Android tablet game development for dementia patient : games

Abstract

With emerging advanced technology, Singapore has managed to increase lifespan of its human population. However, there are problems associated with growing age such as dementia. Even with current technology, dementia is incurable in most cases. Through research and experiments, humans have discovered ways to slow or prevent the effect of dementia. One of the effective way to improve condition of dementia is to regularly stimulating the brain with thinking activities such as puzzle solving and memory games on smartphones and tablets. Mobile application will be able to improve the condition of dementia as well as providing an interactive gameplay for the user. The purpose of this project is to create a mobile application which targets on stimulating brain activities. Additionally, this mobile application will have a build in feature of capturing the data of patients’ gameplay as record to give doctors a better platform for analysis. The mobile application created will be integrated into the PEAR system. The name of the mobile application created for this project is called CatchTheNote. CatchTheNote is a game consisting of memory, speed, problem-solving and mind-eye coordination. This application is made specially for dementia patient targeting elderly, hence, certain aspect of the game such as font of words, speed of game and virtual effects are made to accommodate the elderly. The objective of CatchTheNote is to remember the sequence of blinking light along with the music notes during the watching phase and executing the correct sequence during execution phase. During the execution phase, patient must click on the correct buttons to control avatar moving in the sequence provided during watching phase to complete the level. CatchTheNote capture many aspects of gameplay for data analysis such as time used, correct number of sequence, number of attempt by patient for each level, usage of hints. These detailed data aspects captured would give a more precise analysis for patient’s condition. CatchTheNote is equipped with simple 3D graphics as well as interactive music to provide a pleasant gameplay for users. By creating this mobile application, the author hopes to improve the condition of dementia as well as aiding the caregivers in giving a more fun and interactive environment for the dementia patients during their stay.