e-Pressed in action photography Anja Hertenberger
e-Pressed is a garment that measures stress and at the same time offers ways of relief. During this talk you will learn about the origins and development of this project. At the moment we’re working on prototype number three and we have gathered a lot of knowledge about the dos and don’ts of wearable technology and working with physiological data.
e-Pressed is a garment that measures stress and at the same time offers ways of relief. During this talk you will learn about the origins and development of this project. At the moment we’re working on prototype number three and we have gathered a lot of knowledge about the dos and don’ts of wearable technology and working with physiological data.
Prototype ‘e-Pressed 0.2’ This shirt works with a galvanic skin response sensor. We use pressure areas, because it is hard to make a shirt with the right acupressure points for different people. So these areas give an indication were the points are and the interaction is to find the right spot individually. Through the interaction with others or the wearer interacting with the shirt, awareness of the current inner state is created which can help to overcome these ‘negative’ states and feel more connected.
The shirt itself is made out of gray sweat-shirt fabric with an inside and an outside layer. In between are the electronic parts like the active buttons of the pressure areas and the LED’s, which blink if stress or low energy is measured. With silicon wires and conductive thread they are connected to a micro-controller, here an Arduino Diecimila. The galvanic skin response sensor is also connected to the Arduino board. The wearer of the shirt has to connect two fingers of his/her left hand to the sensor. For this we use simple electrodes used for medical applications. To activate the shirt the batteries must be fully charged and you must put on the GSR sensor. In the event of stress or low energy the LEDs will blink fast, during the treatment the LEDs will blink slowly. Once your inner state is optimised the LEDs will turn off.