Meet the Sentinel StudyStation™

The tiny, low cost desktop personal computing device designed for the behavioral treatment of screen addiction that works independently or WITH a patient’s existing computer or gaming console

For the full hardware and software specifications, click here

Tiny but Mighty

While the StudyStation is tiny, it can serve as a replacement in the home for multiple devices including personal computers, smartphones, videogame systems and smart TVs simplifying parental controls and device management for parents. The system contains a 1.9 GHz, quad-core, 64 bit processor with 2GB RAM and 128GB of storage. The StudyStation has front panel controls and status screen and includes HDMI, audio, Gigabit Ethernet and USB ports. High speed, low latency WIFI is an available option.

The StudyStation includes a rich set of applications preinstalled and the Linux Operating System prioritizes simplicity, reliability and security. Preinstalled is the Google® Chromium browser, LibreOffice Suite (Microsoft Office® compatible) along with software for graphics design, image and video editing and computer programming. The StudyStation supports up to 7 users.

All Sentinel models provide hardware-enforced security allowing parents/family (and treating clinician) to easily remain in full control of when, in what ways, and for how long the computer can be used. The high-end Pro Mk Series and the Mini Series Windows Gaming PCs allow the user to play high end games directly. The low cost StudyStation, while a standalone desktop computer, can be used to play low end browser games natively and high end games or run Windows, Mac or PlayStation apps on the StudyStation through a Windows PC, Mac gaming computer or PlayStation 4/5 console located in the home.

With solid limits in place, and with the help of counseling, the patient learns daily how to accept and overcome the uncomfortable feelings that arise when they cannot use the computer more than has been agreed upon and to seek rewards through other real-life means.

Simplified and Rock Solid Parental Controls

Enter in the user’s birth month and year and the StudyStation™ does the rest. No need to manage Apps or parental control software. No need to specifically enable apps at certain times with specific limits. The StudyStation automatically knows what apps and websites should be available based on the age of the user and how the system is being used in one of two major modes - Education and Entertainment. Access to and allowed time limits for social media use can be configured independently of other entertainment uses. Parental control settings based on age and other factors are derived from website user policies and guidance from parenting resources such as Common Sense Media. Of course these settings can be overridden by parents if desired. Most settings are configured by the Account Owner using the Sentinel Web Portal from anywhere in the world.

Keeping users safe is our number one priority. Dangerous sites are automatically restricted. Rather than following your child’s every move on every game, discussion board or social media site, parents can now monitor their child’s screen activity quickly, easily with screen image capture, If something appears concerning, then dig deeper. Are they doing their homework? What kind of sites are they visiting? Parents can choose to monitor screens while their child is doing school work but then allow privacy at certain times in certain modes.

Advanced Features Subscription

Advanced Features Subscription ($99/year) is included free for the first year. It offers a number of additional capabilities to help parents more conveniently manage their child computer use to keep them safe and productive.

Periodic Timestamped Screen Shots. Staying aware of your child’s online activity has never been easier and less intrusive. High resolution screen images are captured periodically while a user is logged in and stored in the Usage Logs which are available for parents to view. Screen capture can be set to Private (no ability to capture), Manual (by request only) or Auto at a rate from 3 minutes to 30 minutes between captures. Configurable by user and by mode (Education and Entertainment). The front panel display indicates whether or not the current login is Private or not. Online Learning Education Mode screen shots are blurred for privacy. This feature helps parents ensure their child stays on task while doing schoolwork and can be used for transparency during entertainment modes. Images can be saved to the parents computer and both logs and images are maintained online for 120 days.

Study Reports - provide a mechanism to help your child organize and complete their daily schoolwork or other responsibilities before getting Entertainment time.

Study Monitors are additional individuals besides the Account Owner authorized at a minimum to view and approve Study Reports, enter Academic and Behavioral data and enable entertainment for the day.
Advanced Monitoring privileges can authorize viewing captured screen images and/or User Limit Settings. This allows use across households, can authorize babysitters and other caregivers to enable entertainment time. This feature is also be used to authorize access by a health professional supporting behavioral treatment for videogame, social media and other screen addictions.

Remote Login Updates. This allows parents to add or remove time for the current user’s login in real time.
Remote Messaging - Parents can also send a message through the system to the user.

Academic Bonus - allows automatically rewarding additional Entertainment Mode time for improved academic performance. Parents set the GPA criteria and then periodically record their child’s school grades when they are posted.
Behavioral Bonus - provides a token economy to record behaviors intended to reward additional Entertainment Mode time for good behavior and meeting certain responsibilities such as completing chores.
Allowance System (not tied to any financial institution) provides a convenient way to help your child learn money management and organize funding for possible online or off-line purchases.

Entertainment Mode Screen Time Tapering - makes it easy to automatically cut back on Entertainment time gradually over weeks or months to wean a child from excesses.