In this post-epidemic era, how to properly conduct efficient health data collecting, processing, and tracking is an important topic to discuss for designers, which is urgently demanded by both individuals and our society.

ANALY is a new-generation flush toilet with the capability to automatically conduct stool test at home for users, which is an early diagnosis of certain diseases and physical condition detection. With an elegant and familiar appearance of minimalist, users don't need to change their daily habit. After the users finish excreting, ANALY's well-conceived internal structure will start to complete all required steps for the stool test, including sampling, weighing, diluting etc. And users will receive a report showed in an easy-to-understand method about the results with the tracking data and healthy advice.

And once ANALY is utilized in larger areas, it can also function as a warning method and first-hand database for governments or organizations to confront public health crisis like COVID-19.

Background

In this post-epidemic era, how to properly conduct efficient health data collecting, processing, and tracking is an important topic to discuss for designers, which is urgently demanded by both individuals and our society.

Staying at home, we use the bathroom every one or two hours, which makes it the most frequently used place except bedroom. And toilet is the most important sanitation in the bathroom dealing with our excretion. However, this great invention dating back to Elizabethan period has only developed in terms of comfort or environmental protection during recent decades.

On the other hand, compared with other body examinations, people pay less attention to stool test. As the samples still need to be picked up by patients, it is both inconvenient and offensive. Therefore, as an early diagnosis of certain diseases and physical condition detection, the significance of stool test is often overlooked.

In addition to that, Quantified Self has been put forward for many years, and product intelligence has already gone from ideal to reality. With strict privacy protection, what impact will the collection, processing, analysis, and statistics of health data have on the urban population?

Overview

ANALY is a new-generation flush toilet with the capability to automatically conduct stool test at home for users. With an elegant and familiar appearance of minimalist, users don't need to change their daily habit. After the users finish excreting, ANALY's well-conceived internal structure will start to complete all required steps for the stool test, including sampling, weighing, diluting etc. (Details can be found in Operation Flow Design Section.) And users will receive a report presented in an easy-to-understand method about the result with the tracking data and healthy advice. Internal Structure

To properly deliver the stool test, only the drainage part is made of ceramic, which also plays a load-bearing role, and the other parts are all wrapped up by a 3mm-thick plastic cover. We also change the shape of the drain line to add a sampling platform higher than the water level, where can keep the excretion certain distance away from the water, making it easier to be collected by sampler.

To keep the mechanical part of ANALY always dry, we use a customized ball value in the joint position between two parts, preventing water from flowing back when flushing the toilet.

Besides, because medical test samples cannot be contaminated, ANALY has three consumable boxes containing disposable cell counting chamber with rapid test card (Colloidal Gold), disposable tip, disposable stool sampler respectively. And a set of consumables (Box A*2 + Box B*1 + Box C*1) can be used for 48 times, or rather 16 days at least by a family of three. And all used consumables will be sent back to the boxes, which is sealed. So, users won't see, smell, or touch the consumables at all. They just need to give the used boxes to the professional recycling staff and get new ones.

Interaction Design

To ensure the data collected by ANALY can be better understood by users, we designed an application called Poop Culture. It will use a graphic method to vividly show the result of stool test to users, along with some related health advice. And through this sort of health data tracking, users will have a better understanding of their physical conditions and take measures if necessary. In addition to that, Poop Culture also contained some resources where users can conveniently get access to, including sports club, online hospital, etc. Privacy Protection Method

The boundary of privacy is another vital issue for us to discuss in this program. Based on our privacy-protection principle, we will let ANALY only upload the de-featured data to the cloud, which means all private information should be erased besides gender and age bracket (like 35-45 y.o.), which are necessary for the data analysis. Development

And once ANALY is utilized in larger areas, it can also function as a warning method and first-hand database for governments or organizations to confront public health crisis like COVID-19 or Ebola Virus or conduct related scientific research. For instance, if many users in the same neighborhood were diagnosed with a certain germ that caused diarrheal diseases, ANALY could submit the warning message to the Disease Control Department of the government in a short time and provided the first-hand data, which would be beneficial for government to come up with the proper measurements more efficiently and save more people's life.