Lost Book. The Idea Is to Have

¶ … lost book. The idea is to have a sticker that contains a code, by which an item can be located. If you are looking for an item, it will be equipped with a signal that, when you ask for it, will respond. A variation on this technology already exists in the logistics field, where the RFID concept was adapted to use Bluetooth and smartphone apps. Bluetooth Low Energy technology that sits dormant is utilized. Apple has its iBeacon, and commercial uses for this are in development stages already (Swedberg, 2013).

If a model can be developed that will support some sort of signal that can ping back to the phone when the app calls it, this will allow people to locate any strip. They can then put the strip on anything they don't want to lose, be in a book or a laptop, or a wallet or car keys. The applications from the user's perspective can be fairly broad. This technology, if priced right, can be attractive to both commercial and residential users.

There are several stakeholders, in addition to consumers. Existing technology rights holders are either potential suppliers or potential competitors, if they can develop a competing application. Certainly this is another area where smartphone makers and telecom companies are stakeholders since they are helping provide this service, and we would need the API for different mobile operating systems in order to make this work (Orenstein, 2000).

Existing technology that can be adapted for this purpose creates partnership opportunities -- we will need to find out who owns this technology, or if we will need to develop our own. Coding for the app, in addition to marketing ability, will be needed. Financial backers will need to be persuaded, as well as someone who can code an app (or three), in order that the app is produced, the technology licensed and that we have a marketing budget. Project #2 -- The second project is for a water solution.

Right now on the market there are individual water filters, and of course commercial availability of bottled water. But our drinking water resources tend to come from only a few reservoirs. If one were to be polluted, this would create significant strain on the water system and it would constrain health. There is risk from things like E.Coli and risk from terrorism as well, as an attack on the water supply would be incredibly destructive, and homeland security has identified water resources as being at risk (EPA, 2014).

We have enough rain in the Puget Sound region, and much of it goes straight back into the Sound, where it could be captured. In places that are off the grid, rainwater is often collected for drinking water. This works whether on a rainy tropical island or in the New Mexican desert -- if they can collect enough rainwater to live in the earthships outside of Taos, we can collect enough here (GSL, 2014).

This plan would involve working with the civic and county authorities who are in charge of water resources. They can use public lands to help collect and store this rainwater. Our business can be the contractor that supplies the water collection and storage systems. There is opportunity here for homeowners who want to take control over their own water supply as well.

The people who need the most convincing are going to be those at the various levels of government, who need to buy into this program, be motivated to deal with the threat, and find the money in their budgets. Project #3 -- Electric cars are still a niche product, but they have a lot of potential, or at least the folks at Tesla seem to think so. I was having a conversation with my son about this, and he asked why I didn't have a solar car.

I envisioned a car with solar panels on the roof, and how it wouldn't have enough power to get down a hill, much less up one. But when automobiles went big after World War One, a lot of industries sprang up to support this new consumer technology -- roadbuilding, taxis, mechanics and gas stations (HistoryLearningSite, 2014). The electric car may prove just as transformative. In Africa, they have mobile phone charging stations that run on solar power (SciDev, 2014).

I thought it would be a great idea to have mobile car charging stations that run on solar power. They'd need to be bigger, but the more people have electric cars, the more they are going to want to be able to get a quick charge on the go. Right now, charging takes too long, but you know they're working to get charging times down, because that's critical to selling more of these cars. And when that happens, you will need mobile charging. There are a number of stakeholders.

Again, there may.