Category: Connected Objects

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Connected Objects Health and Wellness

MedWand measures vitals, peeks inside you to further telemedicine

Anyone who’s seen much of Star Trek has probably seen the tricorder, the magical device used by Dr. McCoy to scan patients for a whole host of possible ailments. Interest in the practicality of that device really picked up with the Scanadu Scout that raised over $1.6 million. However, there’s  plenty that technology can do long before the days of warp drives and phasers.

Take, for example, MedWand. The compact device combines seven medical diagnostic tools in one to send data and images to a doctor available via a telemedicine call. The MedWand allows the remote physician to check out the inside of the patients’ noses, ears or throats, or monitor their heartbeat or blood oxygen level.  This information is sent to an app via Bluetooth although it is no doubt the company’s intent to have it compatible with apps from multiple healthcare providers MedWand seeks $75,000 on Indiegogo by May 28th. A $199 unit that represents a $50 discount off the retail price is due to ship in October.

Unlike products with tricorder ambitions, the MedWand is designed for today’s medical landscape… almost. Telemedicine is still immature and relatively unavailable. However, it stands to fill in a critical gap for immobile patior rural patients. The success of the product will likely come down to the company’s ability to convince insurers to at least partially subsidize its costs.

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Connected Objects Food and Beverage

SmartQSine weighs in with a way to tell when you’re running low on stuff

editors-choiceSome products, like colas, come in clear plastic bottles or glass jars that make it easy to see at a glance when you’re running out. But many don’t. making it easy to run out of whatever is needed whenever it is needed.

To combat this kitchen conundrum, NES Italia has developed the SmartQsine, an oddly named series of small connected scales called pads. They come in two versions. Gold pads communicate with the company’s mobile app and serve as a bridge to less expensive silver pads. Despite the colorful names, both versions are white. SmartQsine also has commercial applications alerting shop owners when they’re low on certain products. The company seeks $80,000 by May 28.  While reward tiers include various combinations of gold and silver pads, a gold pad starts at $439 and should be delivered by August.

SmartQsine is a bit like the Neo Smart Jar, which is designed more to gauge the age of items rather than their level. The Neo has some nifty recipe applications, but the SmartQsine pads can be used with a wide range of containers and is less expensive. It also owes a bit to Quirky’s Refuel, which detects the level of a propane tank by its weight. Its low price and flexible configuration point the way to a future of smart refrigerators and cabinets.

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Connected Objects Health and Wellness

Insulin Angel medication tracker watches blood sugar, keeps insulin usable

Diabetes is a common but serious disease, requiring constant vigilance on the part of the diabetic in make sure their medication is stored and used at optimal temperature. If not, it can spoil and be rendered ineffective. What’s more, keeping the medication close is of utmost importance, because losing it puts users in a precarious situation.

The Insulin Angel is a product designed to alleviate the common worries associated with diabetes by incorporating a temperature and proximity sensors into one compact, tab-like device. The Bluetooth-enabled device works in tandem with an iOS or Android companion app to keep users constantly informed about their medication’s temperature, send timed alerts as to when to administer the medication, as well as to facilitate a wireless leash to make sure users never leave their it behind.

The companion app’s medication database currently contains information on a wide range of popular insulin medication, as well as a few asthma and rheumatism medications too — with an expanding library in the works. A single Insulin Angel runs $50, and the $55,000 campaign is looking to ship the product in August of this year.

Despite its name, Insulin Angel can be used with a wide range of temperature sensitive medication no matter the affliction, an incredibly handy utility for sufferers around the world. This makes it a much more broadly capable but ultimately less focused product when compared to something like Amiko, designed specifically for asthma sufferers and as a result benefits from its narrow focus.

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Connected Objects

Noteu Wi-Fi display lets you know you have a message and not much else

Thanks to the Internet, there has never been a more abundant supply of information so freely available. As beneficial as this abundance is, the sheer amount can quickly become overwhelming without efficient methods of consuming it all. Smartphones do an amazing job of keeping up with the many Web sites and services people use every day to communicate, but sometimes there’s a desire for more passive notification, particularly among iPhone and Android holdouts.

For those times, the Wi-Fi connected Noteu smart clock helps out by constantly streaming information. Besides being a customizable alarm clock, the product uses widgets to push Facebook messages, tweets, e-mails, and RSS updates. In addition, IFTTT support lets users create custom alerts tailored specifically for them, such as shipping and stock updates. A single Noteu will run $133, with an expected ship date of September 2015. The campaign is aiming for $14,919 in funding.

This campaign marks the fourth go around for young inventor Jack Trowbridge, signifying a process of iteration that has led to Noteu’s current model. However, when compared to competing products like DISPLIO, it still falls short. It’s clunky, isn’t context-sensitive, and just doesn’t do enough especially considering it doesn’t seem like a user can act on any of the notifications from the device. IFTTT support expands its capabilities immensely, though, and may be its saving grace.

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Connected Objects Home

Planty monitors plants, makes sure they’re feeling well

Plants are an excellent way to brighten up any home. But they need lots of care in order to stay alive. Most plants die because their owners aren’t sure of how exactly to care for them.

Planty offers a solution to that problem. With a sensor that goes directly into the soil, Planty sends the plant’s information via Wi-Fi to an accompanying app. It monitors moisture, soil levels, temperature and light. If the plant is too hot, a notification will be sent to the app. When the soil gets too dry, the app informs the user who can then deliver water to the plant with the push of a button. Planty’s smart pot is simply designed with a white round base that plugs into the wall.

