· web viewspecifically, the application will feature a realistic child avatar to communicate...

LAB 1 - LOQUI PRODUCT DESCRIPTION 1

Lab1 - LoQui Product Description

Josh Farr

Old Dominion University

CS 410

Professor James Brunelle

12 December 2019

Version 1


Table of Contents

1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………………….….3

2. Product Description………………………………………………………………………….4

2.1. Key Product Features and Capabilities………………………………………………..4

2.2. Major Components……………………………………………………………………...6

3. Identification of Case Study…………………………………………………………………6

4. Product Prototype Description……………………………………………………………...7

4.1. Prototype Architecture………………………………………………………………….8

4.2. Prototype Features and Capabilities…………………………………………………...9

4.3. Prototype Development Challenges………………………………………..…………10

5. Glossary……………………………………………………………………………………..11

6. References…………………………………………………………………..……………….12

Tables and Figures

1. Major Functional Component Diagram…………………………………………………..5


1. Introduction

According to a 2018 study from the Center of Disease Control, also known as the

CDC, 1 in 59 children will be afflicted with Autistic Spectrum Disorder, also known as

ASD but is most commonly referred to as Autism. To clarify, Autism is a mental

affliction that will affects one’s behavior in interpersonal situations. This includes social

skills, speech and non-verbal communication. In fact, children with ASD are unable to

obtain the skills needed for emotional detection in a regular conversation, so they can’t

tell if someone’s happy, sad, angry, or other essential emotions to recognize. It also

doesn’t help how these children have difficulty maintaining both eye contact and a

conversation, if they could even make either to begin with. Also, there are different

severities of ASD, which would range from functional to highly severe. While There are

therapies that allow autistic children to improve under their circumstance, the process of

these therapies can repeat themselves. This is mostly due to the unfortunate fact that

there aren’t any tools that will allow the children to improve themselves in the fields in

which they need improvement. Also, any therapists involved in helping the child under

question would be unable to pinpoint they child’s progress and figure out where to take

them with certainty.

Because of this, we propose a mobile application called LoQui, which will be

interacting with the child, and teaching them important skills in the process. Specifically,

the application will feature a realistic child avatar to communicate with the child. Also,

the avatar will provide a list of games for the child to play, with each game having a

specific goal. For example, one game will teach the child to detect the right emotion

while another will teach them to say a specific word correctly. During these games, the


child will gain points and the progress will be recorded for the caregivers and therapists

to see and make future decisions from that point on.

2. Product Description

As previously stated, LoQui is a mobile application which will feature a realistic childlike

avatar in order to interact with the child and provide games for them to play. While the child is

playing these games, the app will track the child's progress and form reports to give to both the

caregivers and therapists involved, if any.

Unfortunately, the application cannot detect ASD, nor can it automatically detect the severity

of the child’s ASD. However, LoQui has the primary goal to help improve an autistic child’s

social abilities, so that they would be able to gain the essential skills necessary for personal

communication. LoQui also has a secondary goal of providing insight on the child’s

improvement for caregivers to help them make the proper decisions for their child.

To make sure the child will be able to learn, LoQui will be an engaging tool that’s easy for

them to understand what’s going while also having fun. The tool will also provide

documentation that will be easy to understand for the caregivers as well. To keep the child

invested in the games, and continuously play them, the points won gained will be linked to a

rewards system that can be tailored, by the caregivers of course, depending on their interests. To

have access to LoQui, the application will be available on smartphones and tablets.

2.1 Key Product Features and Capabilities

In order to keep track of the child’s progress, and send reports to the therapists, there will be

account authentication. Therefore, the caregivers are going to need to create an account with the

information necessary, such as child name and severity. However, the caregivers can log in for


the child and the child can just use LoQui from then on forward. After the account has been

created, the caregivers will go through and interactive tutorial as to how to use the application.

Afterwards, they’d be given a variety of different avatars, from which they can choose an avatar

they believe suitable for their child. The caregivers can also enter specific rewards that suits

their child’s interests and give them an incentive to get higher scores, along with any settings to

make LoQui suitable to the child in the case of a high autistic severity. Speaking of the child,

LoQui will play music in the background to keep them calm while they’re playing a game. The

application will offer an eye contact training game, which will use the OpenCV framework to

track the child’s eye movement, to see if the child is looking at the desired object during a

desired time, like thirty seconds or higher.

To preserve the data capture, LoQui will use databases. There will be a database for user

accounts and user preferences. There will also be databases for rewards tracking, as well as the

progress made in order to generate a report. That report will be sent to any therapists involved,

so that they can look at the progress and advise strategies around the LoQui tool.

Figure 1 LoQui Major Functional Component Diagram


2.2 Major Components (Hardware/Software)

The hardware that LoQui will be designed to run on will be Android devices as well as

iOS devices. The version built to run on Android devices will be written in the Java

programming language, with Android Studio as the suitable IDE, short for Integrated

Development Environment. As for iOS devices, the compatible counterpart will be written

in the Swift programming language, using the XCode IDE.

