Design and Implementation of an Automated Embedded Control System for Alzheimer's Patients' Medication Reminders

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) causes severe memory loss and cognitive difficulties in elderly people, affecting their daily activities and time awareness. One of the main challenges for families and caregivers is ensuring that patients take their prescribed medications on time. When patients forget their pills or take a double dose, it leads to serious health problems and increases the stress on their caregivers. In this work, a low-cost and reliable embedded control system is designed and implemented to solve this problem. The hardware system uses an ATmega328P microcontroller connected to a high-precision DS3231 Real-Time Clock (RTC) module. This synchronization ensures accurate time tracking even during main power cuts or electrical fluctuations. To notify the caregiver immediately, a SIM800L Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) cellular module is connected to the system. The device uses local alarms, including a buzzer for sound alerts and Light Emitting Diode (LED) lights for visual indicators, to remind the patient. Patient compliance is tracked using a magnetic reed sensor on the medication box compartment. When the patient opens the box, the sensor registers the action. Experimental testing of the physical prototype showed excellent stability, with accurate timing results and a cellular message transmission time of less than 4.5 seconds using local networks. The developed system offers a simple and robust assistive technology solution suitable for healthcare environments in Libya.