Google X Contact Lens: On-Eye LED Indicators

To signal changes in blood glucose, we designed notifications sent via a single-color on-eye LED. I led the human factors research and considerations while collaborating with an ethnographer to understand the needs of those with Type-1 diabetes.

AREAS

PERCEPTUAL THRESHOLDS INTERVIEWS ELICITATION STUDIES LEARNABILITY STUDIES MEMORABILITY STUDIES

DATE

2014

About the project

In 2014, one of Google X's "moonshots" was a blood glucose-sensing contact lens. The wearer would be notified of their blood glucose trends via a tiny single-color LED on their eye. I was tasked with defining the notification system, including defining the . . .

  1. Color of the LED (e.g., optimized for outdoor visibility)
  2. Flash rate, ramp, and sequence of each message (i.e., the feeling and distinctness of each notification, without being distracting)
  3. A meaningful, comprehensible notification system (i.e., wearers understood their blood glucose levels from these flash patterns)

Project results

With no precedent for such a display, I utilized first principles of perception & cognition as a starting point (i.e., human factors). We conducted 7 studies on the feeling, meaning, usability, & memorability of the notification system.

  • Most studies were very fast-paced (~1-2 days from plan to execution) and iteratively worked through problem space.
  • After one 15-minute session of learning the notifications, people were able to fully recall their meaning two days later.
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