Concept
For my open project I wanted to work with detecting stress through through galvanic skin response as well as finding a way to incorporate my dog into the project. The person would wear a shirt that had the main electronics on it, and the animal would have a bandana with a patch of conductive fabric. The glove that attaches to the shirt would act as the sensor, with the inside having conductive strips to sense stress (sweat). When stress reaches a certain threshold, the motor in the collar begins to vibrate, gently reminding them to do hug their pet and de-stress. When the person hugs their animal, this would act as a switch which turns off the motor and resets the system. The shirt and bandana have a futuristic aesthetic to tie together the technological parts.
Objective
Working from home and school work can be stressful and people often do not notice how much their stress level might rise. According to the NIH there is some research showing that pets can help reduce the levels of cortisol (a chemical related to stress) and can help people relax. Knowing that the neck is a sensitive part of the body, I wanted a motor to be the subtle nudge so that stress is a private thing rather than a public thing. It can be more stress full to realize the people around you can see that you are stressed. By encouraging people to interact with their pet and relax with a creature that loves them and doesn’t care about work or school, it can be a healthy way for people to take breaks and spend more time with their animals.
Parts List
- Conductive fabric
- 220 Ohm resistor (x2)
- 10k Ohm resistor
- T-shirt
- Motor
- Conductive thread
- Lipo battery
- Wire
- Red felt
- Red fabric
- Yellow fabric
- Cotton Thread
- Velcro
- Metal studs
Circuit Diagram
Circuit diagram can be found in drive.
Process
Due to not being able upload photos of process they can be found here.
Final Project
I was only able to finish the bandana for my dog, and only just started the shirt and glove.
Reflection & Next Steps
This is honestly a case of time mismanagement and thinking something is simpler that it is. Having three separate pieces that work together and involving those pieces in a way that is not only practical, but functional as well was very difficult. I very quickly steered away from LEDs because I wanted this project to be more personal and for the wearer, but it led me into working with components I have had minimal success with in the past and that I had never put together like this before. I lost a lot of time to figuring out how I wanted it to work rather than actually putting it together. I definitely will be finishing this project on my own time because I think it is such a neat idea, but it has deffinitely taught me to never underestimate how long something might take you.
Resources & Related Works
Cyberpunk 2077 – Samurai demon’ bandana | Spreadshirt. (n.d.). Spreadshirt. Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://www.spreadshirt.com/shop/design/cyberpunk+2077+samurai+demon+bandana-D5d3933d413615129eaed54f3?sellable=kaMrljXXrVt1yrLLobY2-610-41
Farnsworth, B. (2018, July 17). What is GSR (galvanic skin response) and how does it work? imotions. Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://imotions.com/blog/gsr/
H. (2020). Interested sensors. E-textile swatch exchange. Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://etextile-summercamp.org/swatch-exchange/interested-sensors/
INUPATHY. (2020, October 15). イヌパシー. 愛犬の気持ちを心拍から読み解く. Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://www.inupathy.com/en/
NIH News in Health. (2020, April 6). The power of pets. Retrieved May 1, 2021, from https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2018/02/power-pets
Sensoree. (2021). GER mood sweater. Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://sensoree.com/artifacts/ger-mood-sweater/
ZOLNAR. (2021). Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://www.zolnar.com/