When you are creating a sensory space, it may initially feel overwhelming to decide which pieces of equipment are going to suit your needs the best. While you can often put together your ideal space on your own there’s usually a benefit to enlisting the help of a professional.

There are many sensory room equipment service providers to be found online, however it can be difficult to choose which one will be the most helpful to you. With so many options for what to include in your space, choosing a company that can help walk you through the process and make some personalized suggestions will make everything feel so much easier.

Factors to consider when choosing a Sensory Room Equipment Service Provider

At SensoryOne, we’re more than a sensory room equipment company. We provide expert guidance for clients in all settings as part of our service. It’s not the right sensory environment for your setting if it’s not customized for you. Let’s plan together!

There are a number of factors to consider when choosing a business to help you set up your sensory space. A sensory room equipment service provider will pride themselves on their ability to provide you with the tools to create a top-notch space that suits your needs. When you start the search for the best consultant for the task, these are the top factors to consider.

The range of equipment they have available

A sensory room service provider should have a wide variety of equipment available to choose from when designing your sensory space. A range of products that includes sensory and tactile walls, interactive panels, bubble tubes, fiber optic lighting systems, mobile units and technology-based activities can all help you create the perfect sensory space for your home.

Their ability to incorporate technology

It’s no secret that technology is an invaluable addition to a sensory space. An equipment provider should demonstrate comfort in recommending and explaining technological tools like an OM Interactive projection system and a Broomx virtual reality system. Including one or several of these features in your sensory space will have many positive effects for visitors to your sensory room.

Offers a good variety of tactile options

Some of the most common features in a sensory space are tactile ones. Equipment that offers a variety of different tactile opportunities is most likely to help calm, re-center and engage a visitor to a sensory room. Because of this, an equipment provider that offers a wide variety of options including tactile walls, panels, murals, tiles and toys is sure to be able to help you create the most useful and beneficial space possible.

Personal service is provided for project management

While you can certainly go through the steps to create a sensory space on your own, one mark of a top sensory equipment service provider is their ability to provide personal assistance. Having a representative to talk to about the different options and help you decide which pieces would work best for your needs will help ensure that everything you choose will go to good use.

Ability to stay within your budget

A significant part of any project is the budget that comes with it. A sensory equipment provider that can help you outfit your sensory space while sticking within your budget displays that they care about your experience and needs.

An interest in innovation

As the understanding of the kind of people who benefit from sensory spaces increases, so too does the innovation of what kind of equipment might be included. An equipment provider that expresses an interest in discovering the latest trends, technologies and innovations is a great resource for you. This interest in innovation shows that their offerings will be up to date and include a wide variety of equipment options.

Flexibility to work with the space you have available

A great sensory equipment provider will be able to work with you to create a useful sensory space in whatever kind of area you have available. Whether you are able to dedicate an entire room to the effort, are outfitting a small piece of a larger room or are looking for a mobile cart that can be moved to wherever it is needed, a sensory equipment provider will be able to assist in choosing the right items.

A great sensory space involves expert support

When you decide to create a sensory space, you are showing that you care about the individual or group of people who are going to be using the space. Therefore, it makes sense that you should choose a sensory room equipment service provider that is going to offer you the same care and support.

When you do find this equipment provider, you’ll be able to look to them for guidance in creating the best sensory space you possibly can, within the parameters you have available. Your budget, available space and the needs of your intended users will all play a role in how your sensory space will turn out. Whether you include technology like an interactive projector or virtual reality machine or opt for more tactile options, an equipment service provider will be happy to walk you through the options.

As we learn more about the struggles and characteristics involved with an autism spectrum diagnosis, a number of different related disorders are getting identified as well. One such category of disorders has been aptly named Sensory Processing Disorders. This grouping of symptoms can be quite a struggle for many people, both caregivers and those that have been diagnosed, especially when it isn’t all that clear what the disorder actually involves.

However, sensory processing disorders are extremely common, especially among those who have been diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum.

What is a sensory processing disorder?

