Lotus

For the course Sensors for Physiology, I created Lotus, a respiration device that aims to lower stress through guided respiration exercises. The device measures heart rate through PPG sensing and provides users with a target heart rate to work towards. Lotus uses three channels for visualisation: fading LEDs that visualise breathing in and out; a centre LED that pulsates with every heartbeat; and the same centre LED which gives a colour indication of how far the user is away from the target heart rate.

Exploring the possibilities of freeform soldering has helped me develop in Creativity and Aesthetics, as I focused on examining how I could fully leverage the potential of tangible design in the context of guided respiration. The freeform aesthetic of the design is an integral part of its functionality and appeal, and a freeform soldered sculpture was a radical new approach in the existing body of research on the topic.