XWD @ MDP jurors Christian Denhart, Eric Lewallen, Marcus Filipovich, Anne Burdick & Maggie Hendrie, announce the awards!
I had a chance to see a video of the XWD awards presentation on the MDP rooftop. I’m not posting it here as it was a private video. I’ll add it if it becomes public. We pretty much know what happened anyway, but what was interesting about this replay was that 3 teams got awards, but only 1 team got Award + Critique: us!
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Fitbit adds route tracking via phone GPS
I’ve just received an email from Fitbit. As we discussed for Compass H2O, they’re now offering Route Tracking, not by modifying the Fitbit device at all, but by using your phone GPS. What I don’t quite understand in Fitbit’s case is: if I’m going to track with my phone, why do I still need their device at all?
We’re presenting at WearableTechLA on Th, July 17!
Congratulations Team Compass H2O! We won 3rd place and we’re pitching at WearableTechLA on Th, July 17!
Thanks for the WearableTechLA schedule Sharon! So the 3 teams have 5 minutes each, or maybe more like 4 minutes to get their whole pitch out!
Yes, awesome job Susan!! 🙂
Syuzi said they might just provide a location for each team to display the product with a poster with introduction. We may not need to present.
Let’s wait for her email for the final confirmation.
Ekin told me they won’t present their work at wearable tech LA.
Wearable Tech LA is the first Entertainment and Health Wearable conference held in Los Angeles. Attending Wearable Tech LA will give you an opportunity to meet and collaborate with the best of Hollywood, Music, and Sports including leaders from the NBA, NFL, NHL, and others.
According to International Data Corporation, wearables will be the fastest-emerging category and become a $12B industry in 2018. You’ll also get the inside track from industry leaders on wearables, a first look at emerging wearable computing, watch fast track pitches from 15 startups and network with top VCs, angels, large corporation (e.g. GoPro, Intel, Samsung, adidas, Qualcomm, Google, etc.) and thought leaders.
Key highlights:
World’s First Wearable Entertainment and Health conference in LA
Cocktail reception & wearable showcase
400-500 attendees
Top celebrities from Hollywood, Music and Sports
20 dynamic keynotes, 50 speakers and 15 startups pitching their products – 3 winners to be announced.
Panel discussion with thought leaders in the wearable entertainment and spaces
Live demos including a demo on extreme wearables
Top VCs and corporations (e.g. GoPro, Intel, Samsung, Qualcomm, Google, etc…)
Wearable Tech LA sounds so exciting. And I can’t wait to join it and meet all of you there:)
I think we definitely need to meet up at least once before July 17. We can set up a meeting and talk about the feedback we got. I’m free anytime after Wednesday, but my finals are coming soon. I understand Susan and Vivia might have hard time to meet up, but we will try our best.
Oh, Allia / Ekin won’t present? That’s a shame. We didn’t hear anything from Courtney / MDP this week. But next week I hope they’ll give us some info on WTLA. As Sharon said above, it might be more of a “Poster Session” than “Presentation.”
The judges feedback is kind of funny – they liked the quality of our build, but didn’t like it on the wrist, and didn’t like the water finding use case as much as wayfinding. So they sort of said, “we love your work, now throw it away and start over”! 😛
The answer to the 1st 1/2 of that, off the wrist might be that we aren’t going to have time to develop that before the 17th, even if we wanted to?
The use case though is mostly presentation rather than engineering to do now, so we could develop that if we wanted to.
For meeting F2F, Mon-Wed-Fri are a little better for me, but my schedule is flexible ATM, so I can probably work out any day that works for others. I’m happy going up to Art Center, or wherever we like. You’re all welcome at my place in Rosemead, too.
We probably can’t get all 8 of us together, but as many of us as want to / are able to, would be great. And we can also discuss here on the website, or we could do a Google Video Hangout.
Thanks Joseph!
I think we earn the heart of the audience. We did provide a workable demo and the audiences loves that.
The way we need to improve is to tell a better story. I really enjoy the way Emoty presents, quite logical and they did tell us where the concept came from and what problem it solved.
A great story will make the product more convincing.
I love the design of the badge for the water bottle. Thanks, Glenn~
It looks like a real one that could sale 😛
hahaha – yessy! Compass H2O is the only brand of water I drink now! I keep it fully stocked in the studio fridge! 🙂
Oh, you remind me. We could make more bottles on the demo day 7/17. And hand out to the audiences passed by. They might need some water to prevent dehydration for that busy day ^_^
Yes Sharon, that’s a really great idea. Can we print more of the labels? I actually measured the label from the ones that were on the bottles, but it seems like they might have wound up 1/8″ – 3/16″ short going around. Maybe the file got shrunk in placing from PS to IL or something. Anyway, I guess they just need to be 1/4″ wider.
