Kathryn Bauer
Ovü
Allowing women to track their fertility in an easy and stylish way.
http://www.theovu.com
The Ovü is made up of a lace arm band, with a highly sensitive thermistor attached on the inside that picks up changes in the Basal Body Temperature (BBT) of a woman.
This method of tracking fertility allows a dataset to be gathered of the woman's cycle (which can be quite allusive at times.) This dataset, collected using actual sensors, allows women the tools to have more control over their bodies.
There is no need to think and worry about babies all day long. Women go about their life as the temperature is tracked and uploaded to their online database.
In researching methods of tracking fertility, I came across many different products. However, many of them shared similar flaws. The basal thermometer is complicated to use. It involves a lot of tracking and documentation and begins to resemble a science experiment at some point with all the charting involved. And after all of this planning and tracking, who really is in the mood to go make babies anyway?
Then there is the software available, either on the web or through downloading software for the computer. These graphs are even scarier-looking than the ones that come with the basal thermometer. And what\'s worse is that these charts are based on a number you type in- not always 100% accurate in predicting correct cycle as a result.
There is a watch that is worn to bed, which detects chemical surge of chloride ions on skin (predictor of fertility). However, the data is lost each day because there is no place to store it.
The Ovü frees those women trying to become pregnant from having to be so focused on their cycle. The partner is involved in some way and the accuracy of the readings improves the chance of finding the right time to have a child.
statistics and more research can be found here:
http://itp.nyu.edu/~kb983/thesis/ovu7.pdf
The primary audience of the Ovü is women ages 35-40 years old, however the application of the Ovü can be useful to any women (mainly ages 30+) who are interested in tracking their cycle for the purpose of having a child.
User Profile:
- 35+ yr old couple, ready to start family
- trying to get pregnant
needs to monitor ovulation
- would like to track fertility in an easy & stylish way
- priorities are focused on career, busy life, constantly on the go
How it works:
1. Wear the Ovü on your upper arm.
2. The thermometer constantly takes in temperature in the underarm & tracks changes.
3. When the change is significant enough to imply a hormonal change (typically during ovulation), the device sends a txt message to your partner’s mobile phone.
The Ovü consists of three main components:
- measurement: tracks the temperature changes
- analysis: analyzes data against previous readings
- notification: allows couple to know when it\'s time
The measurement is done in the wearable device. The Ovü armband takes in the Basal Body Temperature (BBT) of a woman. The temperature is typically taken in the morning only, however this device will take more readings during the day- in theory, building a larger database of information to pull from and make use of.
The wearable device broadcasts the data to the phone using bluetooth connection. This assumes the mobile phone will be in near proximity to the user, which they typically are. The data is then sent over the mobile internet connection (when available) and archived in a database.
The data is collected and sorted so that when there is a significant change in temperature, a message is sent to the partner\'s phone.
I learned all about bluetooth and how to set up the physical device. I studied databases, a smattering of php/mysql and currently maintain the database for the Ovü project.
Casualties (most often, occurring after 2am): burnt out USB port on my old powerbook by running dual power sources into it, USB connector fried but I was able to use the old arduino without the chip for serial communication and I soldered my arm (it\'s fine really!)
More on the trials and tribulations of the thesis process can be accessed on my blog: http://www.katiebauer.com/itpblog/?cat=23
This method of tracking fertility allows a dataset to be gathered of the woman's cycle (which can be quite allusive at times.) This dataset, collected using actual sensors, allows women the tools to have more control over their bodies.
There is no need to think and worry about babies all day long. Women go about their life as the temperature is tracked and uploaded to their online database.
In researching methods of tracking fertility, I came across many different products. However, many of them shared similar flaws. The basal thermometer is complicated to use. It involves a lot of tracking and documentation and begins to resemble a science experiment at some point with all the charting involved. And after all of this planning and tracking, who really is in the mood to go make babies anyway?
Then there is the software available, either on the web or through downloading software for the computer. These graphs are even scarier-looking than the ones that come with the basal thermometer. And what\'s worse is that these charts are based on a number you type in- not always 100% accurate in predicting correct cycle as a result.
There is a watch that is worn to bed, which detects chemical surge of chloride ions on skin (predictor of fertility). However, the data is lost each day because there is no place to store it.
The Ovü frees those women trying to become pregnant from having to be so focused on their cycle. The partner is involved in some way and the accuracy of the readings improves the chance of finding the right time to have a child.
statistics and more research can be found here:
http://itp.nyu.edu/~kb983/thesis/ovu7.pdf
The primary audience of the Ovü is women ages 35-40 years old, however the application of the Ovü can be useful to any women (mainly ages 30+) who are interested in tracking their cycle for the purpose of having a child.
User Profile:
- 35+ yr old couple, ready to start family
- trying to get pregnant
needs to monitor ovulation
- would like to track fertility in an easy & stylish way
- priorities are focused on career, busy life, constantly on the go
How it works:
1. Wear the Ovü on your upper arm.
2. The thermometer constantly takes in temperature in the underarm & tracks changes.
3. When the change is significant enough to imply a hormonal change (typically during ovulation), the device sends a txt message to your partner’s mobile phone.
The Ovü consists of three main components:
- measurement: tracks the temperature changes
- analysis: analyzes data against previous readings
- notification: allows couple to know when it\'s time
The measurement is done in the wearable device. The Ovü armband takes in the Basal Body Temperature (BBT) of a woman. The temperature is typically taken in the morning only, however this device will take more readings during the day- in theory, building a larger database of information to pull from and make use of.
The wearable device broadcasts the data to the phone using bluetooth connection. This assumes the mobile phone will be in near proximity to the user, which they typically are. The data is then sent over the mobile internet connection (when available) and archived in a database.
The data is collected and sorted so that when there is a significant change in temperature, a message is sent to the partner\'s phone.
I learned all about bluetooth and how to set up the physical device. I studied databases, a smattering of php/mysql and currently maintain the database for the Ovü project.
Casualties (most often, occurring after 2am): burnt out USB port on my old powerbook by running dual power sources into it, USB connector fried but I was able to use the old arduino without the chip for serial communication and I soldered my arm (it\'s fine really!)
More on the trials and tribulations of the thesis process can be accessed on my blog: http://www.katiebauer.com/itpblog/?cat=23