Category: Automotive

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Automotive Connected Objects

AutoBot transforms your smartphone into a translator for your car

The Premise. All modern automobiles come standard with a powerful diagnostic electronics system that handles the electronic functions of the vehicle and monitors the car’s performance. Getting to that data as an end user is not an easy task, however, and is often left to mechanics and auto shops to access.

The Product. The AutoBot is a simple device that can plug into a car via cigarette lighter or if the vehicle is manufactured after 2007, into the ODB-II diagnostic port on the car. While both outlets are supported, the cigarette lighter only offers simulated data compared to accurate readouts from the ODB-II port.  Because ODB ports are often inconveniently placed, the AutoBot comes with a long but unobtrusive cable, making the device ideal to set up. Once installed, the AutoBot delivers data to the Android or iOS, including GPS information for up to 60 days, suggestions on how to reduce fuel usage, and driving leaderboard data between friends.

The Pitch. The AutoBot team shows off the project through a series of modern, well-designed images, explaining the device’s functions and how it intends to bring “wearable tech” to the auto market. Questions not addressed in the campaign photos are likely found in the extensive FAQ section of the campaign. Only $10,000 is needed to bring the AutoBot to market, which is needed to distribute the device internationally and not just in China.

The Perks. Getting an AutoBot will take a pledge of $79, packed with both the app and the OBD II and USB cables. Higher tiers simply feature additional quantities. The AutoBot is expected to ship from China in August.

The Potential. As the Internet of Things continues to expand to every imaginable niche, it’s no surprise that now that market includes the car. Simpler diagnostic devices are available to the consumer especially thanks to the development of the OBD-II interface, but the AutoBot offers a more personal profile and advice, not just what drivers need to do to turn off the check engine light. It might not be something that every driver needs or even wants, but for those that treat their vehicles like their kin, keeping an AutoBot handy will help the driver/auto bonding process.

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Automotive Safety

Doughnut Safe gives your spare tire another way to protect you

Doughnut SafePeople often travel with valuables in their car, but rarely have peace of mind about the safety of their things unless they use a clunky and heavy safe. Doughnut Safe takes advantage of space you already have in your car by turning your spare tire into a strongbox. The 4” x 12” product is reinforced and made out of steel to ensure that your valuables stay safe. One of these hiding-in-plain-sight products with two keys goes for $180 with an estimated delivery date of November 2014. The Doughnut Safe hopes to raise to raise $9,000 on Kickstarter in its 31-day campaign.

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Automotive

Shark Kage Ramp pickup truck owners get it done in their bed

The Premise. The pickup trick is one of the few products that’s as popular with consumers as it is with businesses. One of the reasons for its so popular is because it can accomplish so many tasks, even serve as a hot tub. But few accessories live up to its ability to accommodate so many scenarios.

The Product. Shark Kage Ramp is the Swiss Army knife of truck bed accessories. Not only does it serve as a motorcycle and ATV ramp, but it also functions as a truck bed extender, cargo cover, trailside worktable, and trackside or trailside sunshade. It’s made of aircraft grade aluminum for durability, dependability, and perhaps most importantly, safety. It has a 1,500 lb. load capacity, but is also angled in such as way that it works for street bikes and Harleys. Another nice feature is that the bed extender is designed to cinch in against the rear tire of the truck and keep it from bouncing – so going off road just got simpler and quicker.

The Pitch. The video for the $42,000 campaign begins with a rather mellow choice of music, though it does change direction at about 40 seconds into the video to something that seems more anticipated. The detail for the product’s uses is nicely done along with some good camera angles that add interest. One might expect to see the guys at the end riding off into the sunset rather than walking given the many types of motor vehicles shown throughout the video, but this is certainly one of the more professional looking videos shot for a Kickstarter campaign.

The Perks. There are seven tiers from which backers can choose for this big ticket item. For $399 a backer gets the 24” version of Shark Cage Ramp. Larger donations will get you a longer ramp. Expected delivery is May 2014.

The Potential. Shark Kage Ramp could really have an appeal to a broad range of people, from amateur to professional racers as well as self-employed repair and landscapers and rural emergency response teams. It could even appeal to outdoor enthusiasts who like to take their truck with them on extended hiking, camping, and cycling excursions.

