A Smart Empathy-Centered Solution from Semester 04 – Design Thinking and Innovation Course
Sense Connect is a user-centered innovation developed under the Design Thinking and Innovation (DTI) curriculum in Semester 04. The project explores how we can use smart sensing technology to create inclusive, helpful, and responsive experiences for users in real-world scenarios.
Our journey followed the design thinking methodology to not only engineer a product, but to deeply empathize with users and address a real problem that affects them emotionally, cognitively, and physically.
In various environments—be it homes, institutions, or public places—there are individuals who struggle to perceive or respond to their surroundings in real-time. This could be due to:
- Physical disabilities
- Sensory impairments
- Environmental inaccessibility
- Lack of immediate context-aware feedback
Despite advances in tech, real-time environmental awareness tools remain fragmented or overly complex.
Sense Connect is a streamlined, empathy-driven platform that uses real-time sensors and smart feedback systems to help users:
- Understand their immediate surroundings
- Receive important alerts or cues (visually, audibly, or through vibrations)
- Interact with the environment more confidently and safely
The platform works by collecting live environmental data (e.g., temperature, motion, light, sound, etc.) using sensors and microcontrollers. This data is then processed and sent to a responsive interface that interprets it meaningfully for the user.
We engaged with potential users—students, faculty, and individuals with impairments—to understand their daily challenges. We used interviews, surveys, and observation to listen actively and document pain points.
From our findings, we distilled the core need:
"A simple, assistive tool that senses the environment and provides users with meaningful, real-time feedback."
This became the anchor for our design.
We brainstormed diverse possibilities:
- Wearable sensors
- Room-based alert systems
- Mobile dashboard for real-time sensor data
- Multi-sensory feedback mechanisms
We selected the most feasible and high-impact features to prototype first.
We developed a functional prototype using:
- Arduino and sensor modules (temperature, IR, sound, etc.)
- A basic UI/dashboard for visualizing sensor outputs
- Feedback mechanisms (LEDs, buzzers, notifications)
We tested with a small group of users. Feedback helped us iterate:
- Simplified the interface
- Added thresholds for sensor alerts
- Focused on modularity (easy to add/remove sensors)
| Area | Technologies/Tools |
|---|---|
| Hardware | Arduino UNO, DHT11, IR sensor, Buzzer |
| Software | Arduino IDE, C++, JavaScript |
| Interface | HTML, CSS, JS / React (optional) |
| Collaboration | Git, GitHub, Figma (design) |
- Hardware: Connect sensors to Arduino as per provided schematics.
- Upload Code: Flash Arduino using Arduino IDE with our provided sketch.
- Interface: Open the frontend UI to monitor real-time values (optional if using serial output).
- Feedback: Buzzer/LEDs trigger based on threshold values defined in code.
Course: Design Thinking and Innovation
Semester: 04
Type: Curriculum Project
Focus: Empathy-driven problem solving, prototyping, and iteration
Institution: Bennett University
This project is licensed under the MIT License. Feel free to explore, adapt, and improve it for your own use or research.
“Innovation starts with empathy. Sense Connect is a small step toward building more inclusive and aware spaces.”