Last week, I was busy with sewing the sketch of the Silence Suit. But I also was busy with the project in my head. I really was wondering how Danielle’s week would pass. Last time she seemed stressed and exhausted because of many organisational problems. So before I came this time I really hoped that many problems would have been solved. I was excited if the wearable would fit and if we could start looking for the sensors and the wiring.
So the question in the beginning “How are you? And how was your week?” had an extra meaning today. She seemed relieved: “I could eliminate many stress factors”, she says. That means she knows every team member can meet the milestones. Moreover, she does not have to solve the organisational problems all on her own anymore, but her mentor will take them on.
Because she didn’t have to focus on these things anymore, Danielle could concentrate on the corporation with Design Lab. Students from the University of Twente will work on the design, the developing and the production of the PCB’s for the microcontroller. Furthermore, they will optimise the suit and the cabling, as well as the interaction with the suit.
“So this is all very good news. But my highlight was the visit of Tom Bergman from Philips Research.” Last Friday he came to show the opportunities to influence the sphere of the environment by light. Danielle could try if the light has some influence on her mood by putting on the wearable. She could see that intensity and colour of the light can be detected by the sensors of the suit by sitting in front of the apparatus of Philips. The experiment was successful and we know that the apparatus is strong enough to influence the environment.
It is a well known phenomenon that you can recharge your energy by experiencing nature. It is called restoration and Danielle already worked with it in one of her projects Virtual View. But is seems that this phenomenon also works with light. Maybe light could work as influence as well as expression of the quality of the meditation session.
Besides that, we want to focus on the sensors and the cabling today. The sensor in the neck that detects movement has to be optimised. We make a first try by just sticking the sensor on the neck. We want to try where the sensor has to sit, so it detects the movement the best. We validate what Danielle already expected: The sensor has to sit as high as possible on your neck.
Moreover, we have to work on the sketch of the wearable I made. Because the sensor has to be included in the neck of the wearable. On the one hand, the sensor has to sit that tight that it detects every movement, but on the other hand it still has to sit comfortable. We try different options. We choose a turtleneck with some Velcro at the front to open, close and tighten the suit. But that is not enough. Also the other option we tried with some elastic does not work. It is still too slack and the sensor does not move enough to detect. So next week we have to look for another option. We already have some idea’s in our hearts but maybe you know a solution for our issue. So how would you solve that problem? Let us know by leaving a comment.
So you see by outsourcing tasks which stress you, you can focus on the things you like the most. It was really nice to see Danielle that happy and relieved today. I learned for myself how worthwhile it an be to ask one another for help. You see the value of a team. Maybe the things you are struggling with are for others much less complicated.
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