GESTURE Gesture is an assisted communication device meant for cerebral palsy youths. The design uses soft light emissions to enhance simple sign language gestures. This interactive wearable also helps its user display urgency; the lights are programed to blink faster the longer the user is activating it.
co-creation & collaboration
The opportunity to refer to caregivers, educators and therapists also greatly helped me comprehend what the expectations and limitations I would undertake.
To further understand my co-creator, I was required me to participate in classroom activities like dancing, singing and games. Working with Matthew, an excitable, charming, cerebral palsy youth. Initially, observation was the main means of research
We often did crafts together for me to further understand Matthew’s physical and cognitive disabilities.
initial sketching
generative research methodology
Emotionally, I could not understand what Matthew was going through. Therefore, I ran an empathetic generative research seminar with friends who were given no explanation about the project. I limited certain participants with flash cards that could only communicate what Matthew could with sign language
Through this exercise, I learnt that getting someone’s attention was more troublesome than what was trying to be communicated. I decided to simplify my project as a signalling device instead of a device that communicates emotions.
rapid ideation / prototyping
open source learning
prototype refinement