Below you’ll find a list of some ideas I’ve come up with over the course of the semester. They are all products/services that I personally haven’t seen to be for sale or available. I also append each idea with a 1-10 star rating that denotes how viable I think the idea may be in practice.
1) An idea for a plastic or silicone neckband that would sit around your neck when you jog/workout. This band would have grooves/latches at the end that would allow you to attach the wires for your earbuds so that they can stay in place when you perform physical activities, instead of falling out like some are prone to do. 9/10 *
2) A cellphone case that would charge wirelessly from a receiver in your house. Think of Wi-fi but with electricity instead of a data signal. (Note: scientists are still working on making this a reality, but I call dibs on it when it becomes fully realized.) 8/10 *
3) I think a device that make any cable retractable would be really interesting. Think of how your window blinds work: you tug on the cord and it pulls out, tug on it again and it goes back in. Imagine having an item you could thread a cable through it to turn a 10 ft. cable into a 3 ft. cable. 8/10 *
4) A sensor you could put in any cars’ engine bay to let you know when you’re driving too deep into water. For people in flood prone areas, this will let them know if they can pass through lightly flooded areas without flooding their engine. 5/10 *
5) A water bottle that slowly starts to collapse and shrink as you drink from it. Like having a 12 oz. bottle that reduces to half the size when you’ve already drank 6 oz. of fluid. 4/10 *
6) Smoke alarms don’t work for deaf people. It would be helpful if there was some sort of mechanism that you can attach to the floor of your house that would vibrate when it detects smoke. Deaf people would feel the vibrations, know they’re from the alarm, and evacuate in time. 6/10 *
7) A case for your iPad/Surface Pro that has a solar panel in it, allowing you to charge your tablet when you use the case as a docking station. 9/10 *
8) A seat cushion with adjustable firmness settings similar to how a sleep number bed works. This would allow people to select different firmness settings for comfort, posture, back pain, etc. 4/10 *
9) A portable, USB projector no bigger than your fist. This would allow people to play movies on a large screen on the go without carrying around a large screen. 5/10 *
10) Waterproof crown molding for where your walls meet the floor. In the event of some flooding, this would prevent you from having to replace the bottoms of the walls that would have otherwise become water-damaged. 8/10 *
11) A coating to put on floors only visible under ultra-violet light that shows you where people have been walking. This would allow you to generate a sort of “heat-map” of where people are walking/moving/congregating in your building or business without tracking individual people and violating their privacy. It would give insight to people who design malls, theme parks, and other business about where the majority of their customers are spending their time. 4/10 *
12) A waste bin that would give people a compliment, displayed on a little LED screen, every time they recycle something. It may seem silly, but it would be nice if your trashcan told you your hair looks nice today for being environmentally responsible. 10/10 *
13) A temporary hi-liter with ink that fades over time. This way, you can mark down notes in your textbook that are important to you for your next test, but won’t otherwise damage or reduce the value of the book when it comes time to sell it. 9/10 *
14) Roadways with a coating similar to sidewalk salt that would prevent snow from building up so much. This would make roadways safer and easier to drive on in the winter. 9/10 *
15) A plastic or coating you could put on your TV, computer monitor, or other glossy screens that would give them a matte finish to prevent glare. 9/10 * – top 5 ideas –
16) A fitness app that would allow users to input their weightlifting/running stats, a goal, and then receive a custom workout to achieve that goal. i.e. “I can do 25 pushups, and I want to be able to do 100.” The app then gives you a custom workout for the next x weeks to achieve your goal. 9/10 * – top 5 ideas –
17) A gel you could rub on your glasses that would fill in any small scratches, similar to the one for CDs. 7/10
18) A service where professionals would come to your home, do an “energy efficiency” audit, telling you which areas your home is being wasteful with energy (i.e. old incandescent lightbulbs, windows that let heat out, not using power strips, etc.) and offer to install items that would save you money on your bill every month. 7/10 *
19) Little slip-on wheels that would let you turn most stationary chairs into office chairs you could roll around. 7/10 *
20) A subscription service that would send you different types of plastics and materials for your 3D printer every month so you could experiment and have some variety with your projects. (I know a certain someone reading this who’s interested…) 10/10 *
21) A frame for the power outlets in your wall that has a built-in cover with a child safety latch to prevent kids from stickin’ their forks where they don’t belong. 8/10 * – top 5 ideas –
22) A spray you could use on clear windows to make them frosted/opaque. Great for bathrooms, meeting rooms, and other areas where privacy is a concern. 8/10 *
23) A cellphone case that has small built in covers for the cameras and microphone for more privacy minded individuals. 6/10 *
24) A bracelet/band/watch you could wear that would connect to your phone and let you know how healthy you are. i.e. Knowing that you just ran up a flight of stairs, only to see a 40% raise in heartrate; much higher than the regular 15% for a fit person. Or knowing you keep lifting your hand up and down to stuff doughnuts in your face, which is definitely not healthy. 6/10 *
25) A subscription box company that would sell you boxes of snacks tailored to your specific special dietary need. i.e. gluten free boxes, diabetic safe boxes, etc. 9/10 *
26) Contact lenses that add a slight warmth to everything you see so that bright/colorful screens and scenes don’t hurt your eyes as much. Sort of like sunglasses without the darkening effect. 5/10 *
27) A 3D printer that would have a receptacle for your recyclable plastics, like old water bottles and the like, that would melt them down and allow you to print objects with them. Eco-friendly 3D printing! 7/10 * – top 5 ideas –
28) Perhaps inventing a dryer that is lined with rubber to prevent static buildup when doing the laundry? Not sure if the science checks out, but it’s an idea. 3/10 *
29) A hand warmer/massager you could wear on your wrist to prevent repeated stress injuries if you’re the type of person who spends most of their day on the computer. 6/10 *
30) Windows made from Aerogel: one of the best insulating compounds on the planet. This would cut down heating costs for buildings immensely. 5/10 *
31) A magnetic latch you could put on bathroom stalls with broken locks to keep them held in place while you use them. 10/10 -possible favorite-
32) Water cooled computers allow users to overclock their parts past factory limits. Problem is, room temperature water is always used. The should be an additional unit that you could buy that is essentially a mini cooling unit that would chill the water as it passes through, providing even more cooling to the PC. 6/10 *
33) A wallet lined with insulation that blocks incoming signals, such as those from RFID chips, to prevent people from swiping your card info with a reader by bumping into you. The insulation would be similar to the type of bag that you receive hard drives in, or the one your EZ-Pass came in when you ordered it. 9/10 *
34) No one likes to see photos, posters, or any other wall decoration being tilted. What if we made a wall-mount with a gyroscope to keep it always level? 8/10 * – top 5 ideas –
35) A computer mouse with a memory foam case that forms to the exact shape of your hand for the most ergonomic experience. 6/10 *
36) A fridge that scans all the items you have stored in it, gives you shopping reminders to buy things you’re running low on, and even gives you recipe ideas using ingredients you have on-hand. 7/10 *
37) A sensor you could plug into your cars console that would allow you to set different fuel usage ratios. i.e. normal, low power/eco-friendly, sport. (Works great on Volkswagens.) 8/10 *
38) An app that would mark where you parked your car on a GPS map, and then give you directions to walk back to it later. 9/10 *
39) An app for e-commerce site owners that would allow them to automate certain functions. i.e. if an item is selling at less than 60% normal rate, automatically take 20% off price and email customers a sale announcement. 10/10 *
40) An app that would text you reminders of certain homework assignments you have coming up so you can make sure to do them with time to spare. 9/10 *