Monday, April 24, 2006

IFTE #3 - CO detector for cars

Ideas From The Ether #3

I don't drive that often since I work from home, but when I drive, I have an 8 hour one-way commute to Santa Barbara, where my company, Occam Networks, is located. 8 hours gives you a lot of time for thinking, so my mind also wanders about how to improve one's driving experience.

How often do you get behind an old vehicle going up a hill and you see the black smoke coming out of it's exhaust ? You reach for your car's recirculate button but it's too late, you already let all those fumes into your car. A carbon-monoxide detector is a common thing you can get for homes. Why not have one in a car that is integrated with the car's air circulation system? As soon as it detects the CO, it puts the system into "recirculate" mode. For added bonus, it also activates the ionizer to add a bit more freshness to the air. For the design of the year award, it also detects skunks. Wouldn't you buy that optional feature if you were buying a new car ?

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