Author: John

The Air Sack Alarm

 

 I remember seeing this on an episode of ‘Hey, Spring of Trivia‘ not all that long ago. There is was being used by Japan Rail to wake up their conductors at the station so they wouldn’t miss their shifts. The idea is that when the alarm sounds and air bag inflates and will wake even the most sound of sleeper. When you fist see this you thing it has to be a ‘Chindogu‘, or a an invention that has no real utility. Nope, it’s a real product that you can buy for your loved one or kid that is always late for the bus.

[via Red Ferret]

Air Sack Alarm (translation by Babelfish) 

Flexible Braille e-Paper

 

Researchers have come across a method for producing a flexible braille display that uses about the same power as a cell phone. The display can be refreshed in about one second and could be used to indicate the amount of money left on a prepaid card, household appliances, or even an e-book. It uses a plastic film with organic transistors and plastic actuators that expand when triggered. So far it will display 24 characters but researchers hope to take this up to 576 in a few years. Look for this to be on the market in five or six years.

[ via we-make-money-not-art]

Takao Someya Group–Organic Transistor Lab

Win, Lose or Draw

 

 This is an electronic version of the (now) classic game ‘Win, Lose, or Draw". The question shows up on the little LCD screen located on the pad and then you try to draw it on the graphics tablet. You and your teammates get to see the thing your trying to draw up on the TV. Without the benefit of having played with one of these, but playing the analog game a few times I can see some interactive things are going to be lost when you play the game this way. Like how you can fake out the other team by throwing them off the track with pen motions for starts. Plus, your going to want to have an LCD projector to play this unless your all huddled around the boob tube.

Win, Lose or Draw

Invisible Spy Ink Pens with UV Light

 

The holidays have not been very kind to my blog, too much turkey makes for a lack of web scouring. Sorry about that people, I’ll get back on the job as soon as I can get all the stuffing out of my keyboard.
Anyway , while I do that go take a look at this clever little pen I saw a few days ago. One end is a pen with invisible ink and the other is an ultraviolet LED flashlight. You too can be a junior secret agent now. Just be careful if you take it into any federal buildings, the guards might give you the third degree. 

Invisible Spy Ink Pens with UV Light