Lab 1: LoQui Product Description

Richard Atwell

CS 410 – Old Dominion University

Instructor James Brunelle

12 December 2019

Running Head: LAB 1– LOQUI PRODUCT DESCRIPTION2

LAB 1– LOQUI PRODUCT DESCRIPTION2

Version 1

Table of Contents1. Introduction32. LoQui Product Description42.1 Key Product Features and Capabilities42.2 Major Components (Hardware/Software)53. Identification of Case Study65. Glossary116. References12

List of Figures

Figure 1: MFCD…………..……………………………………………………………………...6

List of Tables

Table 1: RWP vs. Prototype………………………...………………………………………...10

1. Introduction

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder that affects ones social skills, speech, and non-verbal communication (Autism Spectrum Disorder, 2019). Children with ASD often have troubling developing the skills they need to form and maintain interpersonal relationships. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has estimated that approximately 1 in 59 children are identified as having ASD time (Data & Statistics on Autism Spectrum Disorder, 2019). Screenings for Autism generally begin as early as 18 months of age as symptoms usually begin to appear at this time. Although researchers have not been able to determine to root cause of Autism, researchers from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (2014) believe that evidence suggests that it is primarily due to genetic factors and the role ones environment may play with genetic mutations . Autism is a lifelong affliction and there is no cure (Autism Spectrum Disorder, 2019).

Although those with ASD will have it for their entire life, there are treatments available that can vastly reduce symptoms. The most effective treatments for Autism are speech Therapy, occupational therapy, and applied behavioral analysis (Therapies that can help treat autism, 2019). The benefits of therapy have been demonstrated to be most effective when introduced during the child’s pre-school aged years. Children with ASD who receive treatment around this time are more likely to get closer baseline results for cognitive abilities than those who receive no therapeutic treatment. Additionally, the effects of therapy decline when they are introduced at later ages. This demonstrates the urgency needed to have children with ASD receiving therapy start as young as possible.

LoQui is an application that is designed for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. It will use interactive methods designed to help improve their social and communication skills. LoQui will be available to anyone with a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet.

2. LoQui Product Description

LoQui is a comprehensive tool that will use speech and behavioral therapy methods that have been shown to be of great benefit to children with ASD. The application will work to improve the childs ability to understand and recognize various emotions, correct speech and pronounciation, and maintaining eye contact. LoQui will have a life-like customizable avatar that will serve as the child’s mentor to help them improve in these areas.

The application will be designed to keep the child entertained and engaged while they are working on improving their abilities. The childs parent will be able to monitor their progress and be able to easily identify where they are showing improvements and where areas of opportunity exist. The parent will be also able to adjust difficulty of the application based on their child’s specific needs.

2.1 Key Product Features and Capabilities

LoQui will work to improve social and communicative abilities through games intended to build two skills. The first game will focus on the childs speech and their ability to correctly pronounce the names of objects that are displayed to the child. LoQui will also utilize the avatar to say various words and see if the child can repeat them properly. The next game will have the child be able to distinguish the emotional context of facial expressions. LoQui’s avatar will display various facial expressions along with dialogue and the child will be given a list of options to choose from. The application will also monitor and score the child’s ability to maintain eye contact with the avatar while it is active.

LoQui will be able to have the parent involved in their child’s development. In addition to being able to scale the difficulty level of the application, parents can set rewards for their child. Rewards will be set to various scoring metrics that parents wish to help their child achieve. When the child is able to hit their rewards goal, both child and parent will be notified and the reward is awarded.

2.2 Major Components (Hardware/Software)

The requirements to run LoQui will be mobile devices such as smart phones or tablets that are use either the Android or iOS operating systems. While LoQui can be run offline, the mobile device must be able to access the internet for initial registration of the application and for progress reports to be submitted to the childs doctor.

Software development for LoQui will be Java using Android Studio as the development environment and Swift using XCode as the development environment for Android and iOS applications respectively. We will use Firebase for our database implementation, which is NoSQL and cloud based. rebase offers live synchronization and also supports offline usage, along with secure authentication.

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Figure 1: Loqui Major Functional Components Diagram

3. Identification of Case Study

LoQui is being developed for use with Autistic children ages 3-11 and their parents. LoQui’s users will be able to improve their communicative and social skills through interactive games. Parents will be able to monitor their child’s progress as well as set custom rewards and settings. Parents will also have the option to share their child’s progress with their doctor and/or therapist.

