I saw this a while ago in National Geographic but the technology has improved since then to include a dial instead of a syringe to transfer the fluid. In the article a pair was given to a half blind tailor who could not even thread a thread through the eye of a needle. He put the glasses on, adjusted them and instantly went back to working. Holy shit, technology! (Call me when there's a monocle version)

These adaptive-lens eyeglasses were designed by Adlens to correct almost anybody's vision, all with the simple twist of a knob.

How they work: The lenses are hollow, with a plastic sheet stretched across it on the inside. When you twist the dial, fluid pumps in between the sheet and the lens. The fluid is clear and has a high refractive index. The more fluid that pumps in, the more the curvature of the sheet increases, making the lens more powerful.

Adlens markets these glasses for the developing world since things like opthamologists and opticians can be scarce there, but they could be useful in developed countries as well.

For instance: younger people whose eyes may worsen rapidly (I speak from experience) could just get one pair of these babies, negating the need to replace prescription lenses often. I mean, as long as you could tone down that dial (maybe replace it with a slider) and make the specs look at least a little more stylin'. But the question remains: If you turn the knob all the way do you get x-ray vision or just a headache? Hey! You're not wearing any underwear!

Keep those inventions coming and be sure to send a prototype to me and I'll review it for you right here on dannisblog.

Danni~

One day in 2006, stuck in bumper-to-bumper Bay Area traffic, Amir Abolfathi had a eureka moment. Formerly vice president of R&D for Invisalign, a company known for transparent dental braces, he had recently been chatting with a friend who was working on hearing aids. Abolfathi knew that bone was a good sound conductor. What if he could somehow make a removable oral hearing aid—one that could channel sound from wearers’ teeth to their ear through the bones in their head?

That moment of freeway inspiration gave rise to the SoundBite, a device designed for sufferers of single-sided deafness, which strikes about 50,000 people every year in the U.S. After his friend, Michael Benninger, an otolaryngologist at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, told him it could really help to solve the problem, Abolfathi set about turning his idea into reality. The biggest challenge was miniaturization, so he opted for a piezoelectric actuator, which needs very little power to generate the vibrations that travel through bone. That allowed him to use a much smaller battery, making the entire insert compact enough to fit comfortably in the mouth.

Invention: SoundBite
Inventor: Amir Abolfathi
Cost: $19 million
Time: 4 years
Is It Ready Yet? 1 2 3 4 5

Made of acrylic, SoundBite snaps onto a user’s molars. A tiny microphone worn in the deaf ear wirelessly beams incoming sound to an electronic receiver in the molar insert,

which transmits sound waves from the teeth through the bones in the jaw to the cochlea, the part of the ear that processes sound. (Traditional hearing aids only amplify sound, so they don’t work for people with non-functioning cochlea.) The battery lasts for six to eight hours at a time and can be recharged in a wall outlet.

The best remedy for single-sided deafness currently on the market is a bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA), which, like the SoundBite, uses direct bone conduction to deliver sound to the cochlea. But BAHA installation involves surgically implanting a titanium post into the base of the skull. Other noninvasive tooth-based systems have been attempted, but none was ever fully developed and brought to market.
The SoundBite restores hearing just as effectively as a BAHA but requires no surgery. Instead it can be popped in and out of the mouth like a retainer. In clinical trials that wrapped up in February, patients typically reported that it restored from 80 to 100 percent of their hearing in the deaf ear and that they scarcely noticed they were wearing it. Lawrence Lustig, the director of the University of California at San Francisco Cochlear Implant Center, is so impressed with the SoundBite that he says he’ll recommend it to people who would otherwise have to undergo surgery.

If the device secures FDA approval as anticipated, it will hit the market this summer for around $6,000. (Surgery for a BAHA can run well over $10,000.) Abolfathi’s company, Sonitus Medical, plans to negotiate with insurance providers to reimburse patients for at least part of the cost. Abolfathi is also investigating other applications for the technology, including wireless, water-safe MP3 players and stealth communication for intelligence personnel. But even if those don’t pan out, he’s satisfied to know that he’s already improved people’s lives. “One patient just e-mailed and told me, ‘I saw Avatar, and it was great. I hadn’t been to a movie in years.’”

Keep those inventions coming and be sure to send a prototype to me and I'll review it for you right here on dannisblog.

Danni~

You know that feeling right? You can focus better with one eye closed and you keep falling off the floor... Well, you may well have a drinking problem. Kidding, I'm sure you're fine. But if you ever have trouble getting your key in the door then you may want to check this amazing key hole out. I know I sure could have used this in college... and last night.

So, if the glass keeps missing your mouth, considering investing in one of these. And the next time your flying high and have a terrific idea for an invention be sure to video yourself explaining all about it, those are always fun to watch the next day. Send them to me danni@dannisblog.com and I'll be sure to review it on my next blog.

*hick*

Happy Inventing! - Danni~

Ok, this totally cracks me up! Whenever a TV product commercial plays I crack up during the parts where they show us what we're doing wrong and why we need the product. Come on people, have you had one of these ideas and didn’t get it to market first?

Track down a company to help YOU!

Also, bonus points and a shout out on my next blog entry to the person who can tell me what product the guy suspiciously unbuttoning his jeans at 13 seconds is in need of?? Enquiring minds need to know!

OK, this one strikes me as a little sad, but then I also think it's a terrific idea. When you hear of a product called the Bed Ladder you’re probably thinking it’s some sort of ladder to help you get onto a tall bed (like pet stairs for humans!) or a ladder to get you up to a loft bed or bunk bed. Well, you’d be totally wrong because the bed ladder goes horizontally across your bed. It’s designed for the elderly and people with disabilities. You use the bed ladder to pull yourself up without any help. I see some downside to it, like falling off the bed while grandma is tossing and turning, or perhaps confusing the heck out of grandpa when he leans across for a midnight suggle. Buy hey, if you're having a heard time sitting up in bed I'm sure it could be helpful in certain circumstances.

The distributor of Bed ladder tells me it makes getting out of bed easy. The sturdy wooden rungs provide stability and comfortable grips for pulling yourself up without help from others and it's great for hospitals and care centers.

If you've used this product, or have a similar idea of you your own, drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you. And if you have a product or invention you'd like me to review on my blog just let me know. I'm available!

Love as always - Danni~

...We are replacing you, one invention at a time. At least, you still have your good looks to fall back on, because Live Luggage is taking away your ability to impress all the single ladies on the plane with your heavy-lifting luggage skills. Now women can fit all their pairs of shoes without struggling to lug their carry-on around the airport or into the overhead bin; Live Luggage is a power-wheel bag! Now if it could only get itself to the terminal on its own, we would be set. It also has an anti-gravity handle that pulls 85% of your weight, so that you can look stylish carrying pounds of last minute gifts that you purchased at the airport. You won't even be able to tell that you added the weight! And the real kicker of Live Luggage is that both bags detach making it easier to stuff and lift your carry-on into the overhead container. No more smacking random people in the head, unless of course, you want to. Hey, I have met a lot of strange and obnoxious individuals on airplanes as I am sure you have to. I don't judge.

If you have a great invention that will make traveling less stressful, remember to seek patenting advice first. Now let's all board a plane to the Caribbean Islands pronto!