SONIC SMILE
Case Study - Student 2018
This is an example of a student project created at General Assembly during the immersive design course. This is representative of a product created via basic UX design methodologies.
WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?
How can an application engage users in their dental health & brushing regularly?
HERE'S THE STORY
Over the course of two weeks, I've designed an application that focuses on making brushing your teeth more than just a mundane daily task. I've researched the electric toothbrush and application markets, personally interviewed ten users and used Google Forms to survey another 40 users from various backgrounds to find a novel and useful solution to the user's problems.
USER RESEARCH
The Dental Application Ecosystem
The next step in the process was to survey the landscape of at-home dental care. What comparable brands are in the ecosystem and what do they offer? Also, what kind of applications offer features that can assist in solving the user's problems?
In comparing several competitive applications from Oral-B, Philips, and Kolibree, I found the elite class of electric toothbrushes offers dental maps that track when and how you brush and offer real-time guidance to make the most of each brushing. Their applications offer tracking of brush location, brush head usage, and comparable stats to see how the user brushes over time.
This research assisted in the effectiveness of brushing but offered little in making brushing more than a secondary activity. I compared several applications across the iOS ecosystem to find several interesting solutions with Snapchat, 123D Catch, and Google Maps to find the most useful and interesting features to grab a user's attention every time they brush. Some of the more interesting features include facial tracking to create visual effects and 3D structures from photos.
According to my research, Typical users brush every day but find it to be a mundane activity. The act of brushing teeth offers no immediate tangible benefits and the user does not know whether they are being effective at deterring long-term issues.
MAKING IT PERSONAL
By the end of week one, I concluded my initial research and built a user persona based on my findings.  This persona allows me to build out the user flow to suit the needs of a specific user.
APPLICATION ARCHITECTURE
User Flow
Using the information gathered from the research phase, I built a user flow to cater to my persona. During this exercise, many of the finer points of the applications capabilities were fleshed out. Â At this point, I made sure to include a user profile that includes the ability to schedule and remind the user of dental visits. Â It was necessary to add in a gamification aspect to maintain the user's attention, while also designing a way for the user to see exactly what was going on during their daily brushing routine.
Building a Landscape
In organizing the site map for this application, I had to make sure that the application was simple enough to get around in the morning while focusing on the service of facilitating brushing teeth.
VISUAL DESIGN
Over two weeks, I sketched many drafts based on the idea that the application would need an additional custom toothbrush to be the most effective.  Availability of in-use sensors would allow for quick, consistent feedback. Initially, I sought a solution that involved sonar, similar to the technology that maps the sea floor.
Growing the Idea
As the design progressed and solidified, many of the initial ideas stuck and the placement of the items allowed for a simple and easy to read interface.
Utilizing Hardware
While this project is not about product design, I decided that the best way to guarantee that the application will function to it's fullest potential was to use a new type of ultrasonic toothbrush along with the app. Due to the technology limitations found during my research, I decided that the best way to release the brush would be with three interchangeable heads.
The body contains several sensors to pinpoint the devices' position in space and movement. The heads have three specific purposes. The brush will come with two heads; the Ultrasonic brush (A) and the CamBrush (B). The CamBrush will be used monthly to capture a photo 3D map of the users' teeth to track changes. This map can be invaluable to the user and their dentist to track changes over time.
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The ViBrush is a bleeding edge device as the technology limitations have not been met yet. Using a micro-sized ultrasound scanning technology, the ViBrush (C) will map the users' teeth in real time 3D while they brush and an infrared sensor will track heat differences due to inflammation or bleeding. Between these technologies, the brush head can detect changes in tooth alignment, cavities, and precursors to gum disease.
Gamifying the App
Gamification features were added into the application to incentivize users to brush more completely and more often. Â I've chosen to incorporate a simple badge system that rewards users for accomplishments as well as Sonic Selfie feature that allows the user to decorate their teeth with unique colors, textures, and animations as they complete their daily two brushings.
FINAL DESIGNS