4. Product Prototype Description

a. Proof of Concept

i. Parents

1. Create User Account and Profile

2. Set user preferences

3. Track game progress

4. Watch the tutorial

5. Choose an Avatar

6. Choose music to play

7. Choose Rewards

8. Set progress goals

ii. Children

1. Play emotion training games

2. Eye contact tracked during play

3. Earn Rewards through improved progress

b. Risk Mitigation

i. Application will contain a tutorial for both the parent and child

ii. Offer a variety of Avatars

iii. Parent can modify settings in the app to suit their child’s needs

iv. Customizable Rewards System adjusted by the parent

v. All data will be encrypted

vi. App will be 100% in compliance with HIPAA standards

c. Customer Feedback

i. Professors/Instructors

ii. Students

4.1 Prototype Architecture (Hardware/Software/Algorithms)

a. Hardware Utilized

i. Android Smartphone

b. Software Utilized

i. Android Studio

1. Application feature libraries

ii. GitHub

iii. Firebase API

iv. Google Identity Platform

1. Account creation and management

2. Authentication

                        v. OpenCV 4.1.2

1. Java library for real-time computer vision                         

c. Primary Languages

i. Java

d. Target Deployment Platforms

i. Android Mobile Devices

4.2 Prototype Features and Capabilities

a. Demonstrate ease of use

i. Allows user to test interface

ii. Allows user to explore functionality

            iii. Displays a how to use and play tutorial

b. Demonstrates user account creation and verification

i. Allows user to register for a LoQui profile

ii. Allows user to sign-in upon each use

c. Demonstrates user profile customization

i. Allows user to customize profile settings

ii. Allows user to choose an avatar 

d. Demonstrate emotion training game

i. Displays an avatar showing a certain emotion

ii. Displays different choices regarding the avatar’s emotion

iii. Allows child to choose an emotion from the given choices 

e. Demonstrate real-time feedback

i. Displays correct emotion after each round

ii. Allows child to see updated total score upon each round

f. Demonstrate real-time eye movement tracking throughout game 

i.  Allows user’s eye movement to be tracked throughout game play 

ii. Allows the user’s eye movement tracking to be pause when game play is not detected 

g. Demonstrate progress tracking

i. scores from emotion training and eye contact are generated and stored

e. Demonstrate a reward system

i. Displays animated rewards upon reaching each set goal

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Table 1: Loqui – Real World Product versus Prototype

4.3 Prototype Development Challenges

a. Requirements volatility

i. LoQui is complex, and keeping requirements complete and consistent is going to be a challenge

b. We will not have iOS representation as part of the Prototype

c. Usability

i. Designing LoQui to be easily used by children with ASD 

c. Implementing eye-movement tracking functionality within the app

d. Lack of knowledge of Autism from a professional standpoint

i. Autism is a complex mental disorder

e. Security

i. Protecting user’s personal data

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5. Glossary

All terms are in the context of LoQui.

Android - A mobile operating system that is based on a modified Linux Kernel, used mainly on touch screen mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) - Autism spectrum disorder is a neurological and developmental disorder that begins early in childhood and lasts throughout a person's life. It affects how a person acts and interacts with others, communicates, and learns. It includes what used to be known as Asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorders.

avatar - An electronic image on a computer that represents a person that can be interacted with by a user.

Google Firebase - A NoSQL Cloud Hosted Database that offers live synchronization and supports offline use.

iOS - A mobile operating system that was developed by Apple specifically for use in their own mobile devices, such as the iPhone or iPad.

Java - A Class based object oriented programming language that was invented in 1995.

user - Any user of the account. This could indicate a child user interacting with the app, or a parent user modifying settings or checking progress within the app.

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6. References

6 Therapies that can help treat autism (n.d.) Retrieved 9. October, 2019, from https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/therapies-to-help-with-autism#1

Autism Resource Page. (2017, February 24). Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/autism-resource-page/.

Autism Spectrum Disorder, Retrieved from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/autism-spectrum-disorders-asd

Autism Spectrum Disorder. (2019, November 25). Retrieved from MedlinePlus:

Blue Eyes Photos HQ 1440x900. (2010, December 21). Retrieved from Funny animal picture - beautiful animals: http://animalpicturebeautifulanimals.blogspot.com/2010/12/blue-eyes-photos-hq-1440x900.html

Copeland, L., Buch, G., (2013) Early Intervention Issues in Autism Spectrum Disorder, Autism – Open Access Journal. Retrieved Oct 12, 2019, from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Linda_Copeland3/publication/266146609_Early_Intervention_Issues_in_Autism_Spectrum_Disorders/links/5428abcd0cf238c6ea7cd8cd/Early-Intervention-Issues-in-Autism-Spectrum-Disorders.pdf

Csillag, J. (2016, June 7). 5 Apps to Help People with Autism Learn Social Skills. Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://blog.asha.org/2016/06/08/5-apps-to-help-people-with-autism-learn-social-skills/.

Data & Statistics on Autism Spectrum Disorder, Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html

Dealing with Favoritism in the Family. (2010, September 13). Retrieved from Wikinut: https://family.wikinut.com/Dealing-With-Favoritism-in-the-Family/11zbhcqn/

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Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2014). Common gene variants account for most genetic risk for autism. Retrieved Oct 12, 2019, from https://www.nichd.nih.gov/news/releases/072114-gene-variants-autism

Fletcher-Watson, S. (2015, January 9). Can an app teach eye-contact? Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://dart.ed.ac.uk/app-eye-contact/.

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Hetler, H. (2019, June 15). Apps for Autism: 8 Reasons Why Tactus Therapy Works Well. Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://tactustherapy.com/apps-for-autism/.

Hopkins, I. M.,  Gower, M. W., Perez, T. A., Smith, D. S., Amthor, F. R., Wimsatt, F. C., & Biasini,  F. J. (Feb 2. 2011)  Avatar assistant: improving social skills in students with an ASD through a computer-based intervention, Springer Science+Business Media

https://medlineplus.gov/autismspectrumdisorder.html

Mouth Speaking Clipart. (2019, October 14). Retrieved from ClipArtMag: http://clipartmag.com/mouth-speaking-clipart

New App Teaches Kids With Autism to Maintain Eye Contact. (2018, December 17). Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://www.psychiatryadvisor.com/home/topics/autism-spectrum-disorders/new-app-teaches-kids-with-autism-to-maintain-eye-contact/.

Palmer, C. (2019, May 30). 5 Principles of Speech Therapy for Children with Autism. Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/5-principles-of-speech-therapy-autism/.

Spence, B. (2015, February 11). Improving Eye Contact For Kids With Autism - There's An App For That! Retrieved October 15, 2019, from http://info.staffingplus.com/improving-eye-contact-for-kids-with-autism-theres-an-app-for-that.

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