This project provides an exploration of fertility challenges within a Danish context, addressing the trend of the rising average age of first-time parents and the increasing demand for fertility treatments. In relation to the increased focus on reproductive technologies, the speculative concept of ectogestation creates the foundation for this project. Ectogestation deals with the possibility of extrauterine pregnancies.
In this project, a speculative design artifact named COCOON materializes a scenario of a disembodied pregnancy, presenting a platform for discussions surrounding hopes, concerns, and considerations regarding fertility, and the preferred role of reproductive technologies in the future.
COCOON is a wearable womb that allows people to feel a pregnancy on their own body. The concept represents an artificial womb and builds on ectogestation technologies. Users can attach COCOON to their body, making the physical form of COCOON create connotations to a natural pregnancy. The concept of COCOON gives all humans the ability to bear a pregnancy enforcing equality amongst infertile and fertile humans.
To support the feeling of a natural pregnancy, users can interact with the belly and provide care and attention for their unborn child. Care and caress is rewarded with a warm, red color – whereas COCOON turns blue at the lack of touch for a period of time. A transparent surface allows the parent(s) to be to see the childs development – a feature that makes up for the lack of the physical connection that is present in a natural pregnancy. The puls of the fetus can be felt through COCOON and gives sign of life for the duration of the incubation.
Components used in this project:
COCOON is controlled by an Arduino UNO microcontroller.
– A Capacitive Touch Sensor receives input from users and tells when they are close to or touching COCOON.
– An LED Strip (consisting of 80 LEDs) shows a blue light when COCOON is not interacted with, and an increasingly red light when COCOON is caressed or touched.
– A haptic feedback motor/vibration motor simulates a beating heart. This is active as soon as COCOON is turned on.
PROJECT MEMBERS
Laura Juhl Christensen
Kirstine Lund Hansen
DATE
June 3rd 2024