为了让爷爷不再走丢，15岁亚裔美国少年造出了让世人惊叹的温暖发明（附视频&演讲稿）
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60%的老年痴呆患者会迷路乱走，给患者自己和照顾的人带来很大的心理压力。在本次温暖的演讲中，还是中学生的 Kenneth Shinozuka 向我们介绍了他的小发明，如何帮助到夜里会到处走的爷爷和照顾爷爷的舅舅……以及他帮助其他老年痴呆患者的梦想。
在一次和爷爷在公园散步时,突然爷爷走失了,好不容易后来终于找回,但这次经历让小Kenneth及全家后怕不已,原来爷爷患了老年痴呆症，而且病情越来越严重，从此全家为此寝食难安，尤其在夜晚Kenneth的姨妈不得不整夜不睡觉看管爷爷，生怕任何闪失。为了家人的健康，Kenneth利用科技头脑想出了一个好办法，并成功让这个想法成为了现实。
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What's the fastest growing threat to Americans' health? Cancer? Heart attacks? Diabetes? The answer is actually none of these; it's Alzheimer's disease. Every 67 seconds, someone in the United States is diagnosed with Alzheimer's. As the number of Alzheimer's patients triples by the year 2050, caring for them, as well as the rest of the aging population, will become an overwhelming societal challenge.
My family has experienced firsthand the struggles of caring for an Alzheimer's patient. Growing up in a family with three generations, I've always been very close to my grandfather. When I was four years old, my grandfather and I were walking in a park in Japan when he suddenly got lost. It was one of the scariest moments I've ever experienced in my life, and it was also the first instance that informed us that my grandfather had Alzheimer's disease. Over the past 12 years, his condition got worse and worse, and his wandering in particular caused my family a lot of stress. My aunt, his primary caregiver, really struggled to stay awake at night to keep an eye on him, and even then often failed to catch him leaving the bed. I became really concerned about my aunt's well-being as well as my grandfather's safety. I searched extensively for a solution that could help my family's problems, but couldn't find one.
Then, one night about two years ago, I was looking after my grandfather and I saw him stepping out of the bed. The moment his foot landed on the floor, I thought, why don't I put a pressure sensor on the heel of his foot? Once he stepped onto the floor and out of the bed, the pressure sensor would detect an increase in pressure caused by body weight and then wirelessly send an audible alert to the caregiver's smartphone. That way, my aunt could sleep much better at night without having to worry about my grandfather's wandering.
So now I'd like to perform a demonstration of this sock. Could I please have my sock model on the stage? Great. So once the patient steps onto the floor -- (Ringing) -- an alert is sent to the caregiver's smartphone.
Thank you.
Thank you, sock model.
So this is a drawing of my preliminary design.
My desire to create a sensor-based technology perhaps stemmed from my lifelong love for sensors and technology. When I was six years old, an elderly family friend fell down in the bathroom and suffered severe injuries. I became concerned about my own grandparents and decided to invent a smart bathroom system. Motion sensors would be installed inside the tiles of bathroom floors to detect the falls of elderly patients whenever they fell down in the bathroom. Since I was only six years old at the time and I hadn't graduated from kindergarten yet, I didn't have the necessary resources and tools to translate my idea into reality, but nonetheless, my research experience really implanted in me a firm desire to use sensors to help the elderly people. I really believe that sensors can improve the quality of life of the elderly.
When I laid out my plan, I realized that I faced three main challenges: first, creating a sensor; second, designing a circuit; and third, coding a smartphone app. This made me realize that my project was actually much harder to realize than I initially had thought it to be.
First, I had to create a wearable sensor that was thin and flexible enough to be worn comfortably on the bottom of the patient's foot. After extensive research and testing of different materials like rubber, which I realized was too thick to be worn snugly on the bottom of the foot, I decided to print a film sensor with electrically conductive pressure-sensitive ink particles. Once pressure is applied, the connectivity between the particles increases. Therefore, I could design a circuit that would measure pressure by measuring electrical resistance.
Next, I had to design a wearable wireless circuit, but wireless signal transmission consumes lots of power and requires heavy, bulky batteries. Thankfully, I was able to find out about the Bluetooth low energy technology, which consumes very little power and can be driven by a coin-sized battery. This prevented the system from dying in the middle of the night.
Lastly, I had to code a smartphone app that would essentially transform the care-giver's smartphone into a remote monitor. For this, I had to expand upon my knowledge of coding with Java and XCode and I also had to learn about how to code for Bluetooth low energy devices by watching YouTube tutorials and reading various textbooks.
