CAREER: Ubiquitous Earable Sensing Using Low-Cost Earphones

Low-cost earphones are frequently given out as complimentary accessories for smartphones and laptops, leading to an excessive supply. However, in contrast to smartphones and laptops with well-established recycling ecosystems, these low-cost earphones often end up discarded in drawers or storage units, adding to the problem of electronic waste. The driving vision of this NSF CAREER project is to develop system-based approaches to transforming billions of such abandoned earphones into portable and widely accessible human-centric sensing devices. The research project has three goals: (i) Developing ultra-low-cost human vital sign sensing systems tailored for underserved regions based on abandoned earphones; (ii) designing novel around-the-ear sensing algorithms and applications, advancing acoustic sensing and computing research; and (iii) building an open-source “earable” sensing and computing platform for developing systems for mobile computing curriculum. This project will create a holistic approach toward recycling and repurposing electronic waste, while fostering a culture of innovation and sustainability. The developed systems will democratize health monitoring, enabling individuals who may not have access to expensive wearables or medical devices to track their health and take proactive steps toward well-being. The interdisciplinary nature of this project will also provide students with a unique opportunity to gain knowledge across the hardware-software system boundary, creating research opportunities for both graduate and undergraduate students, and promoting science and engineering studies to high-school students and underrepresented groups. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.