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soojee designed.

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Suth Therapeutic Device

Suth helps people suffering from Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) get a good night’s sleep.

Designed for Self (Concept)

Completed in 2017

Designed for Self (Concept)

Completed in 2017

My role

Lead Industrial Designer

My role

Lead Industrial Designer

The Opportunity

RLS is a prevalent chronic neurological disorder with severe mental and physical health consequences.

For people suffering from RLS, getting a good night sleep is not a choice like most, it's a chore. It affects about 1 in 10 million people in USA.

Strong urge to move legs.

Symptoms get worse when sitting or lying down.

Hard to fall asleep and stay asleep.

Symptoms get worse when sitting or lying down.

Hard to fall asleep and stay asleep.

The Solution

Suth is a wearable that goes on your leg. It stimulates your muscles when it detects a tremor. Suth powers itself and provide relief to the wearer.

The accompanying app allows for the control of Suth’s therapy and also collects and gives you information about your sleep quality.

All night comfort

Wearable worn near the thighs and hamstrings apply EMS therapy through out the night. The units are designed to work in sync with each other and apply therapy when detecting an RLS tremor.

Complete control of your therapy sessions

Suth app allows you to control every aspect of your therapy. From the intensity of the EMS to the pattern that best suits your need of the hour and night.

Record sleep sessions

Records and maintains a sleep diary that gives information on your sleep quality and tremor episodes. This allows you to take back control of your sleep with hard facts and also allows sharing and consulting with your sleep therapist, if need be

Suth Ecosystem

01 EMS Pod

EMS Pod

01 EMS Pod

How did I arrive at Suth?

A lot of talking to people suffering from RLS to understand their frustrations and also testing out prototypes to gauge comfort and ease of use.

01_ Research

User Interview

I spoke to few people who suffers from RLS. I listened in on how RLS affects their sleep quality and not to mention their day to day life. This helped me understand and empathize with their daily struggle to fall and stay asleep with this ailment.

Available treatment methods

I did an audit of treatment methods to understand the market. Medication is the most prominent one.

Products like Relaxis Vibrating Pad and Restiffic massage band was deemed uncomfortable to use for a longer period of time.

I did an audit of treatment methods to understand the market. Medication is the most prominent one.

Products like Relaxis Vibrating Pad and Restiffic massage band was deemed uncomfortable to use for a longer period of time.

Insights

RLS patients would rather live with the ailment than take drugs and have long term side-effects.
The lack of sleep reduces productivity and also makes them irritable.

Literature Research

An interesting article on Parkinson’s caught my attention. The article mentioned the reduction of tremors in legs of Parkinson’s patients after a period of biking exercise.

Interview with Subject Matter Expert

I validated my hypothesis with a sleep therapist with over 20 years of experience treating people with RLS.

"Unfortunately, there is no cure for RLS."

"A device that would stimulate and override sensory systems may help mitigate symptoms."

Dr. Robert Hooper, Sleep Medicine Specialist, Mayo Clinic

02_ User Journey Map

I mapped the journey of how people with RLS prepare for their sleep, the struggle of staying asleep and how they feel the next morning. This would help me figure out what they needed the most out of a therapy and subsequently features of Suth ecosystem.

An interesting article on Parkinson’s caught my attention. The article mentioned the reduction of tremors in legs of Parkinson’s patients after a period of biking exercise.

03_ Validation

Tried and tested

I researched ways to artificially contract and expand muscle and came across EMS. Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) is the elicitation of muscle contraction using electric pulses.

I asked Becca and Andy to try an off-the-shelf EMS massager with conductive pads placed on their thighs and hamstrings. I had them test out the massager for a week before they went to sleep. These were their statements.

Becca, RLS for 4 years

"Relaxing sensation and fell asleep quickly."

"Usually takes me 2 to 3 hours to fall asleep, with therapy it only took me 30 minutes."

Andy, RLS for 6 years

"I was in the zone and relaxed after just 10 minutes of the EMS on."

"My legs started resting in 20 minutes."

04_ Prototyping

Paper mock-ups were tested on 23 users to learn how Suth would be worn on the leg and to gain anthropometric data.

A working prototype was developed and coded on an Arduino platform consulting with an engineer.

The prototype consisted of an accelerometer, a gyroscope and batteries connected to an EMS system. This validated if movement of legs could automatically power up the system.

A working prototype was developed and coded on an Arduino platform consulting with an engineer.

The prototype consisted of an accelerometer, a gyroscope and batteries connected to an EMS system. This validated if movement of legs could automatically power up the system.

05_ Ideation

Suth was inspired by massage stones, soft forms, slow eroded shapes and the night sky.

06_ Mobile Application

The accompanying app was designed by laying out the information architecture (IA) and then wireframes. The app was tested out with few users to gain feedback.