Amanda Cascardo - ENT 3003

Who: Before conducting my second set of interviews, I knew this product wouldn’t be for everyone but I believed that all parents and pet owners would need or want this device. But after, I realize that there are parents that have older children that are self-sufficient and won’t need this. Or there are people who own pets that have never travelled in a vehicle with their pet. There are also people that don’t live in extreme climates, cars in their area don’t reach extreme temperatures. Also, there are people who just don’t own a vehicle and they use public transportation to get around. This product is meant for busy parents and pet owners that want to take that extra safety precaution. What: Will this sensor device keep the child safe from all accidents and tragedies? No, unfortunately not. Though it can prevent your child from not only heatstroke or hypothermia, but from getting kidnapped. Why: Yes, the underlying cause of the outsiders' need are different than people

My opportunity is based on children’s safety and health. Leaving a child or pet unattended in a car on a hot day can lead to heatstroke or worse, death. As stated in my previous post, heatstroke is the leading cause of passenger vehicle non-crash related fatalities for children 14 and younger. The inside of a car heats up faster than the outside. According to CNN meteorologists, “On a pleasant 75-degree day (outside), the inside of your car can heat up to 90 degrees in just two minutes. Within 20 minutes, the inside temperature can rise to 104 degrees. After an hour, it can hit 120 degrees”. My potential solution is a device that monitors your car with sensors, same way airbags senses weight, and notifies you if weight is detected after the car is turned off. It will send a notification to your phone reminding you to check your vehicle for passengers. In order for the notification to go away you must dismiss it, if not after a certain amount of time it will contact the local fire

Opportunity: Hundreds of children have suffered from heatstroke by being left in a locked car on a hot day. Sometimes leading to death. Heatstroke is the leading cause of passenger vehicle non-crash related fatalities for children 14 and younger. This opportunity stemmed from a TV interview I saw years ago on Oprah. ·        The who : Parents and children ·        The what : Children suffer from heatstroke in cars on hot days and this can sometimes lead to death ·        The why :   Parents often forget their children in cars Hypothesis: o    Testing the who : Parents and children mainly have the need but also pet owners. o    Testing the what : Not only can children and pets suffer from heatstroke on hot days but also from frostbite or hypothermia on cold days depending on where the family live. o    Testing the why : The main why is because parents and people in general are busy and they are imperfect so they forget things. If they aren’t sticking to their usual r