that approved this idea during office hours today, and they said I should submit it as a project proposal.

# Habit-Forming Toothbrush Stand

Team Members:

- Rahul Vasanth (rvasant2)

- Quinn Andrew Palanca (qpalanc2)

- John Jung-Yoon Kim (johnjk5)

# Problem

There are few habits as impactful as good dental hygiene. Brushing teeth in the morning and night can significantly improve health outcomes. Many struggle with forming and maintaining this habit. Parents might have a difficult time getting children to brush in the morning and before sleep while homeless shelter staff, rehab facility staff, and really, anyone looking to develop and track this habit may want a non-intrusive, privacy-preserving method to develop and maintain the practice of brushing their teeth in the morning. Keeping track of this information and but not storing it permanently through a mobile application is something that does not exist on the market. A small nudge is needed to keep kids, teenagers, and adults of all ages aware and mindful about their brushing habits. Additionally, many tend to zone out while brushing their teeth because they are half asleep and have no idea how long they are brushing.

# Solution

Our solution is catered toward electric toothbrushes. Unlike specific toothbrush brands that come with mobile applications, our solution applies to all electric toothbrushes, preserves privacy, and reduces screen time. We will implement a habit-forming toothbrush stand with a microcontroller, sensors, and a simple LED display that houses the electric toothbrush. A band of sensors will be wrapped around the base of the toothbrush. Lifting the toothbrush from the stand, turning it on, and starting to brush displays a timer that counts seconds up to ten minutes. This solves the problem of brushing too quickly or losing track of time and brushing for too long. Additionally, the display will provide a scorecard for brushing, with 14 values coming from (morning, night) x (6daysago, 5daysago, . . . , today) for a "record" of one week and 14 possible instances of brushing. This will augment the user's awareness of any new trends, and potentially help parents, their children, and other use cases outlined above. We specifically store just one week of data as the goal is habit formation and not permanent storage of potentially sensitive health information in the cloud.

# Solution Components

## Subsystem 1 - Sensor Band

The sensor band will contain a Bluetooth/Wireless Accelerometer and Gyroscope, or Accelerometer, IR sensor (to determine height lifted above sink), Bluetooth/Wireless connection to the microcontroller. This will allow us to determine if the electric toothbrush has been turned on. We will experiment with the overall angle, but knowing whether the toothbrush is parallel to the ground, or is lifted at a certain height above the sink will provide additional validation. These outputs need to be communicated wirelessly to the habit-forming toothbrush stand.

Possibilities: https://www.amazon.com/Accelerometer-Acceleration-Gyroscope-Electronic-Magnetometer/dp/B07GBRTB5K/ref=sr_1_12?keywords=wireless+accelerometer&qid=1643675559&sr=8-12 and individual sensors which we are exploring on Digikey and PCB Piezotronics as well.

## Subsystem 2 - Toothbrush Base/Stand and Display

The toothbrush stand will have a pressure sensor to determine when the toothbrush is lifted from the stand (alternatively, we may also add on an IR sensor), a microcontroller with Bluetooth capability, and a control unit to process sensor outputs as well as an LED display which will be set based on the current state. Additionally, the stand will need an internal clock to distinguish between morning and evening and mark states accordingly. The majority of sensors are powered by 3.3V - 5V. If we use a battery, we may include an additional button to power on the display (or just have it turn on when the pressure sensor / IR sensor output confirms the toothbrush has been lifted, or have the device plug into an outlet.

# Criterion For Success

1. When the user lifts the toothbrush from the stan and it begins to vibrate (signaling the toothbrush is on), the brushing timer begins and is displayed.

2. After at least two minutes have passed and the toothbrush is set back on the stand, the display correctly marks the current day and period (morning or evening).

3. Track record over current and previous days and the overall weekly record is accurately maintained. At the start of a new day, the record is shifted appropriately.

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