A sensory processing disorder, or SPD, is a common condition that many kids and adults experience. It is characterized by the brain’s inability to process sensory inputs. In simple terms, this means that a person with SPD will struggle to receive and respond to senses like sight, sound and smell. In some cases, this means that someone might be oversensitive to sensory experiences in their world, while in other cases someone else may be insensitive to the same stimuli.

At SensoryOne, our sensory environment designs specialists help you determine the best sensory equipment and layout or users with sensory processing issues, frequently those with Autism. Let us help!

Although sensory processing disorders are mostly commonly identified in children, many adults also struggle with them. SPDs are often experienced by those who are on the autism spectrum, however these two disorders are not mutually exclusive. Like autism, SPDs are usually experienced on a spectrum so there is no obvious and direct point of diagnosis.

Some common characteristics of sensory processing disorder may include:

• Incoordination and lack of balance
• Difficulty in engaging the individual in conversation
• Over stimulation: sounds are too loud, rooms are too bright, clothes are irritating or too tight
• Under stimulation: can’t sit still, thrill seeking
• Issues with food textures
• Don’t respond well to sudden movements, sounds, touches or smells
• Increased behaviour concerns
• Poor motor skills
• Reduced muscle tone
• May exhibit language delays
• Doesn’t pick up on social cues

Many benefits to a sensory room or space

A sensory space has many benefits for people of all ages, especially for those who may be dealing with some level of a sensory processing disorder. The ability to spend time in a space that offers a wide variety of sensory opportunities can help make living with a sensory processing disorder more manageable.

It can help improve socialization

Some children with autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, struggle with interacting with their peers and teachers. The ability to retreat into a safe space with controlled sounds, interactions and activities can provide a sense of safety and allow visitors to socialize on their own terms. This opportunity to control sensory input can help those with an SPD to evaluate their surroundings and learn how to accept more social opportunities, even outside of the room.

Can promote cognitive development

An important aspect of cognitive development is the ability to explore the principles of cause and effect through play. Hands on exploration and experimentation encourages both kids and adults to problem solve in order to learn about their world and how to interact with it.

Improve motor skills

It’s not uncommon for coordination skills such as those needed to hold a pencil, tie a shoe, button a shirt or walk and talk at the same time to develop more slowly in people with autism or sensory processing disorders. A sensory room can offer visitors an opportunity to work on many different kinds of motor skills without the pressures of a highly stimulating environment.

They encourage visitors to feel calm

For someone with a sensory processing disorder, the world we live in can be an intense, stressful and highly stimulating place. A sensory room or space can help them to combat this overstimulation in a way that gives them the stimulation that they need.

It encourages the development of underused senses

People with a sensory processing disorder tend to spend more time relying on selective senses and almost hiding others. A multi-sensory room can provide a safe space for them to explore and experiment with their less favoured senses.

Helps teach coping skills

When overwhelmed with sensory input, it can be difficult to respond and cope in the moment. A sensory room is the perfect testing space for someone with SPD to figure out what works for them in order to mitigate these feelings of overwhelm. A sensory space is also the perfect place to try out and experiment with new sensory experiences.

A sensory processing disorder is manageable, if you know what you’re dealing with

Before a person gets diagnosed with a sensory processing disorder their behaviour may seem puzzling and even frustrating. However, once you’ve taken the time to get a diagnosis and are able to attribute symptoms to their cause, it becomes easier to understand. The average person who doesn’t have any SPDs of their own may be tempted to showcase impatience when faced with the wide variety of symptoms, however that just makes things tough on everyone involved. Incorporating a sensory room or space into the lives of anyone diagnosed with autism or a sensory processing disorder can help visitors learn many skills that will help them in their day to day lives.

Virtual reality technology is all the rage, and the latest advance, known as the Broomx MK360, offers great rewards to users of all ages, especially those with special needs. That ranges from older adults, including those with dementia, living in long-term-care to younger people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
 

Fully immersive VR experience: no headset required!

This device, newly available in North America from its manufacturer in Spain, creates a fully immersive experience without the need for VR headsets.

And while other similar technology requires multiple projectors, the Broomx is the only fully mobile, all-in-one unit. It projects a video that stretches across three walls and onto the ceiling, creating a captivating experience within a user’s entire field of vision. The BroomX is accompanied by more than 100 different 360-degree videos, and can project additional videos, for instance, those taken at home or at a particular event that might have special meaning to those watching.

