MurMurMate

I designed and developed a game console to interact with children who stutter, motivating them to use their voice to centralize the ferrofluid during the game. I created a non-judgmental environment using the OpenAI API, providing a therapeutic companion for children as they practice speech.

Medical Advisor: Dr. Mark Power (Power Stuttering Newport Beach)

An Interactive Speech Therapy Game Console for Akram (2022-2023)

Background

5% of children go through a period of stuttering. Stuttering usually begins in childhood, between the ages of 2 and 5 years. Those who continue to stutter into the school-age years are likely to continue stuttering in some fashion throughout their lives.

Stuttering

Akram is a 9-year-old child who stutters.

His parents are busy with work, leaving Akram mostly on his own at home.

Case Study

His stuttering worsens when he gets nervous, making him speak less at school to avoid being mocked.

This case study focuses on Akram, a 9-year-old child who stutters and spends much of his time alone at home while his parents are busy with work. His stuttering becomes more noticeable when he feels nervous, causing him to speak less at school to avoid being mocked by other children. To better understand his daily behaviors, and emotional triggers, I spent time babysitting Akram and observing him in his home environment.

Interview

Dr. Mark Power (Speech therapist)

Ragib (Akram’s cousin)

"Yui you should never punish or reward them for speaking correctly. You just need to provide them a safe place to talk. Encourage them to speak up!"

"We reached out (to the therapist) initially and are considering doing the evaluation but it’s a significant amount of money to continue beyond the evaluation."

Ideation

Ideated a ferrofluid-based game console that uses sound wave detection, voice recognition, magnetic field modulation, and OpenAI-generated responses to guide children through therapeutic-style conversations. As children speak, the ferrofluid visualizes their speech patterns in real time and gradually centralizes over 15 minutes to reflect game progress.

Storyboard

System Architecture

Bottom Screen

Major Components

Top Screen (Ferrofluid Display)

Ferrofluid Display: Tested Ferrofluid of Different Densities

Add lighting and audio effects

Implement Open AI api; Integrate voice recognition module

Appearance Design- Iteration 1

Sketch

Prototype

Feedback:

Reflection:

Before I started doing the wiring, I asked 3 kids what they thought of it. One of them said it looked like a toilet tank, and the rest of them agreed with him. (T T)???

I should have included kids in the external sketching phase, instead of making the decision for them.