Project Shock

We have finally decided on an idea for our IVP project - a vibrating wristband. As many as 3 million people around the world suffer from a condition called narcolepsy, which causes people to fall asleep at times during the day, regardless of how tired they are. This is a very serious problem because it could cause people to fall asleep during an activity which requires concentration, such as driving. There is also the smaller problem of people potentially falling asleep in an examination or during a meeting.

What we are proposing is a battery-powered vibrating armband which will let off strong vibrations every few minutes or so. This will help in keeping such people awake, and for people who are also tired after, say, only a few hours of sleep can also use this so they can keep awake during classes.

This idea has not been done before, and the only other known way to help narcoleptic people is via drugs such as methylphenidate, dextroamphetamine, methamphetamine, and pemoline. However, whilst these drugs can control the narcolepsy, it results in undesired side effects such as irritability and nervousness, shakiness, disturbances in heart rhythm, stomach upset, nighttime sleep disruption, and anorexia. There is also the risk of addiction to use of these drugs and tolerance to their use, resulting in higher dosages.

Some further benefits are that since it is battery powered, it is rather cheap, and since it is just an armband it is very easy to carry around. This will mean that people will buy our product, especially since it helps them stay awake if they feel very tired or stressed out. As such, we believe our project will be able to help a large amount of people around the world.