Buddi and Stack Make Life Accessible at Hack NYU

Mar 4 2016

HackNYU is where 48 hours of building and competition led two IMA teams to winning with innovative projects that hope to make life a little easier for those with special needs.

NYU Shanghai students Sam Shi and Sean Kelly, studying away in New York, created Buddi, a wearable device that keeps a safe look out for wandering sufferers of dementia. David Santiano, Baaria Chaudary, and Dylan Crow created Stack, a design and prototyping tool for people with visual impairments.

Both teams won in the Accessibility track at the event on February 19 -- the four competitive tracks being Accessibility, Dental, Educational Tech, and Sustainability. Projects in this track focus on access and ability, aiming to develop adaptive, assistive and inclusive tech for a positive social impact.

“People with dementia are often prone to ‘wander’ and easily get lost due to memory impairment. This is very difficult -- not only for those suffering but also their loved ones, as they have no way to know if the ‘wanderer’ is safe,” said Sean Kelly.

To solve this problem, Sean and Sam developed Buddi, a device able to track its wearer and return information on location, speed, and direction--disguised as a stylish, unobtrusive wristband. Mobile phones might be left uncharged, unanswered or at home, but Buddi has its own phone number and requires no input from the wearer. Caregivers can send a text to Buddi and receive a status update at any time, notifying whether the device ventures outside a predetermined “safe zone.”  Future plans for Buddi will further accommodate those with dementia by being worn discreetly inside the shoe--allowing privacy for the wearer and peace of mind for those caring for them.

Stack utilizes Lego bricks as a means for a visually impaired person to design and prototype a concept. It’s not costly, and Legos are versatile and easy for users to navigate while building. Meanwhile, processing uses color detection tools to identify the location of added bricks and is able to render in real time as a digital cube. Using the number keys on a keyboard, visually impaired builders can navigate their prototype layer by layer.

“It was inspired by translating the physical to the virtual in real time,” said Dylan Crow.

Providing essential mentorship and guidance to the student teams were Associate Arts Professor and Director of IMA Marianne Petit, Associate Director of IMA Matthew Belanger, Adjunct Assistant Arts Professor Christian Grewell, and Professor Clay Shirky.