During the Interview with Tim

1.

A) On Monday our class had a Face-time chat with Tim Mepham and his daughter at the Nicola Lodge. Tim suffers from Huntington’s disease which is a disease that is a brain disorder that causes uncontrolled movements, emotional problems and loss of thinking ability. In this chat we learnt that Tim has a difficult time communicating, using his legs, using his fingers and takes a long time typing.

B) I was very interested how Tim’s life has been disrupted by this disease because he was a very normal person for his whole life and then his life started dramatically changing just because of this disease. I am very interested in the effect it has had because I’ve heard of this disease before but I’ve never seen the real and personal effect it has had on someone.

C) I found this experience very interesting because I got to learn about a new disease and see how it affects someone who’s life had been so normal. I feel really bad for Tim because so much of his life has changed because of his disease, such as not being able to paint or draw anymore and not being able to communicate easily.

2.

A) I have some ideas that are based of the recommendations from Tim’s daughter:

• To create a TV remote that is similar to his keyboard that has a a plastic border around each button so that it is easier for his finger to push the button. Then this remote would only have a few buttons so that it isn’t confusing for him to use.
• To create some plastic or metal stick/stand for him to use to pull himself off of the couch

B) I would like to focus on the my first idea because I think it would help him more and then he’ll be able to watch TV and learn things. Another reason I want to do my first idea is because Tim’s daughter mentioned this as the first problem we could possibly solve.

C) In order to create this device our class would need to create some sort of plastic box which would hold the electrical things needed to make it work and connect to the TV. Then we would also need a plastic shell that would be formed to go over top of the buttons on the remote. We would need to find a material that could be used as the buttons such as silicon or another soft plastic. Most of this device would be made of plastic and should be able to be 3D printed.

3. How could you take action on your idea?

A) From the research that I have done, I was not able to find any device meant for the same cause but I was able to find remotes that have less buttons and are easier to use and understand. When I searched up simple TV remotes google came up with a bunch of different remotes for seniors that have only a few buttons such as , on/off, volume up/down and up/down for channels. Most of these remotes varied from 20-50$. By researching this idea I was able to find out that it is possible to be made and something similar has been made so I do not need to start from scratch.

B) To complete and accomplish this device you will need to have someone who is trained to use a 3D printer, access to different plastic materials and colors. You will also need to be trained in designing something on some sort of digital app that can then be transferred to a 3D printer. To complete this device you should do it in a group because then you can slip the work and have help from others.

C) To complete this device some of the materials you would need is some sort of plastic that is a hard to be used as a shell and a soft/squishy plastic that can be used as the buttons. All of these plastics need to have a few different colors options. You would also need some wires and other equipment in order to create an electrical connection between the remote and the TV.

D)

• Plan all the steps
• Sketch a design of the remote on an online app
• Get all the materials
• Find a class that can do all the electrical things to make the remote work
• Find out that we are able and allowed to use the schools 3D printer
• Print the shell for the remote
• Print the buttons for the remote
• Assemble the remote
• Add labels to the remote
• Make sure it works

4. In this phase, there are two separate stages—Produce and Publish.
This involves the action for completing the product (Produce), and
presenting the proposed solution (Publish).

A) I think the solution fluency really helped me during this process. I used define when finding what the problem was, which is how Tim has difficulties doing things, like talking and moving. I used discover when trying to discover ideas to help Tim. I used dream to visualize how this device will help him. I also used design when I was designing this device and tried thinking id the best option that will help him. For the delivering part I have almost produced the product I just need to design/draw it out. Then for publish I am completely ready to share my idea. Finally for debrief I am not able to do this yet because this product has not been completed and I cannot reflect on it yet.

B) I think the quality of my post is really good because I tried hard by completing all the questions with the best answers possible and adding all the details that I know. I also think my post is really good because I completed everything that was asked for and tried very hard.

C) I think I could improve by using the solution fluency in more of the assignments I do, because then I will have a structured way of designing an idea and help me complete the idea.