I am creating a physical wellbeing companion device for adolescents that helps guide users through calming strategies during moments of stress or overwhelm.
The device will:
Activate when movement is detected (motion sensor)
Display calming prompts and animations on a touchscreen
Play soft sounds optional to use headphones via bluetooth
Use vibration for sensory regulation
Track how frequent the device is used for emotional regulation via (for wellbeing monitoring)
I am planning to use a Raspberry Pi-based system, and Iâve put together a shopping cart with the parts I think I need. Before I order, I wanted to ask if you could please check whether my setup makes sense and if you have any recommendations.
Here is my current parts list:
[Raspberry Pi 3+ Touch Screen Kit which includes:
1 x Pi Foundation PiTFT - 7" Touchscreen Display for Raspberry Pi
1 x Raspberry Pi OS 32GB Preloaded uSD Card
1 x Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+
1 x Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ Enclosure (Official)
1 x HDMI Cable 1M
1 x Official Raspberry Pi 12.5W Micro USB Power Supply
[3pc Heatsink Kit for Raspberry Pi]
[Vibration Motor
x2
[Transistor - NPN (BC337)] x10
[1N4001 Diode - 10 pack]
(I already have a PIR motion sensor)
My questions are:
Is the Raspberry Pi 3+ suitable for this type of interactive touchscreen device?
Are there simpler or more reliable alternatives you would recommend?
Is my parts list missing anything essential? Or anything I can use for experimentation?
Are there components youâd suggest that are better for reliability, size, or student projects?
Hi Madeleine.
Iâm not from the core team, and they will come and assist soon Iâm sure.
I have done some animating on raspberry Pis before and I wanted to ask you some questions that may help.
What kind of animations are you imagining?
A Raspberry Pi 3+ would be able to make a smiley face, but not a calming dynamic flow-field.
For a sufficiently complex animations you may need more grunt.
What software (or programming language) would you like to use to make animations? Not all tools will be available for every pi. Would you like some recommendations from the community?
In good news, with the right setup for your goals, actually making animations has never been easier. Youâll be fine, even if its your first time.
Concerning purchasing the right stuff, I should leave that to CE staff, who will know their inventory and make better recommendations.
Hey, I am also not from Core team but I found your post interesting.
Donât you think that a Raspberry Pi 3+ may be power-hungry or a portable sensory regulation device? it requires a large battery (it has the screen) and significant startup time. I think a more efficient alternative would be the ESP32-S3. It supports high-quality audio, haptic (vibration) feedback, and touchscreens while being compact enough for a handheld form factor.
Instead of a full Linux OS, use the LVGL library. It is designed specifically for microcontrollers to create smooth, smartphone-like animations and touch interfaces.
I would suggest the use of an I2S DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter). This will give you much cleaner sound for calming prompts compared to the standard PWM audio from a Pi.
you should use a haptic driver chip (like the DRV2605L) for sensory regulation. It allows you to program specific âheartbeatâ or âpulseâ vibrations rather than just a constant, aggressive buzz
Focusing on a dedicated microcontroller like the ESP32 will make the device feel more like a finished product and less like a bulky computer prototype.
pi is a good choice but ESP32 has better usage in such plans.
Hey there, @Madeleine307601, and welcome to the forum. Glad to have you here.
Actual Core Staff here (thank you everyone who jumped in first).
To answer some of your questions:
It really depends on what you need. If youâre after very fast and very responsive feedback, then the Pi 4 is probably going to be better. If youâre after low power consumption, a microcontroller like an ESP32 is going to be better. For a student project though, the Pi 3B+ is a good solid choice. It will need a little more power than
Itâs a little hard to suggest what components youâd need for your project without having a better idea of the circuitry that youâre intending to put together. Do you have a circuit diagram, even if its only for each individual part? Or could you explain how you envision the vibration motors being used, for instance.
Depending on how far away you are from the Pi device, it might be worthwhile getting a USB Bluetooth dongle, as the Piâs Wifi / Bluetooth antenna is pretty small and not the most reliable. Itâs not an issue at all if you envision someone just sitting with this in their lap, but if theyâre moving around the room, it might be something to think about.
See first two points.
Technically both the easiest itâs ever been and just as hard as it always has been. Animation is drawing in sequence and is exactly as complicated as that sounds.
It also really depends on whether youâre controlling the animation with code or simply playing, say, a GIF file. One of those involves moving all the individual pieces on screen around with a programming language, the other is just telling the code to play the gif.
If youâre interested, thereâs a guide here on animating with python and mathplotlib that you might find useful:
Finally, to jump off Oliverâs point, will you be powering this via a USB or an internal battery? I have been going under the assumption that this would be wired device, but I should check.
This project looks interesting, and - while I have less expertise than any of the previous posters - my first thought is that Raspberry Piâs are pretty expensive, and an ESP32-S3 may do as good a job. Iâm using one for my greenhouse automation with ESPHome firmware framework, but if you prefer you can program it with Arduino IDE (C++) or Python.
Madeleine, if you are using a Raspberry Pi because it is familiar to you (linux OS, high-level programming, or you already have one lying around) then stick with that, especially for this âproof of conceptâ. Too many new things at once quickly becomes overwhelming, and makes the project seem endless.
I note you already have a PIR motion sensor ⌠which is probably sufficient for this project ⌠but I think youâll be blown away after watching Jarydâs video in FeatherS3 [D] ESP32-S3 Development Board | Buy in Australia | CE10241 | Core Electronics. And I have read that itâs sensitive enough to detect the breathing of someone sitting still ! I have purchased but not got around to trying a mmWave sensor, so not speaking from personal experience
I have noticed a number of ESP32-S3 development boards which seem to have this built-in. Connect LiPo battery and 5V solar panel directly to a Firebeetle or an Unexpected Maker development board such as FeatherS3. Again, not tried this myself yet.
Following Olivers remark I looked back, and the original post includes a 12.5W power supply ⌠so that is either the requirement, or Madeleine hadnât considered that it would be possible to make it portable. Probably better for portability to be an exercise for a later version.
yet.
