Ho-Tzu Cheng, Luc Fusaro, Kevin Bickham & Ruby Steel / Royal College of Art
Care Trade / Smart Touch
Diabetic
Care Trade / Smart Touch
Care Trade / Smart Touch
Smart Touch is a blood glucose monitor for insulin dependent diabetics. The device is designed to be integrated into an object that everyone has with them all the time anyway– their phone– and uses the phone’s own camera to analyze a sample. Combining with our Smart Touch App, Smart Touch can replace the current blood glucose monitor machine, and it has all the stuff in one. It is a cell phone casing which has four test strips and needles inside.
Moreover, when using the Smart Touch to take care of yourself, you also help the diabetics in the developing world.
2. The Brief: Summarize the problem you set out to solve. What was the context for the project, and what was the challenge posed to you? Who is the at-risk population, and what behavior do you seek to change in this population?In some developed countries, such as UK, diabetics can get free test strip and insulin. However, these young diabetics don’t want to do the daily regular test because it is inconvenient. On the other hand, people in the developing countries, such as Africa, can not afford the insulin. They want to do the test. However, they cannot.
Our goal is to help the diabetics in UK to have more motivation to manage their health by using a easy way. At the same time, we also want to help the diabetics in Africa. Smart Touch is easy carry and easy use. When you use the Smart Touch to take care of yourself, you also help the diabetics in the developing country. (As we can see our users in the film, Tom (UK), Samuel (Africa).)
Every Smart Touch user has the option to join the social enterprise that sits behind the product – Care Trade. Care Trade utilises the monetary value of such well collected data, selling it to interested parties. The money is used to provide aid to diabetics in developing countries where supplies of the life saving drug, insulin, is in very short supply.
3. The Intent: What point of view did you bring to the project, and were there additional criteria that you added to the brief?We not only want to help the diabetics in UK, but also in developing countries.
Nowadays, diabetics need to carry the blood glucose monitor machine, the needle, and the test strip to test their blood glucose level everyday, 4 times a day. According to the interview and research, the main reason why young diabetics don’t want to do the regular test is: blood glucose monitor machine is too big to carry. Moreover, all these stuff (machine, needle, test strip) are separated, which is inconvenient for them.
The design of Smart Touch started with a detailed study of young type one diabetics and the fact they have no natural desire to interact with their blood glucose meters, which often get left at home. We learnt that some current monitors are scanning the change in colour of a blood sample with a glucose reagent. Visiting the Imperial College chemistry labs, we took the current monitors apart and experimented with the chemical that industry uses for the tests.
Smart Touch is a new blood glucose monitor for insulin dependent diabetics. The device is designed to be integrated into an object that everyone has with them all the time anyway –their phone – and uses the phone’s own camera to analyze a sample. Smart Touch can replace the current blood glucose monitor machine, and it has all the stuff in one. Smart Touch is a cell phone casing that
has the four test strips and test needles inside. (For daily use, 4 time a day)
In some developed countries, such as UK, diabetics can get free test strip and insulin. However, these young diabetics don’t want to do the daily regular test because it is inconvenient. On the other hand, people in the developing countries, such as Africa, can not afford the insulin. They want to do the test. However, they cannot.
Our goal is to help the diabetics in UK to have more motivation to manage their health by using a easy way. At the same time, we also want to help the diabetics in Africa. Smart Touch is easy carry and easy use. When you use the Smart Touch to take care of yourself, you also help the diabetics in the developing country. (As we can see our users in the film, Tom (UK), Samuel (Africa).)
Every Smart Touch user has the option to join the social enterprise that sits behind the product – Care Trade. Care Trade utilises the monetary value of such well collected data, selling it to interested parties. The money is used to provide aid to diabetics in developing countries where supplies of the life saving drug, insulin, is in very short supply.
Smart Touch is a new blood glucose monitor for insulin dependent diabetics. The device is designed to be integrated into an object that everyone has with them all the time anyway –their phone – and uses the phone’s own camera to analyze a sample. Smart Touch can replace the current blood glucose monitor machine, and it has all the stuff in one. Smart Touch is a cell phone casing that has the four test strips and test needles inside. (For daily use, 4 time a day)
The mechanism is built into the circular disc on the back of the casing and comprises of a replaceable cartridge of four retractable needles and four test swatches that contain a reagent that reacts with glucose. Once a sample has been taken the device moves the sample round to be scanned by the phone’s own camera.
