“The male experience, the male perspective, is the “factory setting” for the world we live in, while the female experience - even though it is the experience of half the world's population - is seen as something that can be niche, atypical, and in many cases even negligible.
---- The Invisible Woman
Based on the fact that society (including women themselves) has long ignored the issue of menstrual cramps, we hope to use this project to create a wearable device using visualization technology. Through the combination of reality and fiction, we visualize the silent pain that women experience and make their pain visible. Through this, we hope to realize the symbiosis of people, technology, and pain.
create the pneumatic effect of breathing simulation by controlling the pneumatic (air pump) device and solenoid valve using Arduino. By utilizing a combination of three-dimensional structure and pneumatic device extrusion, we synthesize the transmission of pain sensation. We also enhance this sensation through a buzzer. In addition, we monitored the pain level of the participant through the heart rate value and used the heartbeat data as an output for the control of the virtual end.
In the virtual end, we implemented a change in the playback speed of the virtual end (i.e., video) through AE, Procreate, Processing, and Arduino. This change in video speed becomes the final virtual end product of the pain visualization. We not only use art design to express the pain in an artistic form but also control the video playback speed to link the physical device with the virtual output.
Installation design drawings
Due to material constraints, I ended up discarding the design to implement the Falling Pain, but I may try to move in this direction in the next development of the project.
Visual Outputs
Device Effectiveness Test
The first thing I put the most effort into was the setup of the physical device. Part of the input of this device is heart rate sensing, which will be activated when the participant is done wearing it.
Based on the principle of the sphygmomanometer cuff, this device will be designed as two layers, using non-stretch fabric cotton linen on the outside and a fabric that is stretchy and adheres to the skin (i.e., elastic rubber skin) on the inside, with an airbag designed in the middle of the sandwich. Due to time constraints, I used a balloon instead of an airbag to achieve the effect of a pneumatic device for breathing simulation.
A needle-like structure is built into the device (front side) to simulate the stinging and cramping pain of menstruation. The airbag on the back side of the device has a built-in shiatsu plate-like structure, which will be aimed at the spine (lumbar vertebrae), and the shiatsu plate structure will be compressed by the inflation of the airbag to simulate the lumbar vertebrae by forming a lumbar pain stimulation.
Future outlook
This project has successfully produced a product that combines reality and fiction by using a combination of mediums. Some of the design flaws in the pneumatic structure can continue to be improved in the future.
