ENSHRINE: Application for Alzheimer’s Patients

ENSHRINE: Application for Alzheimer’s Patients

ENSHRINE: Application for Alzheimer's Patients

Nikita V Tumbal (2TG14CS024), Shivani P Maragi (2TG14CS041), Vijayalaxmi V Khoday (2TG14CS051), Syeda Rukhaiya Kulsum Ganihar (2TG14CS054)

Computer Science and Engineering Tontadarya College of Engineering, Gadag

Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belagavi Under the Guidance of

Mr. Chandrakant Hatti

Assistant professor

Abstract Alzheimers disease is one of the leading diseases that contribute to dementia cases. The Alzheimers patient suffers from memory loss and losing judgment due to its effect on the human brain. Alzheimers patients need to be monitored and assisted in their daily life especially for medication. Proper medication may reduce the effect of Alzheimers disease on the patient. The Android-based mobile application is one of technologies that can be used to assist family members to monitor Alzheimers patient. The application helps setting the reminders for the patients by family members.

Keywords: Alzheimers disease, Family member, Patient, Caregiver.

1. INTRODUCTION

   Alzheimers disease is one of the dementia syndromes. Dementia is a syndrome due to the illness in of the brain that disturbs human memory, thinking, orientation, comprehension, calculation, learning, language and judgment. Alzheimers disease contributes 60% to 70% of the dementia cases. India houses more than 4 million people suffering from some form of dementia. Alzheimers being the most common condition out of all of them affects around 1.6 million. Alarmingly, this number is set to triple by 2050. To help prevent the disease that is constantly on the rise and to help patients suffering from Alzheimer's lead better lives, we are trying to arrive at a solution.

   The patients of the Alzheimers disease face loss of memory which makes them forget some essential day to day chores. The patient forgets where his house is located and might get lost with no clue of contacting anyone of his family members. The patient also feels very sad and depressed when he fails to recognize his family members which in turn cause risks. There are some existing systems which have login problems, Bluetooth overhead, connectivity problem and outputs are showed in different languages.

   We remember our familys birthdays and anniversaries but there are individuals that dont even remember when to take food or when to carry out their day to day activities. These are the people who suffer from Alzheimers disease. The patients of the Alzheimers

   disease initially face loss of memory. The loss of memory happens at a moderate rate, initially at Early-Onset of disease and researches have proven that with constant remembrance of memory the Late-Onset can be delayed. The application Enshrine would put this to practice. At Late-Onset the patient would not be able to recall his name or any faces. Memory loss would be delayed with constant reminders displayed from Enshrine application. The Enshrine application would be available for both the patient and the family members. The patient would be able to see the reminders set by him/her or by his/her family members. The location of the patient would be traceable by the family members. The Enshrine application would also notify the patient if any family member would approach him/her.

2. LITERATURE SURVEY

   Alzheimers disease is one of the most common and feared diseases afflicting the elderly community. Alzheimers disease causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. There are two stages of Alzheimers disease, one is Early-Onset and other is Late-Onset. Problems faced in Late-Onset by the patients are language problem, disorientation, mood swings and loss of motivation. Recent research has proven that constant mental stimulation can delay the loss of memory when Alzheimers disease is at early stage. Currently one of every eight people of age bar sixty-five plus face the Alzheimers disease. There are more than ten million cases of Alzheimers disease every year in India, out of which majority are in the bracket of 40-65 years of age. The diseases cure has not been discovered yet. During Late- Onset the patient are at worst of their condition of memory and might not even remember their own name. Late-Onset period is severe and should be looked that a person does not reach it. The other period being the Early-Onset, here the patient can remember their name, different people and different things. According to a research constant remembrance can delay the Late-Onset period. The Enshrine application targets Early-Onset patients of Alzheimers disease.

3. PROPOSED METHODOLOGY

   People suffering with Alzheimers need a companion to help them carry out their day to day activities. Most of the times patients family members leave their job and live with the patient to help them out. Alzheimers patient often wander and cant find their way back home. There is an at most need for tracking of their current location in order to keep an eye on them. Considering all the above mentioned problems the application Mind-Palce is developed to provide the functionalities stated below:

   • Setting of Reminders for people suffering with Alzheimers disease by themselves and

     their caregivers.

   • To track the current location of Alzheimers patient by their caregivers.

   • Nearme feature to let an Alzheimers patient know that a family member is nearby.

   1. System Specification

      System specifications help to define the operational and performance guidelines for a system. It may outline how the system is expected to perform, and what the system might include. Key specifications may include interface definitions, Software and Hardware requirements, document design rules and functional areas.

