AsthmaAlly challenged us in unexpected ways — not just technically, but emotionally and logistically. Here’s what we learnt at each stage of the process.

💭 Ideation & Approval

Our first major challenge was figuring out what problem we truly wanted to solve — and convincing ourselves, and others, that it mattered. We went through a series of ideas, and one by one, they got rejected. “Not innovative enough,” “Not meaningful,” “Doesn’t fulfil course goals.” Each rejection chipped away at our morale.

But we slowly realised those rejections weren’t the end. They were the beginning of the real work. We started taking the feedback seriously, pulling pieces from different ideas and combining them. Eventually, we landed on the asthma wearable — something that actually aligned with our strengths, interests, and real-world impact.

Looking back, we’re glad our first ideas didn’t work out. That loop of ideation and rejection taught us to think more critically, plan more intentionally, and care more deeply about the kind of problems we want to solve.

🛠️ Planning & Logistics

Planning wasn’t just about writing timelines. It was about learning how to navigate delays, adjust expectations, and communicate when things didn’t go to plan. Sensors got delayed, some parts arrived half-broken, and our app wasn’t connecting to Bluetooth the way we expected.

We learnt how to break big tasks into smaller, manageable ones. We reassigned roles when needed and checked in with each other when things got tough. The lesson wasn’t just “make a schedule.” It was “expect the unexpected and be willing to adapt.”

🔗 Integration of Subsections

Bringing everything together — sensors, app, machine learning — was way harder than we thought. There were times when data wouldn’t sync, the Bluetooth would drop randomly, or the model would behave unpredictably. Even simple things like matching sensor timestamps took hours.

But this was also where we grew the most. We learnt how to read each other’s code, ask for help without shame, and debug issues that none of us could’ve solved alone. We started thinking of the system not as isolated pieces, but as something living — something we all had to listen to and care for.

Integration taught us that communication is an engineering skill too.

🔁 Prototype Loop

Prototyping was messy, chaotic, and kind of beautiful. We soldered microphones onto stethoscope heads. We tried three different chest straps before finding one that gave us clean resistance data. Our SpO₂ readings kept fluctuating until we finally fixed the code using averaging buffers. At one point, we were coughing into the sensor just to see if the spikes would register.

Nothing worked perfectly at first. But every hiccup brought us closer to a working solution. We became more patient. We got better at testing one thing at a time. We celebrated small wins, like seeing a clean sinusoidal wave during inhalation.

We learnt that prototyping isn’t about perfection. It’s about momentum — staying curious enough to keep going.

💬 Final Reflection

AsthmaAlly didn’t just teach us how to build something. It taught us how to learn together. From debugging BLE signals to translating empathy into features, this project pushed us to be better collaborators, better problem solvers, and ultimately, better humans.