When I was only 10 years old, I remember my mother repeatedly asking me to assist her in finding her keys. I figured I should search for some sort of lost and found keychain. At the time, I imagined this keychain to be accompanied by a remote that (if she didn’t misplace that too) could signal the keychain to sound off, in synchronized beeps, the location of the lost keys. I searched throughout the entire local mall, and found that this technology did not exist. Yet now, in 2015, it has been over a decade of technological innovation. This type of lost and found technology is widely available for the public to purchase, and works beyond keychains.
Keychains to clip onto your precious “I-can-never-lose” items:
Honey, from PebbleBee, is a Bluetooth enabled tracking device. Their goal is minimize the amount of lost materials in the world. You simply add Honey to your key chain, pair it with your smartphone and live peacefully. When you find yourself searching for your keys, you can pull out your smartphone and signal for the Honey. It works up to 150 feet (depending on the obstruction in the space). Once you plus your smart phone are close enough to the Honey, you may signal the loud speaker to sound; allowing for easier finding.
Honey is not the only lost and found tracker the PebbleBee sells. They also have a newly Kickstarter funded device called Stone. Similar to Honey, Stone will provide to GPS location of whatever object you connect it to. But this device represents how wearables can be smart because if you leave your Stone and walk away with your smartphone – your phone will get a text message saying you left your Stone at said location. But Stone can go even further than being a simple keychain. You can customize the click and hold button to do basically anything, and to talk to a network of devices. The three sensors make is perfect for customization; motion, temperature, and range. The interface is super simple to use: download app, sync Stone, customize, and party!
You can attach GateKeeper to your keychain, ID pack, purse, backpack, or simply inside your pocket and locks your computer/smartphone once your GateKeeper is moved away from the computer’s vicinity. This is ideal for big corporations with security breaches, government officials, and healthcare professionals.
XYfindit is for sale for $25. Similar to the other lost and found tracking – you simply place it on all things that matter- keychains, pet collars, backpacks, bikes and more! The cool thing about XYfindit – is maybe you lost your valuable item and another XYfindit user is near it – they will get a notification to contact you. The trick is now you have to always keep track of your smartphone.
The O is another successful Kickstarter campaign. The O is a smart accessory that can act like your personal assistant. You simply place The O on an object that you need to keep track of. It is waterproof and has the ability to act as a keychain or a sticker. Whatever object The O is on is automatically connected to your smartphone. If you leave with your smartphone, but forget to object you will get an instant notification. They are now taking pre-orders for 2016. You can purchase a pack of 4, a pack of 8, and an extra keychain.
THE O is coming to the world, and it is because of YOU. Thank you so much to all of you who supported us! <3 pic.twitter.com/J3hkGQMcQR
— THE O (@owithme) 8. Oktober 2015
Keychains can be considered old school. There are many other form types of lost and found wearables.
A prime example is FiLIP; a wearable phone and tracker for children! The specs: voice calling is only able to contact 5 pre-set phone numbers. You can send one-way text messages to your child’s FiLIP. GPS for constant info on your childs whereabouts. You can also enable “safezones” for your childs location; once the child enter or leaves this zone you will get a notification to your smartphone. Last but not least, FiLIP is also a watch that has the current time and date.
Similarly, Watchie is a wristable for the elderly. It’s considered the world’s most advanced personal locator. Watchie is designed with elderly folks in mind; specifically those who are affected by Alzheimer and Dementia. Their technology is advanced for indoor and outdoor GPS locations.
It’s an employer’s responsibility to ensure that their staff is fit and healthy. 9 Solutions is the key to ensuring this is true for all situations. They provide a unique awareness by combining healthcare safety solutions and workflow optimization into a single device. The technology inside is called IPCS, Integrated Positioning and Communication System, it is a real time locating system developed my 9Soltuions. They keep is simple by offering user-friendly interfaces and precise accuracy for indoor tracking. eTag Pro is their current wearable device on the market. It can clip onto clothing and is designed to be used in hospitals, care homes, and home care environments. gTag is their newest tracking device that will come to the market soon! It will be the first wrist tag that enables real-time location of people indoors and outdoors. gTag comes equipped with the ability to send emergency and assistance calls – by request of pressing a button.
Wearsafe is a versatile tag that is designed to be discreet and fit into various lifestyles. You can wear is or hide – the choice is yours! You create a custom network of people who you can contact without others noticing. The technology works by you acitivating the apps alert options on your networks phone, when your phone is out of place, with a range of up to 200 feet. Your safe network will receive your GPS locations, a streaming audio to provide assistance. If additional assistance seems neccisary, your network can notify the authority to come to your locations. It is ideally meant for students, outdoorsy folks, travelers, and family. You can pre-order wearsafe today!
People love their pets enormously; thus leading to the wearable tech market for pets to be extremely profitable. DOTT hosted, yet another, successful Kickstarter campaign. DOTT is a piece of technology that can be worn on your pet like a collar tag. You connect DOTT to your smart phone to setup the “virtual leash” between your beloved pet and your handy smartphone. If your pet wanders away – you and the DOTT network will be notified. DOTT is now for sale for $30 plus services and shipping. No more lost pet signs in your neighborhood.
Rockettags was featured in our Traveling with Intelligence article. Nonetheless, their technology and innovative QR code stick-on tag is ideal of smartphones, suitcases, laptops and more. Using a QR code is ingenious. If you item is lost, the finder simply has to scan the code to be given information on how to return it back to its rightful owner.
There is no cure for remembering everything you need to carry with you. At least wearable tech designers and engineers can assist you in re-locating your precious items. After this article, WT hopes your find one of these eleven lost and found tags is ideal for your lifestyle.
