For this project, my team and I set out to rethink one of the most overlooked aspects of everyday life: sleep. We designed SleepSync, a smart pillow and companion app that adapts to individual comfort needs through temperature control, haptic feedback, and IoT connectivity. The idea was to move beyond the static design of a traditional pillow and create an experience that actively supports rest and relaxation.
Many people struggle with disrupted sleep due to factors like discomfort, overheating, stress, or difficulty waking up naturally. Traditional pillows provide static comfort but do not respond to changing body or environmental conditions. Our idea was to create an adaptive, safe, and soothing pillow that automatically adjusts to individual sleep preferences through smart temperature control, vibration, and calming sounds—all controlled through an app.
To guide the design of our smart pillow, we focused on six key objectives. Each area addresses a critical aspect of the user experience, from comfort and safety to connectivity and sensory feedback. The following visual highlights these priorities and their role in shaping the product.
The electronic component we would use in our prototype is the Arduino microcontroller board and it would provide haptic feedback where you feel the vibrations to put you to sleep. Also it could use auditory engagement by making sounds to relax the user or wake the user up like an alarm would. We would use the buzzer with the Arduino.
We designed wireframes for the app to give users control over the pillow’s smart features. It allows customization of temperature, vibration patterns, and alarms, while also syncing with other smart devices to create a connected sleep environment.
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Here's a more polished version of the home screen for what the app could look like.
The final prototype demonstrated how somatic engagement and smart technology can transform sleep into an adaptive, personalized experience. Key outcomes included:
This project taught us the value of quick, low-cost prototyping to validate ideas before moving into advanced development. While we faced challenges with technical feasibility—like ensuring safe temperature control and balancing comfort with embedded electronics—we learned how critical it is to design technology that feels seamless and non-intrusive. The project also expanded our UX lens from screens to physical experiences. We learned to think about how products feel, not just how they look or function. It sharpened our skills in prototyping, iteration, and understanding user needs in embodied, multisensory ways.