Integrating these components, I was able to successfully create two prototypes, one in which the sensor is embedded inside a sock, and another that's a re-attachable sensor assembly that can be adhered anywhere that makes contact with the bottom of the patient's foot. I've tested the device on my grandfather for about a year now, and it's had a 100 percent success rate in detecting the over 900 known cases of his wandering. Last summer, I was able to beta test my device at several residential care facilities in California, and I'm currently incorporating the feedback to further improve the device into a marketable product. Testing the device on a number of patients made me realize that I needed to invent solutions for people who didn't want to wear socks to sleep at nigh
So sensor data, collected on a vast number of patients, can be useful for improving patient care and also leading to a cure for the disease, possibly. For example, I'm currently examining correlations between the frequency of a patient's nightly wandering and his or her daily activities and diet.
One thing I'll never forget is when my device first caught my grandfather's wandering out of bed at night. At that moment, I was really struck by the power of technology to change lives for the better. People living happily and healthfully -- that's the world that I imagine.Thank you very much.
威胁美国人健康的疾病中，上升速度最快的是哪一种？ 癌症？心脏病？糖尿病？ 实际上都不是 （上升最快的）是老年痴呆症（即阿尔茨海默氏病） 每隔67秒 美国就有一人被诊断出患有该疾病 老年痴呆患者的数量到2050年会翻三倍 照顾这些患者，以及其他老龄人口 将会变成一个非常大的社会挑战
我的家庭有着切身的体验 知道照顾一名老年痴呆患者的辛苦 我成长在一个三代同堂的家庭 从小就跟自己的爷爷非常亲近 当我四岁的时候 我跟爷爷在公园里散步 然后他突然失踪了 这是迄今为止最让我害怕的回忆之一 这也第一次使我们意识到 爷爷得了老年痴呆 过去12年来，他的病情一点一点加重了 尤其是他出去游荡的时候，全家都会很紧张（他失踪） 我姑妈，主要是她照顾着爷爷 夜里硬撑着不敢睡觉，为了留心爷爷的状况 即使这样，也不能阻止爷爷半夜下床（乱走动） 我变得很关心姑妈的健康 和我爷爷的安全 我大范围的搜寻为了找到一个可以帮到我家庭的方法 却以失败告终
后来，两年前的一个晚上 我在照顾爷爷的时候，看到他正想要下床 他的脚碰到地面的瞬间 我想到，为什么不在他的后脚跟放个压力传感器呢？ 当他下床着地的时候 传感器就能检测到由于爷爷体重造成的一股上升的压力 并能无线传输警报信号给看护人的手机 这样一来，我姑妈晚上就可以睡得更好一些 不用一直瞪大眼睛提防爷爷到处走动
现在我来展示一下我发明的（压力感应的）袜子 能邀请我的（袜子展示）模特到台上来吗？ 太棒了 一旦病人的脚着地 （警报声） 警报就会被发送到看护人的手机
谢谢
谢谢我的模特
这就是我这个想法一开始的草图
我之所以想要创造一个基于传感器的技术 原因可能来自我对传感器和相关科技的热爱 当我六岁的时候 家里一位年长的亲戚在浴室摔倒了伤得很重 我开始关注自己的祖父母（的安全） 并决定设计一套智能浴室系统 运动传感器将会被嵌入浴室的地砖里面 当老人摔倒在地板上的时候就能够探测到 当时我才只有6岁 幼儿园都没有毕业 我没法获取所需的资源和工具来实现我的想法 但是，我的研究经历 让我建立起坚定的信念，用传感器去帮助老人 我坚信传感器可以提高老年人的生活质量
