This project was created for UXDG 450-490, User Experience Design Senior Studios I and II under professor Byeong Cheoul Hwang in collaboration with designers Dan Benedict, Sam Klein, and Meshal Almazyad. Over the course of 20+ weeks, my team and I worked to develop our product, Felo. Final deliverables included a functional website, app prototype, a functional physical prototype, videos, and more.

Problem Statement:

Children are now growing up in an entirely unique era: digital and screen-based solutions for education and entertainment are now more accessible than ever. However, as a result of screen addiction and higher expectations for childhood development from younger ages, the children of today are not getting opportunities to properly and positively develop in certain areas: responsibility, routine and goal setting, and empathy.

Solution Statement:

Felo is a physical, empathy-based AI companion that helps kids develop empathy, routine, and responsibility in an environment away from a screen. Felo is adaptive to each child who uses it, and specific needs or goals can be set by the parent through the parent app. For example, if the parent wants their child to get 30 minutes of activity in a day, Felo "needs" 30 minutes of playtime, and it becomes the child's responsibility to take care of Felo. In return, Felo's adaptive personality will reward the child through companionship.

How It Works

Felo is made of many small parts; microcontrollers, vibration motors, OLED screens, capacitive touch sensors, and more. These components allow Felo to be the best friend it possibly can be and allows it to give personalized feedback and responses.

How It Helps

Felo can help impact every child's day in a positive way. Its personality and functionality change based on each child's cognitive capabilities as well as personality, so Felo is personalized to suit their specific needs. After all, every child is unique, so why shouldn't their Felo be?

Felo helps children understand and adapt through empathetic responses; it has a wide and varied range of emotions that will change and adapt depending on the situation. It has been proven that having a pet in the household help children learn empathy and responsibility, but pets require lots of time and attention from the parents as well. Felo takes it a step further by being able to teach children lessons while providing the same positive empathetic responses and feedback they'd get from a pet.

Parent App

So, how does Felo get information about the child's personality, daily schedule, and what time is nap time? Through the parent app!

Parents are able to set up individual profiles for their children through onboarding, and from there are able to set their individual daily schedules. Reoccurring events, such as school, sports, or homework time can be set as well as unique events such as studying for a spelling test. Parents are able to set the mode that Felo is in for any event so that it is taking appropriate actions during those times; for example, if ti

Add-ons and Functionality

While Felo as a base unit is fun and functional, we've designed different add-ons that allow Felo to encourage children to stay active and develop personal interests in different ways! The coptor add-on, meant for older users, allows children and adolescents to develop interests and skills in photography and video, as well as more strenuous outside activities such as hiking. Felo's carriage add-on allows Felo mobility on all kinds of terrain- meaning backyard playtime just got a lot more exciting. Last but not least, Felo's boat add-on allows Felo to take to the water and support children as they swim, play, or otherwise explore water-centered activities.

Functional Prototype

We couldn't create such a fun product without prototyping it, could we? In addition to all of our other deliverables, we developed a functional beta prototype and proof-of-concept for Felo; fully equipped with empathetic animations, voice and language recognition, bluetooth, and vibration motors!

Marketing Materials

We also developed a marketing strategy in order for Felo to feel as real as possible. This included creating packaging design, a functional website, and a functional instagram page which can be accessed at myfelo.com and instagram.com/hello_felo.

Additional Resources

For more information, in-depth research, and the process book, please visit mackinziblankdesign.com/felo.