Tools Used
- Google Cloud Vision
- Figma
- Expo
- React Native
- OpenAI
- Mongo DB
- Render
Key Features
- Camera Paraphrasing
- PDF Library
- Autofill PDF Information
What is Aether?
Aether’s unique approach allows our audience to scan paper forms and upload documents to their mobile devices, convert them into editable digital versions, and simplify complicated terminology with a click of a buttton. Additionally, by addressing the administrative burden many Canadians face—especially the millions supporting elderly family members
Identifying The Issue
Did you know? Caregivers spend up to an average of 10-15 hours per week managing forms and paperwork! Through the team's research and surveying, it was found that caregivers felt:
- Repetitive paperwork is tiring understanding
- Learning legal terms is stressful
- Time spent on forms, meant time lost with loved ones
Competitive Analysis
ChatGPT
A large language model that can be used to help answer questions as well as clarifying text that may need alternate way of explaining. This technology can scan Images, simplify paragraphs and provide alternative detailed answers.
PDF.ai
PDF.ai is an AI-powered tool designed to interact with and analyze PDF documents, allowing users to ask questions, extract data, and generate summaries, making document comprehension and research more efficient. It is especially useful in professional settings for automating data extraction and gaining insights from complex texts.
Quillbot
Started in 2017 as an app to help students improve their english when writing. Since then, it has evolved into a AI-powered writing platform. They are also partnered with 150 universities. They have started expanding the use of AI in their website and app and adding new features to it such as citation, grammar check, summarizer, plagarism check, and more.
User Personas
Sarah James
Personal Details
- Age: 57
- Gender: Female
- Occupation: Senior Home Caregiver
- Income: $70,000
- Location: Coquitlam, BC
- Ethnicity: Caucasian
User Research
Date of Report: October 1, 2024
Date of Interviews: September 21 - 28, 2024
We conducted 2 rounds of interviews, 1 for our initial idea which was more focused on an older demographic looking for a solution to easily file forms while the second was more centered around caretakers and individuals who would be responsible for filling out forms for seniors.
Commonalities
- Form Complexity and Stress: Users often find forms challenging due to complicated language, unclear instructions, and the stress of ensuring all necessary information is collected and filled out correctly (55.56%). This is a shared experience across all age groups, particularly when handling legal, medical, and government forms.
- Time-Consuming Nature of Forms: 83.3% of users report that forms are time-consuming and difficult to fill out, with common issues including understanding the form’s language, collecting necessary information, and ensuring accuracy.
- Assistance with Forms: All respondents (100%) have assisted someone with filling out forms, with most (83.3%) reporting the experience as somewhat stressful.
- Convenience of Aether: While 33.3% answered "Yes," another 66.7% responded "Possibly." This indicates that while there is interest in using the app, some users remain cautious and want to see how the app would provide a more streamlined and helpful process compared to their existing practices.
Pain Points
- Forms: Users find forms challenging due to complex terminology, lengthy and time-consuming processes, difficulty gathering required information, and a lack of error-checking, leading to frustration, delays, and stress.
- Poor Navigation: Users struggle with poor navigation in apps and websites, finding them unorganized and cluttered with unnecessary features, making it hard to access essential tools.
- Support Issues: Users often struggle with filling out forms due to a lack of guidance, leaving them confused, while also feeling uneasy about data security and the privacy of their sensitive information.
Design Decisions
Whether it be the logo, blog or application, Aether underwent many shifts in creative direction
Logo
App
Name
Elder Ease
Originating from our favourite LLM, Elder Ease was the inital name of the project. Meant to signify the ease our under-represented demographic would experience when using the app!
Nimbus
Further discussions brought up the issue that the term "Elder" can limit our potential scalability of our app, boxing us into a certain demographic. Therefor a changed was needed and Nimbus was a name that stuck with the entire team.
Aether
The team attemptted to find a connection between our product name and the user up high in the clouds having a sense of safety and security. Although, further researched uncovered that "Nimbus" was a derogatory term. So Aether, a term akin to the values we hold dearly, appeared to be apt.
Prototype
Styleguide
Logo
This is a combination of a document and a compass. The document represent the app’s function of assisting with form completion and paperwork. The compass represents the guidance and direction we provide to our users.
Color Palette
Typography
This is Opensans
Balancing the modernity and accessibility, which aligns with the app's goal of simplifying complex processes. It is clear which is easy to read and can be used to across different parts of the app without feeling too formal or too casual.
This is Italiana (Redacted)
The abstract design of this font works well with the logo; it adds more depth to it. The contrast between fine and thick strokes adds a unique touch, while keeping the design modern and sleek for Aether.
User Workflow
Key Flows
- Login & Profile Creation
- Managing Elderly Profiles
- Document Upload & Scanning
- Document Editing & AI Assistance
Purpose: Allows users to log in and create a profile for elderly individuals.
Purpose: Users can add, view, and edit elderly profiles.
Purpose: Upload or scan documents for review and processing.
Purpose: Users refine extracted text, resolve confusion, and paraphrase content.
Marketing
Videos
On top of the various aspects of designing and developing the core application, we had to create other components to support our app, including physical goods such as: Brochures, Tote Bags and even a commerical!
A mockup created by the team displayed on the blog page.
Brochure
Future Prospects
- 'Photo-to-PDF' Feature: This feature allows caregivers to take photos of forms with their phones and convert them into editable PDFs in just a few clicks.
- Expanded Library of Supported Forms: We are building a database of forms that caregivers can easily search and access, ensuring they can find the specific forms they need.
- Multilingual Support for Diverse Users: This feature can help caregivers use our app in their preferred languages.
Lessons Learned
- Effective communication when collaborating in a large, cross-functional team with diverse roles.
- The importance of organizing smaller team discussions when needed, staying flexible, and addressing issues early in the process
- The value of competitive analysis to understand industry standards and identifying gaps within the market.
- How to effectively change project trajectory to meet deadlines with available resources.