当我开始细化我的计划时，我意识到我面临三大挑战 第一，创造一个传感器 第二，设计电路 第三，写出一个手机App 这让我意识到我的计划比我一开始想象的 要难的多
首先，我需要发明一个可穿戴的传感器，足够轻薄灵活 要能够舒适的穿在病人的脚上。 在调研和尝试了许多种材料之后，我意识到 橡胶之类的材料太厚了穿在脚上不服帖 我决定打印一个薄膜式传感器 使用能感知压力的电子墨水来构造。 一旦产生压力，墨水粒子之间连通性就增加了 这样我就可以设计一个测试压力的电路 通过测量电阻
接下来，我需要设计一个可穿戴的无线电路 但是无线信号传输非常耗电 并且需要笨重的电池 谢天谢地，我找到了低功耗的蓝牙技术 功耗很低，纽扣电池就能够带动起来 这就避免了系统工作到半夜就没电的尴尬
最后，我需要自己写一个智能手机App 它将看护人的手机变成一个远程监控器 为此，我需要在Java和XCode基础上继续探索 并自学了如何用代码去操纵蓝牙低功耗设备 为此我看了很多的YouTube视频，翻了很多书
把这些组件拼接起来，我成功的做出来了两个原型 其中一个原型，传感器被嵌入袜子里 另一个原型，传感器是可以拆卸的 可以粘在病人脚底 任何产生接触的地方 我给爷爷试验了一年的时间 它拥有百分之百的准确率 成功捕获了爷爷超过900次的发病情况 去年夏天，我开始在美国加州的 一些护理院试用这套设备 目前我正在收集反馈 后续会将这个设备完善成一个可以进入市场的产品 在病人实际试用的过程中 我意识到我需要创新解决方案 因为有些人晚上睡觉是不习惯穿袜子的
从大规模的病人身上采集到的传感器数据 不仅对于照顾病人有帮助作用 对于疾病本身的治疗也可能会有帮助 例如，我现在在检测的 是尝试发现病人夜间活动与饮食 以及白天的行为之间的关联
我永远忘不了我的设备第一次成功地 捕获出我爷爷半夜下床的时刻 那一刻我强烈的感受到了科技的力量 让生活更美好的力量 人们可以健康快乐的生活 这是我的梦想
非常感谢
15岁亚裔美国少年神奇发明
用一双袜子改变美国
爷爷的第一次离开为家庭笼上阴霾
在 Kenneth 的爷爷患病以前，三代同堂的家庭生活简单而温暖。直到 2005 年 8 月某天凌晨，爷爷被警察带回，惊醒了全家人。无措的爷爷喃喃地重复着：「对不起，对不起，我错了……」原来，在大家熟睡的时候，爷爷竟然只穿着睡衣，在冷风中游荡了 2 公里！
从此，Kenneth 家的生活彻底改变。患上阿尔茨海默病的爷爷开始生活难以自理：不能自己吃饭、去厕所，记不清日期，认不出身边的人，总是一个人在窗边发呆……最可怕的是，爷爷的梦游症状越来越严重，经常半夜出走。尽管家人每天提心吊胆地守夜，不时地去爷爷的房间查看，还是无法阻止意外的发生。
一双袜子，让家人时刻知晓爷爷的动向。
出走的爷爷一次次地被警察送回，家人的疲惫和痛苦也一次次地加重。注视着这一切的 Kenneth，决心找到方法，一定要阻止爷爷离家。他不停地搜索、查询，可惜均告失败。直到某天夜里，爷爷再次无意识地起身，当他双脚着地的那一刻，Kenneth 豁然开朗：如果能在爷爷的脚上装一个压力传感器，就可以监测爷爷下床的动作了吧？
Kenneth 脑海中的想法逐渐清晰：设计一双脚底处有传感器的袜子，当爷爷下床时，传感器能感应到体重造成的压力上升，然后把信号传递到手机 App。这样一来，家人在睡眠中就可以被手机报警唤醒，而不必整夜强打精神。
但想法的实现并不容易。首先，传感器的材料必须轻薄舒适。Kenneth 曾尝试用各种材料，比如橡胶，但没法服帖在脚底。最终 Kenneth 用电子墨水打印出了薄膜式传感器，配合一个微型电路系统。产生压力时，墨水粒子之间的连接性加强，从而引起电阻变化，传感器通过测算电阻来感知压力。
那么传感器的信号要如何传递给接收设备呢？无线信号的传输非常耗电，病人又无法随身携带一大块电池。Kenneth 决定用低能耗蓝牙技术，只要一枚小小的纽扣电池，就能保证信号传输。
最后是设计手机报警 App。Kenneth 完全自学了编程！他用大量时间看 youtube 上的极客视频，从图书馆借指导书，最后独立写出了 App 程序。
无数次电路板上焊接、黑板前演算、键盘上打字之后，Kenneth 为爷爷做的薄膜感应器袜子终于诞生了。随后长达一年的实验里，全家依靠它阻止了爷爷 900 次出走，成功率 100%。Kenneth 家中不再有焦急的寻找，取而代之是全家人给爷爷温情的陪伴。
推广好设计，帮助更多的家庭
Kenneth 认为，既然这双袜子能够帮助他的爷爷和家人，那么它也一定能够帮助更多的老人和家庭。于是，Kenneth 开始在加州的护理院推广这件设备。
在试用时，有些老人不喜欢穿袜子，Kenneth 就将传感器改良成可拆卸式。可拆卸的传感器更加方便，如同一个小纽扣，只要扣在贴身衣物上，每当老人起身，感应器接收到落差值，就能向手机发送报警信息。
看到老人们在子女的陪伴下安享时光，Kenneth 觉得自己做了一件正确的事，而此时的他年仅 15 岁，还只是一名初中生！
为什么一个 15 岁的孩子能够做到这些事？站在 TED 演讲台上，Kenneth 说：「我永远忘不了第一次检测到爷爷下床的时刻，我深深地感受到科技的力量。让生命更美好，让人们生活得健康幸福，这就是我的梦想。」
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