Syndesmus

A bracelet that works with an app and helps autistic people express easily their needs and feelings to neurotypical people.

The solution consists of a bracelet with LEDs that can change in a variety of colors, as well as an app that helps control the bracelet. Inside the app, buttons with pictograms (to which autistic people are used to) can be found. When the user clicks a button, a specific animation and color for that feeling or need is displayed in the bracelet, then, close neurotypical people can notice this animation and color and therefore know what the neurodivergent user feels or needs. This helps neurodivergent people communicate with others in an easier way. Making use of Internet of Things technologies.

The problem to be solved is the gap in communication between neurodivergent (specifically autistic) and neurotypical people. As autistic people commonly have problems expressing their needs and feelings. 

In Mexico, one of every 115 kids are affected by autism spectrum disorders. The "Teletón" foundation estimates that this number will increase by 6,000 cases for year.

There are not many solutions for this problem, and misinformation about the subject prevents people from understanding and helping neurodivergent people. This results in neurodiverget people having a difficult time when exposed to society.

We are targeting neurodivergent people, more specifically non-verbal autistic people. These people are currently undeserved as their communication with other people around them is pretty difficult, and when they need or feel something, they are not able to express it with words. This solution with help these people express their needs and feelings to others, by means of pictograms, to which autistic are used to.

We had done plenty of theoretical research about neurodivergent people and based on that we made a prototype for our idea. But later we had the opportunity to assist a foundation named "Autismax" that helps autistic people, majorly kids. Here, we were able to test the prototype with an autistic kid, who understood almost immediately how the app and the bracelet worked and started using it as intended. Later, the director of the foundation who is herself autistic gave us her opinion of the project and said it was a really good idea and could help make a difference with autistic people not only in Mexico but even worldwide. We also made upgrades to the prototype once we had tested it, making the app even more easy to use and improving the structure of the bracelet itself.

Improving mental health, as well as communication of neurodivergent people, reducing and ultimately eliminating lack of communication between neurotypical and neurodivergent people.

We have made the concept of the idea more accurate, but at the same time we have started prototyping it, we have made a working mobile application and a physical prototype of the bracelet. We have even tested it on the target population and made upgrades based on the results of these tests.

The core technology that powers our solution is Internet of Things technologies, as well as electronics and programming. The mobile application relies on programming, as well as the firmware of the bracelet, at the same time, the communication between the bracelet and the application relies on Bluetooth, more specifically Bluetooth Low Energy, which is part of the Internet of Things technologies.

The solution is not currently serving many people yet, as we have only one prototype, when we start manufacturing the bracelet, we plan serving 100 people on the first month of the launch. As we already have a population in a foundation that we are first targeting, and from there we are planning to extend our product to more foundations and later to a commercial audience that could be served with this solution, where we estimate we could sell 800 bracelets on the first month.

We plan on having an impact on at least 200 people for the next year. We will achieve this by helping the population that is supported by the foundation we are working with and reaching more foundations with the same purpose to have a greater impact. And hopefully release the solution to the market to help even more people.

We plan on measuring our progress by checking if the product is useful to their users and helps them communicate what they need and feel in a controlled environment as the foundation. And later on how many people use the solution and find it useful to have communication between neurodivergent and neurotypical people.

The current barriers are mainly financial, as well as technical, as we have not been able to produce a bracelet with better-united parts, due to lack of materials to manufacture it and knowledge in more advanced electronics to unite the different circuits involved inside the bracelet.

Altogether, we as a team have programming, electronic, hardware, marketing, communication and business skills. Which helps us deliver our solution. At the same time, we have been working with a foundation that helps autistic people, what helps us understand even better this problematic. Finding better solutions and improving even more our idea.

We are currently working with a foundation named "Autismax", that helps autistic people, majorly non-verbal kids. We are working with them by sharing our ideas, getting feedback from them to make improvements and testing our solution with the people that the foundation helps.