Project Detail
Cornell Hybrid Body Lab 2023
Individual Project Extension 2025
Results
1 Publication
Role
Co-Researcher
Product Designer
Project Timeline
1 year
Overview
Background
SweatSkin is a two-part series consisting of an on skin wearable technology and a pairing digital product. The device uses microfluidic channels to analyze sweat and monitor biological signals. The companion app affords expanded functionality, customizations, and commercialization potential.
The physical device fabrication method was co-developed with Chi-Jung Lee at the Cornell Hybrid Body Lab and published in ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies (IMWUT) 2024.
Challenges
Creating an adaptable, everyday biomonitoring device for diverse users
Existing biomonitoring technology is immobile and B2B-focused—stationed in clinics or elite training facilities. High costs and lack of versatility limit access to athletes and chronic patients, excluding the general public.
Enabling regular users to design and monetize consumer-grade monitoring devices.
Without scalable marketing channels and affordable production, consumer-grade monitoring tools are hard to monetize in B2C markets, limiting access for individual creators which slows market growth.
Opportunities + Constraints
Leverage the existing high barrier to innovation by designing an accessible platform that encourages users to personalize their devices and creators to contribute new designs—fueling a vibrant design marketplace to foster market growth and engagement with product.
Technical Goals
01
Enable design and customizations without technical understanding of device construction
02
Low cost, flexible prototyping to support scalable user designs
03
Backend marketplace integration enabling streamlined e-commerce experience
Technical Constraints
01
Quality control considering varying drawing skills in user generated content
02
Maintain structural compatibility with internal chambers and channels
Business Goals
01
Incentivize users to publish their designs to grow and diversify marketplace content
02
Build community layer to drive network effects in engagement and retention
03
Scalable B2C model to lower barriers to entry
Business Constraints
01
Authentic and transparent social feedback system to mitigate misinformation and prevent marketing abuse
02
Production upon demand to prevent storage
Solution
Workflow
Features
Community Discovery + Interactive Knowledge Exchange
Discover and engage with a community of creators and health enthusiasts to spark collaboration and idea exchange.
Open Marketplace with Transparent Social Integration
Streamlined shopping experience with each product connected to real user posts and discussions for authentic, community-driven transparency.
Lab Level Health Insights + Multi-Profile
Scan device for lab-grade readings and personalized insights on biomarkers. System supports multiple user profiles which is ideal for coaches, parents, or individuals tracking different routines like training vs. recovery days.
Open Creation and Commercialization for All
Any user regardless of experience can design functional SweatSkin devices using traditional tools or AI assistance. An integrated AR preview Allows users to visualize their design worn on body. Designs are auto-translated into market-ready products for personal use, public showcase, or sale on the marketplace.
Integrated Health & Commerce Insights
Monitor personal health data alongside real-time tracking of e-commerce performance.
Discover (Macro)
Landscape Analysis
Set Analysis: Uncovering the Product Opportunity Gap
We conducted a SET (Social, Economic, Technological) analysis to identify trends in the intersecting field of health monitoring, e-commerce, and digital product experiences to pinpoint a key product opportunity gap.
Product Opportunity Gap
1
Lack of accessible, user-friendly tools for broad population to independently assess health and wellbeing—without relying on clinics, specialized facilities, and costly equipment.
2
Gap in digital health space for supportive communities that enable authentic sharing and discovery without the pressure of idealized self-presentation.
3
Absence in social community driven e-commerce platforms. User trust and product discovery increasingly dependent on socially validated experiences from the community.
4
Missed opportunities to empower individual creators—designers, artists, and small entrepreneurs—to contribute within the bio-integrated product market.
Discover (Micro)
User Insights
Define
Personas
Division 1 Football Trainer
Miguel (32)
Needs
Monitor players’ health and fatigue levels to optimize performance and recovery
Exchange knowledge and stay updated on best practices in athletic conditioning
Pain
Points
Subjective assessment of athletes’ condition from appearance and verbal feedback can be inaccurate
Current monitoring equipments are too complex and costly for regular, on-field use
Needs
Engage with the creative community to connect with others who share her passion, find inspiration, and exchange constructive feedback
Gain exposure and build a market to profit from personal design work
Track daily routine to stay proactive about her wellbeing feel reassured that small health concerns are being monitored over time
Pain
Points
Lacks technical knowledge and platforms for showcase to design and monetize creative work in the health-tech space
Routinely exercises without experience in understanding body condition; unaware of unhealthy habits, early warning signs, and overexertion
Casual User +
Freelance Designer
Jacqueline (26)
Elder User with Diabetes
Anderson (70)
Needs
Regularly monitor glucose levels to manage diabetes and prevent sudden drops or spikes
Detect early signs of health imbalance while living alone or outside to know when to take action or seek help.
Actionable insights to guide daily decisions around eating, activity, and hydration—prevent fatigue, dizziness, or unexpected health conditions
Pain
Points
Carrying a glucometer daily feels inconvenient
Experiences anxiety between clinic visits due to lack of ongoing feedback and fear of missing early symptoms
Ideation
Design Space of Sweat Sensing Device
We explored multiple structural and material prototypes through iterative testing to establish a fabrication approach for an on-skin wearable biosensor that monitors health through microfluidics and colorimetric indicators.
5 Dimensional Design Space
Ideation
Digital Prototype Testing and Iterations
Conducted user testing across three core experiences: shopping on the e-commerce platform, designing custom devices, and using the app to monitor personal health conditions.
Key experience 1: Monitoring Conditions
Before
The existing design supports only a single user profile, making it difficult to track multiple users or differentiate between training and rest days. All the health data are under a single profile leading to inaccurate progress tracking and misleading insights. Users also found the insights section lacking depth and visually easily overlooked.
After
The new design supports multiple user profile modes to seamlessly switch between. We also enhanced the insights section providing more detailed and actionable takeaways as well as improving visual prominence.
Key experience 2: Community
Before
User engagement in the community feed is restricted to open discussions and browsing. Users found the lack of messaging function to limit private interaction for more personal engagement or collaboration discussions.
After
Based on the feedback, we introduced a messaging feature to foster communication beyond comments. This affords deeper community connections as well as more social purposes when exchanging messages.
Key experience 3: designing patches
Before
As the patch designs are intended for wearable use, users wanted to be able to visualize how the patches will look being worn on body to improve confidence in their design. Users also wanted to be able to publish their product on the market with a cover photo of the product being worn to improve contextual clarity of their design.
After
In the revised design, we integrated an AR try on feature that allows users to visualize the patches being worn. This provides a more seamless design experience giving users more confidence in their design choices and reducing the amount of revisions.
Impact
Outcome
Devices designed by users and developed through the established fabrication approach, achieved a 100% success rate in functionality during testing.
80% of users surveyed claimed they are highly likely to custom design devices either for personal use or for sale through the platform.
Reflection
Takeaways and Next Steps
1
Identify additional biomarkers that can be integrated into the device to expand its measurement capabilities and support a wider range of health monitoring scenarios.
2
Enable integration with professional-grade digital design tools and hardware (drawing tablet)—for more advanced and flexible creation workflows
3
Introduce a flexible subscription model that allows users to either auto-renew selected products or pay a monthly fee to receive personalized product bundles recommended by the platform based on their health data and usage patterns.
