Aura, an AI-powered medical system, is designed to revolutionise home health care for individuals with dementia and elderly living independently. With an intelligent AI assistant, it provides timely medication dispensing, daily check-ins, and answers routine queries. Aura also connects users with family, promoting community and belonging. It supports daily activities, helping the elderly maintain autonomy at home or in care facilities.

“We first designed Aura as a medication dispenser for dementia patients. However, we realised it could help many other elderly people, so we made “Aura” suitable for all of them.“

Luis, Moritz

Our industrial design university project took us to a dementia care home, where we immersed ourselves in the daily lives of residents. This hands-on experience highlighted the unique challenges faced in dementia care. We observed and interacted closely, gaining valuable insights into areas where design can significantly improve the day-to-day experience of those living with dementia. This field research has been pivotal in shaping our approach to creating empathetic and practical design solutions. Stay tuned for innovative designs inspired by our real-world observations.

At the dementia care home, we identified two primary challenges. Firstly, there was a noticeable difficulty among residents in navigating simple user interfaces. Secondly, we observed the extensive daily task caregivers faced in preparing a large volume of medications. Recognizing these issues, we realized our product needed a completely different approach to ensure it was intuitive and user-friendly for all.

We created Aura’s Information Architecture as a connection between the patient on the one side and Family/Care-Taker/Doctors on the other side. That way Aura is the connecting part sorting the data for the different parts. The Patients User Journey an Speech UI with Visuals while the other part works over an App UI. In the User Experience for the patient we valued four different principles, achieving the right results. Aura uses audio and visual treats to ensure the taking of the medication of the patient e.g. “After taking your medication we can listen to your favorite song!”.

We divided our user testing into three parts. Our priority was testing the conversation between dementia patients and a customized AI based on ChatGPT. This included testing the clarity of medication instructions, the use of check-in questions, and the naturalness of casual daily companionship conversations. After proving that this concept works, we continued on creating a UI with an embodied character to talk to. The last part was testing our physical form. This included its stability, ease of pill retrieval, and determining the optimal size for practicality and user comfort.

In addition to the main Aura station, we’ve developed a companion drone. This adaptable device attaches to clothing with high tech Velcro, allowing users to place it wherever they find most convenient. The drone ensures that Aura’s assistance is a lways at hand, ready to answer questions, provide comfort, or guide the user back to the main station. It features an LED ring, mirroring Aura’s distinctive shape, which serves as a visual guide for users throughout their home. The Drone is charged wirelessly at the Aura Stations power adapter.

The medication dispensing system features a removable wheel that holds up to 14 days of medication, with doses four times a day, simplifying refills for family or caregivers. Equipped with weight sensors and a camera, the ergonomic removable bottom dispenser ensures correct pill intake, while LED lights provide additional visual cues for the user.

The exhibition of Aura, a pill dispenser with integrated AI, is pivotal for showcasing its innovative approach to elderly care, particularly for those with dementia. This device simplifies medication management, significantly easing the workload for caregivers and minimizing dosage errors. The opportunity for users to interact with Aura and its AI at the exhibition highlights the device’s empathetic design and user-friendly interface, designed for cognitive support and social assistance. Experiencing Aura’s functionality firsthand allows users to appreciate its intuitive operation and the emotional support it provides, demonstrating how technology can be leveraged to meet the complex needs of the elderly, fostering a more independent lifestyle. This interaction emphasizes the role of empathetic AI in improving life quality for older individuals, illustrating Aura’s capacity to blend technology with a personal touch in care.

datasheet
timeframe	okt. 2023 – feb. 2024
project category	main project
mentor	Prof. Pelin Celik, Prof. Gerhard Kampe
project partners	Luis Somasundaram
materials	nylon, PETG, acrylic glass
colors (hexadezimal)	#1D1D1F, #F0F0F0
manufacturing process	SLS Print, FDM Print, Lasercut,
supplier	–
download files	–