Mindsheep: Interactive Cushion for Elderly Living Alone to Prevent Dementia
There are more than 110,000 elderly with dementia in Hong Kong. Letting them living alone carries twice the risks as the ordinary elderly.
In fact, the elderly who lives alone still can build connection and interaction with their family and the community. By making the connection, their cognitive abilities can be strengthened and the risk of suffering from this disease will be lowered.
In the research, we found out that the cognitive abilities of the elderly can be enhanced by listening to their favorite music or participating activities about music. In addition, we hope that there is a simple way to help alleviate the symptoms of dementia.
Therefore, we design an interactive music cushion for the elderly living alone. The cushion can stimulate their brain , and strengthen their connection with the family and community. The family and the elderly are required to raise the sheep together with some daily tasks through the gamification application.
The tasks are about sending "Music Challenge" to the elderly. The elderly can play music games with friends and family to stimulate the brain and hand activities, as well as to enhance their connection to the community. Secondly, family members can share or send emojis and voice messages to the elderly’s cushion. This can increase the interaction between the elderly and their families, preventing the deterioration of dementia.
Team member: LAM Kai Yin Tom
Tutor: Newman Lau