I can pick up a case of water and we could meetup sometime / someplace and paste labels. And I can bring the tape film gun.
Joseph & Natalia completing the case with our final prototype inside.
Somehow, OMG, we finished! (barely! 🙂
More: 22 images >>
I love this team. Everyone is awesome !!!
We cooperated quite well. Each of us has our own skill set, dedicated and focus. Lease but not last, I could feel the passion and initiative creativity which sparks around. Just felt fantastic working with all of you.
Samy Kamkar, Meg Grant & Syuzi Pakchyan
Team Compass H2O wants to give a big thank you to the many individuals and organizations that made our project experience possible.
Thank you to the Media Design Practices (MDP) program at Art Center & Intel for their sponsorship. Thank you to the very helpful experts who worked with us and to all the judges.
And a special thank you to our host and mentor Syuzi Pakchyan. Syuzi spent every minute of this long weekend with us and always had the brightest of spirits and the most helpful of insights. It is humbling to spend time with someone so smart and yet so patient, generous and helpful.
(just a start Sharon – let’s add / mod / brainstorm on this post!)
It is a testament to the seriousness of our water needs, both here in California and across the globe, that almost immediately upon forming, 
the members of Team Compass H2O unanimously agreed that our work must in some way consider our very serious water issues here in 2014.
From our overall passion for water issues we quickly focused on the individual need for hydration. From a California product developer on a weekend hike to someone in the developing world making a trek for medical treatment, hydration is essential to all who travel.
In the comfort of a 1st world office hydration is often just a refrigerator away. But beyond that artificial oasis, on journeys both short and long, life-giving clean water can be a lot more elusive.
Housed in an attractive, durable, waterproof, simulated leather wristband, Compass H2O is a hands-free GPS unit, a hydration sensor, and a water locator. Under the band are miniaturized arrays of impedance measuring electrodes that determine hydration levels. Huang, et al, 2012
Ironically, we anticipate that crowdsourcing will provide the best data for the areas least seriously in need. We’re confident that every water fountain in New York City will be quickly mapped, but far less confident about larger areas in the developing world. Compass H2.O will partner with geologists, water scientists, and local universities in an effort to create a truly global map of current sources of potable water.
It is amazing what can be achieved with a cell phone in today’s world. Yet so many of the places we walk are void of cellular and wifi signals. By prepopulating Compass H2O with the latest water database for the area of travel, this device needs nothing more than GPS satellites to lead the wearer to the nearest water source. (or, if hydration needs are light, then to the best water source)
Using a low power chipset and efficient LEDs, Compass H2O is a high efficiency device that can be recharged with a solar button worn on the walker’s shirt.
The initial focus of Compass H2O is indeed navigation and access to water. In the future anyone can use this open source platform to create a variety of Walking Tours, Social Compass Experiences, and many other applications.
Arms of Light by WaxMaps
http://ccmixter.org/files/waxmaps/46109
possible music for video
We brainstormed, played design games, and tried to hone in first on a Need and then moving to more specific design goals. We had so many ideas on so many topics and so many solutions I think we were all going a little mad this morning!
Our continued efforts with a lot of help from Syuzi Pakchyan, Magdalena Paluch, and the other coaches finally led us to a project we were all excited about: Compass H2.O
• A wrist worn compass that senses your hydration level and leads you to water.
• A crowdsourced database of potable water sources.
• A propopulated device for areas with no cell or wifi signals.
• An open source platform for myriad personal and social compass apps in the future.
More: 36 images >>
http://www.mc10inc.com/consumer-products/sports/hydration-sensor/
MC10 Hydration Video from MC10 on Vimeo.
Glenn Zucman, 
Joseph, and 
Sharon Gong are discussing. 
Kevin's facility tour #extremewearables pic.twitter.com/5Mp7HyAipJ
— Glenn Zucman (@gzucman) June 28, 2014
Extreme Wearable Designathon leader Syuzi Pakchyan / Fashioningtech.com
Food.
Meetup.
Brainstorming.
And we formed teams!
David Wang
Glenn Zucman
Joseph Kan
Natalia Fedner
Samy Kamkar
Shan Zhang
Sharon Gong
Vivia Liu
Here is the detail info and schedule about Wearable LA: http://www.wearabletechla.com/#nav-header
Seems like this time period is saved for us on 7/17:
2:30 pm – 2:45 pm Designathon teams Demo Their Extreme Wearables