Element D

Element D was dedicated to the narrowing of engineering solutions through rigorous analysis. By applying formal selection matrices to our initial concepts, we filtered for highly viable design concepts while remaining cautious about the technicalities we may face later. The scope of this element extended into a deep dive into materials science and fabrication research, specifically targeting the unique power-efficiency, size, and mobility requirements of our hardware and software. Our interview with a Staff Manufacturing Test Engineer from Tesla provided insightful critiques, offering a professional lens into our proposed project.

 Domestic abuse victims often face significant barriers when seeking help. Even if they have some mobility,  71% of victims' report that abusers monitor their communication, restrict their movements, and/or manipulate them in a manner that prevents them from reaching out in an indiscreet manner. Current safety tools are either too visible, inflexible, or too dependent on established infrastructure or law enforcement, leaving victims without discreet, reliable, and comfortable ways to signal for help. 

Expert Review

In this phase, we distilled twenty of our primary concepts for a discrete, wearable, personal safety device into five of our most viable options. These five included the integration of an SOS signal into a keychain charm, the incorporation of a special device into a credit card, the attachment of an SOS signal onto a clothing item, a bracelet, and a discreet "panic ring". These designs were filtered after further research into three feasible prototype designs: two variations of a bracelet, and a ring. After creating a 3D-printed mold, research into materials (namely into flouroelastomers which are present in Apple Watches), and specification of electrical components such as Linear Resonant Actuators, ESP32 Microcontrollers, Adafruit GPS modules, etc., we determined the most viable option to prototype for the current state of our project to be a watch-like in size bracelet and focus minimize the size of our components in the coming months. Michael Wilk, an electrical engineer at Tesla who primarily manages quality control for Tesla batteries, provided us with key insight into minimizing component size as well as handling other engineering challenges we have been pondering: how to increase the independence of the device from existing infrastructure (e.g., cellular connection and Bluetooth) and increase battery life. He recommended a blend of 3.3V LiPo batteries for the main GPS and microcontroller, and for the discrete aspects (haptics, LEDs, etc.) to be powered by an ultracapacitor, a PCB-compatible battery hooked up to a gyroscope sensor, and to also focus on purchasing more low-draw components. The next step in our project is to minimize the size of our prototype through this input and to gather more research into communications engineering, specifically into understanding how third-party companies like Chipolo have attached themselves to the "Find My" network through the MFi program and how attaching our product to this infrastructure could potentially increase the device's independence.