RSSMIT Builds Alarm Clock That Hides
By Nate Mook | Published March 25, 2005, 11:24 AM
MIT Media Lab might have the answer for individuals who just can't get out of bed in the morning. Research associate Gauri Nanda has created an alarm clock, called "Clocky," that drives off a bedside table and hides as soon as the snooze button is pressed. And to ensure its owner awakes, Clocky hides in a different spot each day.
Clocky sports wheels and is enveloped in a shag carpet to prevent damage during its fall. Inside, a processor calculates a new hiding place each morning. All told, Clocky costs about $20 USD to manufacture, its creator says.
"In designing Clocky, I was in part inspired by kittens I've had that would bite my toes every morning. Clocky is less of an annoying device as it is a troublesome pet that you love anyway," explains MIT's Nanda, who admits, "It's also a bit ugly."
Nanda notes that Clocky does not solve all of the problems associated with alarm clocks, such as waking up a person in the next room, but thinks one day it could.
"I think the answer rests in the usage of multiple Clockies," says Nanda. "Let's say there are two people with different sleep schedules sharing a room. Maybe one person's Clocky can tell the other to hush up if it has sounded off one too many times."
Ive gone to crazy lengths to wake up. Try removing the snooze button on your clock. When you wake up, you have to go hunt for a screw driver or pen to turn the damn thing off. Works for me.
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|They've had these for years in Japan. My wife was astonished when I said "check this out!".. She was like "oh, yah, the alarm clock that runs away from you. Old news".
Jees. Talk about Prior art.
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|I can see it now, people throwing things across the room to hit the dam thing, and down south I could see bullet holes in the wall,,lol can't they come out with a clock that suck,s your D%&^^ instead? lol
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|LOL! If they had clocks like that... i'd be late for...everything.
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|I don't think this clock will be very popular... I know that as cool as it may sound, I don't want a clock that looks like something from the trash can on my table or any other place it decides to automatically roll off to. At least I can say their time making it helped them learn more I guess... But to me the clock it pretty much useless.
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|Maybe one day, we’ll have an alarm clock that just crawls on your chest and wets itself. We can dream, can’t we?
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|mmmmm alarm clock weewee heheh ewwwwwwww
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|Did anyone notice that April Fool's Day is coming?
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|I've never once in my life used a snooze button. I fail to see the point. Set the damned alarm for when you need to get up, then--now here's a shock, are you ready?--GET UP WHEN THE ALARM GOES OFF! What a concept.
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|Fine observation... yet it was very lacking in preparation or validity. Tell me this. Do you think alarm clock manufacturers, especially those that have billion-dollar+ revenues yearly, put snooze buttons on alarm clocks for fun? I don't think so either, they're there because people use them.
In your perfect world, no one would need a snooze button, and people would probably shower in chocolate and towel off with a marshmellow, too.
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|Sounds a bit Big Brother-ish to me. I'm guessing you served some time in the military?
Seriously though, try the snooze button some time. There is nothing better than that extra 9 or so minutes of sleep when you're dead tired from being up all night working/studying.
Once you try it, you'll be addicted too.
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|That explains a lot. ;-)
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|in twenty some odd years I have never had to use a snooze button, and hope never to have to. snooze buttons encourage laziness >.< set the alarm get up and get the day off and going. if you are sooooo tired or lazy where you need a snooze button then stay in bed and sleep. which is more important, you being a lazy a** or you getting to work on time... now theres another novel idea :)
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|Posted on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and now Friday! whee!
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|It looks like a big turd with wheels
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|That was my first thought!!
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|I love it. Especially the guys comment at the end - "Let's say there are two people with different sleep schedules sharing a room. Maybe one person's Clocky can tell the other to hush up if it has sounded off one too many times." bahaha .. I could think of a couple people who could use this.
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|Yeah, no kidding... I'm attending college, and the guy in the room next to mine is forever forgetting to shut his off... It would be nice if my clocky could shut his clocky off, lol.
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|Classic. That sure beats using duct tape to secure the alarm clock next to my head in my dorm room back in the college days. Funny thing how that didn't work either, but it sure was fun to break it apart (via slamming it into a wall) when I moved out that year :)
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|Why not just buy an alarm clock without a snooze button?
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|Personally, I'd just unplug it in my sleep, or turn it off entirely. Like many people, I am a different person when I'm half asleep.
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|Plus you'd miss the glorious feeling of smacking the snooze button and the blisful silence that follows as you drift off to sleep for the next 5 minutes before it goes off again...
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|The first time I had to hunt for my alarm clock would result in me crushing it with my heel.
I just put the alarm clock across the room so that I have to get out of bed to turn it off.
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|They could install motion sensors on it so that "Clocky" will run away from you to wake you up even more.
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|That would be hilarious.........even if I had a clocky I don't think I would use it. I would be one of those unlucky people that had it roll under my king size bed...........could you imagine it is 6 am and you are on the floor, in your undies, trying to reach this clocky thing. Wouldn't put me in the best of moods.
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