Among the included videos, imagine, for instance, sitting amid a pod of dolphins watching them swim all around you, splashing and creating waves, and listening to them whistle and click.

Or how about virtually forest bathing — lying in a bed of sun-dappled autumn leaves in the woods, birds chirping in the background.

With no need for headsets, users of the Broomx have less chance of experiencing eye strain or “cybersickness,” a form of motion sickness in response to virtual environments. Many people also find headsets uncomfortable to wear. People with dementia or ASD might resist wearing them.

Improved cognitive function, memory stimulation

VR technology like the BroomX offers a virtual experience that is not only entertaining but engaging cognitively, emotionally and socially. It brings many rewards to users, ranging from lifting moods to creating feelings of calm and relaxation, as well as improving cognitive function, stimulating memory and reducing chronic and acute pain.

Recent research using the Broomx studied the impact of immersive technologies on people with Alzheimer’s disease and moderate to severe dementia living in long-term-care facilities.

In this study, 325 participants from three long-term-care homes enjoyed VR experiences such as being transported to a lush green park to see the cherry blossoms in bloom, being taken to the heart of a bustling city, and finding themselves surrounded by dairy cows in a farmer’s field.

These experiences were not only entertaining but engaging cognitively, emotionally and socially. The research found that residents who used the BroomX were relatively calmer, happier and more relaxed afterwards. Time with the BroomX projections also lifted moods, stimulated memory, improved both appetites and eating among underweight residents, and led to increased conversations and better sleep among all participants.

Study participants cut psychotropic medications

One of the most notable findings of the study, known as The Albert Project and conducted by Primacare Living Solutions with partners including the Centre for Aging and Brain Health Innovation (CABHI), was a 30-per-cent reduction in the use of psychotropic medications to treat participants’ responsive behaviours.
To learn more about the results found in The Albert Project study, please click to watch the video below.

 

VR tools help comfort those with ASD

VR technology has also proven helpful in dealing with the sensory, attention, behaviour, and communication challenges faced by people with ASD, to help them better connect with the people and the around them.

For instance, therapists have used VR exposure therapy to help people become more comfortable in some situations, such as being outdoors. Immersing them first in a virtual park makes it less stressful for them to make the transition to a real park. Similarly, VR technology has been used to help combat phobias.

The Broomx is sold exclusively in North America by SensoryOne, which distributes innovative, award-winning and inspiring sensory products and multisensory environments customized to the individual needs of users.

Interacting with the groundbreaking and award-winning motion-activated projection systems produced by Britain-based OM Interactive can bring many rewards to users of all ages and all levels, particularly those with special needs.

And the experience can be enhanced by digging into an activity kit that accompanies all purchases of any OMI system, including the Mobii Magic Surface, known, for short, as the Mobii.

This goodie bag, filled with accessories including paintbrushes, balls, bean bags and soft fabric batons, can be used with a wide variety of applications, and in a number of different ways.

Adding the use of any or all of these items not only offers more ways to have fun with an OMI system, but can also increase tactile sensations, improve extended reach and shoulder range of motion, boost concentration, and, overall, elevate engagement.

With some swipes of the accessory paintbrushes, users could turn a variety of images, such as flowers or butterflies, from black and white into vivid colours.

Or a bean bag could be tossed onto a projection of an egg, causing it to crack wide open.

With an accessory baton, a user could break up and scatter a school of fish in one application, or swipe correct answers to quizzes in another.

The accessory ball could be pitched at floating feathers to break them up and make them flutter away.

A week of “theme days” could be created to vary up activities. For instance, one day could be devoted to applications that can use a bean bag; another day could turn to activities using a ball.

The accessories can be used to enhance the projections in many ways. One idea is to create “theme days” throughout the week. For instance, a calendar using the Mobii could look like this:

Mindful Mondays: Have participants use the accessory kit paintbrush to colour in a series of fish.

Tuesday tosses: Create some fun competition by having participants toss bean bags onto underwater targets and add up the points for a winning score.

Wet and wild Wednesdays: Participants can use a magnetized rod to go fishing in a virtual body of water.

