- The purpose of this renewal is to make this application a platform for new services in the future
- Personal advice function" based on childcare records and "linkage with external sensors" are planned.
- For parents who are worried about their child's health, the system includes a "checklist for hospital visits" and a "search for local government consultation services".
One of the most distressing things about raising a child for the first time is the baby's crying. New mothers and fathers are often at a loss as to what to do to stop the crying. A smartphone app called "PapattoChildcare", which I'm going to introduce here, has made a big splash with its groundbreaking function, ......, which analyzes your baby's cries and guesses the reason why they're crying. The editorial department of BabyTech.jp interviewed Mr. Tomoyuki Hattori and Mr. Yudai Chiba of First Ascent, the company that provides the app, to find out more about the renewal, its aims, the impressions of those who used the renewed version, and future developments. We asked them about the renewal, its aims, their impressions of the renewed version, and future developments.
We spoke with...
First Ascent, Inc.
MR. TOMOYUKI HATTORI, REPRESENTATIVE DIRECTOR AND CEO
First Ascent, Inc.
EXECUTIVE OFFICER CMO, MR. YUDAI CHIBA
The theme of the renewal was to "improve the user interface with an eye to the future.
Editor:I'd like to ask you about the purpose and outline of the renewal of "Papa to Kouiku".
Hattori: We're planning to release a variety of services that will be useful to mothers and fathers raising children, and one of the purposes of this renewal was to make it easier for users to use the old "Papa-to-Childcare" platform. Another reason is that seven years ago, when we released the old "Papa-to-Childcare," smartphone screens, including iPhones, were still so small that you could reach the entire screen with one hand while holding the phone with the other. So there was no problem with the old "Papa-to-Childcare," which placed the icons used to keep track of your child's care all over the screen, but later smartphone screens became larger and larger. So, for example, the purpose of this renewal was to improve overall operability by consolidating icons at the bottom of the screen so that you can use the app with one hand while holding your child in your arms.
Renewed top screen of "Papa-to-Childcare".
Editor: You mentioned that the renewal is for services that will be released sequentially in the future, what exactly is that?
Hattori: This is the "Consultation" tab that we created in the lower center of the screen for this renewal. At the moment, there are only two menus: "Check the urgency level" and "Find the nearest local government childcare consultation service", but we plan to add more functions there to support childcare, such as solving the problems of mothers and fathers.
Editor: So when moms and dads have a problem with childcare, they can click on the "Consultation" tab in "Papa-to-Childcare" and a menu will appear where they can find a solution.
The menu screen after clicking the consultation tab of "Papa-to-Child Care".
Hattori: At the moment, the functions on the consultation tab are all standalone functions, but we're planning to add a function that analyzes the content of past childcare records collected through the app to predict and answer questions that mothers and fathers want to know in a more personalized way. In fact, using "Papa-to-Childcare" it is possible to provide a variety of consultations, and for example, we are considering providing consultations on weaning food and nutrition.
In addition, the development of the new CryAnalyzer Auto, a hardware device with a crying voice diagnosis function that analyzes emotions based on a baby's crying voice, was selected for the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's "Monozukuri Startup Ecosystem Construction Project. We are now preparing functions and services that will further support mothers and fathers. I think we'll be able to start providing this service by March of next year.
Image of CryAnalyzer Auto
Editor:What are the other major changes in the renewal?
Chiba: The number of icons that can be used in the childcare record has been increased from 20 to 30. Also, you can see more detailed data in the "Summary" section of the childcare record.
Hattori: It's not implemented yet, but we're planning to improve the design of the diary menu in the Record tab soon, so that you'll want to write more diaries and post more images (Editor's note: This has been updated in the latest version on 10/12). Overall, this renewal is a major rethinking of the "user experience", isn't it?
Renewed diary screen
The renewal has clearly improved the user experience.
Editor: How is the user reaction to the renewal?
Hattori: Judging from the number of users who say that the frequency of entering childcare records has improved, it seems that users appreciate the renewal.
Chiba: We've been taking surveys from users who have been using PapaToChildcare since the previous version, and many of them say it's gotten better. Of course, there are still some improvements to be made, so even after the renewal, we are constantly updating the app based on user inquiries. Recently, 90% of the store reviewers gave us 5 stars, which shows how high our reputation is. The "Childcare Record" section was particularly highly rated. Looking at the free-text section of the survey
In this renewal, it seems that the improvement of the detailed input experience based on the voices of users who have used the software for a long time has been highly evaluated.
Hattori: In the renewed version, the "cry diagnosis" icon is now displayed on the top image, and as a result, the use rate of cry diagnosis has increased even more.
The icon for "Cry Diagnosis", which is synonymous with "Papa-to-Childcare", is on the top screen.
All new services are for "moms and dads who are struggling to raise their children
Editor: Can you tell us a little more about the new additions to the consultation tab, "Check the urgency level" and "Find the nearest local government childcare consultation service"?
Hattori: Before the new coronas, many parents felt free to visit a pediatrician even for minor problems, but after the new coronas, the number of parents who do not visit a pediatrician for fear of infection has increased. That's why we've released a new menu item called "Check Urgency". The purpose of this menu item is to assess the child's condition, discourage excessive refraining from visiting the pediatrician, and encourage parents to reach out for medical care appropriately.
By answering the questions, a decision will be made whether you should go to the hospital or not.
Hattori: Also, the "Find a local government consultation service" menu was designed to help parents who are suffering from postpartum depression, so that they can pinpoint the right local government office to consult.
Editor: How did you make the list of local government consultation services?
Hattori: This was created independently by our company by researching all the contact points for more than 1,700 local governments nationwide.
Edit: That's a lot of work ......!
Using location information, you can easily look up nearby consultation services.
After the interview
The menu screen has been redesigned to look neat and pretty, but behind it lies the results of extremely sophisticated big data analysis and a huge amount of empirical testing, and the results are likely to appear as actual services one after another in the future... ...I had such an impression. In fact, "postpartum depression" has become a serious social problem, and the power of IT will be indispensable to solve it. The new CryAnalyzer Auto will also be on display at CES, which is scheduled to be held online in January next year.
Papa's Childcare introductory website.
https://papaikuji.info/
Projects selected for the 'Manufacturing Start-up Ecosystem Development Project'.
https://startup-f.jp/ecosystemproject/