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Automotive Cell Phone Accessories

EverDock Go makes a place for your phone in your car

EverDoc Go 74b3184395e9314f7c5235caf0bea3e2_large[1]Most people like to have their phone with them when they are on the go. There are multiple car docks out there for mobiles, but EverDock Go seems to be more universal to the variety of phones that people use. Rather than attaching to the windshield with suction or mounting on the dash, the solid-looking dock is designed to fit in your car’s cup holder — cutting down on dashboard clutter but requiring looking away a bit more for navigation tasks. For $35, backers get one product, which is $15 off of the anticipated retail price. Expected delivery is September 2014.

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Automotive

Pillo-Guard turns your child’s head into a backseat Pong ball

Pillo_Guard 0119f3e5ec2c1cddbcfa4a8b5b25a6d7_large[1]Maybe it’s the fact that they have to sit still and be somewhat restrained by a seatbelt, but it seems that if kids are going to nap, that the car is typically the easiest place for it to happen. The only problem is that the often end up slumped over in some odd (but also sometimes funny) position that doesn’t look the least bit comfortable to an adult. Pillo-Guard aims to make those road trips more comfy. A string on each side of the plush device is tied behind the headrest for what looks like quick and easy installing although it does appear as if it can interfere with the seat belt. Additional pillows are available if more neck cushioning is needed. The product works for both kids and adults.There are less cumbersome alternatives, at least for smaller kids For $30, backers get the early bird special of one Pillo-Guard with an expected delivery of July 2014.

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Automotive Cycling

Five Questions for RightPSI

Backerjack asked John Milanovich a few questions about his crowdfunded tire pressure indicator, RightPSI

What does RightPSI do and how does it do it?

RightPSI is a tire cap that turns orange when your tire is low, black when not, and yellow if overfilled. You unscrew the cap to your valve stem and screw ours on. You then fill through ours and it changes color when you fill it so you can use it as a gauge. Low tire pressure impacts how a car, motorcycle or bike handles and breaks which directly affects safety. For bikes and motorcycles, it impacts fuel efficiency and pollutants.

There seem to be a number of inexpensive color-coded tire pressure monitor valve caps on the market. What makes RightPSI different

RightPSI is the only cap that you can fill through and acts as a gauge. Also, you can see ours from 20 feet away.

The product won a Popular Science award in 2011. Why has it taken so long to get to the crowdfunding stage?

RightPSI

While I knew about Kickstarter and Indiegogo, we were working on our manufacturing process.  We had a two-year time there where we were working to find the right person to supply our plastic parts. I had explored Chinese and European suppliers for these parts, but ended up with a US supplier and consultant. I started seriously reviewing Kickstarter a year ago and we launched a failed Kickstarter in December. We learned a lot from it, and relaunched Feb 15.

Colors are nice and all, but why not have some kind of Bluetooth alert that lets your smartphone know when your pressure is low?

We may have a version 2.0 that does that! We have some initial design work for it. However, our current version is getting a lot of interest and we think in some instances it is preferable. We have had a lot of response from locations where they say we don’t want anything with a battery. We think there is a market for both and we are excited to get this first analog version out.

What have been some of the best product suggestions you’ve gotten from the crowdfunding community?

A lot of people have mentioned the smartphone idea. One suggested that it could light up upon touching so you could check your tires in the dark. Also, people have suggested markets I did not explore prior. A guy emailed me saying, I love your product; I am in a wheelchair and this would make my life easier. I had not thought about that before, but since then I have had other people in wheelchairs e-mail me. That is very exciting to me.

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Automotive Cell Phone Accessories Tablet Accessories

Hangatablet, Hangaphone let your tablets and handsets hang out in your car, home

HangatabletWe’ve all been there. Driving around with a GPS only to have it fall off the windshield, make a big noise and almost run you off of the road. Hangatablet offers a solution to the ever-falling GPS. Using a secure mechanism, Hangatablet attaches to the dashboard of a car and hangs your tablet or smartphone down the center console. Product creator and camel photography enthusiast Steve Jacobson has  can also created a kid brother for handsets called — you guessed it — the Hangaphone. both can be used to let your digital displays dangle for different purposes around the house or at work. Smaller The dashboard drop-ins  go for $59 and larger ones for $69. Hangatablet hopes to raise $160,000 in their 45-day campaign on Kickstarter.

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Automotive Chargers/Batteries

ReVolt3000 breathes new life into dead car batteries

The Premise. The average lifespan of a car battery is under three years. Most people deal with a battery that won’t hold a charge at some point and for many, the solution is to simply go out and buy a new battery, then throw the old one away.