Thursday throws: Roll a ball across a virtual xylophone, eliciting different sounds as it crosses various keys.

Friday fun facts: Create fun across the generations with bright and simple quizzes that engage both young and old.

Letting imaginations and creativity run free will guarantee users a fun, engaging and beneficial experience with the combination of the projection system and the accompanying activity kit!

 

 

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 Let your imagination and creativity run free!

A sensory room is a therapeutic space for people of all ages to enjoy and use. These rooms and spaces incorporate a number of different tools or aspects that can help an individual to feel more calm, less distracted, better able to communicate and overall, less anxious and stressed. They can also help to mitigate negative behaviours that may be common with some people, often school-aged children.

The equipment used in a sensory room can vary quite a bit from one room to the next, depending on how much space is available for the sensory room and what the needs are of the primary person using it. Whether you are looking at creating a mobile sensory cart or station or are able to convert an entire room to the idea, the intentions behind the equipment will be similar.

Top equipment for creating a sensory room or space

At SensoryOne, we provide no-fee design consultation services so clients can build the sensory space that is best suited to them. Whether for autistic individuals, seniors or an elementary school setting, let’s think through the design and equipment right for you.

When creating a sensory space, one of the first steps you should take is to decide how much space you’ll have to work with. If you only have a small corner in a room or a mobile cart to deck out, the equipment you’ll look for will vary in comparison to if you have a whole room. Regardless of how much space you have, creating a sensory room will have significant benefits for both children and adults.

Tactile equipment

Having items that a person can touch is essential in a sensory space. Try to include a variety of different touch experiences such as soft sponges, prickly pinecones, gooey silly putty or slime, kinetic sand, finger paints and squishy balls. Any item that offers an unusual tactile experience can be perfect for a sensory room. If you have space to play with, consider installing a tactile wall mural or panel. These tools are often done for you so there’s no need to go searching for items that might fit the bill.

A tactile wall mural, tile or panel features a variety of textures, colours and styles and will double as fun artwork for the space. These pieces can be mounted on a wide variety of surfaces, allowing you to customize the sensory space you are creating.

Calming equipment

One of the most common uses of a sensory room is to help visitors calm down and relax. Equipment like dim lights, fiber optic lighting, and gentle music are all soothing for those in the sensory room.

Fiber optic lights are a common choice for anyone creating a sensory room. These lights are often included in string form to offer both tactile and visual stimulation, allowing anyone in the room to benefit from their inclusion in multiple ways. Handling these lights is safe and visitors will often feel calmer and more relaxed after being exposed to them.

Bubble tubes and walls are another great way to provide calming visuals along with a relaxing vibration.

Auditory and visual equipment

A sensory room that allows users to focus on certain senses while reducing the stimulation from others will help them to relax and calm down. Sensory room equipment like a projector or a speaker playing their chosen video, music or sounds can significantly benefit a visitor, particularly those who struggle with processing disorders.

Mobile sensory carts

If space is a concern or you have an individual that would benefit from the ability to bring their sensory space with them, a mobile sensory cart is the perfect option. Whether you’re interested in a ready-made kit or want to design your own, a mobile sensory cart has everything that a sensory room could have, but in a compact and portable cart. This cart can be moved from one space to another allowing the sensory space to move with the user.

Interactive technology is worth the investment

With a very interactive space like a sensory room, it’s no surprise that there are some pieces of technology that will be beneficial. Immersive experiences like virtual reality and interactive projectors are an excellent way to customize the sensory room experience for anyone interested in using them. These interactive and portable technologies are very effective tools for creating both stimulating and calming effects in a wide variety of settings and spaces. A sensory room that includes one or both of these tools will benefit anyone who uses them in a number of different ways.

Sensory room equipment can vary greatly

The best thing about creating a sensory room is that there is no single right way to do it. The best sensory room spaces are created with your client audience in mind. With a wide variety of potential users, completely unique space options and an endless list of equipment choices, no two sensory rooms will ever be alike. After you’ve taken some time to evaluate the needs of those who will be using the space and consider what kind of area you’ll be making use of, you can then narrow down exactly what kind of equipment you want to include in your sensory room.