To make sure LoQui will be able to run well before release, it’s source code will be put

through both Unit, Integration, and System Testing. In the Unit Testing process, Java code

will be tested using the Junit Testing framework, while all the Swift code will be tested

through the XCode testing framework. As for Integration, the source code for both Java and

Swift projects will go through Continuous Integration testing using the GitLab website.

Speaking of GitLab, Git will be our source of version control for LoQui. For System testing,

our goal is to make sure the app can run after any software updates, hardware upgrades, and

hardware migration. Finally, to make sure the child will act as intended towards LoQui, we

plan on using Acceptance testing procedures as well.

Since the project will require a database, we decided to use the Google Firebase, as it

both gathers and preserves data without any needed Wireless Network connection. As a

result, the application can be used offline and all the necessary data will be gathered anyway.

3. Identification of Case Study

Intentionally, LoQui is designed for children with ASD, as well as their caregivers and

therapists. By using the application, children would be able to improve skills such as

maintaining eye contact, recognizing facial emotion, and proper speech patterns with the help of

an interactive avatar. However, the application might be applicable to children with social


anxiety due to its subject matter. In fact, the child user base could be a wider range of children in

the future, who don’t have any mental afflictions like ASD or social anxiety.

4. Product Prototype Description

a. Proof of Concept

i. Parents

1. Create User Account and Profile

2. Set user preferences

3. Track game progress

4. Watch the tutorial

5. Choose an Avatar

6. Choose music to play

7. Choose Rewards

8. Set progress goals

ii. Children

1. Play emotion training games

2. Eye contact tracked during play

3. Earn Rewards through improved progress

b. Risk Mitigation

i. Application will contain a tutorial for both the parent and child

ii. Offer a variety of Avatars

iii. Parent can modify settings in the app to suit their child’s needs

iv. Customizable Rewards System adjusted by the parent

v. All data will be encrypted


vi. App will be 100% in compliance with HIPAA standards

c. Customer Feedback

i. Professors/Instructors

ii. Students

4.1 Prototype Architecture

a. Hardware Utilized

i. Android Smartphone

b. Software Utilized

i. Android Studio

1. Application feature libraries

ii. GitHub

iii. Firebase API

iv. Google Identity Platform

1. Account creation and management

2. Authentication

v. OpenCV 4.1.2

1. Java library for real-time computer vision

c. Primary Languages

i. Java

d. Target Deployment Platforms

i. Android Mobile Devices


4.2 Prototype Features and Capabilities

a. Demonstrate ease of use

i. Allows user to test interface

ii. Allows user to explore functionality

iii. Displays a how to use and play tutorial

b. Demonstrates user account creation and verification

i. Allows user to register for a LoQui profile

ii. Allows user to sign-in upon each use

c. Demonstrates user profile customization

i. Allows user to customize profile settings

ii. Allows user to choose an avatar

d. Demonstrate emotion training game

i. Displays an avatar showing a certain emotion

ii. Displays different choices regarding the avatar’s emotion

iii. Allows child to choose an emotion from the given choices

e. Demonstrate real-time feedback

i. Displays correct emotion after each round

ii. Allows child to see updated total score upon each round

f. Demonstrate real-time eye movement tracking throughout game

i. Allows user’s eye movement to be tracked throughout game play

ii. Allows the user’s eye movement tracking to be pause when game play is

not detected

g. Demonstrate progress tracking


i. scores from emotion training and eye contact are generated and stored

h. Demonstrate a reward system

i. Displays animated rewards upon reaching each set goal

4.3 Prototype Development Challenges

a. Requirements volatility

i. LoQui is complex, and keeping requirements complete and consistent is

going to be a challenge

b. We will not have iOS representation as part of the Prototype

c. Usability

i. Designing LoQui to be easily used by children with ASD

d. Implementing eye-movement tracking functionality within the app

e. Lack of knowledge of Autism from a professional standpoint

i. Autism is a complex mental disorder

f. Security

i. Protecting user’s personal data

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5. Glossary

All terms are in the context of LoQui.

Android - A mobile operating system that is based on a modified Linux Kernel, used mainly on

touch screen mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)1 - Autism spectrum disorder is a neurological and

developmental disorder that begins early in childhood and lasts throughout a person's life. It

affects how a person acts and interacts with others, communicates, and learns. It includes what

used to be known as Asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorders.

Avatar - An electronic image on a computer that represents a person that can be interacted with

by a user.

Google Firebase - A NoSQL Cloud Hosted Database that offers live synchronization and

supports offline use.

iOS - A mobile operating system that was developed by Apple specifically for use in their own

mobile devices, such as the iPhone or iPad.

Java - A Class based object-oriented programming language that was invented in 1995.

User - Any user of the account. This could indicate a child user interacting with the app, or a

parent user modifying settings or checking progress within the app.

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6. References

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https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/autism-resource-page/.

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Autism Spectrum Disorder. (2019, November 25). Retrieved from MedlinePlus:

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Copeland, L., Buch, G., (2013) Early Intervention Issues in Autism Spectrum Disorder, Autism –

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Dealing with Favoritism in the Family. (2010, September 13). Retrieved from Wikinut:

https://family.wikinut.com/Dealing-With-Favoritism-in-the-Family/11zbhcqn/

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128008133

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