2020 年 25 巻 4 号 p. 334-345
Ontenna is a device that can be worn on the hair, earlobe, collar, or sleeve, and it transmits sound characteristics to the human body through vibration and light. It can serve as an auxiliary acoustic sensory device for hearing-impaired people, whereas for others, it can serve as a novel acoustic perception device. A condenser microphone mounted on the main body of Ontenna acquires the sound pressure and drives the vibration motor and light emitting diode in real-time according to the input signal. This allows the user to perceive various sonic features such as the rhythm, pattern, and strength of sound. Furthermore, by simultaneously controlling several Ontenna devices through a controller, a rhythm can be transmitted to each user. In this paper, we present the inclusive design of Ontenna for hearing-impaired people, along with the design process of Ontenna, which was improved through digital fabrication. Additionally, in this paper, we present case studies regarding the usage of Ontenna in a hearing-impaired school and case studies on Ontenna’s application in the field of entertainment for hearing-impaired people and others.
