Category: Sensors/IoT

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Sensors/IoT

A tiny motion sensor, CoinGuard alerts you to mysterious movements

We all have those things that we want to keep protected from the sticky fingers and greedy curious hands of burglars, children, or even just friends and family. Aside from setting up bullet-proof cases with laser trip alarms, how can these items be protected? CoinGuard is a simple and small security system that can be laid atop any item and serve as a watchdog. If the CoinGuard is moved, it triggers the motion sensor and sends a notifcation to the user’s phone, letting them know that their item is being tampered with.

CoinGuard does this through a nearby hub that syncs up to sensors and connects to the Internet through ethernet. The system allows for some peace of mind if items are being tampered with, but this comes with one key drawback. The CoinGuard has no way of reporting who is touching the protected items, and lacks the visual recognition to deter someone who doesn’t know what CoinGuard is. So if one is away from home and their valuables are being taken, the best they can do is try and call someone to respond in time when an alert has been sent. Pilot Labs is raising $100,000 through Kickstarter, and will set backers back $45 in December.

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Sensors/IoT

Portable AirBeam monitors and reports air quality

Air pollution is a rapidly growing concern all throughout the world. Our dependence on mass production and the use of fossil fuels directly affects the air we breathe no matter where we are, because what is created in another part of the world ultimately travels and gets to us. Even if the problem has the potential to wreck all sorts of havoc on our health, it sadly goes largely ignored because it’s invisible. Although there are government sites where air quality is monitored and recorded, the network is too sparse and dated to provide a full and accurate picture, much less be used as proof in matters of legislation. That’s where the AirBeam comes in.

The AirBeam is a portable arduino-based air quality monitor that continuously monitors the air and sends that data to a smartphone with Bluetooth, feeding it back to the AirCast environmental awareness platform. AirCast crowdsources all of this data from the thousands already using AirBeam to create a robust and extremely accurate picture of air quality. This allows citizen scientists, change makers, and ordinary people to be more informed and make an impact. To be effective, though, the monitor must work all day, a length of time smartphones have trouble staying on for by themselves. In any case, the AirBeams rings in at $199 which may be a bit pricey considering what kind of mass aspirations HabitatMap, the non-profit behind AirBeam and AirCast, has. Backers can start monitoring the air in May of 2015, if the creators reach their $50,000 goal.

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Sensors/IoT Wallets

Jayster wallet lets you know of its absence via Bluetooth

Losing anything valuable can put a huge dent in our day, throwing us off from what we need to do and causing unnecessary worry and stress. Instead of running around trying to get it sorted by retracing your steps or calling your credit card companies, Jayster wants to help you avoid that altogether with its wallet sensor. Without adding much weight or volume, Jayster gives your wallet all the functionality necessary so that you can get it back in your hands when it isn’t.

The slim insert comes in a variety of colors, and is outfitted with both Bluetooth and GPS technology that allows it to connect to your iOS or Android smartphone. If your wallet somehow strays further than 15 feet away from you, an audible alarm on the insert itself will sound in its Nest mode. If it ends up lost even after that, a companion app uses a hot/cold system or a more accurate GPS to find it. Jayster will continue to grow and be useful down the road with its upgradeable firmware and replaceable battery that lasts for two years as well. As much as this will avoid lots of headaches, its $20 price tag certainly reflects its limited functionality. The campaign is looking to deliver the Jayster by November 2014, with a campaign goal of $10,000.

 

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Automotive Sensors/IoT

Car Footprints plugs in to automatically calculate deductible miles

Ask anyone that’s ever had to log their mileage for tax deductions and they’ll all say the same thing: the numbers they put on their taxes are usually just best estimations. Is it possible to protect oneself from an audit and still get the maximum deduction back?

With Car Footprints, it’s easy to get an accurate, easy mileage log for tax season. Connecting directly to the car’s ODB port, Car Footprints communicates via smartphone from the car to a service that tracks and logs all mileage driven to make calculating deductions even easier. Any driving for medical, business, or charity purposes can be deducted, adding up to an average of thousands of dollars per year.

