The challenge

Exposure to indoor air pollution increases the risk of airway disease in children, especially in industrialized countries. Moreover, people spend more than twenty-two hours of the day inside and more than half of that time in their own homes. The importance of natural ventilation in children bedrooms is therefore utmost important.

The solution

A visual presentation creates awareness towards indoor climate control in children’s bedrooms. Three problems in people’s understanding of the relationship between indoor air quality and indoor activities: 1. First, people are not aware of how their activities affect the quality of their environment. 2. Second, people cannot detect the changes in air quality since particles are invisible. 3. Lastly, common numerical representations of indoor air quality are hard to evaluate. To prevent these three problems, an interactive painting with educational children books has been designed. The interactive painting displays a simple visualization of a landscape of trees, clouds, and sun. These three elements represent the indoor climate of that room. The trees are representative for the humidity level, the clouds for the indoor air quality and the sun for the temperature. All of these elements can change its color in different sequences using thermochromic ink driven by an Arduino. The two educational books tell the story of two sheep, Sam, and Sofie. Sam, the sheep, tells a bedside story about how the air quality affects his sleep and what he can do to improve it.

This project is being coached by