Final Project Week 2

This week we had to present our detailed proposal to Becky. We were hoping to visit the CSC to observe the children washing their hands, but unfortunately they were using hand sanitizer since there was a boil-water advisory.

Last week we had planned to have LEDs on the sink, soap, towels, etc. to represent the various steps in the hand washing process.  We decided it would be easier to make a sign with light-up pictures of each of the steps. This way we wouldn't have wires all over the bathroom.
The sign would be mounted on the wall and have pictures of the six steps:

1. Roll up sleeves
2. Get soap
3. Make bubbles (get water and scrub hands)
4. Rinse hands
5. Turn off water
6. Dry hands

The 3-D moving hands and the speaker would also be connected to the sign somehow so that everything would be in one place. The only thing that would be separate would be the force sensor.

When someone stepped on the feet-shaped force sensor on the ground, the program would only run if they were 50 lbs or less, so that adults wouldn't have to go through the process. The child's weight would trigger the hand washing song, the moving hands, and the light-up sign. When the child moved off the sensor, the program would end.

Goal: Help children remember all the steps in the hand-washing process and wash their hands for the proper amount of time.

Mechanism: 3-D printed, motorized hands will mimic hand washing to remind the children to wash their hands.

Sensing, feedback, and control: The reading from the force sensor determines whether a child or adult is standing by the sink and only initiates the program if it detects a child's weight. The program ends when the force sensor detects no weight.

What do we need to create? The 3-D printed hands and the sign. We also need to build our circuit.

What do we need to order? The music-playing equipment and the force sensor.

After our presentation, Becky had a chance to ask questions and voice concerns:

Will there be a way to mute this if it's quiet time?
We're thinking we can either add a small button to the sign that the teacher can press to mute or turn off the program, or we can add a potentiometer that can be used to control the volume.

What happens if the children splash water on the wires/speakers?
The wires will be insulated with tubing and we can either buy waterproof speakers, mount the speakers high on the wall, or build a protective encasement for them,

What if the children grab the moving hands?
They will be mounted high enough that the children shouldn't be able to reach them.

Will there be multiple songs to choose from so that the teachers won't have to hear one song over and over for months?
We can put multiple songs on the SD card and have the program rotate through them.