 |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |
House to Home Proposal: Auditory Assistive Technology
Team | Deema Almujadid | Ben Ge | Julia Rexon | Deidre Washington
Some individuals with autism have hypersensitive hearing to specific frequencies. The symptoms could be so severe that it causes extreme tantrums or reactions or stress and anxiety for the sufferer. We experience sounds everyday on the subway, streets, office, or even in an apartment building. What may not bother some could be debilitating for someone with ASD. The following are some the symptoms that individuals who are hypersensitive to sound may experience:
●Capable of hearing from a distance
●Find it difficult to concentrate because of background noise
●Noise can be exaggerated and sound becomes distorted (Autism.org.uk)
Our goal is to design an assistive technology to help a user with ASD avoid negative responses to environmental sounds so that they have fewer limitations in housing, employment or social activities.
CHALLENGE
_____
PROCESS
_____
After thorough research into ASD and existing aids and treatments for those with auditory sensitivities, we designed a persona for our target customer:
From there we began an exploration into current technology that could be used to create an all inclusive, non-obtrusive, assistive technology for individuals with ASD requiring weekly support that will:
-
Eliminate unwanted noise and offer relief from frequencies that cause stress, making it easier for them to complete their daily tasks.
-
Offer sound content with soothing qualities to help relax the individual and keep stress levels low.
-
Monitor their stress levels to allow this technology to react to it accordingly.
If the environmental noise around the individual is at a certain level that may cause discomfort and the individual's stress levels rise, the assistive technology will react to it by playing customized sound content that will sooth and help decrease anxiety and stress. Therefore helping the individual go on with their activities easily.