The Product. The ReVolt 3000 gives consumers another choice. This device allows consumers or businesses to recharge dead or dying batteries and give them at least triple their original life span. Working with multiple battery types (NiCad, NiMH, and Gel-cell, aside from the standard fare), the ReVolt3000 reduces the amount of built up lead sulfate, eliminates short circuits, and gets batteries working like new again. Even some batteries that have been laying around for years in disrepair are able to become marginally useful. Users will only need to give each battery in their home no more than 8 hours of use with the ReVolt3000 every year to stay in top shape.

The Pitch. Inventor Tom Hoops outlines what the ReVolt3000 is, and what its impact can be. He starts by explaining the economic angle of saving a family money in the long-term instead of buying new batteries, but then takes the more philanthropic route of outlining just what kind of waste a discarded battery creates,  and how using the ReVolt3000 as an alternative is a smart decision for the planet. There are plenty of pictures of prototype kits to help explain the hard science behind the device. The campaign is looking to raise just $16,000 to begin production and distribution.

The Perks. Backers can start recharging their batters at the $250 tier, promising to arrive by July.  A 12-month warranty is also included. For $30 more, the limited second batch of ReVolt3000s are being sent out to arrive in June, while the highest tier at $300 gives backers a complete, tested pre-production model sent out by April.

The Potential. Most people think of a battery with no charge that needs a jump-start as a dead battery, but the ReVolt3000 can truly take all manner of non-functioning batteries and bring them back to life, at a method that is accessible to the general public in terms of ease of use and price point. Based on Tom’s own math presented in the video, the ReVolt3000 may not be the best solution for an individual with a single vehicle, but at the very least it is certainly a step towards eco-friendliness.

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Automotive Video

Window-Wedge makes it easy for GoPro to come along for the ride

window wedgeAmateur filmmakers have been revolutionizing at-home videos with the GoPro mountable camera, and innovators are constantly looking for ways to help videographers mount those cameras in new places. The Window-Wedge eschews suction cups and lets users to easily attach their GoPro camera to the window of almost any car by simply clipping the mount to the top of the car window. As an added bonus, the mount works to film the interior and exterior of the  car. So if backers wanted to film the occupants of a vehicle having an argument for a short film (right, Jerry Seinfeld?), or film a car chase scene in the rain, they could do it. That’s right – the mount creates a water-tight seal, so the interior of the car isn’t going to suffer. The early bird offer on the deal is $15 for the Window-Wedge, which is a really good price for camera equipment.

 

Categories
Automotive Smart Home

WataSensor WA1 detects dirty deeds in home or car

The Premise. In 2012 alone, there were 8,975,438 property crimes in the U.S. according to the FBI. Collectively, those crimes (which include burglaries, larceny thefts, and car thefts) resulted in a loss of $15.1 billion dollars for the victims, and the rate that agencies made arrests on these crimes is 528.1 arrests for every 100,000 crimes.

The Product. WataSensor aims to improve the security market, and improve the alarming number of property thefts in the U.S. Their product, the WA1, can sense a window breaking, a door opening, or a fire burning and will then send an alert to your smartphone so you can always monitor your property safely. The WA1 is completely portable, and works in any car or house up to 2000 square meters, plus it doesn’t rely on line-of-sight or motion-sensing technology like its competitors. Simply pair it with your smartphone, and you’re protected with the WA1 — no wires or additional set up required.

The Pitch. WataSensor’s video explains just what its product is capable of, and how the company hopes their product can protect property in both the home and automotive markets. According to WataSensor, 90% of homes are unprotected and they hope to change that number for the better. By raising $100,000 the company plans to invest in manufacture tooling for the WA1 and complete their development of the smartphone app.

The Perks. Early adopters, for the price of $249, can be among the first to be protected by the WA1 when it ships in July 2014. That package will also include regular updates from the team and a special edition t-shirt as well. For those more enthusiastic about the product, $400 will include the aforementioned items plus the current generation device which will ship in February.

The Potential. The WA1 will go head-to-head with a huge crowdfunding success story, the Canary, as well as the crowdfunded iSmartAlarm. These products disrupt the security market by creating a device that allows protection without the monthly payments or costly setup procedures, although those who want a professionally monitored option will need to look at options such as the SimpliSafe2. These options also have the advantage of letting you move houses without having to start over and work in just about any setting. Indeed, if the WA1 be even used in a car as the company states, it may be poised to advance home security into apartments where penetration is even lower than in houses.