Accelerating urbanization and evolving work patterns are contributing to increased family fragmentation and parent-child separation. At the same time, parenting practices are changing, with traditional co-sleeping being replaced by an emphasis on independence. These developments can lead to childhood loneliness, emotional insecurity, and anxiety.
To address these challenges, VibesYeti, a project by Final Year undergraduate student Yu Hanxu (supervised by Thomas Fischer), aims to support the emotional well-being of children who are temporarily separated from their caregivers by streaming or playing back low-frequency vibrations associated with bodily presence, such as heartbeats, breathing, and singing.
The project aims to convey the sense of warm and reassuring physical closeness depicted in the sleeping scene of the 1988 Miyazaki movie “My Neighbor Totoro” (see below) across distances.
Yu Hanxu designed and implemented a demonstration prototype (shown below exhibited at the SUSTech School of Design 2025 end of year show) consisting of a full-scale plush toy and a wireless charging “nest.” To demonstrate the low-frequency audio streaming and playback functions, a presentation console (parametric enclosure design support by Bao Boyu) allows the selection between four tactile audio programs: Cat purr, slow breathing, lullaby, and heartbeat. The plush toy contains a motion sensor for program activation and a low-frequency audio exciter.
As a potent emotional design product, VibesYeti has a potential for misuse. It is designed to enhance, not substitute, childcare relationships. It cannot replace human interaction and companionship. Attentive communication and human companionship are indispensable to children’s growth.
Yu Hanxu’s VibesYeti has won the 2025 “Design that Connects” award sponsored by the Shenzhen C Foundation.
![The TANG[IB]LE INTERACTION KIT](https://designcybernetics.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/20250623_115745_edited-1024x677.jpg)
