hearingmate presents… portable fire alarm for the deaf xiang chen, cto alisha ling, ceo...
TRANSCRIPT
HearingMate presents…
Portable Fire Alarm for the Deaf
Xiang Chen, CTO
Alisha Ling, CEO
Christopher Liu, CMO
Tiffany Lu, CFO
Jessica Lui, CRO
Introduction
Our Product
Portable Affordable User Friendly
Alerts through flashing lights and vibrations
Design Problem
Many fire alarms in buildings only alert via sounds, creating problems for the deaf and hard of hearing
The fire alarm with lights are not portable, expensive, and hard to install
Background Motivation
Currently, there are approximately 11 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the US
Who is considered Deaf, Hard of Hearing? Hard of Hearing: have some hearing Deaf : Cannot hear with hearing aid
Main Causes of Deafness Hereditary Disease Injuries
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Percent ofTotal US Population by Age
COMPUTTY Alarm Monitor KA300 System
Connects to existing fire alarm system
Strobe light, loud speaker & bed shaker (for heavy sleepers)
$249.95
Requires installation Doesn’t vibrate Not convenient to carry around Only works where transmitter is
installed
Existing Products
Characteristics Limitations
Gentex 7139
Bright strobe light High decibel horn (90dB) Tandem connect to 6 other alarms Wall or ceiling mounted Portable version available
Hard-wired – requires installation, not portable
Not effective for deaf during sleep
Portable version (limited detection range)
Existing Products
Characteristics Limitations
Recognizes various sounds such as baby’s cry
Sends signal to any Simplicity receiver.
Sensitivity to sound can be adjusted Receiver strobes to indicate the
sound and the signaler $84.95 Does not distinguish between loud
sounds
Related Products
Simplicity Sound Signaler/Transmitter & Remote Receiver
Target End-Users Visual/tactile alerts (lights and vibration) Different subsets of the population experience different levels
of adaptation and visual awareness
Technical Experts Minimum requirements by ADA, NPFA, CPSC, & UL No standardization of the fire alarm sound (bell, siren, etc.)
Interview input
Deaf HOH
Born HOH Became HOH later in life
Reliable Must properly detect fire alarm Must minimize false positives
Portable Should be small enough to carry around. Lightweight
Accessible Screen should be large enough to be easily visible Minimal buttons
Constraints and Specifications
Constraints and Specifications
User-friendly Require no training (minimal instructions)
Power Requirements Battery life must last at least 1 day without recharging
Affordable Should cost less than $200 to build Should cost less than $300 to buy (current market
price)
Portable Smoke/Heat Detector
Idea 1
How it works
1) Smoke enters the ionization chamber
2) Smoke disrupts the electric current within the ionization chamber
3) Disrupted current will activate a switch in the circuit board activating the alerting devices
Portable Smoke/Heat Detector
Advantages Flexibility – can be used in foreign
countries, or while camping Long battery life
Disadvantages Large likelihood of false positives Large competition – device already
exists Limited distance range
Idea 1
Portable Alarm Detector
1) Microphone detects a sound
2) Signal is processed and compared to a library of sounds stored in the microchip
3) A match will signal the activation of the motor and the LCD screen
4) Motor is attached to a gear and offset weight which will cause the device to vibrate
Idea 2
How it works
Advantages Multipurpose alerting Large range (distance)
Disadvantages Multiple buttons are difficult for
the elderly to manipulate Difficulty of signal processing
Portable Alarm Detector
Idea 2
iPhone Application Same conceptually as Portable Alarm Detector (Idea 2)
iPhone already contains physical hardware
(hardware components fixed)
Idea 3
Advantages No extra device to carry around No hardware warranty necessary No manufacturing costs
Disadvantages Much smaller market Constant use of microphone
shortens iPhone battery life
Summary
Data Input(fire alarm, smoke or
heat)
Data Processing(Fourier transform, smoke
ionization)
Signal Output(vibrating & flashing light)
Problem: Most fire alarms alert people with an auditory signal
Who: 4% of US pop. is deaf or hard of hearingNote: Over half are older than 65 years old
Competitors: All other products require some sort of prior installation
Constraints: reliability, accessibility, portability, etc.
What: 1. Smoke/Heat Detector 2. Fire Alarm Detector
3. iPhone Application
How:
Thank You
Dr. Elizabeth OlsonAssistant Professor of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery
Dr. Jaclyn SpitzerProfessor of Clinical Audiology and Speech Pathology
Dr. Elizabeth HillmanAssistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Hayden HuangAssistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. David VallancourtSenior Lecturer of Electrical Engineering
Mr. Geoff ZoehfeldHard of hearing undergraduate Columbia student
Mr. Robert J. JacksonFire Safety Officer, Department of Public Safety
Mr. Joe McCormackFire Safety Officer, Department of Public Safety