Lapka x Project Ara

5 min readSep 3, 2015

Project Ara is Google’s new modular smartphone. You can read more about it here.

At Lapka, we reimagine and redesign the scientific devices to turn them into stylish and accessible tools. Our products are healthcare accessories which connect to your smartphone. What if Lapka creates a separate line of these accessories in order to support Ara’s eco-system? Here is our concept of Project Ara modules.

Design language inspiration for this collection is based on hi-end, designer sneakers with the most unique combinations of materials and textures.

Lapka’s Haute Couture technology

Then, we’ve imagined seven modules based on Lapka’s current and possible product line following our Environment + Body grid.

We’re eager to explore body network and personal environment, from blood and urine to radiation and carbon monoxide.

Air Quality

There’s always something in the air. Air quality affects our comfort, health and other external parts of our environment that we care about. Now you’ll know when and where should you open a window, where to place your yoga mat, and even why you’re dreaming a certain way.

Details:

– Volatile Organic Compounds
– Carbon Monoxide
– Fine particles
– Temperature
– Humidity

CO2

Awareness of the unknown becomes comfort with the known. Something as invisible and scary as carbon dioxide is easy to avoid thinking about. The sensor would not only do this thinking for you, but also make for an easier experience when you do have to think about it.

Details:

– Checks for Carbon Dioxide concentrations
– NDIR (non-dispersive infrared) CO2 sensor
– 8 hour time weighted average
– 15 minute short term exposure limit
– Self-calibration

Light

Light will always be one our closest companions. Whether you’re stepping into the daylight, switching on a lamp or watching the sunset, light is an external factor we all have and use.

But it’s so ambient that we can overlook how much it has to say. Our interaction with light, or the absence of it, can inform our habits of conservation, activity and reclusivity.

Details:

– LUX sensor (level of illuminance)
– UV sensor (ultraviolet)
– Advise skin and eyes protection
– Photo assistant

EKG

Your phone becomes more intimate than ever when holding the phone and measuring your heart becomes the same gesture. This degree of accessibility changes your relationship to activity and even what it means to have a pulse.

Details:

– Check the heart’s electrical activity
– Find the cause of unexplained chest pain
– Check how well medicines are working
– Check the health of the heart
– Send your heart beat through vibration
– Follow Friend’s Heartbeat

Glucometer

Continuous glucose tracking informs our diet and activity. But interacting with your phone rather than a medical device makes your relationship with your health not only as accessible as looking through your photos, but just as enjoyable.

Details:

– Food and blood glucose
– Exercise, food, medications, stress
– Using disposable test strips

Breathalyzer

Access to your breath alcohol content can provide more than insight into your health or fun for your party. The data could develop a story based on who you’re with, where you are and the state in which you interact with each.

Details:

– BAC level
– Metabolism
– Hydration
– Breath Quality

“Soul”

We can’t talk about this one just yet.

Stand-alone monitoring

Project Ara is actually a possible platform for Internet of Things. Questions: 1) How can we challenge the platform? 2) What if Ara’s endoskeleton is everywhere and it is not a mobile phone?