Browse a selection of technologies featured in our sensory rooms and kits below. Ranging from simple mechanical spinners to immersive egg chairs, these technologies give students the power of sensory modulation, which means customizing sensory experiences to one’s needs.
Alpha Egg Chair
Our sensory rooms feature these unique Inmod Alpha Egg Chairs that are both high touch and high tech. The embryonic, concave shape of the chairs make them peaceful, nearly self-contained sensory refuges. At Penn State we’ve activated immersive speakers in the chair that student can connect their devices to and play music or nature sounds. In terms of feedback, one student has described sitting in the chair as “getting a big hug” from Penn State! Research by our students reveals that the egg chairs are the most popular items in our rooms. Students with ADHD have told us that the chairs immensely boost their concentration and productivity.
Sound Mixer
The Brookstone White Noise Sound Machine Mixer allows students to mix and match sounds that they find uniquely soothing–crickets, rainfall, thunder, wind, birds, cafe background noise, and even cattle! Find the sound of birds whistling mixed with rain to be relaxing? This machine can make that happen! Scholars at Penn State and elsewhere are beginning to note that different “colors” of noise (white, pink, brown) have different impacts on the human psyche. Psychology students at Penn State Berks are conducting further IRB-approved research to gauge the impact of various sounds on concentration and anxiety levels.
Transcript: Crickets. Crickets mixed with Rain. Silence. Crowd talking. Crowd mixed with Birds. Crowd, Birds, Water mixed. Silence. Rain and Thunder mixed
Fan Simulator
This machine allows students to generate white noise that sounds like a fan, running fast or slow, high or low pitched.
Transcript: Sound of fan. Steadier sound of fan with button press. Higher pitched fan sound with button press. Same fan sounds alternating as buttons are pressed.
Noise Cancelling Headphones
While some students may find white noise helps them concentrate, other prefer silence. Students can check out noise cancelling headphones to create quiet zones in any library study room or space.
Bubble Towers
Watching bubbles (and fish) in tubes like the one pictured below can help reduce sensory overload. Users can switch between lights using a remote. The sound of the water adds an auditory effect.
Transcript: A tall glass tube with a sign at the base stating “Bubble Tower.” Plastic fish and bubbles swim about in the water. Light shines in the base of the tube, changing colors every few seconds. There is a calming water flow background sound throughout the video.
Mood Sunglasses
Students can select a color of shade that evokes a desired feeling. Blue produces calmness for those who are hypersensitive and desire calming. Red sparks passion for those who are hyposensitive and crave stimulation.
Kaleidoscopic Visual Stims
Combining traditional kaleidoscopes with LED hexagonal lights or biophilic elements (nature) provides an interesting way to get sensory input. It’s a type of visual stimming that people with autism and ADHD find helpful in coping.
Transcript: Silence throughout the video. A hand positions a kaleidoscope in front of the camera lens. Gazing at some hexagonal strobing lights through the kaleidoscope produces fascinating visual patterns. The kaleidoscope is then positioned towards some trees outside a window which also produces interesting patterns.
Fidget Spinners
Fidgeting can help students focus on movement and filter out unwanted stimuli in the environment. Mary Kay Delaney, Ph.D., Department of Education, Meredith College, notes that fidgeting and doodling “may actually help us to maintain focus and/or reduce stress that interferes with focus.” Some students who use our sensory kits like to spin with one hand while typing on a laptop with the other.
A Sample of Sensory Tools
Fidget items, prismatic sunglasses, stretch strings, snap and click items, and kaleidoscopes can provide a brain break for busy students. Some students might prefer to fidget with a spinner or cube while they study to help them process information.
BlissLights Sky Lite – LED Laser Start Projector
Harsh fluorescent lighting in many college spaces can trigger migraine headaches or cause sensory overload. After turning out the lights in our sensory rooms, students can turn on a BlissLights Sky Lite Projector to create soothing night scenery. Choices include blue or green rotating galaxy projections, or a peaceful nebula. The technology was originally developed as professional stage lighting and then refined and miniaturized for widespread use in other environments.
Transcript: Begins with silence, then clicking sounds each time the sky changes scenery.
Pyramid Hologram Creators
Holusion hologram pyramid in action! This technology uses a phenomenon called Pepper’s Ghost to produce a 3d image from a tablet and an acrylic pyramid. Many people with sensory needs find that visual stimming relieves stress and find it wonderful to watch how light bends and dances. This technology takes visual stimming to a whole new level. For more on visual stimming, please watch Relaxing Visual Stims–What’s That? by Agony Autie.
Transcript: Relaxing electronic background music.