Somebody Needs to Invent ...

**gnome** · September-14-10, 08:48 PM

... a thread about inventions that need inventing.

I've been looking for a bedside table lamp with a sleep timer. It could have a clock too, but the main thing is to be able to fall asleep while reading a book.

The real motivation: I'm getting sick of having the bride complain about the reading lamp on all night. She elbows me out of deep sleep and keeps at it until I shut off the lamp.

My ribs are taking a beating.

Stosh · September-14-10, 09:06 PM

Originally Posted by gnome

... a thread about inventions that need inventing.

I've been looking for a bedside table lamp with a sleep timer. It could have a clock too, but the main thing is to be able to fall asleep while reading a book.

The real motivation: I'm getting sick of having the bride complain about the reading lamp on all night. She elbows me out of deep sleep and keeps at it until I shut off the lamp.

My ribs are taking a beating.

The clapper?

**gazhekwe** · September-14-10, 09:32 PM

How about a sunset lamp? It fades from full light to darkness in 1.5 hours.

**wolverine** · September-14-10, 09:55 PM

Some sort of device to clean the outside of your own windows in a highrise unit. I have double hung windows, but two are jammed from pivoting inward. I'd also prefer not leaning out 13 stories up to clean the top half. I'm tired of waiting every year for them to clean the grime and spiders off my windows. It's even worse when they miss a spot.

I'd also like a phone that holds a credit card, or could be used as a credit card. It would be password protected, and maybe it could allow access to your home as well [[by password) It would be nice just to walk around with one thing. Currently walking around with a cell phone, mp3, set of keys, and wallet gets annoying.

Electronic keycards and passcards are getting better and more popular. But I'm kind of annoyed how they stack up. Especially when it's office, apartment, laundry machine, car, public transportation. They start to form a thick stack about the size of a deck of playing cards. They need to provide multiple access on one card.

**jcole** · September-14-10, 09:56 PM

Just buy one of those timers that plug into the wall and then you plug whatever appliance you want into the timer. You set it for a given hour and it will shut off whatever is attached.
http://www.amazon.com/Sylvania-SA130.../dp/B000F5MUQC

**Jimaz** · September-15-10, 07:36 PM

Originally Posted by jcole

Just buy one of those timers that plug into the wall and then you plug whatever appliance you want into the timer. You set it for a given hour and it will shut off whatever is attached.
http://www.amazon.com/Sylvania-SA130.../dp/B000F5MUQC

or turn on whatever appliance is attached. I used one on a coffee maker. I'd set it up the previous night and the next morning the instant I woke up there was a fresh pot of coffee waiting for me.

During vacations you can use them to turn lights off and on to make your house look lived in.

What a great idea for a thread!

**Jimaz** · September-15-10, 07:52 PM

Somebody needs to invent a system that automatically opens your windows and shuts off your HVAC whenever the outside air temperature is within a user-defined comfort range. It would automatically close your windows and turn on your HVAC whenever the outside air temperature exceeded that range.

I think I've seen this on a "concept home" but I haven't yet noticed it on the consumer market.

It's greenier!

**Jimaz** · September-15-10, 09:38 PM

Somebody needs to invent a way to display traffic signals within vehicles, e.g. on the dashboard [[or heads-up display or whatever) via wireless, in addition to, or instead of, traditional externally visible traffic signals. I suspect there would be a significant cost savings in doing so—a minor cost to automakers, major savings to municipalities who pay for traffic lights. They can negotiate the difference. Win/win.

Furthermore, once a vehicle knows the state of an upcoming signal, that information can be incorporated into an automotive equivalent of a TCAS system allowing automatic braking to avoid collisions in situations involving running red lights.

**gazhekwe** · September-15-10, 09:41 PM

There are rain sensor vents for RVs that will close the vent if it starts raining. I need something like that for my car to put up the top and raise the windows if it rains.

Stosh · September-15-10, 10:18 PM

Originally Posted by Jimaz

Somebody needs to invent a system that automatically opens your windows and shuts off your HVAC whenever the outside air temperature is within a user-defined comfort range. It would automatically close your windows and turn on your HVAC whenever the outside air temperature exceeded that range.

I think I've seen this on a "concept home" but I haven't yet noticed it on the consumer market.

It's greenier!

Far easier to do as some commercial buildings do and bring in outside air. It's called an economizer. You could still use the air handler to bring in the air.

**GOAT** · September-16-10, 07:30 AM

Jimaz, there is even one that turns lights on and off randomly so that theives who are casing a house can predict the timing.

**Johnlodge** · September-16-10, 07:45 AM

An in- car system that would, by consensus of other motorists on the road, allow you to vote that someone who is clearly being an a-hole has their car shut off within one minute after reaching the required amount of votes. The person would be informed by their in-car system that they are, in fact, an a-hole, and have one minute to pull over safely and make other travel arrangements.

**Meddle** · September-16-10, 08:08 AM

Somebody needs to invent a way to display traffic signals within vehicles, e.g. on the dashboard [[or heads-up display or whatever) via wireless,

I'd just be content with one that would mute the radio audio and/or replace it with a signal when an emergency vehicle approaches. It wouldn't even be just in new vehicles, but in all aftermarket replacement audio devices.