Without using GPS services, Car Footprints is secure and doesn’t report any information other than mileage. Turning a step predicated on meticulous bookkeeping or pure guesswork and making it automatic will save professionals both time and money. The Car Footprints tracker and three months of service is available starting in March for $47, if inventor Ney Torres can raise $35,000.

Car Footprints may be a niche product only for those who deduct their driving miles, but for eliminating the headache tracking those miles creates, it should be a must-own product for those groups.

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Sensors/IoT

Level Minder alerts if your bath water becomes a rising tide

An overflowing bathtub or sink can be disastrous, requiring costly repairs by the time you realize what’s happening. Many have experienced it, from the elderly to the physically impaired to those who are just plain forgetful or distracted, making a solution to the issue an important one.

Level Minder is a small, compact sensor that attaches to the edge of a bathtub or sink with a suction cup. Once there, sensors at the bottom of the unit alert you with a loud alarm once water reaches them, with planned Wi-Fi capability to send a text message or even wirelessly turn off the water supply when you’re not in. The unit comes in three colors to match a wide variety of bathroom layouts and currently goes for $100, with an estimated delivery date of March 2015. The campaign needs a staggering $500,000 to make it all happen.

The Level Minder is a fine solution to a real issue, but the product is way too narrow in what it does. The inventor talks about how big the issue of water damage is, but ultimately doesn’t convince. Add its bloated cost and the Level Minder ends up being a lot less sensible than it initially seems.

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Food and Beverage Sensors/IoT

Smart Coaster measures liquid intake for those who don’t move much

Dehydration is a common problem among adults. No one ever drinks the recommended amount of water each day either due to lack of time or fear of bloating. Riding on the trend of every product imaginable smartening up, the Coaster Talk is a smart coaster. When a glass is placed upon it, it measures your intake of water using an accompanying app. Coaster Talk isn’t only for adults, however, it also works well for babies. By measuring a baby’s milk intake, parents can tell when to feed them and prevent overfeeding them. Coaster Talk will cost backers a $36 AUD (~$32 USD) donation for delivery by January 2015. This product is looking to raise $6,000 AUD (~$5,300 USD).

The design of the Coaster Talk limits its potential. First of all, the idea that one would use the same coaster for every drink is slightly off base. Second of all, it would be difficult to track water intake all throughout the day if leaving the house is involved. Vessyl, a smart drink container, detects what you’re drinking, keeps track of calories, hydration and caffeine intake. It makes more sense because it’s easier to carry around a cup rather than a coaster and has a larger range of uses. If the Coaster Talk can evolve to include more kinds of drinks in its analyses then it may be able to contender with the Vessyl.

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Pets Sensors/IoT

Pod pet locator can withstand the elements

When a pet goes missing, it creates a tense situation full of nerves and panic as the family members try and locate a living being that could be absolutely anywhere and is unable to pick up a phone or write.

Pod is a GPS tracker that can be clipped onto a pet’s collar that provides a mixture of tracking and social features to push notifications to phones when a dog or cat goes wandering off  unsupervised. In addition to being able to simply locate a pet, Pod functions as a sort of local social network for pet owners to compare running speeds or area explored. The tracker is lightweight and waterproof, so it won’t risk shorting out and won’t weigh the pet down or make it uncomfortable. Pod needs $50,000 to do its part in preventing lost pets. At the $149 pledge level, supporters can get this real time tracker and attach it to their beloved pets.

Anything that can prevent a lost or endangered pet is a great tool to have, although a lot of the core design is built around letting pets run free. That kind of attitude is not global, and owners will still be responsible for their pet’s behavior, so buyers beware.