Backerjack has seen many other smart planters like the Daisy and GreenVase. Planty sets itself apart with a sleeker design and a more versatile sensor. One will cost backers a donation of $99 with delivery in November 2015. The company seeks $100,000 on Kickstarter by May 23.

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Connected Objects Kids/Babies Video Games

Playbrush uses interactive gaming to get kids to brush their teeth

Many parents with small kids know how hard it can be to convince some children to brush their teeth regularly, and to do it well.

Playbrush is a device that attaches to the end of any conventional toothbrush, transforming the brush into an interactive game controller that can be used in conjunction with iOS (and later Android) mobile devices. When the user starts the app on their smartphone or tablet, the gadget will automatically connect to it via Bluetooth Low Energy (Bluetooth Smart) technology. Playbrush costs $72 and will ship in December. Its maker is hoping to raise $51,887 by May 9.

Playbursh is a device with potential, especially for parents of young kids who either try and avoid brushing altogether or race through the process in just a few seconds. Turning brushing into a fun activity might very well be the trick to get at least some of them to change their ways. That said, it’s impossible to tell from the Kickstarter campaign video just how strong the initial game itself is. If it’s just one weak repetitive game, those kids may very well get bored after a week or two and parents will be left with the same problem they started with. To address this potential problem, the device’s maker plans to add multiple worlds, levels and characters.

 

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Connected Objects Sleep

Wakē shines a little light — and audio — to rouse without disturbing mattress mates

The smartphone has encroached upon the classic clock radio as the tool of choice for greeting the day, but both offer an escape from slumber via sounds delivered at an elevated decibel. That can mean a rude awakening for the person who shares a bed with the early riser.

Wakē swivels to project a light and parametric speaker (one that can focus a beam of sound) that work together to gently wake owners and their bedfellows individually. The product mounts above the bed on a wall. From there, a companion smartphone app communicates when and how the sleeping should be awoken with a combination of light and sound. Wakē can hone its spotlight and audio beam on bed occupants even if they are spooning. However, pre-empting concern about (unwanted) cameras in the bedroom, the product relies on heat seeking to identify which person should receive its stimuli. Developer Lucera Labs seeks $100,000 by May 30th. Backers can pick up a unit for $250 (or $125 per bed occupant).

Wake has more applications on the drawing board; a reading light is a natural next step. The product represents the most radical rethinking of the alarm clock in a long time. It’s unusual position in the bedroom and need to be charged every few months, though, diminish ts useful impact for couples. somewhat Still, it represents the most clever use of parametric speaker capabilities to date.

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Connected Objects Cooking

Babs connected kitchen assistant helps keep both your gadgets and grub clean

A kitchen is only pristine when it isn’t being used to whip up a delicious breakfast, lunch, or dinner. When food preparation is on the agenda, kitchens can get real messy real quick, making it onerous to both cook and simultaenously reference resources like cookbooks and internet recipes.

Salted Wire’s Babs smart kitchen assistant is here to help out in that regard. The Bags smart kitchen is exactly what people need to prevent their recipe books from getting soaked with water and their iPad screens from becoming grease-laden cesspools. Bats utilizes voice controls, thereby allowing users to ask Babs for anything as varied as dinner ideas tailored to specific dietary needs to suggestions on making a current recipe better. To make up for its lack of a display, the device is capable of interfacing with Chromecast, Android devices, and iOS devices. As a result, users can send whatever information they’d like to smartphones, tablets, and TVs to truly provide for a hands-off experience.

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Connected Objects Uncategorized

Calou drags the wall calendar into the digital age with e-ink

In an era before Outlook and Google Calendar, people tended to keep their personal schedules in a pocket planner and group or family calendars on a wall calendar. Smartphones have replaced the former but their larger siblings — tablets — haven’t really replaced the latter. Part of the reason for that is because these calendars should be viewable at a glance, which mean a constant display.

Calou is the closest a digital product has come to recreating the classic wall paper. Like an e-reader such as the Amazon Kindle, t uses e-paper technology to maximize battery life. Calou’s developer, Hamburg-based TECHNIKmanufaktur, says that the iPad-sized product can last two week without being charged. The tablet is encased inside a wooden dish-like enclosure that has a magnetic front for small notes and photographs.

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Automotive Connected Objects

Loxet locks up the car based on your proximity to it

When drivers mistakenly think they’ve locked their car, or perhaps forget about doing so altogether, the result can be costly. While having one’s car towed can be frustrating, having it stolen is an entirely different and more aggravating experience.

Because preventing a car from being stolen is much easier than recovering a stolen car, the Loxet is a device worth checking out. Loxet is a smartphone-controlled proximity lock and anti-theft device for cars that should help drivers breath a bit more easily. Loxet works with Android 4.3+ smartphones and iPhones equipped with Bluetooth 4.0. Once installed, the device automatically unlocks a car as its owner approaches and locks the door right as the owner begins leaving the vicinity. The device prevents anybody from driving the car who isn’t either a) the owner or b) an individual who has been granted access via a setting on the accompanying app. Loxet costs $69 and is scheduled to ship in August. Its maker is looking to raise $25,000 by May 15.

Loxet certainly has potential. One potential barrier towards widespread adoption, however, is the setup process. While the device itself can be mounted in any car equipped with central locking, it will take a mechanic 45-90 minutes to install it, this according to the company’s Kickstarter campaign. Loxet can also be installed by the purchaser via an instruction manual, but if it takes more than an hour for a mechanic to install it, it’s likely too complicated for the average consumer to set up in the first place. Turning to a mechanic will, of course, add some cost to the device.