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2026 Galleries // 2026 Spark: Spring Student // Gluky

Gluky

Winner - Bronze

Competition: Spark: Spring Student
Designer: Seongbeen Park
Design Type: Health & Medical
Company / Organization / School: KOREA DESIGN MEMBERSHIP+
Team Members: Seongbeen Park, Jieun Baek, Juyeon Kang & Taemin Lee

Gluky is a child-friendly blood glucose monitor designed for children with type 1 diabetes. Children with type 1 diabetes need to check their blood glucose repeatedly in daily life, but the process of conventional BGM can be painful, stressful, and socially visible. At school or in public, children often have to take out several separate tools, such as a meter, lancing device, lancets, test strips, and swabs. This makes blood glucose testing look like an obvious medical act, which can lead to embarrassment, stigma, and avoidance.

Gluky aims to make this daily routine simpler, less visible, and emotionally safer. The product integrates the blood glucose meter, lancing module, and replaceable test strip cassette into one compact pocket device. Instead of carrying many separate tools, the child can use one small device that feels closer to a personal digital companion than a hospital instrument.

One key feature is the replaceable test strip cassette. Conventional BGM requires users to take out a small strip, check its direction, insert it correctly, and dispose of it after use. For children, especially in school settings, this process can be difficult and noticeable. Gluky’s cassette stores multiple test strips inside the device. A dial mechanism moves a new test area into position, reducing the need to handle small strips one by one. Used strip areas are also kept inside the cassette, helping make the process cleaner and more discreet.

The lancing part is also redesigned. Instead of exposing a separate needle-based tool, Gluky uses a hidden lancing module inside the device. The needle is not visually emphasized, and the child interacts with the module through a simple, soft action. This helps reduce fear and makes the process feel less like “being pricked” and more like a short checking routine.

The interface is inspired by digital pet devices. However, Gluky does not simply imitate a toy. It uses a character-based interface to change how children emotionally understand blood glucose checking. Rather than showing only numbers that may feel like a score or failure, Gluky presents results with gentle character feedback and supportive messages. The child is encouraged for checking, not judged by the number.

Gluky’s goal is to support essential health management while protecting the child’s everyday identity. By reducing visible medical actions and turning BGM into a small care routine, Gluky helps children manage their condition without feeling separated from their peers. It is a concept design that proposes a more discreet, integrated, and emotionally considerate future for pediatric blood glucose monitoring.