Venn (Stanford ME 310)
Length: three weeks
Topics explored: Arduino development, Bluetooth protocols, 3D printing, soft goods The concept for Venn was born out of a desire to create a product that would bring people of similar interests together, and be wearable yet not intrusive to the user. There have been many social networks springing up in the last decade, many with a similar end goal of connectivity, but Venn is the first that attempts to bring the user offline and back into the real world, while still enhancing the social nature of its user. Functionality-wise, Venn is simple. First, the user creates a basic profile of their background and interests using a phone app. The phone then scans the area around the user for other users with similar profiles. If two users' interest sets match up to a certain level, the categorical match information and values associated with each are sent wirelessly to Venn, which then displays the match information with icons and small strings of text. Colored LEDs also illuminate on each device so matched users may locate each other. While the overall concept behind Venn is straightforward, technically it was a challenge. |
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