Weather alerts could be included also.

**ndavies** · September-16-10, 08:30 AM

Originally Posted by Meddle

Somebody needs to invent a way to display traffic signals within vehicles, e.g. on the dashboard [[or heads-up display or whatever) via wireless,

I'd just be content with one that would mute the radio audio and/or replace it with a signal when an emergency vehicle approaches. It wouldn't even be just in new vehicles, but in all aftermarket replacement audio devices.

Weather alerts could be included also.

This is actually coming soon. I expect to see systems on the market within the next 5 years. The technology is called Vehicle to vehicle communication. Vehicles will transmit their speed, direction and state information to the vehicles around them. Traffic controls will transmit their state. This information can then be used by in-vehicle systems to show a driver traffic issues and warn them about upcoming incidents.

The systems works similar to WIFI internet. Part of Telegraph was just wired up with a test system that transmits the status of the traffic lights. Earlier versions were tested on I-75 in Oakland county.

The one huge downside I can see to this is the cops can then just sit on the side of the road with a data sniffer and automatically generate tickets.

**johnsmith** · September-16-10, 01:02 PM

Originally Posted by wolverine

I'd also like a phone that holds a credit card, or could be used as a credit card. It would be password protected, and maybe it could allow access to your home as well [[by password) It would be nice just to walk around with one thing. Currently walking around with a cell phone, mp3, set of keys, and wallet gets annoying.

It's been invented, google "man purse."

**Bigb23** · September-16-10, 01:12 PM

How about this -
A miniature rotating split screen camera that mounts 4' above the roof of your car on a small stalk. This will allow you to see over the huge SUV exiting the same drive you are. It will also give a better vantage point for finding empty parking places, and avoiding pedestrians moving between vehicles. It can also serve as a recording security camera for stupid thieves.

Stosh · September-16-10, 01:21 PM

Originally Posted by Johnlodge

An in- car system that would, by consensus of other motorists on the road, allow you to vote that someone who is clearly being an a-hole has their car shut off within one minute after reaching the required amount of votes. The person would be informed by their in-car system that they are, in fact, an a-hole, and have one minute to pull over safely and make other travel arrangements.

I vote for this one. By far and away the most useful thing mentioned here.

I also thought a directional EMP device to target shithead drivers would be nice, but you can't effectively block out other cars from being affected. Pity.

**ndavies** · September-16-10, 03:02 PM

Originally Posted by wolverine

I'd also like a phone that holds a credit card, or could be used as a credit card. It would be password protected, and maybe it could allow access to your home as well [[by password) It would be nice just to walk around with one thing. Currently walking around with a cell phone, mp3, set of keys, and wallet gets annoying.

Cell phones in Europe and Japan already do this. They've been around since at least 2004. They also have vending machines that can bill to your cell phone account.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/...in631231.shtml

**GOAT** · September-16-10, 04:37 PM

Common sense because we are lacking so much of it.

**ndavies** · September-16-10, 06:44 PM

Originally Posted by GOAT

Common sense because we are lacking so much of it.

Not a lack of common sense. We have plenty of very smart people inventing new things. Most of these inventions are North American developed. [[U.S. companies still generate more patents than any other nation in the world.)

All of these products could be made available today. The issue is the willingness of service providers to pay for new equipment.

They are making plenty of money here with the services they already provide on their slightly outdated infrastructure. To provide these advanced services you need to upgrade the infrastructure. Foreign countries built out their infrastructures after us and have better stuff. It's very hard to convince a company to rip out functioning, already paid for technology.

In North America the service providers have decided it's better to give us video, facebook and Ipads than it is to give us a new way to pay for things.

**ndavies** · September-21-10, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by Johnlodge

An in- car system that would, by consensus of other motorists on the road, allow you to vote that someone who is clearly being an a-hole has their car shut off within one minute after reaching the required amount of votes. The person would be informed by their in-car system that they are, in fact, an a-hole, and have one minute to pull over safely and make other travel arrangements.

http://jalopnik.com/5641164/drivemoc...ve-idiot-light

Well, maybe not exactly what you're looking for, but close enough.

**Jimaz** · March-26-15, 05:11 PM

This morning on WWJ AM they had a brief talk by a Japanese professor predicting virtual traffic lights. I couldn't find that particular story online but this one from CNN dated January 14, 2015 seems like the same system: Traffic lights on your windshield could get you home faster.

Hey, wait! That was my idea!

Seriously though, there's no technical reason we couldn't virtually move all motorist-directed signage into the vehicle's windshield [[or Google Glass) — billboards, streetsigns, stopsigns, the works. Imagine the road construction savings.

Imagine what the landscape would look like after that transition.

**G-DDT** · March-26-15, 06:47 PM

For quite the longest time, I've wanted to see an invention that would dry books that got wet. Somehow it would spread the pages [[keep them from pasting together) and dry them. Being technically inept, I wouldn't know if it could apply some sort of electro-static charge or something.

Anyway, it would be of some value to libraries and special [[university) archives.

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