My project, DoseGuard, was inspired by my grandmother. My grandmother has dementia and diabetes. Around 2018, her health began to decline, and she experienced one of her first serious dementia episodes.

As her condition progressed, she began taking medication to manage both her diabetes and dementia. However, one challenge many elderly people face is remembering when they have taken their medication. Sometimes my grandmother would forget to take her medicine, while other times she would accidentally take an extra dose because she thought she had missed it. These mistakes can be dangerous and may lead to serious health complications.

This inspired me to create DoseGuard, a smart medication organizer designed to make taking medicine safer and easier. The system uses a timer, alarm, and locked medication compartments to ensure that medication can only be accessed at the correct time. A loud alarm alerts the user when it is time to take their medicine, helping individuals who may be hard of hearing or asleep. By preventing missed doses and accidental overdoses, DoseGuard has the potential to improve health, increase independence, and provide peace of mind for families and caregivers.

1. Chromebook
2. Paper
3. Pencil
4. Colored Pencils
5. Tinkercad.com

Every engineering project begins with planning. Before opening Tinkercad, I sketched my idea on paper. Sketching allows designers to organize their thoughts and visualize how the final product will look.

In my sketch, I used orange to represent the pills and blue to represent the clock, just as they appear in my final model. I also included labels for every major component so viewers could understand the purpose of each shape. Additionally, I planned the red, yellow, and green indicator system that shows whether medication is ready, almost ready, or unavailable.

Creating a detailed sketch is important because it demonstrates how an initial idea develops into a finished product.

The first component I created in Tinkercad was the base of the medication organizer. I used a simple rectangular box shape and adjusted its dimensions as well as color to create a sturdy platform for the entire system.

The base is important because it supports all of the medication compartments and electronic components. In a real-world product, the base would provide stability and durability while keeping the organizer easy to use.

Next, I created the medication itself using the sphere shape. By adjusting the dimensions, I transformed the sphere into a flatter shape that more closely resembles a real pill.

I also added a center line to improve realism and make the pill immediately recognizable. The orange color helps the medication stand out visually, making it easier for users to identify the contents of each compartment.

After creating the medication, I designed the individual compartments that store each pill.

I chose a transparent design because visibility is important, especially for elderly users. Being able to clearly see the medication helps users confirm that their medication is present and ready when needed.

The compartments are also designed to work with the locking mechanism, preventing medication from being accessed before the scheduled time. This feature helps reduce the risk of accidental overdoses.

To create this case for medicine I used simple rectangle shapes and adjusted their dimensions to fully lock the pill inside and resemble a real case.

To organize the medication compartments, I used long, thin rectangular shapes as dividers.

These separators create distinct sections for each day of the week while also forming the outer structure of the organizer. Organization is one of the most important aspects of medication management because it helps users keep track of their schedule and avoid confusion.

Using Tinkercad's text box tool, I labeled each column of medicine with a day of the week.

These labels allow users to prepare medication in advance and quickly identify the correct compartment. This simple feature promotes organization and reduces the likelihood of taking the wrong medication on the wrong day.

To demonstrate how DoseGuard functions, I designed one compartment in the open position.

I rotated the rectangular lid approximately 45 degrees to show what happens when the system determines it is time for the user to take their medication. This visual representation helps viewers understand the product's purpose and operation.

One of the most important features of DoseGuard is the color-coded notification system.

Green indicates that medication is ready to be taken.

Yellow indicates that medication time is approaching within one hour.

Red indicates that medication is still locked and not yet available.

I modeled this system after a traffic light because it is universally recognized and easy to understand. This visual communication system allows users to quickly determine their medication status without needing to read complicated instructions.

I made this color coded system by simply dragging out the sphere and changing the color from neutral to green, yellow, and red.

The timer and alarm system is the brain of DoseGuard.

Using simple shapes like ovals, circles, and text tools, I created a digital clock that tracks medication schedules. The black line connecting the clock to the organizer represents the circuit that transfers information throughout the system.

When the scheduled time arrives, the clock activates the alarm and unlocks the correct compartment. This synchronization ensures that users receive both a visual and auditory reminder, helping them take medication on time and reducing the chances of missed doses.

After all of the individual components have been created, the final step is assembling them into one complete product. This process involves carefully positioning the base, medication compartments, dividers, pills, day labels, traffic-light indicators, clock, and alarm system so that they work together as a single design. Tinkercad makes this process easy because users can drag, move, rotate, and align objects with simple tools, allowing ideas to come together quickly and efficiently. Assembly is an important part of the engineering process because it allows designers to see how all of the components interact and whether the design functions as intended. In DoseGuard, each piece has a specific purpose, but it is only when they are assembled together that the project becomes a complete solution. By combining these simple shapes into one organized model, I was able to transform an idea into a realistic prototype that demonstrates how technology can improve medication safety and help create a healthier future.

DoseGuard was designed to address a real-world problem that affects millions of people, especially elderly individuals who rely on multiple medications every day. Inspired by my grandmother's experience with dementia and diabetes, this project demonstrates how a simple invention can help prevent missed doses and accidental overdoses while promoting independence and safety.

One of the most important lessons I learned while creating this project was that powerful ideas do not always require complex designs. Using Tinkercad, I was able to transform a meaningful idea into a visual prototype using simple shapes such as boxes, spheres, text, and basic geometric figures. Although the design is made from simple components, each shape serves an important purpose and works together to communicate how the system functions.

Tinkercad allowed me to take an idea from a sketch and turn it into a realistic model that others can easily understand. The medication compartments, traffic-light notification system, timer, and alarm all demonstrate how technology can be used to solve everyday problems. This project shows that even simple designs can create meaningful change when they are focused on helping people.

Overall, DoseGuard represents my vision of a better future: one where technology is used to improve health, protect vulnerable individuals, and make everyday life safer. Through the use of Tinkercad and thoughtful design, I was able to create a solution that could positively impact patients, caregivers, and families around the world.