Physical Product — Case Study
WheezeSense
A portable wheezing monitor for adults with asthma and COPD.
01 — Research
Understanding
the problem.
User interviews and a market audit revealed that adults with asthma and COPD struggle not with detecting symptoms — but with interpreting and communicating them. Uncertainty drives more anxiety than the symptoms themselves.
User Research
Interviews & Insights
5
Monitors audited across the market
4
Emotional stages in the patient cycle
3
Weeks from discovery to prototype
1
Core gap no existing product fills
"I can't tell if it's serious or just a bad night — the not knowing is worse than the wheezing itself."
Uncertainty & Anxiety
"By the time I see my GP, the symptoms are gone. I have nothing to show them — just my word."
Communication Gap
"The apps give me numbers I don't understand. I just want to know: is this okay or not?"
Interpretation Burden
"Those medical patches feel like I'm a patient 24/7. I just want something normal on my bedside table."
Daily Livability
User Journey
From symptom to care
Stage 01
Night Symptom
User wakes to wheezing or chest tightness. The episode is real but fleeting — hard to capture, impossible to record in the moment.
Alarm → Confusion
Stage 02
Wait / Decide
Should I call someone? Wait it out? Users lack an objective measure — self-assessment relies on subjective judgment alone, amplifying anxiety.
Anxiety → Helplessness
Stage 03
Seek Care
By the time they reach a GP, symptoms have often subsided. No data exists to reconstruct what happened overnight.
Frustration → Doubt
Stage 04
Explain
Patients describe symptoms in vague, subjective terms. Without longitudinal data or recordings, clinicians rely on self-report alone.
Dismissed → Unheard
Market Audit
Issues in the market
High Clinical Depth
Low Clinical Depth
Low Intuitive
High Intuitive
Strados RESP
StethX Patch
Neck Monitor
OMRON WheezeScan
WheezeSense ✦
OMRON WheezeScan
False positives from single-mic
Single-microphone architecture misclassifies ambient sounds — crying, squealing, TV audio — as wheeze events, eroding user trust.
Strados · StethX · Neck monitors
Uncomfortable for daily use
Chest patches and neck sensors cause wear fatigue. Built for clinical settings, not for everyday home monitoring.
All audited products
Medical jargon in output
Clinical terminology in app interfaces increases anxiety. Users can't contextualise raw metrics without specialised training.
All audited products
No intuitive feedback loop
No pathway from raw data to confident action. Isolated readings lack meaning — context and trends are needed to unlock value.
Stakeholder Mapping
Who's involved
02 — Ideation
Defining the
direction.
Research synthesis, design principles, and framing the right questions — turning raw insights into a clear design brief.
Project Overview
The big picture
Core Problem
The problem we're solving
Core Problem Statement
Adults with asthma or COPD struggle not with detecting symptoms — but interpreting and communicating them. Ambiguity causes more anxiety than the symptoms themselves.
Uncertainty drives anxiety
Interpretation is harder than detection
Isolated readings lack meaning
Context and trends unlock meaning
Calm interpretation wins
Calm feedback beats more data
Adult tools needed
Clinical framing kills daily adoption
Research Synthesis
Three insight clusters
Cluster 01
Uncertainty is the real symptom
Users report that ambiguity — not the wheeze itself — drives the most anxiety. They can feel something, but can't assess its severity.
"I can't tell if it's serious or just a bad night."
"The not knowing is worse than the wheezing itself."
→ Design must reduce interpretation burden, not add more data.
Cluster 02
Symptoms vanish before the GP visit
Wheezing is episodic and nocturnal. By the time patients reach a clinician, there is no evidence — only subjective recall.
"By the time I see my GP, the symptoms are gone."
"I have nothing to show them — just my word."
→ The system must log and surface longitudinal data passively.
Cluster 03
Clinical tools alienate daily users
Existing products are designed for clinicians, not people. Medical jargon, uncomfortable wearables, and complex UIs prevent daily adoption.
"The apps give me numbers I don't understand."
"Those medical patches feel like I'm a patient 24/7."
→ The device must feel domestic, calm, and non-medical.
Design Principles
Four rules that shaped everything
Reframing
How might we…
HMW 01
How might we translate ambiguous respiratory data into calm, confident interpretations?
HMW 02
How might we capture nocturnal symptoms so patients have evidence for their GP?
HMW 03
How might we design a medical device that feels like a personal care object?
HMW 04
How might we eliminate false positives from ambient noise without additional user effort?
HMW 05
How might we provide longitudinal breathing trends without requiring manual logging?
HMW 06
How might we bridge the communication gap between patient experience and clinical consultation?
Target Users
Who we're designing for
03 — Design
Shaping the
form.
From mood and material research through sketching, scale studies, and physical prototyping — converging on a form that feels right.
Visual Direction
Moodboard
Form Development
Early form sketches
Scale & Proportion
Getting the size right
Interaction
How it's used
Developed Sketches
Refined directions
Context of Use
How it will be used & placed
Physical Prototyping
From foam to final
Companion App
App preview, colour & type, wireframes
App Preview
Color & Typography
Wireframe
Lo-Fi Prototype
Interactive Prototype
Figma prototype
04 — Development
Building &
testing.
Electronics prototyping, component testing, and circuit integration — validating every element before final assembly.
Electronics
Electronics testing
LED Feedback
Ring light testing
Display
LED screen testing
Circuit Design
Fritz diagram & breadboard prototype
Integration
Circuit fitting
Audio Input
Microphone testing
System Architecture
How it all connects
05 — Final
The final
product.
Final renders of WheezeSense — the portable wheezing monitor designed for calm, confident self-monitoring at home.
Final Renders
WheezeSense