      1. Software Requirements

         • Operating System : Windows

         • Platform Development Environment : Intelxdk

         • APIs : Pubnub, Google maps API

   2. System Design

   The goal is to provide the reader a specification of the design. A brief description of the projects algorithm is made and discussed, along with the APIs used in implementing the project. The application Enshrine uses basic Model View Controller (MVC) architecture. System design discusses the components of the system and their role in the systems execution.

   1. System Model

      A system model is the conceptual model which describes and represents a system.

      Figure 3.1: System Model

      In the application Enshrine the device which belongs to the Alzheimers patient and the devices that belong to their family members are interconnected. Family members of the patient can set reminders for patient and track patients current location provided they have Internet connection. An Alzheimers patient can view the reminders and will be reminded to do certain tasks which will be set by their family members.

   2. Architectural Diagram

   Fig.3.2. Architectural diagram of android application

   The architectural primary concern is to illustrate a specific set tradeoff inherent in the structure and design of a system or ecosystem. Here the client (user) the registration details are stored in local database. Then the users are authenticated through Googles Firebase. Firebase is a fully managed platform for building iOS, Android, and web apps that provides automatic data synchronization, authentication services, messaging, file storage, analytics, and more. Startingwith Firebase is an efficient way to build or prototype mobile backend services. This is where we make use of real time database for any changes or updates to be made by the developer.

   3.2.3 Dataflow Diagram

   The DFD represents how the data will flow in the system when it is build. In this modeling, the major functions in the software are identified.

   Fig 3.3 Dataflow diagram

   Diagram shows how data will flow through different processes or functions. From the context level diagram we examine high-level functional requirements of the system so main modules can be represented in level one of DFD using DFD notations. Thus, DFD is a hierarchical graphical model of the system that shows different processing activities of each processing module that the system performs and data is interchanged among these functions. This is represented in the figure above.

   1. Development and Implementation

      The client (user) the registration details are stored in local database. Then the users are authenticated through Googles Firebase. Firebase is a fully managed platform for building iOS, Android, and web apps that provides automatic data synchronization, authentication services, messaging, file storage, analytics, and more. Starting with Firebase is an efficient way to build or prototype mobile backend services. This is where we make use of real time database for any changes or updates to be made by the developer.

   2. Testing

      Any project before exposed to user must be tested to ensure that it behaves as expected. In this project, the application is tested by giving various types of input to check whether they are being validated or not and whether the application is behaving as expected or not.

   3. Maintenance

      Once the application is tested and deployed, it must be maintained to satisfy the various constraints such as availability, reliability, etc. The newer versions of the applications can be developed depending on the success or feedback of the users.

4. EXPERIMENTS AND RESULTS

   Module 1: Reminder setting by Alzheimers patient

   • Request: Viewing and setting of reminders by Alzheimers patient by clicking on the reminder button.

   • Response: A list of the reminders set for the day including the one which is set.

     Module 2: Reminder setting by Family Member

   • Request: : Viewing and setting of reminders by family members of the Alzheimers patient by clicking on the button reminder.

   • Response: A list of the reminders set for the day including the one which is set.

     Module 3: Tracking of Alzheimers patient

     • Request: Tracking of the Alzheimers patient by family members by clicking on tracking button.

   • Response: Displays Google maps with the location of the person.

     Module 4: Nearme feature

   • Request: Clicking on Nearme to let an Alzheimers patient know that a family member is nearby.

   • Response: A pop-up notification will appear on the Alzheimers mobile telling him that a family member is approaching him/her.

   Fig 4.1 Login Page Fig 4.2 Authentication from Google accounts

   Fig. 4.3 Preferences of Fig 4.4 Home Page Google accounts

5. CONCLUSION AND FUTURE SCOPE

Alzheimers patients who suffer from dementia often tend to wander. With the application Enshrine they can be easily tracked by their family members from any corner of the world. Both family members and a patient with Early- Onset Alzheimers disease can set day to day reminders. The constant reminders will simulate the patients memory improving their mental health. Thus the application Enshrine helps in assisting both Alzheimers patient and their family members.

REFERENCES

[1] Grandmaison, Eric, and Martine Simard. "A critical review of memory stimulation programs in Alzheimer's disease." The Journal of neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences 15.2 (2003): 130-144.

[2] Zanetti, Orazio, et al. "Procedural memory stimulation in Alzheimer's disease: impact of a training programme." Acta Neurologica Scandinavica95.3 (1997): 152-157.

[3] Boggio, Paulo Sergio, et al. "Prolonged visual memory enhancement after direct current stimulation in Alzheimer's disease." Brain stimulation 5.3 (2012): 223-230.

[4] http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/guide/understanding- alzheimers-disease-basics

[5] https://firebase.google.com