We also created the App for Smart Touch. The app analyses the sample and an accurate and precise reading is displayed on the phone’s screen. One Smart Touch cartridge allows for four tests, the recommended (daily) number diabetics should do per day. The cartridge is then replaced at the end of the day with a fresh one. The integration with the smartphone means the data collected is logged in a secure location and the app can show trends and patterns over time.
The design of Smart Touch started with a detailed study of young type one diabetics and the fact they have no natural desire to interact with their blood glucose meters, which often get left at home. We learnt that some current monitors are scanning the change in colour of a blood sample with a glucose reagent. Visiting the Imperial College chemistry labs, we took the current monitors apart and experimented with the chemical that industry uses for the tests.
5. The Value: How does your project earn its keep in the world? What is its value? What is its impact? (Social, educational, economic, paradigm-shifting, sustainable, environmental, cultural, gladdening, etc.)Care Trade develops products and services that benefit global healthcare, not just western healthcare. Care Trade looks to design products that empathize with people who suffer from
chronic health conditions. It is through our people-centred approach, that Care Trade design medical products which do not feel like medical products, but more like lifestyle products.
Through engaging reluctant individuals with better health management, an opportunity is created to provide aid to those who do not have access to even the basic necessities to manage
their condition better. Smart Touch is a product which works for insulin-dependent diabetics, and has the opportunity to help diabetics across the globe.
Our goal is to help the diabetics in UK to have more motivation to manage their health by using a easy way. At the same time, we also want to help the diabetics in Africa. Smart Touch is easy carry and easy use. When you use the Smart Touch to take care of yourself, you also help the diabetics in the developing country. (As we can see our users in the film, Tom (UK), Samuel (Africa).)
Every Smart Touch user has the option to join the social enterprise that sits behind the product – Care Trade. Care Trade utilises the monetary value of such well collected data, selling it to interested parties. The money is used to provide aid to diabetics in developing countries where supplies of the life saving drug, insulin, is in very short supply.
6. How can you be sure that the values you are advancing are desired by the community you are working with?We have been worked with some young diabetics, and we modified the Smart Touch through their feedback. They all think it is useful and would like to bring it everyday.
Smart Touch is a new blood glucose monitor for insulin dependent diabetics. The device is designed to be integrated into an object that everyone has with them all the time anyway– their phone– and uses the phone’s own camera to analyze a sample. Smart Touch can replace the current blood glucose monitor machine, and it has all the stuff in one. Smart Touch is a cell phone casing that has the four test strips and test needles inside.
The mechanism is built into the circular disc on the back of the casing and comprises of a replaceable cartridge of four retractable needles and four test swatches that contain a reagent that reacts with glucose. Once a sample has been taken the device moves the sample round to be scanned by the phone’s own camera.
We also created the App for Smart Touch. The app analyses the sample and an accurate and precise reading is displayed on the phone’s screen. One Smart Touch cartridge allows for four tests, the recommended (daily) number diabetics should do per day. The cartridge is then replaced at the end of the day with a fresh one. The integration with the smartphone means the data collected is logged in a secure location and the app can show trends and patterns over time.
7. How will your project remain economically and operationally sustainable in the long term?Care Trade provides a consistent stream of aid for individuals in need of healthcare. The system is not reliant on company goodwill or Corporate Social Resposibility. The behavioural data collected from the user has value which pharmaceutical industries would be interested. And that is the revenue that is generated to supply aid for the developing world. The Care Trade products become the actuators in our model below.
Care Trade works to minimize the environmental impact of materials used for the development of our products. Care Trade looks for opportunities to use recyclable materials, minimize packaging and create local supply chains to reduce the carbon emissions created due to shipping and distribution.Smart Touch, in particular, uses daily cartridges of lancets and paper, which are discarded after use. Due to the nature of blood contamination, cartridges must be discarded in a safe and hazard-free manner to avoid any potentially life-threatening accidents. The paper dianostic test has a lot of advantages, as well. With Smart Touch, we could develop a manufacturing process which would use small amounts of paper and wax to create an effective medium of testing glucose. Paper is used to test the reagent, and wax creates a channel within the paper to drive the blood sample to the reagant.
The method of wax printing is a sustainable means of printing these test strips that would be used in the cartridges. It is less wasteful than color printers, and can be used with recycled
paper while keeping print quality high.
It’s lovely device, a neat app, and an ecosystem that really completes the concept. The holistic view of the system was most impressive.
It’s an original take on treating one of the diseases of our age.
Of the many ways that people would prefer to manage their diabetes, this has got to be a favourite.