The Nodelek Watch

Introducing Nodelek, short for No Dangerous Electricity, a groundbreaking wearable device designed to prevent electrical injuries before they happen. Equipped with advanced electromagnetic field (EMF) detection and an inertial measurement unit (IMU) that functions as a motion sensor, Nodelek identifies hazardous electrical dangers and alerts users through visual and auditory signals. The watch instantly notifies guardians via a companion app, offering real-time protection and peace of mind.

The Process

Creating Nodelek required several different processes and skills, including electrical engineering, coding, printed circuit board (PCB) design, computer-aided design (CAD), and product design.

Components:

ESP32 S3 Mini 1 - Microcontroller with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities that acts as the brain for the watch

MPU6050 - IMU that can detect a fall which is common after a electrical injury

LDC1614- EMF Sensor that detects dangerous electricity

LED Light- Sends Visual Alerts

Buzzer - Sends Auditory Alerts

Crafting the watch began with building circuits that used jumper wires and breadboards. We designed and tested all of the sensors this way. Our original design for the EMF detector lacked a dedicated sensor, instead using an analog pin on a microcontroller and potentiometers. The analog pin read EMF levels from an antenna while the potentiometers dialed in the sensitivity.

Version 1:

The next rendition was closer to a production model. The design switched from using breadboards and jumper wires to a custom-designed PCB board. We incorporated an embedded STM32 microcontroller and now a dedicated LDC1614 EMF sensor. This design had its faults though. It used large through hole resisters and capacitors rather than their smaller micro surface mount (SMD) counterparts. Here. we also choose a ill-suited microcontroller. The STM32 is a great microcontroller. but was difficult to program and lacked Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities.

Version 2:

The first rendering of Nodelek was a simple drawing; however, it displayed all of the desired capabilities of our final product.

Current Design:

Building on insights from previous iterations, this design is both practical and reliable.

All essential components are integrated onto a single PCB, enabling a compact form factor and cost-efficient mass production.

The ESP32 (U2) microcontroller provides high-speed processing along with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi support. Nearby, the LDC1614 (IC1) detects electromagnetic fields, while the MPU6050 IMU acting as a motion sensor is embedded on the back of the PCB.