[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-A4ZNdkmEs&feature=player_embedded%5D
Straight out of the fiction of Harry Potter is The Magic Clock. Just like in the novel this clock (is it still a clock even thought it doesnt tell time?) shows the current location of family members, from home to the doctor’s office, even to mortal peril (We hear its nice this time of year).
The clock hands are driven by 4 separate servo motors, which are maintained by an Arduino. The location of family members is updated wirelessly via Twitter. We think a script written for each member’s GPS enabled cell phone might be more trustworthy, but it seems to be working fine currently.
[via Make]
Some type of device needs to be in each room that will detect who is in the room. Maybe an RFID pad in each room and a RFID keyring to activate it programed for each person.
This is a control freaks dream. I’m glad I grew up before all this technology so I could have fun just being a kid.
Yay, moar arduino.
I can think of about 30 different ways to display the location that would be easier to read and easier to implement. Old fashioned does not equal cool, otherwise my grandpa would be the coolest mofo in the country.
@M4CGYV3R i think its like this because of the harry potter novel, where one of charachters has one of those
Exactly: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_objects_in_Harry_Potter#Weasley_family_clock
one of my sister-in-law’s friends needs not know about this. the mother of said friend would enable this to also give current GPS coordinates under an additional pointer labeled “other” so she would know her daughter’s exact location 24/7/365.25 even though she is already a legal adult. The woman is a crazy control freak… very CDO (OCD in alphabetical order) about knowing where and what her daughter is doing.
@sly
A better gift would be to put a bow on your fist and give her a Christmas knuckle sandwich. I abhor control-freak parents.
yep before i had a mobile i felt free like the wind! Then when i got a mobile i had a ball and chain. Ohh then i figured out how to turn it off.
Get lost not found.
WAY cool! This would be a very popular item if somebody manufactured them and not just for Harry Potter fans. Any family could stylishly keep track of their members.
This would work great with google Latitude.
Screw the air holes. And screw boxes. How about packed 90-yard containers.