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Health and Wellness Sensors/IoT

Darma smart seat cushion reminds you to take a stand

Back pain, poor posture and lots of lazing around are realities for many folks. Each one of these problems feeds into the other, so it’s hard to break the cycle of discomfort. Darma is a smart seat cushion that doubles as your posture coach. It monitors your sitting habits, posture, breath, and heart rate to give you helpful tips. If you’re slouching, Darma tells you to sit up straight through a smartphone alert. When your heart rate is high indicating stress, it suggests taking a walk to calm down. Similarly, if you’ve been sitting too long, Darma advises taking standing breaks.

Best of all, by collecting data about you specifically, it can give you customized stretches that will alleviate the pain present in different parts of your body. Designed with sleek black leather, it’s unobtrusive and will blend in well with your office chair. One will cost backers a $189 donation on Kickstarter.

Darma is an interesting new take on the type smartphone-powered health assistance we’ve seen a lot of recently. Most of these devices are wearables in the form of clip-ons or bracelets. While we’ve seen previous products aimed at improving posture, Darma blends into its surroundings. The constant alerts may prove to be annoying at first, like a nagging mother telling you to sit up straight. However, the long term health benefits will likely be worth the hassle. All in all, Darma is a great solution for the sedentary and actually one of the least obtrusive solutions to too much sitting.

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Sensors/IoT Wearables

Tempi beats out your weatherman by giving you the exact temperature

Wearable devices come in all shapes and size, doing all kinds of interesting and novel things. The problem is that most of these functions are simply not that interesting. Introducing Tempi, the smart wearable thermostat. The product is similar to others like Thermodo and CliMate in that it tracks temperature, but that’s where the similarities end. CliMate offers more versatility in that it can be clipped onto clothing and left in predetermined places. It also offers more information such as sunscreen alerts, things Tempi does not.

The company is looking to beef up the app by adding multiple Tempi monitoring, social networking features, as well as map integration — but will you really want to share how hot or cold it is on your hike? Seems like although the product’s idea is usable in very certain scenarios, for the most part, it’s a novelty. With that said, if you’re as much of a temperature enthusiast as the product’s creators, then a Tempi can be had for just $25. However, without a more robust feature set, this product may face a few hurdles towards it $50,000 goal.

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Health and Wellness Sensors/IoT

Fever Smart lets you monitor your kids for lobal warming

The Premise. When your child is sick, it’s important to monitor their temperature constantly. Fever spikes in the night can go unnoticed by parents who don’t want to keep waking their children up to take their temperature. It can be dangerous to miss this important information in regards to your child’s health.

The Product. Fever Smart is an easy and effective way to monitor your child’s health. The sensor sits under your child’s armpit and is attached with a sticky patch. It keeps track of your child’s temperature and sends alerts via Wi-fi to the accompanying smartphone app. Currently, Fever Smart is only compatible with Apple and even works with the new iOS 8. Any information gathered is automatically uploaded to Apple’s iCloud so the information is accessible for multiple users anywhere. The sensor runs on battery and Fever Smart is FDA-approved.

The Pitch. Fever Smart’s campaign video features its many chief operators discussing their product. Their main motivation for Fever Smart was the health and safety of children. The campaign promises that upon reaching 150% of their $40,000 goal, that the creators will work on making Fever Smart Android compatible as well.

The Perks. Early birds can enjoy this smart fever monitor for $99 or at a regular price of $129. For those who just can’t wait, $179 will get them the app and product a month earlier than the rest in December 2014. Estimated delivery for the regular tiers is set for January 2015.

The Potential. Fever Smart has several things going for it. One, it continuously monitors fever in times of sickness. Two, it’s non-invasive. And three, it uploads information to the iCloud so it’s readily available. This isn’t the only smart fever monitoring device out there, however. The Kinsa Smart Thermometer also hooks up to smartphones to deliver comprehensive data, but Kinsa only allows for one-at-a-time temperature readings. As for Fever Smart, the only question is how comfortable those sensors are, especially for kids who tend to be finicky about having things attached to their bodies. Still, this product is a cool, innovative product for helicopter moms who want to make sure their kids are okay.