A Response to Some Kickbee Comments

As the creator of Kickbee, I’ve been getting a kick (hah!) out of many of the comments on the blogs that have written about it.  It seems there are two categories of people…those who think the Kickbee is a nice idea, and those who are all but disgusted by it.

My original idea was to have Kickbee connect to my wife’s mobile phone and send an SMS message directly to me.  But my wife and I have iPhones, so using a Sparkfun Bluetooth module and an Arduino microcontroller would not have been possible.  (The iPhone’s bluetooth functionality is locked down to all but the most basic “headset” features, which prevents creative exploration such as this.)  As an avid Twitterer, I realized that I could just use Twitter to send SMS messages to my phone.  It is an ideal solution because its API is very easy to implement.  This has the added bonus of being able to use Twitter as a data log.  The log of activity could easily be pulled into a visualization app or the like in either XML or JSON data formats.  Twitter is more than a microblogging social network, it’s a platform that anyone can utilize.

Twitter enables us to share the baby’s movement activity with anyone.  Initially, I had the updates set as “private”…so you would have to request permission to follow Kickbee.  But since Kickbee is just a concept I’ve developed in the context of graduate school, and is being presented publicly at the ITP Winter Show (http://bit.ly/itpWinterShow08), I’ve made it public.

But the most important point to make about using Twitter is that the updates are completely voluntary by the RECIPIENT.  Those who complain about having to receive incessant messages about our baby kicking its mother must not understand Twitter.  If you don’t care to know, don’t “follow” Kickbee!  I would never presume to impose our baby’s activity on an unwilling public.

I’d also like to respond to some comments about “irradiating” my baby.  The piezo sensors are simple sensors that generate a very small electrical current when tapped or vibrated.  They are not powered in any way.  The wires you see on the front go to the two sensors, plus a button and an RGB LED that indicates when it’s in “standby” or “active” mode (which pauses updates to Twitter).  The Arduino and bluetooth module are at the mother’s back.  I’ve spoken to faculty about this, and considering the very low wattage, it’s unlikely much of the electromagnetic radiation will reach the baby.  Even so, I’m looking into placing the circuitry on radio-absorbing material.

The positive reactions I’ve gotten are very heartwarming.  Most of the people I’ve spoken to who have kids (or want them) have responded well.  It’s also important to note that there is a practical application, in that mothers are told to monitor a baby’s activity in the womb, as low activity can indicate fetal distress.  Oh and by the way, the final version will NOT look so scary.  I had to hastily take some photos when it showed up on BoingBoing, and I intend to make a cover so it’s a bit more inviting!

I really created Kickbee for our own use, and never thought people would react so strongly.  It’s been fun, and I look forward to continue tweaking its accuracy, and making it look a bit more “friendly”.  Thank you for your interest!