If you’re anything like me, becoming a parent will have made your life infinitely busier – and you’re bound to have thought of a few ideas that would make your lives easier. I know I do – whether it’s inventions to keep your house tidier, occupy the children, make things safer or just a bit of fun – we’ve all got a few inventions up our sleeves, even if we never make them a reality.
Well, I’m planning to get off my proverbial laurels and try to make one of mine a reality! As luck would have it, I’ve started working with an invention-nurturing site called MiThought. Set up as a way to encourage people to collaborate on making their inventions a reality, working with MiThought has gotten my creative juices flowing on a number of occasions.
So, rather than just sticking them up on the site and forgetting about them, I’m committing to making one of them a reality. And that’s where YOU come in.
The 4 inventions/ideas below are all items I’ve listed on MiThought’s website – and I’d like you guys to help me decide which one(s) I should investigate further. The title above each description is a link to the idea page on the website – if you think my idea has legs, hit the link and hit the little “lightning strike” icon in the corner – or share it somewhere, whatever is easiest.
Whichever idea gets the most votes will be the one I take further. So, without further ado, here are five of my parenting-related ideas/inventions, for your approval!
The smart-filtering hoover
We’ve all been there – digging around in the bag or cylinder of the hoover, trying to find an earring, a missing screw or (more likely in my house) a piece of Lego which you hoovered up accidentally. Somebody needs to invent a hoover which has a filter placed BEFORE the bag, which takes out anything bigger than dust or sand and stores it somewhere that the user can access. That way, if items are sucked up by mistake (ear rings, lego, toys, metal etc) you don’t have to open up the bag – you simply slide out the drawer and review your findings! Most hoovers involve several levels of filtration as it is, so why not give one of them an additional element and let the operator see what has been sucked up?
The self-drying (and easy-heating) tent
As a newly-converted camping addict, I’m well aware of some of the most annoying issues you face when living the tent life. Two of mine are: the cold and putting the tent away. So I figured – why can’t there be a device which solves both of those problems at the same time?
Using a fine mesh of wires, similar to those found in the heating element of your car windscreen, this product would be an additional layer to add to a tent set-up. The product would serve two functions – firstly to provide heat to your tent during use, and second to allow for easy drying before you put the tent away. It would be easily foldable and powered either by battery or with a mains adaptor for the car.
The Pregnancy all-in-one supplment
Pregnant women are told to ensure they include a variety of vitamins, nutrients and supplements in their diet – most of which you have to get from a variety of pills and potions. Why not invent a drink or perhaps a cake which contains all these supplements in one handy form?
Sure, there are vitamin supplements and other tablets which supposedly help you out – but none of them seem to contain everything (or nearly everything!) in one handy form! And let’s face it, a food or meal which ticks off all the boxes would be a lot more enjoyable than a boring old tablet…
The Back Seat Baby-cam
When you’re travelling with kids in the back seat – especially the little ones – you want to keep a constant eye on them. Whether it’s checking that they’ve fallen asleep, figuring out what they’re screaming about – or just a bit of reassurance that they’re okay – we’re constantly checking behind us. And as any motorist will know, taking your eyes off the road in front of you – even for a moment – can end in disaster.
Sure, you have your rear-view mirror – but unless you crane your neck in five different directions, it’s almost impossible to see the back seat in full. You can even get “extension” mirrors to aim at the kids – but I’ve never found one which you can get angled correctly. These days, our cars are filled with gadgets and cameras in particular – so why not add a couple of tiny pin-hold cameras to the headrest of your front seats, which can be monitored from a video screen in your Heads-up display, or perhaps next to your sat nav.
So, which of my ideas – if any – do you think could have legs? Let me know, either in the comments or by clicking the link and voting for them on the site!
The self drying tent gets my vote – fantastic idea, really hope it gets made! I’ve put in a vote on MiThought – great site recommendation, thanks.